Good Lifestyle

Even if certain minor aspects have changed over the years, the act of embarking on a plane and taking off has become a fairly routine operation. Of course, experienced travelers will be more aware of certain travel tips, such asWhat not to pack And how to avoidChoose the bad seat. But for some of the most interesting information on the air travel experience that few people know, you have to talk to people who manage the whole operation. Read more to learn some of the secrets about the flight of the airline pilots themselves.

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The planes are incredible exploits of modern engineering, no matter how you look at them, from the design of the planes that allows them to take flight, the engines that keep them there and all the instruments that help between the two. At the same time, strict regulations have assured that getting on a flight remains a remarkably safe decision. However, even if the maintenance teams will never disconnect in an airplane that is not in good shape to take off, there could still be persistent problems with your airliner during your trip.

"You might think that everything in an airplane must function properly to make a safe flight, but this is not the case. The pilots can control aircraft with non -functioning systems, which are listed in a document called the list of equipment Minimum (Mel), "Duke Armitage, aAirline pilot With 15 years of experience and founder of Aviamonde, saysBetter life. "A simple example would be for landing lights to be inoperative during day operations. In most cases, this provision is only valid for a few days in which the repair must be carried out."

Modern technology has taken the miracle of the flight and made it even more impressive with embedded computer systems that help navigate the roads, eludeSerious weather problems, and come back to the ground safely. But as advanced as the automatic pilot has become on planes, there is still a lot of work for humans behind orders.

"Most of the itinerant audience supposes that planes fly more or less themselves and that the pilots are only there as a backup, and it is completely absurd. People have a largely exaggerated sense of what the Cockpit automation and how pilots interact with it, "Patrick Smith, aAirline pilot And the host of Askthepilot.com, saysBetter life.

"There are parts of a flight where the workloads are very low, but there are also times when it is very high. The two pilots can always become saturated even with automation. But whatever it Arrives, the pilots always fly the plane: the automatic pilot only does what you say and how you say it to do it, "he explains.

Smith says that just as technology on board has changed, how drivers use it. "The flight is always practical, but not as in the 1930s. You may not have your hands physically on the steering stick, but you control and always control the plane, using instruments and controls, A passenger would not be noticed, "he says.

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No matter where you are heading, it is a well -known fact that there will always be at least two crew members in the cockpit when you take off. But on some flights, you will also see additional crew members on board.AE0FCC31AE342FD3A1346EBB1F342FCB

"On long flights, we fly with increased crews. Instead of the two required pilots, we bring three or four and work in teams," explains Smith, who is also the author ofConfidential cockpit.

The number of spare crew members on board depends on the specific policy of each airline and the duration of the flight. Smith says that in the case of his carrier, any trip of eight hours or more to three pilots, while the long-hauns which are 12 hours or more will have four pilots who operate in rotations. "But there are always at least two pilots in the cockpit at a time," he said.

Very few jobs require the level of vigilance that a pilot must have during a flight. By coincidence, there are also few jobs that regularly require a crew to work more than eight hours at the same time at all hours of the day. Fortunately, the spare pilots that the airlines plan to have on board allow them to work and even close their eyes. But it's not in the cockpit where they dose.

"Some planes have remote crew rest installations above or below the bridge, which is generally a room with two or more berths. They can actually be quite spacious!" Smith said. "It could also be a class of class or class of business completed separated by a curtain. And there are separate rest installations for on -board agents."

In fact, so few people know pilot sleep schedules so that it can lead to fun situations, at least from the crew point of view.

"It's funny because sometimes the passengers will see a pilot get out of the cockpit and fall asleep! What they do not see is that the rotation of the crew takes place," explains Smith, who adds that He is awakened on flights to Flyers colleagues looking impatiently he rests. "Some pilots will even announce this to make sure that passengers are comfortable."

Even as passengers, there is a long list of items that you would probably not dowant to eat before or during a flight. This is particularly true if it is your job to control the plane in question. But unlike the urban legend that each crew member of the cockpit mustDivide their meals choices To avoid food poisoning, it is far from a quick and hard rule.

"Most airlines say it is recommended - not compulsory - that the pilots manage different crew meals, if they are available. In practice, it is not really adhered," says an anonymous pilot for a large American airlineBetter life.

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Although this may seem to be the ideal moment to relax and relax, the over-indulgence in craft drinks on planes has become a problem on the scale of industry. During the Pandemic COVID-19, many airlines instituted a temporary ban on alcohol sales in response to growing incidents. And although it is always your duty to be responsible at any time and wherever you take an alcoholic drink, hovering in the sky certainly changes the way it affects you.

"Most planes are under pressure at 8,000 feet",LAURA EINSETLER, apilot for a large American airline and author of Captainlaura.com, tellsBetter life. "Air pressure is thinner, so everything you take and drink becomes a little more effective than normal because our blood is also a little thinner."

If you do not want to abstain during your flight, EinSetler recommends at least to reduce your typical consumption in two while in the air to take into account the difference.

As a long -standing veteran of the air transport industry, Smith says that he is used to the films that obtain many aspects of the cockpit and the crew. But he says that a little disinformation that disturbs him most is the idea that the pilot's literal law on the plane is often described as "this apprentice subalter pilot", which, according to him, does not could not be further away from reality.

"Yes, there is a captain and a first officer, and sometimes they are familiar as a co -pilot. But that does not mean that they know something less or train," explains Smith. "Due to the wave of the airline system of airlines, it is not uncommon for the co -pilot to be older and more experienced than the captain. The captain's upgrades are not based on merit. They are based on The seniority position and whether or not you wish - and many pilots prefer the life of a co -pilot. "

Smith himself says that he is one of the many who have chosen to stay on the co-pilot chair for what he considers an excellent reason. "I have total control of my schedule at the moment: I can choose when and where I go on my routes and build my own monthly schedule. I appreciate this quality of life and I would not want to sacrifice it by changing seats ", He saidBetter life.

There is probably nothing worse than being taken in the middle of a timetable at the airport. But if it can be easy to transfer the blame to the powers in place in the airline, the pilots maintain that companies never try to be honest with their customers.

"I would say that around 90% of people do not believe what they hear above the intercom when something is canceled or delayed, or they believe that it is a great deception," says Smith. "The airlines are very compartmentalized. You have all these different departments which have their own vernacular and priorities, and when the information is transmitted from one to the other, the messages are blurred."

Instead, poor internal communication can make some relatively simple wacky news. "Often, what you hear about the P.A. at the door is a bit of" Broken Phone "messaging- as far as it is concerned, a simplified or blurred version of what is really going on. Sometimes it is exactly correct, but during A delay, there are a lot of mobile parts - traffic control, maintenance, crews, and more - which also change, "he saidBetter life. "It could be a bit of each of these, and that is why the explanations do not seem to have meaning."

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For decades, it is contrary to the rules to make a call from your mobile phone during a flight. And although it is always a good idea to keep your device in plane mode, it is probably not for the reason you think it is.

"The whole mobile phone is a kind of old subject because I think most people have understood that it was not one thing. It was the most common question that people asked me", underlines Smith. "Of course, he cannot crush a plane, but there is anecdotal evidence that she can interfere."

However, he thinks that there is another reason why you are still not allowed to compose in the sky. "I think that a lot is that airlines prohibit them for the social aspect. Imagine that 200 people speak all about their mobile phones at the same time: the flight would be even worse than it is already!" he says. He adds: "There may not even be a cellular service in cruising altitudes."

The dynamics of the relationship between the driving team and the passengers can sometimes seem to be flavored or weak: such events are unfortunately not entirely avoidable in high pressure situations. But airline employees are generally optimistic that anyone is ready to do the right thing when the time comes.

"Some of us also consider our crew," says EinsetlerBetter life. "We all work together to have a pleasant and safe flight, to look at each other. We are counting on you to talk if you see or hear something that does not seem well, that it has to do with another passenger, A crew member, airport or plane. "