A level of satisfaction

First Steps Back Then

One thing that hasn’t changed, nor is it likely to, is the individual’s passion to fly. That spark is often ignited early in life, either by casting the eyes skyward or through the direct contact with the industry through family or friends. And while a purely romantic perception of an aviation career can pose problems, there is little doubt that honest enthusiasm is needed to sustain an individual when times are tough.

Thirty-five years ago, the landscape was very different when seeking a civil flying career. There were upper age limitations to the tune of 27 for the domestic carriers, and a similar age for the national airline. The number of female airline pilots was still in single digits for most airlines and the relaunching of the QANTAS cadet scheme was some years off. As a result, there was little time to procrastinate about a career choice. One had to get qualified and get experience before the biological clock struck midnight.

Only a few integrated flying schools existed that offered full-time courses which co-ordinated flying training and ground theory, for which the regulator granted a reduction in the minimum total flying time for a Commercial Pilot’s Licence, from 175 hours to 150 hours.

Theory examinations were required to be sat only at designated dates at the designated rooms of the Department of Transport/Civil Aviation Authority. (There was a name change during these years, prior to the emergence of CASA). Similarly, flight tests for licences and ratings were all conducted by the department’s ‘Examiners of Airmen’. The phrase ‘tough but fair’ was almost synonymous with these gentlemen who were predominantly ex-military and inevitably came with a tremendous wealth of experience. Demand was high for their services, so bad weather or an unsuccessful test could mean a six-week wait until the next slot with an examiner became available.

On a positive note, on successfully applying for a student pilot’s licence, a large brown parcel would arrive on the doorstep. Inside would be a Visual Flight Guide, charts and all the documentation needed to begin flying training, other than a log book. This was all free, as was the ongoing amendment service, even if the page by page manual amendment process was a little laborious.

Today, integrated schools are more common, age and gender are no longer legislated as barriers and cadet schemes are on the rise once more, from regional airlines to international carriers. Significantly though, the user-pays philosophy encompasses both the services provided by the regulator and cadet schemes alike.

It has never been cheap to learn to fly and $70 per hour dual in the mid-1980s might sound cheap, but it was still a large proportion of a young person’s wage as the average wage back then was cited as being around $380 per week. Today, the proportion of an hour’s flying training relative to the current average wage is at least that, if not more. Additionally, there were no landing fees, airspace charges, ASICs, chart subscriptions and so on. In fact, most navigation exercises into Bankstown would include at least a tough-and-go at Sydney’s Kingsford Smith Airport, if not a full stop landing to taxi back and await departure sitting behind one of the big jets. Imagine doing that now! Yes, a lot has changed.

Landing a Job

That first paid flying job has always been the Holy Grail of a career in aviation. In theory, a bare commercial licence permits the holder to fly for a living under Visual Flight Rules (VFR) and the trek to the outback was made by many. While some were fortunate to land a job, a good number also spent many hours working in local hotels or driving taxis waiting for that first break. In my time in Kununurra the saying was, “Want a pilot? Shake a tree.” And it wasn’t too far from the truth.

Even if one could secure a single-engined VFR charter job, at some point a multi-engine instrument rating was needed. Whether that was done initially on obtaining a commercial licence, or once the individual had built up some charter experience was a choice for the individual. Some opted for a Flight Instructor Rating in the first instance and moved up from there.

Either way, the self-funded aspiring pilot needed to gain the qualifications and experience to ultimately be eligible for the airlines. And don’t forget that the 27 years of age deadline could close in very quickly. To that end, some would take out loans to consolidate their training in concentrated stints, for others it was a pay-as-you-go drawn out battle. Often holding down multiple jobs and bouncing between Technical Colleges for theory classes at night school between weekly flying lessons at the airport. As a side note, the theory courses at the Technical Colleges were virtually free-of-charge as well.

Undertaking instrument training, ILS approaches could be flown and practised at major international airports and a wealth of airfields had a range of ground-based navigation aids. There was no-GPS or moving maps, but there was a requirement to pass an exam to receive Morse Code at ten words-per-minute. There was also the convoluted process known as DME-homing and ‘Back Beam’ approaches.

Regardless of the era, landing that first job is difficult and again, perhaps it is even more so today. General aviation has reduced in its scale over the years through several mechanisms. Small flying schools have tended to merge into larger institutions and whereas ‘bank runs’ would see a mass of smaller Barons and Cessna 310s flying freight, larger turboprops have become more prevalent in the freight world, reducing the number of jobs available. Similarly, the wonderfully reliable Cessna Caravan EX can carry 13 passengers more spaciously and speedily on scenic flights over the Kimberley’s ‘Bungle Bungles’ which is nearly three times the load of the trusty Cessna 206 and C210 with only a single pilot required. Many other companies and avenues of entry have just ceased to exist.

Even then, to secure a job in multi-engined operations required a substantial amount of multi-engined experience. It is the Catch-22 that has hounded fledgling commercial pilots from day one – everyone wants experience, but where is it to be found? Entry into the domestic airlines once required an unwritten minimum of 1,500 hours of multi-engine flight time before standing a chance of gaining an interview. I recall having more than 4,000 hours, including 2,000 hours ‘multi’, when I joined Ansett Australia and I was the second most inexperienced pilot on my training course.

These days

Today, the path to a career with a commercial airline can be more direct and structured with more integrated schools and airline cadetships in existence. That is not to say that there are necessarily more opportunities as competition for places is always tight.

The general aviation path of going bush or becoming a flying instructor still exists, but not of the same scale that once existed. Flying schools will undoubtedly be needing new instructors as the combination of airline recruitment of their talent and a greater demand for flying training creates vacancies.

Increasingly, airlines are acquiring their recruits at grass roots level and training them in affiliated schools. There is a definite synergy in the training and the culture imposed from day one in such an environment. Crew Resource Management (CRM) and multi-crew philosophies are the mantra for such organisations as their training is tailored towards the end goal of an airline pilot. It is to this backdrop that some have called into question the relevance of general aviation experience and the traditional outback trek. That is a totally separate debate, with both sides impassioned.

For those passing through the airline schools, on graduation they are inducted into the airline and trained on the particular RPT aircraft that they are to fly on commercial routes. For some airlines, the endorsement on the aircraft type is within the company system, while the trainee pilot is employed on a wage. For others, the endorsement is another cost plugged onto the end of their flight training bill.

Perhaps this is an area where the greatest change has taken place over the past few decades. Unless selected for a fully-funded airline cadetship, initial flight training and acquiring ratings has always been costly, whichever route was taken. However, once an airline position was secured, the subsequent training costs were traditionally borne by the company.

A modern potential airline cadet must sensibly consider the financial implications of the debt to be incurred and the capacity to pay it back on gaining full-time employment. Therein lies another cautionary note, while the vast majority of cadets will gain employment with the airline, very few companies will guarantee a position at the completion of training. Furthermore, there may be some time between graduation and a position becoming available for the most successful candidate. Although in the current climate one would suspect that the airlines are keenly awaiting their new graduates.

The Job is not the Same

Whichever route has been travelled to the flight deck, it is a journey of commitment with a very satisfying end goal. It has undoubtedly changed over the years as once upon a time, securing an airline position in Australia was a job for life, akin to working for the government at the time. Various events have caused this to change.

The 1989 Pilot’s Dispute caused a major upheaval in the profession and it is a little worrying that some of today’s pilots are not even aware of the event as there were many lessons learned at the time. Additionally, the demise of the ‘Two Airline Policy’ changed the aviation landscape. In 2001, the collapse of Ansett Australia served as a reminder that the job for life era had passed. All of these events, and the growth of low-cost airlines globally, have meant that the profession has changed.

The career is also more mobile than it once was. Pilots can move from airline to airline through choice, rather than necessity. In the global economy, pilots are a global commodity. As various regions spike in demand, pilots are more prepared to change locations, either for variety or the potential to further their careers.

Ansett Australia was famously referred to as “A great airline but a poor business’, by Sir Rod Eddington. In a few words, he encapsulated the modern philosophy of airlines and their need to be an ever-leaner business. Aircraft sitting on the ground don’t make money, so utilisation is critical. With increased utilisation comes increased frequency of service, and that means that the layovers in ports are generally shorter than they once were. Similarly, pilots are generally flying more hours per annum than they were thirty years ago.

At the pilot level, induction training was predominantly ‘chalk and talk’ lessons in a classroom environment with a heavy emphasis on aircraft systems knowledge. Today, the philosophy of modern aircraft and endorsement training has reduced the degree of systems knowledge and the way the various systems are managed by pilots. Similarly, classroom time has reduced with the advent of Computer Based Training (CBT) and other various training aids.

The simulators used in endorsement training have evolved greatly. Once heaving flight decks on hydraulic legs, their visual displays were limited to all-black night representations with a series of dots for runways, taxiways and cities alike. Endorsements could not be completed in the simulator alone, so a series of circuits with take-offs and landings would be flown in the actual aircraft without passengers to complete the qualification. Even engine failures after take-off were practised in the aircraft.

The modern tech-age has equipped today’s simulators with visual displays that have to be seen to be believed. Hydraulics are increasingly being replaced by electrical systems and pilots can be signed-off on the aircraft type with simulator training alone, although airlines inevitably have ‘line training’ in the aircraft and some still even opt for circuit training.

The perceived prestige of an airline career is not what it was decades ago, but neither is the status of air travel when passengers would don their best outfits to fly. Nevertheless, frequent surveys reflect that being an airline plot still rates highly as a trusted profession and for those in the industry, it still has much to offer.

Now and Then

In a world of change, certain aspects of an aviation career have not changed. It is still populated by many individuals who remain enthused about flying for a living and see it as a calling as much as a profession. It remains a career where the individual is challenged throughout, from routine simulator checks to undertaking endorsement training that may span months of study.

For some, the prospect of remaining in the books until their twilight years and having a check captain peering over their shoulder on a regular basis is daunting. True, it can be a source of stress and even loathing for some. However, it goes hand in hand with the level of satisfaction that comes from the positive challenges that an airline career can provide.

Pursuing an aviation career has never been an easy road, nor has it necessarily been a fair one. There have been tremendous pilots who have failed to secure a place in an airline simply because their timing fell within the years that recruitment was in a lull. However, for the majority of those fortunate enough to stay the course and pursue an airline career, it has been a worthwhile journey. Even if it is a different road today to the one that was travelled in decades past.