Twenty-year-old FO!

[CASHMAN797]

Airlines have hired pilots in their early twenties for years. I can think of a couple at Eastern and Piedmont (the old piedmont) back in the 70s/80s hired at 22-25yrs.

 

[JohnnyP]

.....

It's more of his judgement and decision making skills that concerns me.

Ok, I may be an idiot here, but how does the military provide the judgement and decision making skills when the pilots only have 500TT? Just because you're supposed to be the "cream of the crop" doesnt mean your going to hold together when the situation starts to fall apart. I used to figure that judgement and decision making came from years of experience? Have I been wrong all this time?

 

[JohnnyP]

Airlines have hired pilots in their early twenties for years. I can think of a couple at Eastern and Piedmont (the old piedmont) back in the 70s/80s hired at 22-25yrs.

And now those guys hired at 22 years old and no experience are your 747 captains taking you to japan. You trust them, dont you? Remember, before all their hair turned gray like that, they were just "punks" with no experience in the right seat of a CV880 or whatever the case may have been. Worked out pretty well, wouldnt you say?

You get put in an RJ at 1500 hrs, you will learn, just like everyone else did. These things arent falling out of the sky everyday, turbines are reliable, and captains dont become incapacitated on a daily basis (people seem to like to use that excuse about the captain having a heart attack and the FO having to save the day on some single engine approach to min's. Im sure it has happened and will happen again, but how common is that guys? Lets be realistic here). People arent worried about the safety issue, but the fact that someone got a chance at an earlier time in their carrier than they did and they resent them for it.

 

[BCpilot81]

I wish the kid the best, and it is an awesome feet. However, I took my CFI checkride where he trained, by Jack Taylor, Judging by the way that I fly, standards are about 2% performance and 98% money. But come to think of it, so is the airline industry!!

 

[EMB170Pilot]

http://www.coloradoan.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060719/BUSINESS/607190328/1046

I hope the industry doesn't kill the love of flying this kid evidently has.

WELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL

LADIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE FREAKIN DAH!!

WE GOT OURSELVES A PILOT OVER HERE!

Hey dad I cant see so good is that Chuck Yeager over there?

Uhhh Chris we actually encouraged Brian to be a pilot.

Dad I wish you could just shut your big

YAAAPPPPPPPPPPER!!!

Seriously, Congrats to the kid and best of luck!

 

[Fins Up]

WELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL

LADIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE FREAKIN DAH!!

WE GOT OURSELVES A PILOT OVER HERE!

Hey dad I cant see so good is that Chuck Yeager over there?

Uhhh Chris we actually encouraged Brian to be a pilot.

Dad I wish you could just shut your big

YAAAPPPPPPPPPPER!!!

hahahahaha. That's funny.

 

[Captainzero1]

Why can't you regional guys pay to have your uniforms tailored. The kid looks like a dork in that off the rack polyester suit.

 

[TheDogsBollocks]

good for him but I don't see the "big deal factor"

the airplane don't know how old you are. 20 year old flying a turboprop (as copilot)?

that "wow" factor should be tempered with 25 year olds flying Mach 2 with lethal weapons strapped to the wings, single pilot in fighters.

put the two together and its no big deal

I certainly agree, however it's the 18-23 year olds that were flying B-17's etal during WW2 that truly deserve the "wow" factor!

 

[Squanto]

What is the average number of hours of a newhire F.O at a regional? 1400 hours this guy has? I'll take the bus......

 

[CesnaCaptn]

Dude, how'd you find this thread?

 

[Kugelblitz]

Yaaa, umm I'm going to have to go ahead and disagree with you there. Greedy business people ruined this industy. The love of flight is what keeps this biz going.

Call me a bast*rd, but hiring too many immature people isn't doing this industry any favors either. I don't know anything about this kid, and I do mean kid (he just got his friggin drivers license), but there are some real issues with maturity not being addressed.

A recent crash of a ferry flight CRJ revealed on the CVR a crew unable to discuss the events unfolding without sounding like a South Park episode (not that there is anything wrong with South Park). There are way to many people pre-occuppied with the wrong aspects of being a pilot (ie getting laid) and not flying the airplane. Granted, there are plenty of us old farts with issues, but the rate with which we are maturing seems to be slowing and the notion of putting a very young FO in the cockpit with another young (less than ,say, 30) captain can be a recipe for disaster.

 

[Metro752]

What is the average number of hours of a newhire F.O at a regional? 1400 hours this guy has? I'll take the bus......

around 500-600 for wonderchildren

 

[CubanSmoker]

Why won't this thread DIE!?!?!?!?

 

[igneousy2]

Love of flying is what ruined this industry in the first place.

It's okay to have these "I love to fly-I would do this for free" whack jobs flying around...just make sure they are hidden away and not on the negotiating committee when it's time to talk about money.

--and let's be honest with ourselves...more pilots have been screwed by other pilots than by any CEO, past or present.

 

[Kaman]

I also fail to see the big deal over the guy's age being significant. My new-hire class at CJC a couple of years ago had not one, but TWO guys that were 20. Both have since moved on to hopefully bigger paychecks and better work rules.
In my mind it is far more significant that the average age of the people on the deck of an aircraft carrier average 19, and in WWII the number of 20 year olds with a commission was in the thousands. Not to diminsh the kids accomplishment, but all he has done is what many other people have done over the years.