Why more expats pilots needed in Asia

[johnsonrod]

Air Nippon first officer mistakes the rudder trim knob for the cockpit door lock, sends the 737 in flight almost upside down

Air Nippon (ANA) (Tokyo) and ANA (All Nippon Airways) (Tokyo) are investigating an incident on September 6 on flight EL 140 between Naha and Tokyo (Haneda) with 117 passengers and crew on board a Boeing 737-700. Apparently the first officer mistook the rudder trim knob for the cockpit door lock to allow the captain back into the cockpit. According to this report by GMA News and Gizmodo, the action “caused the jet to roll and drop 1,900 meters in 30 seconds”. According to internal investigations, “the narrow-body aircraft continued to roll until it reached 131.7 degrees to the left, leaving it almost belly-up”.
Two flight attendants were injured.


Read the full report: CLICK HERE
Air Nippon Slide Show: CLICK HERE
Copyright Photo: Nick Dean. Please click on the photo for more information.

 

[boxjockey]

Unfortunately this is what happens when our managements continue to just "aim low". The package offered here at CX has continually degraded since I arrived. Every couple of years the compensation and benefits get worse. Now we are apparently 250 pilots short, and getting shorter by the day, and no one turning up for interviews. Wonder why?

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[CesnaCaptn]

I only briefly scanned the article, but didn't see the co's name. How do we know (s)he isn't an expat?

 

[Ty Webb]

I only briefly scanned the article, but didn't see the co's name. How do we know (s)he isn't an expat?

Uh, because they didn't know the difference between the rudder trim and the flight deck door latch . . .:laugh:

Seriously . . . . I remember scanning the Pilot Employment ads in Trade-a-Plane around 1991 . . . hoping for some sort of entry-level flying job.

There was some company in Lagos, Nigeria that was always advertising for PA-31 (Piper Chieftain) pilots. The ad always read "We need more Piper Chieftain Captains".

What it didn't say was " . . the last ones were delicious".

 

[mesaserf]

I remember watching some late night TV show that was about close calls or something like that. Anyway it was about some crew of a Pacific rim airline that had an engine failure on a B747 at cruise altitude above the ocean. They sat there and watched the autopilot bleed off airspeed trying to maintain altitude until it stalled.

They then wrenched at the controls as the aircraft plummeted out of the sky in a full stall until they broke out of the clouds around 10,000ft. Then our intrepid captain rolled right side up just before hitting the water. They made this smuck look like some kind of hero for almost killing a plane load of people.

 

[labbats]

Air Nippon. Yeah. Last I saw of them they were crossing the runway I was about to land on in ORD. Luckily I hit the TOGA instead of pulling the fire handles. Those darn confusing airplanes!

 

[Dumb Pilot]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LkUxPi6mqSE

I think this is the case you speak of.

 

[ualdriver]

Unfortunately this is what happens when our managements continue to just "aim low". The package offered here at CX has continually degraded since I arrived. Every couple of years the compensation and benefits get worse. Now we are apparently 250 pilots short, and getting shorter by the day, and no one turning up for interviews. Wonder why?

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CX is having trouble recruiting pilots? That is surprising. I would have thought there would be tons of US guys applying for a gig like that.

 

[Dumb Pilot]

CX is having trouble recruiting pilots? That is surprising. I would have thought there would be tons of US guys applying for a gig like that.

Answering a CPDLC message once in a while and not flying at all while waiting 8 years just to upgrade to F/O, at the same time you are living with 3 other guys in a 50 sq. meter apartment while earning a meager salary. Who will sign up for that?

 

[ualdriver]

Answering a CPDLC message once in a while and not flying at all while waiting 8 years just to upgrade to F/O, at the same time you are living with 3 other guys in a 50 sq. meter apartment while earning a meager salary. Who will sign up for that?

I don't know. I guess if a young guy couldn't find anything else (tons of unemployed pilots right now), it might be an adventure for him/her. Historically, as you probably know, we've had guys stuck on the panel for well over 8 years yet they still came.

Is that the only way to get on with Cathay?

 

[Dumb Pilot]

That was when pilots understood career progression and the value of experience building, now a days people want a microwave career and it doesn't help that people are getting hired with very little total time directly into the right seat through pay for training programs around the world. The only hiring CX is doing is through their cadet program.

 

[ualdriver]

That was when pilots understood career progression and the value of experience building, now a days people want a microwave career and it doesn't help that people are getting hired with very little total time directly into the right seat through pay for training programs around the world. The only hiring CX is doing is through their cadet program.

Understood! Well, if they start having trouble recruiting through this lame cadet program, they're going to have to do something to "fix" it, right?

 

[Dornier 335]

I remember watching some late night TV show that was about close calls or something like that. Anyway it was about some crew of a Pacific rim airline that had an engine failure on a B747 at cruise altitude above the ocean. They sat there and watched the autopilot bleed off airspeed trying to maintain altitude until it stalled.

They then wrenched at the controls as the aircraft plummeted out of the sky in a full stall until they broke out of the clouds around 10,000ft. Then our intrepid captain rolled right side up just before hitting the water. They made this smuck look like some kind of hero for almost killing a plane load of people.

This is the incident you're talking about. Worth a read!

 

[Dornier 335]

Air Nippon (ANA) (Tokyo) and ANA (All Nippon Airways) (Tokyo) are investigating an incident on September 6 on flight EL 140 between Naha and Tokyo (Haneda) with 117 passengers and crew on board a Boeing 737-700. Apparently the first officer mistook the rudder trim knob for the cockpit door lock to allow the captain back into the cockpit. According to this report by GMA News and Gizmodo, the action “caused the jet to roll and drop 1,900 meters in 30 seconds”. According to internal investigations, “the narrow-body aircraft continued to roll until it reached 131.7 degrees to the left, leaving it almost belly-up”.
Two flight attendants were injured.

Not to start a FI-style p!ssing contest, but could that have happened in an Airbus?

 

[Spinn555]

Not to start a FI-style p!ssing contest, but could that have happened in an Airbus?

No. The rudder trim knob is deactivated with the autopilot on.

Also, most Airbus operators I have experience with, the function of twisting a rudder trim knob is different than flipping a door switch.

 

[boxjockey]

Air Nippon. Yeah. Last I saw of them they were crossing the runway I was about to land on in ORD. Luckily I hit the TOGA instead of pulling the fire handles. Those darn confusing airplanes!

Yeah, not exactly sure Air Nippon is the same as ANA, but I guess could be. When I joined CX, the offer was much better than anything I could get in the states, and it still is. The problem is, they just degrade the conditions for new joiners periodically to see if they can still make recruiting targets. Apparently now they can't anymore, as we are tremendously short, and have 15 more wide-body jets coming in the next year. I got a call from Crew Control about an hour ago for a JKT turnaround tomorrow on my day off. It went to voicemail. I'm in overtime every single month. Soon the wheels will stop turning on those pretty new airplanes, and things will change.

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[atpcliff]

BJ: Thanx for your info on Cathay. We here in the US have not heard too much about the CP situation lately.

Have a friend who was in the pool for FO. They drained the pool and stopped FO hiring-he went back for a SO interview, but last I heard did not take the position...probably he would go back as DEFO with the better conditions of that position.

cliff
HNL
PS-LUV! HKG. It is my favourite destination.