Closing the Gap

Toward the end of this programme, the trainee S/O eventually goes on to line training- actually going for a trip in a real aircraft, albeit sitting in the jump seat behind a fully endorsed S/O. This is usually when the trainee S/O will feel that all of those days of absorbing the never-ending data in the classroom and the simulators and all of those nights at home consolidating the same, have at last, paid dividends.

Of course this is only the start of a new programme.

Apart from the basic criteria required (which Qantas frequently publishes) such as age limits, minimum number of command hours and so on, what sort of people are Qantas really looking for?

“Basically we’re looking for airline captains,” Ken Davenport said. “Of course, motivation, discipline, presentation and airmanship, all come into it. ”

After submitting an application, the aspirant will be contacted if it is to go further. Basically, a successful applicant will pass an eyesight test, a psychological test and satisfy the initial interview board (consisting of two line captains and a recruiting manager) they can then proceed to the medical and flight and simulator test. After successfully completing this phase, the applicant appears before the final interview board (consisting of a psychologist, two management captains and a recruiting manager). A recommendation is then made and final approval comes from the Director of Flight Operations.

It is worth mentioning that the ‘psyche test’ contributes to the folklore surrounding the Qantas entry requirements. Essentially it is a test of aptitude to broadly determine an applicant’s mechanical, verbal and written skills and not to uncover a phobia of walking under ladders.

Out of 800 applicants from the recent induction programme, Qantas has selected 200. Qantas are quick to qualify that they honestly don’t feel they’re being too overly selective; they further qualify this by expressing disappointment at the number of applicants who present themselves poorly at interviews (that is who fail to display leadership qualities and a true sense of airmanship and indeed, who aren’t even certain why they are applying). It is no secret that Qantas will be seeking several hundred more pilots and are eager to fill these positions, but they are also equally concerned by the overall standard observed to date.

How should pilots prepare themselves for a better-than-ordinary chance of acceptance then? The writer spent several days at the Ground Training Centre and it became apparent very quickly why motivation and discipline are sought.

Firstly, a high degree of application is expected, especially while the trainees are familiarising themselves with the numerous aircraft systems, associated cockpit checks and flight deck management. Qantas have a term for this-closing the gap. Closing the knowledge gap between the pilot and the aircraft: “An effort to cross-reference, correlate and integrate information beyond the bounds of one’s necessary study programme. ” An inquiring mind is called for.

The trainee may spend several hours in a classroom being briefed on a system, then adjourn to another room for computer-based training (CBT). CBT delivers information to overhead ‘touch-sensitive’ screens; students have a keyboard on their desks and can respond to the instructor’s cues in a definitive way. Qantas maintains that as a support tool, CBT effectively reduces crew time in the simulators, thus saving costs.

Secondly, after a thoroughly utilised day delving into a particular function of the 747 (all new pilots initially study the 747 -even if it is their ultimate aim to fly the 767), the trainee is expected to take books and notes home to corroborate the day’s knowledge and to prepare for the following day. . . often it is a session in the ground or flight simulator requiring an understanding gained through many hours of study. This process is repeated day after day, week after week, month after month. Only motivation and discipline will guide the trainee through this phase. Is this what you are prepared to invest? For their part, Qantas have invested heavily in seeing that trainees will have their load lightened as much as possible. The classrooms are air-conditioned and soundproofed. Audiovisual tapes, slide equipment, 16mm films and videos are heavily utilised. Individuals can also rectify any gremlins in their own’ progress by resorting to the privacy of training carrels which use the same 35mm slide training packages as in the classroom.

Trainees have constant access and can self pace their learning process. When a thorough understanding of the theory has been obtained, trainees commence their practical training in a computer-controlled ground simulator; this is a facsimile of the 747’s cockpit and uses the same software programme as the flight simulators. Classroom and ground simulator phases must be completed before trainees can proceed to the flight simulator phase. Perhaps this starts to exemplify the importance of the motivation and self discipline qualities required.

Presentation is how the applicants will ‘sell themselves’. An inflated ego is not soon as a desirable leadership attribute- a euphoric wilting reticence. Qantas are looking for straight and level character traits. It is thought that the applicant who makes an effort to learn something of the aircraft which Qantas operate will not only be telling themselves that they want to join Qantas – they will also be telling themselves why. Good grooming of course, goes without saying.

To evaluate ‘hands-on’ the training experience, we attended a flight simulator session at the Jet Base. This was a training session for two S/Os who were upgrading to F/OS (First Officers). The day commenced in a conventional classroom with Captain Dick Wilkinson instructing on the Avalon circuit pattern. Qantas pilots spend a considerable amount of time around that airport perfecting actual aircraft techniques. There is a lot to know.

Our day at the Jet Base began with an interesting application of the 3° glideslope: add a zero to approach speed, halve it and add 50′ and there is your rate of descent, pretty well. We are told that the 747 is ‘a numbers airplane’ and this is the first of a series of numbers that Qantas pilots will have to memorise; there are plenty after this of a more exact nature: speed, flap setting, attitudes, bank angles, altitude, aileron settings and power settings. The latter are different for the Rolls Royce RB211 and the Pratt & Whitney JT9D-in fact two separate flight simulators are dedicated to the respective engines. Time sequences are important, dependent on wind velocity; while on this subject we are told emphatically ‘always know what the wind is doing’ – it will affect drift, downwind interval, glideslope and approach speed – particularly if wind shear is present.

Then some local geography surrounding Avalon, with the emphasis on areas to be avoided: the aluminium works, the Shell refinery, Geelong Grammar, Little River township, the military firing area. This is while the weather is good. For bad weather a lot of other numbers are necessary.

A short break and then into the simulator.

Captain Wilkinson and S/Os Tim Green and Stuart Hunter set to work and intense work it was. Initially, taxying and full circuits were called; when it became apparent that both pilots had the sequences fully under control an interesting feature of the flight simulators was then applied – a facility called ‘snapshot. The simulator can be frozen at an altitude along the glideslope – say 600′ or 300’; then, an approach is commenced from this position, with the computer each time faithfully delivering a realistic night appearance to the approach – even to such detail as moving car headlights near the airport boundary.

As each landing phase through to reverse thrust is completed. so the process begins again, returning to the snapshot and commencing the next approach. Over and over Captain Wilkin- son controlled this exercise, coaxing and offering hints: aiming point on the runway, ground speed and rate of descent steady. Power centralised, ‘drive to aiming point’, radio altimeter cue, commence flare, power off, peripheral vision, nose 5° up; now with cross-wind-ensure tracking along the runway, avoid rush, one unit of aileron for every 10kt off the nose; on and on it goes. Finally the session comes to an end in the late afternoon. Our day was completed with a debriefing back in the original classroom. For my part the session had concluded, but for Tim and Stuart it was home that night to read up on procedures and then an early rise the following morning for a trip to Avalon to perform the real thing. A pilot aspiring to join Qantas can expect this sort of intense training for the rest of his career and should therefore honestly ask of himself if this is the sort of flying career he truly wants.

“We have to be careful in our selections,” Captain Davenport said, “after all we’re gambling with a million dollar career. ” Clearly, Qantas training is constantly working towards providing maximum safety and eliciting the highest levels of airmanship, which explains its enviable international reputation. I asked Captain Davenport about airmanship.

“It’s man and aircraft management and displaying a professional approach to aviation- being totally familiar with the aircraft and keeping ahead of it. We’re looking for people who have this approach. ” It’s interesting to note that Captain Davenport is well aware of Qantas recruiting largely from General Aviation and is sympathetic towards that hard school, possibly because of his own experience when he flew Norsemans and Ju-52s for Gibbes Sepik Airways in New Guinea.

As the pilot advances in Qantas, all of those stories heard about the simulator become fact: engine failures during takeoff roll, rapid depressurizations, two engines out on approach and the good old NDB letdown. Finally, the day may come when the position of check captain is achieved. In a way, a little like returning to the role of flight instruction from the right hand seat.

Careers do exist in Qantas for the right people. The secret is in the pilot’s attitude – to begin thinking like an airline captain and the time to start is while the pilot is gaining experience and command hours and honing skills that could one day yield great rewards.

Footnote: Two books well worth reading are: “Handling the Big Jets’ by D. P. Davies and ‘Qantas Rising’ by Hudson Fysh.