okikiosibodu:


noted. thanks for the correction.
A potential Pilot. see you at the top

Boeing777pilot, I sent you a pm but you are yet to acknowledge, pls kindly do so sir

Sorry about, dunno what's wrong with my nl pm stuff, when I reply, the mail bounces back..

20132014:
Oga pilot, please can you give an estimate of pilot training from zero hour to type rating(bombardier crj900/1000)? Thanks. #theskyisours.

Conservative estimate 10-12m.

Will confirm sha

Kx:
Hello pilot, pardon my too many questions.

1. Do air traffic controllers have jurisdiction over a nation's air space ONLY or does an arik intl flight Eg leaving lagos to cotonou gets ATC service from d Nigerian controllers alone?

2. I noticed, using flight radar online sites that all or majority of Asia and middle east bound flights that took off from mmia lagos flies out of naija from lag via abuja, through bauchi in the air. Why don't dey just take d short cut of Lagos thru calabar and follow dat trajectory to their destination?

3. On board aero from Abj to lagos around 11pm some months back, we cruised at 18000 to 20000 feet on a small plane. Was scary because I was used to 33000feet or so. What influences the choice of cruising altitude other than the air traffic controller?

4.when pilots "tears through" thick dark clouds in d air,do they still have visibility from d cockpit irrespective of how dark d cloud is?

5. Someone once said from geography days dat it rains from our atmosphere and that planes flies above our atmosphere. In other words, rain nor dey beat aeroplane lol! Is it correct or wrong?

6.dont dey take communication classes in pilot training? Why do pilots talk so fast that dey don't seem to care if the passengers picked what they said so fast or not?

Thanks for satisfying my curiosity.

1. When entering a country's airspace, you have to check in with the ATC, so once you enter you gats to Holla at them, same when you are leaving, the said arik flight has to inform Benoise ATC, for example this is W3 approaching xyz at FLXXX, and ATC responds W3 Maintain FLXXX and contact approach on 123. The pilot acknowledges by reading back the same information. Simplified though.

2. It's not that simple, there are a lot of considerations made when planning a flight such as wind, time, traffic, curvature of the earth etc.

3. The small plane, a propeller plane . It can't fly up 30000ft, that's the key thing. If you fly higher, it's faster and burn more fuel.


4. That's why we instrument rated. We can navigate without looking outside our cockpit. " Instrument flying opens your mind to the fact that there is vision beyond sight"

5. Yes. In a matter of minutes, the plane ascends above the rain.

6. Nor vex, not all the pilots talk fast. It may be a rub off from frequent communication with ATC who talk like they have hot yams in their mouths.

xager:

Thanks. What's the likelihood of young pilots (say early twenties) getting employed? Are there age restrictions or preferences for certain ages?

Unless you are in your seventies, age is not a factor.
We are more interested in your qualifications.

okikiosibodu:

in addiction to this questions sir, I grew up with this knowledge that pilots have a particular age they must reach before they are allowed to marry as their marital status/ responsibility can affect their concentration when on duty...is that correct sir?

No sir. It's not correct.

xager:

Ok. But if the traffic controllers guide you, what then is the role of the instrument landing system in the aircraft?

There are other aircraft in the area, so traffic controllers ensure that every one stays in their lanes putting it in simple terms.

ILS essentially helps us land in bad weather among other uses

okikiosibodu:

person wey no fit afford school fees, how e wan see CPL licence collect?

Don't. Ever. Give. Up.

okikiosibodu:


Hmmmnnn. I remember "cramming" different aircrafts models when preparing for an exam in a flight school in Nigeria (diamond aircraft 40 &42 tampico, cessna, arrower, etc) and when the interviewer askd me to mention the aircraft manufacturers I know, I started with my list, and was quite convinced that I nailed it, until he smile and said "those are are training aircrafts. tell me the commercial aircraft manufacturers you know". My looks changed and I remembered airbus and Boeing (cause prior to the interview, I read up a topic on Google on yoke: joystick vs controll wheel), so I strted again with "Challenger 405, challenger 505, and Boeing 747n 737, etc). The smile on the interviewer's face got me worried again, And he said "first, Challenger is a private aircraft manufacturer, not commercial, And you have mentioned boeing, W also have airbus.do you know any other one?" I said "no" sadly (but he was quite impressed sha, that I have an idea). Now, pls can you kindly list some aircraft manufacturers apart from Boeing and Airbus, for future reference, cause I am not sure I googled the question correctly as I have not seen any positive response yet, or they the only two we have?

Commercial aircraft manufacturers
Embraer
Boeing
Airbus
Bombardier crj series
UAC (Russian)
Fooker
Saab
Mistibushi

Private aircraft manufacturers
Dassault Falcon series
Bombardier global express series
Cessna citation series
Gulf Stream
Hawker
Beech craft

CFCman:
She could be the first Nigerian female captain to fly international flights...

No sir. There are already ladies who have done that.

okikiosibodu:
how can a person with admission into a flight school (for fixed wings) in Nigeria , get sponsorship? my state govt requires "leg", and applying to airlines, they give one story or the other. some staff that I know, said nothing of such as we see on the newspaper that Nigeria airlines sponsor cadets...am at a cross road here

If you believe in miracles, anything is possible.
Just keep your ears to the ground. Airlines are more likely to employ you after getting your commercial license, and they are not exactly keen on paying for your type ratings because after spending millions training pilots, they run to other airlines with better pay. Loyalty...

idu1:
why is helicopter pilot training costier?

Can't say because I haven't done comparison to actually find out which is more expensive.

xager:

Thank you.
During final approach, how do pilots calculate their rate of descent with respect to their speed, altitude and distance from the aiming point on the runway without going so low or too high?

Secondly, do aircrafts have horns?

It's all done during the flight planning stages which is inputted into the flight management system, then the traffic controllers guide us during approach based on what we have filed. They can change it depending on prevailing circumstances.

Horns ke? Like the ones that blows "peem peem"?
Yes, kind of.

phibetakappa:
I see exhaust pipe at the tail end of some planes, mostly bigger plane. Do these planes have engines at their tail end?
Thanks for this thread.

No sir, it's for the Auxiliary Power Unit that helps provide power to the aircraft while it on ground.

xager:
How are airports rated? Is it primarily by the length of their runways?
And what does it mean for an airport to be tagged bravo, Charlie, delta or echo?

Airports are rated based on different categories of ICAO.

Bravo, Charlie etc are identifiers we use to clearly communicate some technical terms to avoid misinformation.

WinningSun:

I guess that your worst flight most have kept your boxer drenched. and kept your heart in your heart.

A pilot is trained to maintain composure when things go south else that spells doom. It's a very important part of our training. My captain took control of the aircraft since he's more experienced and handled the situation and I learnt.

GENIUS18:
Hi Pilot, I once took-off PHC to LAGOS during a very heavy rainfall.
Infact the pilot taxi-ed when it was pouring down, then proceeded to take-off.

Is this normally allowed? ,What are the possible risks?

I was really apprehensive.

Pilots work with weather reports, so if it's not good, the pilot will not be allowed to take-off. The reason he proceeded with take off was because the weather conditions met the minimum requirements for take off. So no risk there.

oluwarantimi:
Thanks for this opportunity OP.
Whats the best first step after secondary school for aspiring pilots? University or Aviation school? Asking this for my younger brother who interested in aviation.

Hmmmm.

Personally, I would advise he goes to uni first if possible, that gives him options in the long run.

igwemoagbo:
Love this new thread.... I really envy pilots..have thousands of cockpit videos. Landing and take off procedure. But my love for helicopters is just cool. Awesome machine. Ability to take off and land in any open cleared space.. Already met couple of caverton and Bristow pilots..and learnt alot from ground-based tutorial... Hoping I see a sponsor. Gods grace... But their humor is amazing. A helicopter. Pilot once told me... Fixed wings are for sisi ''s. But rotary are the real ball game....i confirmed this statement... When I tired landing a BELL 412 in my simulator. Gosh.....

if I see the guy that said fixed wing is for sisi's, he will use his rotary wings for his next international flight.

WinningSun:
what has been your best / worst experience flying and how did you handle it.

My best was my first solo flight, that's where it all began. My worst was a cross wind landing, we had to abort the landing thrice and finally landed at the fourth attempt.

cranknicholson:
What is the easiest way for a Licensed AME and fresh CPL holders to secure job in Nigeria? Not seeing much adverts these days

Try to have insiders that will let you know know when they are recruiting, I think I have seen a few adverts though however it's faster if you are already type rated as it saves the airline money

Originalsly:
Ok...I really meant cargo aircrafts. Guess the answer remains the same. Moving on.......are airstrips "weight rated"?....like allow for the safe landing of planes including cargo up to a certain weight?

In layman's language yes they are.
The runway has to be able to withstand the stress of heavy impact landing

Originalsly:
Do commercial airlines fly the same 'lanes' /heights as passenger airlines?

Commercial airlines are mostly made up of passenger airlines like Emirates etc, cargo airlines like cargolux and private charter services.

The cruising altitude is dependent on several factors including how high the aircraft can fly, assigned altitude and flight plan but there's separation between aircraft to avoid collision.

Cutehector:
ok let's say a commercial aircraft. Wait are there different kinds of planes?

Yes. There are different types of commercial aircraft, boeing 777, 737, 747, 787, 767, etc Airbus 320, 321, A380 etc.

Cutehector:
just tell me how to land dah mudafvckn plane. speaking in Samuel L Jackson's voice

Different procedures for different planes.

CFCman:

Thank you. I've a better understanding now

So Joan Obasi of Arik is a senior First-officer.

Technically yes. But some airlines have "Senior first officers" *These ones have three and half bars the reason is because they are due to be promoted as Captain but no space yet but the three and half bars ain't common though as very few airlines do this.

Mrval20:
This is a rare opportunity, thanks for creating this thread...

1. As an Electrical/Electronics Engineering graduate, what is the most cost effective way of becoming a pilot?

2. Why are pilots assigned to a specific airplane?

3. Does the mode of operation of different airplanes vary greatly? Like can you fly just about anything flyable after probably going through the manual?

1. Via cadet programs, a form of scholarship but this is not common though.

2. Aircraft are very complex equipment so for it to be operated safely, the pilots have to be trained for that specific aircraft. For a pilot to operate an equipment, he must have a certain number of hours on it before being certified.

3. The principles are the same but details differ vastly hence the specialization.

CFCman:
Following...

How long does it take for a pilot to be type-rated for a particular aircraft?

What is the function of a pilot with 2 bars on his/her shoulder?

It varies, for a example if I just got my commercial license and want to be type rated on a Boeing or Airbus, it would take up to six months.

However, if I am switching between aircraft by the same manufacturer, it's less

Then if I'm switching from the same product line eg B777-300ER to B777-200LR it may take a few weeks.

N.B Type rating means you are trained to operate a particular aircraft.

Two Bars and three bars are both for first officers but the one with three bars is senior. The first officer is the co-pilot and carries out duties as given by the captain.

Cutehector:
alright. I want to knw how to land a plane.. what is the procedure.. incase during an emergency, maybe both pilots are incapacitated.

What can a lay man do in this point. To land the plane

This your question ehn...
Usually the cockpit is secured from inside because of security concerns especially when air borne.

If that unfortunate event happens and a passenger can access the cockpit, he can be guided to land the plane, that's 50/50.

However, the likelihood of that happening is extremely slim.

Landing aircraft generally follows a common procedure but differs by each aircraft and landing conditions.

fados4sure:

Good-day captain! please, i would like to know if there is any difference between Boeing, Airbus & Dreamliner

Boeing and Airbus are both aircraft manufacturers.

The Dreamliner is the name of an aircraft manufactured by Boeing.

Cutehector:
Op how do u guys press all those buttons?

consider those buttons to be like a TV remote control.
You only press the ones you need at a particular time for specific purposes.

*Reserved for future use. *

Well, while we are still waiting for Seun, justwise and disguy to create an aviation section on nairaland, I decided to create this thread.

Purpose

The purpose of this thread is to help aviation enthusiasts and fans get answers to aviation related matters by asking a commercial pilot.

About me

By the special grace of God, I'm a first officer on a Boeing 777-200LR. I was previously a first officer on a Boeing 737-800 (Next Gen) so I know one or two things about flying. I look forward to interacting with all aviation fans and fellow aviation professionals here

My colleagues like olisa4all from the rotary wings branch , (helicopter pilots) are on hand to answer your questions too.

If I don't reply on time, I'm probably somewhere in the sky doing what I love.