BackChapter 4

Who Is Really Flying the Aircraft?

You may never see us. But there are two highly trained pilots up front, and behind them an entire system of people whose only job is to make your flight uneventful.

The people you never meet

Flight dispatchers plan your route, fuel and alternates hours before you board. Meteorologists brief the weather. Engineers sign the aircraft as fit to fly.

Air traffic control watches every aircraft continuously. Cabin crew are safety professionals first and hospitality second. Maintenance teams work to schedules measured in hours flown, not guesswork.

Trained, tested, and tested again

Airline pilots are not certified once and left alone. We are checked in the simulator twice a year, examined on the line, and medically assessed regularly for as long as we fly.

In the simulator we deliberately practise the rare events — engine failures, system failures, bad weather approaches. So when something unusual happens in the real world, we don't meet it for the first time. We recognise it.

Carry this on board

By the time you board, dozens of professionals have already agreed this flight is safe.