Taking Lessons Away From Time Spent as a Trainee Pilot
An important lesson that trainee pilots learn in their early professional career is to exhibit patience. A patient pilot is one that considers every possible contingency in the case of emergency and makes an informed decision from there. While this sounds easier in theory than it is in practice, trainee pilots in the UK need to understand that patience is incredibly important for a long career. Patient pilots and flight professionals are able to size up issues before they develop and calmly instruct their colleagues on how to proceed.Another lesson that trainee pilots often learn is one that may seem contradictory to the last one stated. Patience is an incredibly important virtue in the aviation industry but so is the ability to be decisive. A further investigation of these two traits shows that they are complimentary and necessary for pilots who want to succeed in the long term. Patience is needed in keeping an eye on the control board and the flight plan, while decisiveness is important in turning analysis into action. Pilots who have engine problems or need to make an emergency landing need to make decisions quickly based on the deliberations of air traffic controllers and fellow pilots.
The most critical lesson that trainee pilots in the United Kingdom learn early in their career is that they need to communicate concisely on every occasion. Pilots who are speaking with harried air traffic controllers and other pilots focused on their flight plan need to keep their sentences short in order to avoid jamming up the airwaves. As well, trainee pilots are quickly immersed in the world of acronyms and short hand terms. Trainees need to understand that this short hand is universal throughout the region and most of it translates throughout the world.