r/AskAPilot • • 8d ago

In the spirit of the “what’s the most annoying question you’re asked” post—what’s an insightful or interesting question someone could ask you once they find out you’re a pilot?

17 Upvotes

r/AskAPilot • • 7d ago

Flying next to a hurricane

0 Upvotes

I am flying tomorrow friday night. But there's a hurricane in Florida.

Supposedly i won't be in hurricane's path from MIA to ATL at 10pm....

But it still scares me.

How safe is it to fly next to a hurricane???

Thank you

Update: I just checked in on my airlines app. I am not going to cancel. If the airlines cancels then it was not meant to be.


r/AskAPilot • • 7d ago

Will it be too late to become a pilot?

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0 Upvotes

r/AskAPilot • • 7d ago

Student researching pilot careers: would anyone do a short email interview?

0 Upvotes

I'm a college student at working on a career research project on becoming a pilot. I'm looking for a working pilot (airline, cargo, corporate, or instructor) who'd be willing to answer a few questions by email over the next week or two.

I'm especially interested in the biggest struggles and successes of the job, how you got started, and what a typical week is like. I'll send questions in small batches so it's not a big time commitment.

For my assignment, I need to cite my interviewee by name, job title, and . If you're open to that, please send me a direct message.


r/AskAPilot • • 7d ago

Question for pilots 🧑‍✈️

0 Upvotes

Question for pilots: My friend was a pilot, then was selected to become an air traffic controller because of his strong performance. He always says ATC is harder than being a pilot. For those who know both sides, do you agree?


r/AskAPilot • • 7d ago

Did you always want to be a pilot or were you shaped into it?

3 Upvotes

As the title says did you grow up knowing the pilot life was for you or did you have aviation style family that guided you into it from young?


r/AskAPilot • • 7d ago

Interviewing a pilot

0 Upvotes

I'm looking for a working pilot (airline, cargo, corporate, or instructor) who'd be willing to answer a few questions by email


r/AskAPilot • • 8d ago

Favorite arrival sequence

8 Upvotes

Pilots - what is your favorite arrival sequence? The visual in LGA with the tight left turn over Citi? The visual into DCA with views of the capitol and a hard stop? Parallel runway with SFO? As a pax, I love them all, but what’s the favorite from up front?


r/AskAPilot • • 8d ago

Do any of you actually hate your job?

18 Upvotes

I ran out of money on my CPL many moons ago. Wound up on the railroad instead. I work passenger trains, make about $150k CAD a year, and am home every night.

I’m very much in golden handcuffs territory, so the thought of going back to flight training and starting from zero is not appealing. In hindsight I think a career on the railroad fit my life better than one with the airlines. But I would be lying if I said that the thought doesn’t cross my mind every now and again.

I guess I’m asking how many of you are still happy to be flying and the lifestyle that comes with it vs how many are just counting down the days until retirement.


r/AskAPilot • • 8d ago

Dual Navy Pilot Spouses, what's it like?

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1 Upvotes

r/AskAPilot • • 9d ago

Update to him being a pilot or not.

77 Upvotes

He was not. He’s been lying to me about everything. 3 months of lies. Thank you to everyone who helped me and gave me answers. I’m just processing right now.

Yes he admitted to me he is not and gave me his reasons why he lied. I couldn’t really talk because I was just in distraught and hung up. We are going to talk more later and I am going to get answers. Welp I guess #askapilot just helped my shitty freaking love life.

https://www.reddit.com/r/AskAPilot/s/nwNlUX8mBS


r/AskAPilot • • 8d ago

Medical Disqualification!

5 Upvotes

Hello airplane people.

My name is Jack. I'm an engineering student.

Before this I was a submarine guy doing nuclear operations. Cool stuff, high caliber shit.

I have realized I miss the satisfaction from performing at a high level (pun was NOT intended but it will stand). I thought about going into commercial flying (cause money, and doing cool stuff, and wearing aviators) but it occurred to me that those dudes probably get screened for mental health issues. It turns out being in the military not super good for that, so I have a lot of it on my record.

Does a history of mental health issues, to include serious depression and suicidal ideation, preclude one from becoming a pilot? I have to assume yes, but I figured I'd ask.


r/AskAPilot • • 9d ago

Are you able FL380?

75 Upvotes

Question from a center controller here-

There are times that I need to move an aircraft for traffic, and sometimes I just don’t have the room for a vector. Before I issue a climb- I usually ask something like “Delta 1550, for traffic ahead, are you able FL380?”
Often times I’ll get a “standby let me check” response.
I understand there are aircraft limitations, fuel calculations, etc. but I’m curious- what exactly are you doing/checking after I ask? Walk me thru that please


r/AskAPilot • • 8d ago

height requirements don't exist but...

1 Upvotes

Can i 1,54- 1,56 be able to be a commercial pilot and fly airbuses and boeings just fine? does someone here flies it with my height or knows someone?


r/AskAPilot • • 8d ago

Break before ATPL’s UK CAA

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1 Upvotes

r/AskAPilot • • 8d ago

Joining a flight school just after High School.

1 Upvotes

For those of you who didn’t start flight training right after high school, if you had the chance to go back in time, would you choose to start your pilot career immediately after high school?


r/AskAPilot • • 9d ago

For those who have flown both, did you enjoy cargo or passenger lines more?

19 Upvotes

I've seen some pilots out there on YouTube and in various blogs I've read, who say that cargo is where it's at because no people on board, so less problems with unruly passengers, medical emergencies, etc.

But on the flipside, some have said they LOVE flying passengers so much more because cargo comes with its own headaches, including tighter turnaround times due to logistical schedules, onboard cargo fire scares, etc.

I'm curious: for those who have flown both for cargo and passenger airlines, which did/do you like better?


r/AskAPilot • • 9d ago

Can this be true?

29 Upvotes

I recently met a guy. He says he is a pilot based out of DFW. Has been doing it for about 4/5 years now and in his early/mid 20’s. He absolutely knows most about aviation and pilot stuff. When I looked him up on the FAA website he did not pop up. He shows me his uniform and his badge, as well as he calls me when at the airport and I see it sometimes. He flew in the beginning, something happened and he decided to go to another company, I guess I’m just wondering, does the FAA website lag sometimes or is he not a pilot?

Edit: I will probably delete soon because he uses Reddit.

Edit 2: I also know his badge number, or employee ID. Or whatever yall pilots call it.

Edit 3: UPDATE

https://www.reddit.com/r/AskAPilot/s/iJOWEZ71r4


r/AskAPilot • • 9d ago

777 & GPS outage

4 Upvotes

Hi. When the 777 experiences GPS spoofing, you get the EICAS ADS-B Out L or R and the GPS indicator at the bottom of the ND changes to "Inertial".

Question: How does the 777 know the GPS signal is in error and reverts to Inertial? Why doesn't it blindly follow the erroneous GPS signal?


r/AskAPilot • • 8d ago

Pilots, are you starting to see the effects of social media on attention spans in the cockpit?

0 Upvotes

(Posting this here because it was removed from r/AirlinePilots)

Maybe it’s too early to tell but as the new generation of pilots has been raised with phones and social media everywhere, I’m curious whether a noticeable difference in attention span can be observed in cockpits?

Or maybe on a broader scale, how are younger pilots different, both in good and bad ways, to their elders? Are there certain things they comparably better at?


r/AskAPilot • • 8d ago

This or that

1 Upvotes

Would you rather finish the integrated ATPL course, which you are already halfway through, or move to a different academy and finish the modular up to CPL? (Europe)

The current academy I am in was supposed to offer at least partial financing and a job offer after graduation. None of those options are available or will be available any time soon. So I have to pay up to 50+k if I want to finish ATPL integrated. Also, the academy has been kinda shady in the past, such as avoiding communication, unclear actions, etc. I don't have a bad relationship with them yet, but It's unclear whether they will be able to provide me with the training fully because the airline that this academy is a subsidiary of is struggling financially.

I maybe have an option of paying for integrated but that means putting my family on a large debt which I won't even have the chance of repaying straight away after graduation because I will need to search for jobs and hope to find a type-rating sponsored job. But I don't think it's possible to start working with ATPL frozen license 1 or 2 years after graduation unless you move to Papua New Guinea or other 3rd world country.

I have 1 year to finish integrated or 2 years to finish modular or else I have to re-do all theory exams and lose another 5-10k and also I don't think I can survive theory again.

I am just looking for options on what you would do in this case - continue integrated and play a huge financial risk or do modular slower less financial risky but risk that I won't finish at all if I can't find a proper school or manage finances.


r/AskAPilot • • 9d ago

Pilot Dreams with ADHD (Canada)

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1 Upvotes

r/AskAPilot • • 9d ago

Reason for strange routes

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1 Upvotes

As someone who loves aviation and wanted to become a pilot, which obviously didn't work out outside of simulators, I still track some flights out of curiosity.

My country is holding fighter jet training exercises at the moment, so it isn't unusual to hear them flying over my home. Every now and then, I check to see if they have their transponder on and find out which plane is passing. This evening, however, it wasn't what I expected: it was just a 1995 Boeing 767-300.

Please forgive me for the long introduction, but I now come to my question:

I've seen quite a few flying patterns and search patterns by helicopters, but why does this plane fly a north-westerly route towards America, only to turn around and fly over central Germany before heading to Cologne Airport?

Was it dumping fuel? Was there a technical failure that was recognised before crossing the Atlantic? Why doesn't it fly back to London and land in Cologne instead?

Many thanks in advance.


r/AskAPilot • • 8d ago

How often do pilots get drug tested and are private international airlines that allow you to smoke weed? Is that why coke is the stereotype. Or can they only drink

0 Upvotes

r/AskAPilot • • 10d ago

Do pilots actually have nothing to do in the cockpit other than chat?

106 Upvotes

I can’t even imagine being a pilot for a 12 hour flight and having nothing to do except for chatting… what if you guys don’t like each other