Week to remember and Heathrow Experience

Subject to paperwork being in order. My new employer

 So, I left Oxford on the 19th of September and had a job offer 7 days later. I am very lucky to have been job hunting for so little time, I received a contract this week and so subject to all details being assured and passing the type rating I have a job, however there is a little story working up to it.

I spoke to the graduate services guys just before I left on the Saturday after bumping into them, I let them know of my plans over the next few months, I heard Flybe where recruiting, so I put an application over the weekend and expected to maybe hear something over the next few months. I got home on the Saturday night after the Oxford open day and then got ready to take on my week as a job seeker. Around 3 weeks earlier than this I managed to be accepted for an interview at Stansted airport with a ground handling firm to gain experience. This was on the Wednesday morning. The Monday I spent organising my life again and setting up a study timetable for all my ground school books to review them if a potential interview came along in the future I wouldn't have a mad dash to re learn everything. I spent most of the day Tuesday with my head in the books.

On Wednesday morning I had to meet my brother in Cambridge at 6.15am to get some printed paperwork for my interview at Stansted. I then went to Stansted, met the other candidates, and was told all about the job (e.g. expectations, shift work etc.) and then we had some paperwork to fill out. As I was filling the paperwork out in-front of my potential new employer I felt my phone going off in my pocket. During a brief rest period I had a quick look at my phone, ''Sender, Oxford Graduated Services.... Subject, Good News!' - well, this looked good… The synopsis of the email said Flybe have requested an assessment day with me. I couldn't believe my luck, Flybe! I quickly messaged back asking, when: '9.30 on Thursday morning, Exeter’. What!? That's tomorrow and a 5 hour drive, and its 11.00 am now and I am an hour away from home. My day which started 5.30 was just about to get a whole lot longer. I needed to get home, book a hotel, get my hair cut, get my clothes, iron my shirt, read up on latest Flybe news (lucky I was already following them closely, more for share prices etc which I would be asked about) and get prepared as I could be to go into an interview the next morning. Oh, and drive the 5 hours in heavy rain. Sometimes you just have to take a deep breath and then think and do. 

BUT, first I had the interview to complete at Stansted, which went well and I think my farm work practical side helped- I was offered the job however I wasn't now in a position to say yes. Now its time to get home. I managed to find my interview notes from my First Office Fundamentals (FOF) week at Oxford 3 month previous which made me really glad that 1) I took notes that day and 2) kept them in a safe place. This is because usually when you leave Oxford you participate in a C.V. workshop and a interview workshop and then go to airlines. I have been told they really make a difference so I had booked in to them the month after I left. However, I had an interview now. So, do you go for it knowing you won't be prepared as you could be or cancel and hope you get selected again after completing the workshops a few months down the line? I wanted to work for Flybe. My gut feeling said, go for it.

After completing all the things above and popping to my Dad's office to print off Flybe information I was on the road. The drive turned out to be quite useful because I sat there asking myself interview questions and trying to perfect my technique of answering a question using the STAR method which I had written down on that piece of paper from FOF.

After interview, before sim session in hotel

I got down to Exeter at 7.30 that night and had a quick something to eat, drove the route to Flybe to enable no surprises in the morning and then settled in for shoe polishing, preparation and a nervous 'sleep'. I was up at 5 am to carry on preparing. If I pass the interview it said in the email, I was to stay on for the simulator assessment. I thought one thing at a time. Focus on the interview for now. If I knew what was going to happen on the day/s of the assessment I would of got some more sleep...  I didn't actually get home until Friday- then I got a call all cadet pilots want.

Next post, the Flybe assessment. 

Heathrow Experience

Skip forward 3 weeks and I had pre arranged a 2 day visit to United Airlines at Heathrow. This again was to gain experience at an airline with in house ground operations which would help me at a interview and make me a better pilot. By the time I went to Heathrow, I already had a job but I did it to help me gain an insight. I wasn't there to learn how to turn a particular aircraft around a certain way but a broad bush approach of the turn around process, complications and solutions.

It turned out to be just one day at Heathrow because on the second day I had to fly out to arrange a house before my type rating, but what an incredible, interesting, privileged day it was. Here are some photos which I will talk you through if your interested.

Pilots pre-flight

This is the operations team, there are 4 of them in the control room and they are they connection between all the services, crew, ground handling, passengers, ATC etc. I was there watching for roughly 2 hours watching the guys turn the planes around. It was amazing how cool calm collected these guys where under deadlines and pressure, they had multiple phone calls and radio interruptions but they kept 'the plates spinning' at all times. On one flight a 747 they had a no show passengers and a passenger who was removing himself and it very interesting to see the process of how to deal with these problems on multiple aircraft. The team-work between them was sleek and efficient at the same time. I learnt that pilots can help by being concise with their messages and be patient.  When you see your Google your flight number or see departure boards, this is where the information comes from.

I then went a did a pre-flight with the crew of a 767 flight to Chicago 

Checking the engineers work

767 and myself

Chatting with the captain from the right hand seat 10 mins from deptarture. Doesn't matter where or what you fly, aviation is a tight respectful industry.

Closing a flight

Big 777 feet.

5

Pushback to SFO (I think)

Size is amazing.

 I would like to thank United Airlines and my cousin for enabling me to look around their facilities. I haven't written the experience justice but take my word for it that it was a very interesting experience. I think its always important to keep learning and even though I won't be flying 777 out of a major hub or even ever flying for United I picked up on so many valuable things which can be used across aspects of aviation and my position at Flybe. For example, talking to ground handlers at LHR and other airports, one of the biggest complaints, rude pilots! Noted.... As I stated earlier aviation to me it seems, is a close nit community and people are very willing to help others out regardless of background or occupation. I like that.

Thank you for reading.