Question for commercial pilots--Please help.?

Question

I'm doing a survey for myself. I'm always interested in aircraft crash investigations and have read 2 books and try not miss episodes of air crash investigations.

My question is,

Whats the biggest problem you have on board your flight and how did you deal with it?

Since 9 11, has this changed your flying experience?

Are passengers allowed to visit the c**k pit?

Do you find being a pilot just a "job" and boring or do you envy yourself in such a high and competitive business?

If your flying, say for 8 hours, do you have a break and how?

Do you feel like resigning and doing something else, if so what.

On a boeing 737, whats the stalling speed in the air?

Can turbulence bringa aircraft down?

Thanks for your answers to you all, and yes, I am scared of flying?

Answer 1

You say you are scared of Flying.... well its safer up there than it is down here on the roads. I have driven for over forty years now , and all over the Country, but give me flying any day. I have flown all over and enjoyed every trip. even the long haul out to Australia. Driving on these roads now is one big pain, as some of the drivers do not know what your signals are for , because in their eyes they do not exist, or they do not know how to use them.In fact I do wonder if they have ever taken a Driving Test.

Answer 2

I'll answer some of them.  The biggest problem I had was a medical emergency.  I diverted; passenger was fine.  9/11 has made it more of a pain in the butt to get through security.  I don't think we're any safer, although I do find myself being more aware of my surroundings.  Passengers are only allowed to visit the cockpit when sitting at the gate.  They can't while in the air.  To me, being an airline pilot is a blue-collar job.  It's exciting at first, but gets boring, kind of like a factory job, after a while.  There are no guaranteed breaks.  You take a break whenever you can.  I used to eat whenever I had the chance, like between flights, even if I wasn't really hungry because sometimes I didn't know the next time I would get a chance.  I did resign, for various reasons (wanted a better quality of life, wanted to go back to designing things for a living instead of driving a bus).  I'm now an engineer.

Answer 3

big problems rarely occure and with proper training there are no big problems that you don't get yourself into. i retired as an executive pilot on a large corporate jet and had a great career. the rest i'll let others answer. maybe  have some fun  with what some come up with. hehehe.

Answer 4

My hubby is a pilot. Biggest problem onboard - old passenger fainted and couldn't quickly be revived. Landed, the ambulance got him, and we went on our way. Since 9/11, getting through security has been a lot more of a pain. Passengers can visit the cockpit before the flight if time allows, but it doesn't happen as often anymore. Usually it's kids. As for "just a job", that's about what it has become, with layoffs, loss of pension, etc. It ain't what it used to be...although he still likes flying. You aren't allowed to fly over 8 hours. We have gotten into real estate and natural gas for vehicles lately as an alternative, just in case. Stall speed varies as a function of weight and flap setting, but generally don't go under 140 knots to be safe. The most severe turbulence can cause structural failure, which ends badly, but the jets are built to withstand a lot of turbulence. When was the last time you heard of a plane crashing due to turbulence? Don't worry, flying isn't a big deal, really. You should worry about getting to and from the airport; that's where you're most likely to crash.

Answer 5

dont know the answer, but i know they can have a break by putting the plane on autopilot