Page 37 - Sept 19 TNT

at my fighter pilot arrogance and helplessness while learning “the panel.” I can’t write about the traditions and humiliation tactics in the military fighter community for similar achieve- ments and events because those words, actions and training techniques are now considered inappropriate and hurtful to one’s delicate feelings. Did this old-school style of training, initiation and buddy-bonding make me more respectful, learn faster and become a better pilot and captain? Hell yes, it did. Things have changed. I’m Tellin’ Mom While taxiing for takeoff in a B-737 at a busy hub airport, the captain noticed the FO was bobbing his head as if to mu- sic. Sure enough, the copilot had Bluetoothed his newfangled, noise-canceling, fuel-injected, turbocharged, 4WD aviation headset to his SiriusXM satellite-enabled smartphone (also fuel injected with 4WD) and was grooving to some tunes – not from the 60s, 70s or 80s. Shocked, the captain instructed the brand-new, on probation FO to turn it off. His relaxed, matter- of-fact response was, “I won’t miss any radio calls.” Thinking that this was a satisfactory response, the FO continued with his head-bobbing disregard for the captain’s authority, FAR’s, company policy and most notably: the fear of a violent oxygen hose shaking or a backhand to the side of his head. The captain once again insisted that the FO discontinue listening to music. After a surprisingly indignant confrontation with rolled eyes to the cockpit ceiling (no, not the “flight deck” ceiling) and a disgusted blow of resignation, the FO complied. Here’s the kicker that has become the all-too-typical, go-to scenario in today’s “safe zone, no hurt feelings” environment: In response to the FO’s formal complaint to management (yes, he went and told his mommy), the company’s HR department called the above captain to have him explain why he had been verbally abusing the poor, young, traumatized FO. Fortunately, after the captain explained his actions as PIC, the FO was subsequently fired. This is not, however, the case across different workgroups. Do These Earbuds Make My Brain Look Small? A young pilot wishing to ride the jumpseat appeared in the cockpit. He needed a ride to the airline’s main hub to operate a f light later that night to London as a 777 FO. He was unshaven, in work-in-the-yard clothes and once the cockpit door was closed, pulled out a small pillow from his bag, removed his shoes and “laid” down in the jumpseat. Just prior to takeoff, the captain had to tell him to sit up and fasten his belt and harness. After passing through a cloud deck and continuing the climb to cruise, an FO at one of the regional carriers remarked to his captain, “Wow, this is great. I’ve never been on top of the clouds before.” Part 121 operations require that the captain provide a pre- flight briefing to not only cockpit crew members, but the lead flight attendant as well. While attempting to gain the atten- tion of the flight attendant for this briefing, who was on her cell phone staring at the captain while she talked for several more minutes, the FA sarcastically quipped to the person on the other end of the phone, “I guess the captain wants to talk to me, I’ll call you back in a second.” On another flight, the FA had to be asked to not only remove a display of jewelry on the galley shelf that she was attempting to sell to crew members but also to remove earbuds (and nowadays, AirPods) in order to hear the captain’s briefing. Passengers now carry their belongings in plastic bags, wear all manner of pants, skorts, leggings, shirts with varying degrees of sexual and political statements and footwear ranging from sandals to toe-socks. I reckon it’s a generational difference that will soon be acceptable among working crew members as the term “casual Fridays” is retired. M-I-L-LEN-NIA.....L! “You’veGottaLoveMillennials” –MicahTyler Sometimes millennials don’t shave before work and FAs (male and female) exert their “rights” by wearing a skirt with no hose, no makeup, multiple piercings in places that weren’t designed by God to have holes, or they wear tennis shoes with no socks. I’m glad that, at least so far, neither gender has viewed using toilet paper or toothpaste as an affront against their personal freedom, the gender to which they “choose to identify” or their right to avoid personal hygiene. Sometimes Gen X think the 0630 hotel van pickup time is exactly 0630. Even though by then, the van is full of other crew members who were in the lobby at 0620 and aboard the van at 0625. And then there are those who show up at the plane just 10 minutes before board- ing. These same folks often only run the deice system when the “book” says to – even if we are taking ice outside of some engineer’s “parameters.” Or they want to the fly FMS economy cruise speed whether it’s too fast for the existing ride condition or too slow for the $80,000 worth of connecting passengers that will misconnect. What Have We Done? As the majors scour the world for new pilots, the supply chain has changed from corporate pilots, universities and the military to mostly the regionals and soon, a few from airline subsidized pilot training programs. The change of sources comes with horror stories of pilot- pushing and extremely low pay, perhaps one of the reasons for the more cavalier attitude towards the profession. The old-school standards of radio dis- cipline, chain of command, time management September 2019 / TWIN & TURBINE • 35