Did You Know What Kind Of Legal Authorities Captain Has During The Flight?
The origins of captain’s authority comes from maritime law and tradition. A ship’s captain had absolute authority and was the unquestioned commander responsible for the ship, cargo, and crew. The same concept in aviation was applied in the early years, before 1930. Aircraft captain‘s absolute authority became essential after the advent of flying boats. Early regulations, gave the pilot in command (PIC) -while in flight – the final responsibility and authority of the aircraft and crew members. So during the flight the aircraft captain is basically a god. If the situation requires, he/she can deviate from any rule to ensure safety of the...
Did You Know What EASA Is And What It Does?
If you have an ambition to become an airline pilot or if you are a passionate aviation lover, you may have heard the name EASA. The abbreviation letters EASA stand for the European Union Aviation Safety Agency which is the centrepiece of the European Union's strategy for aviation safety. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency was established on the 12th of July, 2002 with the agency's headquarters based in Cologne, Germany. Today EASA has representational offices in Brussels, Washington, Montreal and Beijing. Do you know what the European Union Aviation Safety Agency does? The main goal and mission of EASA are to...
Why Are Aircraft Windows Round?
Whether you love your window seat or choose to stay farther from the window and forget you’re flying, you have surely noticed that all airplane windows are round. However, those windows are round not only for aesthetic reasons. It's a life-saving engineering innovation. Nowadays, it's quite difficult to imagine aircraft having square windows – but this is exactly what they once had. Until the 1950s commercial aircraft had square windows. However, it turned out that aircraft with square windows were slower and flew at a lower altitude. As traveling by plane was becoming more popular and the altitude of flying was...
Why Hard Plane Landing in Bad Weather is Intentional?
The thought of a smooth flight is probably on every passenger‘s mind before taking off. So, what is a smooth flight? The concept usually consists of a calm and easy departure and landing as well. However, a successful landing does not depend on how smooth the touchdown was. In bad weather conditions, passengers of the plane might experience a hard landing, which does not mean that the pilot has fewer skills or is less experienced. It‘s actually done deliberately to make sure that the plane reaches the ground safely. If the pilot has to land the aircraft while it is pouring...
What Are The “Remove Before Flight” Tags On The Aircraft For?
If you like watching the ground handling processes around the aircraft while waiting for your flight, you may have noticed red "Remove before flight" tags on various aircraft parts. Do you know why they are there and what these tags are for? "Remove before flight" tags themselves are just markers on the components that need to be removed. Sometimes you may see a pilot walking around, inspecting the aircraft before the take-off and removing these warnings. What are these components to be removed and what are they covering? They come as different size and shape plugs that cover various holes and openings...
Why do many pilot seats have sheepskin covers?
Probably, most of you have seen sheepskin seat covers in almost every cockpit you have ever been to. If you are still a newbie in aviation world and haven’t tried any cockpit yet, you have surely seen those grey or white fluffy pilot seats in films. However, the reason of covering pilot seats with sheepskin is more practical than it might seem. The main function of genuine sheepskin cover is to keep pilots cool in the summer and warm in the winter – whatever the temperature in a cockpit is, sheepskin covers remain of almost the same temperature and keep a...
What are Sterile Flight Deck Procedures?
Every pilot follows a number of rules, procedures and regulations during their daily operations. One of the rules pilots follow several times during each flight is called the Sterile Flight Deck Procedures rule. Have you heard of this important rule? The term Sterile Flight Deck Procedure rule describes a period of time when the flight crew members must not be disturbed by non-flight related matters. Then pilots must entirely focus on their essential operational activities and avoid any unrelated disturbances. They are even barely allowed to talk to each other. Pilots follow this rule during the attention-requiring procedures of taking-off, landing,...
Why do pilots say roger that?
Pilots use the phrase “Roger that” when they are in the air. Have you ever thought who the Roger is and why his name appears in the conversations between pilots? The reason goes back to the very first flights. The first plane flight by Wright brothers dates back to 1903. Then they used flares, hand signals and coloured paddles to communicate while the plane was in the air as there was no such thing as radio communication. The aviation technologies developed and pilots started to use the Morse code to communicate in approximately 1915 when air-to-ground voice transmission became possible. Back then they...
Why Are You Not Allowed to Walk Under the Wings of an Aircraft?
Boarding a plane is a sequence of airport procedures. When you finally arrive at the plane and walk to get aboard you may notice that the area under aircraft wings is usually separated with orange cones signaling that walking under the aircraft wings is not allowed. Have you ever wondered why you are not allowed to walk under the aircraft wings when boarding? Like almost all things in aviation, this is a question of safety too. Everyone working around the aircraft receives safety training on when, where, and how to approach an aircraft. This restriction is related to several safety issues....
Did You Know What that Tiny Hole in the Airplane Window Does?
If you've ever had a window seat on a flight, you have probably noticed a tiny hole at the bottom of the window. Every single window of the plane has the same tiny hole and actually, it is a very important safety feature. Why is it so important? Air pressure drops as you get higher. Anyone who has climbed mountains knows, at high altitude the air is less pressurised and contains less oxygen. And that’s only the height of a mountain. The plane gets much higher, where the air pressure drops much lower. Airplanes are designed to maintain air pressure at a safe level...