AIRLINE PILOTS DUTIES.

Pilots job is exciting and challenging, but it also carries a lot of

responsibility.
.
Pilots duties include:
Getting information about the route
Working out a flight plan, including the route
Calculating take off and landing weights
Briefing the cabin crew before flight.
Carrying out preflight checks on all systems.
Communicating with air traffic control
Communicating with passengers using public address system.
Reacting quickly and appropriately in emergencies.
Updating the aircraft logbook and /or writing a report at the end
of the flight noting any incidents or problems with the aircraft.
On short haul flights , there is usually a pilot and co-pilot. On
long-haul flights, there
are normally 3 pilots.
Some pilots work in other areas of aviation such as crop spraying ,
flight testing and flight training.
SKILLS.
My profession demands:
The ability ()to follow spoken instructions from air
traffic control.
Good team working skills.
The ability to give clear, confident () instructions to
crew members.
The ability to work with technology.
Have good hand-to-eye coordination.(. )
The ability to interpret maps and displays.
Good written communication skills.
The ability to remain calm and able to take charge in emergency.
(stress resistence)
Good memory
Fatigue resistance
Stress resistance
Professional skills and knowledge
But the most importantis high responsibility level.

Landings
85% of aviation incidents and accidents happen at take-off and
landing. During approach and landing there may be problems with
undercarriage, flaps, slats, thrust reverse, brakes and so on. The
gear can be jammed. If the crew is not sure of the position of the
gear they have to request to hold over the aerodrome to perform
a check or a low pass over the tower for a visual check of the
gear. If the gear is not locked it may collapse during landing roll.
In case of belly landing the crew must request to cover the RW
with foam to avoid fire and reduce damage to the aircraft. The
brakes of an aircraft can overheat during roll out. The crew can
also have problems with nose wheel steering. Another reason for
landing incidents is landing on RW with bad RW surface condition.
So we must always have reliable information about RW surface
condition before landing to avoid incidents. During landing with
strong cross wind it is difficult to line up the aircraft before
touchdown. So it can land with a bank and touch the RW with one
main gear or even the wing. It can cause serious damage or a
crash. We dont often have to go around in reality but I think this
procedure should be trained at the simulator. The crew may go
around due to wind shear on final, decreasing visibility, some
obstacles on the RW, overshooting or instructions of the controller
Take of
Take off is a critical phase of flight because any significant loss
of power or engine failure can cause serious problems. We have
little time to make decisions so we have to act very fast. Any
mistake can be critical for safety. There are three important
speeds at take off: V1, Vr and V2.
V1 is a decision speed. Before V1 the crew can abort take off,
but after V1, they have to continue take off because the aircraft
cannot be stopped on the remaining RW safely.
Vr is a rotation speed at which the wings generate enough lift for
the aircraft to become airborne.
V2 is the minimum speed at which flying remains (= is) safe even
if one engine fails.

The crew can decide to abort take off if they have engine fire
or other technical problems before decision speed. Take off can be
aborted due to obstacles on the RW. The controller can also
request to abort take off.
If the aircraft hasnt passed the decision speed the captain can
make a decision to abort take off. He moves the throttles to idle
and turns on the thrust reversers. Thrust reversers provide
efficient braking when the aircraft is rolling at high speed. The
pilot sets the brakes and extends the spoilers to reduce lift. So the
aircraft touches the tarmac better to improve wheel braking
efficiency.
Duties
(Before the flight/ during taxiing/during take off/in level
flight/during approach/during landing/after the flight)
I have to../ I can.
In my opinion, take off and landing are the most difficult stages of
flight because I have to (operate the aircraft/ be on the alert to
assist the captain if required/ control the aircraft instruments/
control rate, heading and altitude/ keep radio contact/ report
actual and assigned altitudes, etc.) We have little time to make
decisions so we have to act very fast. Any mistake can be critical
for safety.
All crew members have a lot of work in flight but our workload
depends on the stage of flight. I think the navigator is the busiest
in level flight, because he has to control the accuracy of flight and
insert necessary route data. He can also perform radio
communication if the radio-operator is having a rest.
Simulator training is important ,because it is real to life
training , you practice how to work in the emergency .