Ryanair considers forced winter leave for pilots
Ryanair is apparently considering one day of forced leave in the first quarter of 2024 for each pilot to ensure full staffing during the busy summer travel period, setting up a potential pushback from pilots resisting the move. The Irish low-cost carrier said it needs to allocate the forced day off after finding insufficient leave assigned on rosters in the January-March period, according to memos sent to pilots across Europe in...
A Day in the Life Flying a 747 Freighter
A candid view of some of the practicalities and less glamourous side of life flying a 747F freighter around Asia. The pilot highlights the early starts, and how the idea of the 747F’s cockpit printer would have seemed so cool as a student pilot, but he cannot recall why?! Other aspects of the video illustrate some of the standard operating procedures (SOP) as a freighter crew member, plus the quality of the food! To take...
CAA publishes rejected take-off advice
The UK CAA has published updated advice on rejected take offs and how to handle them. Published in its ‘Clued Up’ safety journal, the CAA says that most, if not all, pilots will be prepared for an engine failure on take off, but not all issues are so clear cut. Citing an AAIB accident report, the CAA says that in interviews with PPL holders, Flight Instructors and Flight Examiners, the AAIB found that training and awareness of...
RAF admits ‘urgent’ requirement for new pilots
The Royal Air Force is bringing in outside assistance to help with a growing shortfall of aircrew in order to ensure that it has sufficient numbers of pilots and weapons operators to meet operational demands. The RAF has commissioned the Boston Consulting Group to suggest potential solutions to the issue, as to well as to gauge support for different options. The situation is so dire that at one point last year Defence Secretary Ben...
TUI pilot encourages more women to join the aviation industry
As TUI launches its Multi-Crew Pilot License (MPL) Cadet programme in the UK, TUI pilot Amy Bannister is calling on more females to join the aviation industry. Amy – who grew up around the aviation industry and has “wanted to fly for as long as [she] can remember” – has been a pilot for more than eight years and has since taken on a leadership role with TUI Airlines. As a Theoretical Knowledge Instructor training both pilots and crew,...
