mtacchi
Nov 22, 04, 7:10 pm
A Day in the life of a B747 pilot.
I receive about 2 emails a week from Ft'ers about my job and what I do so now sitting at 36,000 ft dead heading from JFK to LAX I thought I would give you folks an idea of what makes up my day.
So, Friday I arrived in Anchorage from Seoul Korea with a B747 with 300,000 lbs of cargo bound for LAX. My job was to take it to ANC and the next crew would carry on southbound. For those interested we have 3 business class seats and 3 bunks on the upper deck of the B747. Catering is provided with 4 meal choices (all different to reduce the chance of food poisoning more than one of us. Lots of pop ( Soda for you US folks :) ) and drinks etc. We have an oven and serve ourselves. No FA's :( Flight was uneventful until the approach into ANC where we received multiple wind shear warnings, had speed fluctuations of +-50knots on the airspeed and generally had the crap kicked out of us on the approach. I earned my money for the next year last friday. Shortly after the temporary suspended landings till things calmed a little. If I had been flying Pax and not Cargo we wouldn't even have tried it, but freight doesn't mind the bumps. :)
As you can imagine, the next stop after clearing customs was the hotel bar. With the adrenaline wearing off and alcohol kicking in life was all good again ;) I slept hard till 4am when my alarm went off so I could hop a Alaska air flight to British Columbia to see a friend for the 2 days off.
Check in for AS was accomplished quickly at the Kiosk in hotel in Anchorage, No SSSS today and I was at the gate in plenty of time to actually catch the earlier flight to SEA fortuitously as my original flight got cancelled moments later) Exit row on the 2 side of 3-2. Business was full, no comp upgrade available, but I didn't care too much. I basically slept southbound.
Arrival in SEA was met with a phone message from my company informing they needed me to fly the next day (22hrs away out of ANC). Not good. That means my weekend is now canceled. I continued up to YVR to try and figure out how to work the problem, and thankfully Horizon Air (Dash 8 -200)provides free beer.
With the liquid lubricant quelling my anger, I work out with the AS desk in YVR that I can go back to ANC in a few hours so as to make my flight for work on Sunday.
My plans are totally shot, I am hating the company and wish to heck I could be a 9-5 'ER with a set schedule. ..................I digress.
Back on Horizon (Dash8-200)and AS (B737-900)up to ANC, exit rows so its OK, First is full again! I can't believe how full the F cabin is on AS. I guess you AS FF are happy. This was my first AS experience and I can only say it was problem free and I felt well treated.
So its now Midnight I have to get up in 8.5 hrs and fly to JFK. Sleep comes quickly and all too soon my phone is ringing for my wake up call. 1 hr to pick up.
Bags packed quickly, shower, monkey costume on, and into the crew van I go. Generally airport security anal wandings provided to the entire crew, then off to haul my crap the 30 feet up to the L1 door on the B747.
Inside we leave our stuff on the main deck and take another ladder the 15 feet to the upper deck. I sit down in my seat (I am the First Officer) and start working the take off data card, flight plan, Navigation systems etc... The Flight Engineer is walking around the aircraft doing his checks, the Captain is drinking coffee. Thus is my existence.
About an hour later with all my ducks in a row, check complete, engines running, we call call ANC ground freq. for taxi.
Short taxi to Runway 32 today. Cleared into position from tower, take off thrust set, the rotate speed today is 178 knots, we use a lot of runway, we are heavy at 780,000 lbs take off weight.
The climb out of ANC was breathtaking. One of those moments that actually makes doing what I do worth while. We turned east over Eagle River and climbed up this pass with a glacier that flowed into a fjord that had the most amazing colours.
Flight time to JFK was 5:45 and we ate somewhere over Winnipeg. Catering out of ANC is outstanding, much better than our Asian catering.JFK was busy as ever when we arrived at midnight, but no holds were required and we did a straight in ILS for 32R. Weather was marginal, around 500 feet and 2 miles. No problems until we got off the RWY and had no idea where to park the damn thing. We had been trying to call company Ops for 45 minutes, apparently they were too busy ordering pizza to pick up the radio. Anyway, eventually we find our stand and shut the thing down.
No one to meet us really, just down the stairs again with my crap thru the cargo building into the waiting hotel van.
and the trouble begins.........................
Our usual hotel in Manhattan can’t accommodate us and we are this crap DoubleTree in Rockaway - for 2 days!!- NOT. But before I even go there , we try and check in and they want payment from us, the company has neglected to provide a CC to the hotel. So half an hour our calls half way around the world are required to sort that out.
Problem solved, new problem. "how do I get out of here ASAP" ????
The company planned on commercialing us to LAX on Tues. I figure I would rather be in the Crown Plaza Redondo Beach than Rockaway, so the next call is to the company travel agent to move the flight up.
Booked AA3 (B767-200 that makes Air Canada's B767's look like Schizer) leaving at noon (about 8 hrs away at this point), send some emails and go to bed. Once again the phone rings and disturbs me. Oh time to get up....... I don’t have an alarm, phones wake me up all the time. It is becoming tiresome............I digress yet again.
Trip to the Airport all good. AA took good care of us seating wise ;) , but as per my life I have the dreaded SSSS on my boarding pass. I don't really mind too much now as I flirt with the agent (male or female) and try to see how uncomfortable I can make them instead of the opposite. Generally I try and leave something awkward on the top of my bag so when the open it they are embarrassed. (why a king size vat of cherry lube would embarrass them I have no idea....) Oh the games I play..
Off to the gate , no waiting. On time departure, and 3 JD and Cokes later I am typing to you folks. Looks like Kansas outside the window.
Tomorrow night (like the next day AM) we operate LAX for ANC again. Thats is the life of a B747 pilot in glorious detail.
I receive about 2 emails a week from Ft'ers about my job and what I do so now sitting at 36,000 ft dead heading from JFK to LAX I thought I would give you folks an idea of what makes up my day.
So, Friday I arrived in Anchorage from Seoul Korea with a B747 with 300,000 lbs of cargo bound for LAX. My job was to take it to ANC and the next crew would carry on southbound. For those interested we have 3 business class seats and 3 bunks on the upper deck of the B747. Catering is provided with 4 meal choices (all different to reduce the chance of food poisoning more than one of us. Lots of pop ( Soda for you US folks :) ) and drinks etc. We have an oven and serve ourselves. No FA's :( Flight was uneventful until the approach into ANC where we received multiple wind shear warnings, had speed fluctuations of +-50knots on the airspeed and generally had the crap kicked out of us on the approach. I earned my money for the next year last friday. Shortly after the temporary suspended landings till things calmed a little. If I had been flying Pax and not Cargo we wouldn't even have tried it, but freight doesn't mind the bumps. :)
As you can imagine, the next stop after clearing customs was the hotel bar. With the adrenaline wearing off and alcohol kicking in life was all good again ;) I slept hard till 4am when my alarm went off so I could hop a Alaska air flight to British Columbia to see a friend for the 2 days off.
Check in for AS was accomplished quickly at the Kiosk in hotel in Anchorage, No SSSS today and I was at the gate in plenty of time to actually catch the earlier flight to SEA fortuitously as my original flight got cancelled moments later) Exit row on the 2 side of 3-2. Business was full, no comp upgrade available, but I didn't care too much. I basically slept southbound.
Arrival in SEA was met with a phone message from my company informing they needed me to fly the next day (22hrs away out of ANC). Not good. That means my weekend is now canceled. I continued up to YVR to try and figure out how to work the problem, and thankfully Horizon Air (Dash 8 -200)provides free beer.
With the liquid lubricant quelling my anger, I work out with the AS desk in YVR that I can go back to ANC in a few hours so as to make my flight for work on Sunday.
My plans are totally shot, I am hating the company and wish to heck I could be a 9-5 'ER with a set schedule. ..................I digress.
Back on Horizon (Dash8-200)and AS (B737-900)up to ANC, exit rows so its OK, First is full again! I can't believe how full the F cabin is on AS. I guess you AS FF are happy. This was my first AS experience and I can only say it was problem free and I felt well treated.
So its now Midnight I have to get up in 8.5 hrs and fly to JFK. Sleep comes quickly and all too soon my phone is ringing for my wake up call. 1 hr to pick up.
Bags packed quickly, shower, monkey costume on, and into the crew van I go. Generally airport security anal wandings provided to the entire crew, then off to haul my crap the 30 feet up to the L1 door on the B747.
Inside we leave our stuff on the main deck and take another ladder the 15 feet to the upper deck. I sit down in my seat (I am the First Officer) and start working the take off data card, flight plan, Navigation systems etc... The Flight Engineer is walking around the aircraft doing his checks, the Captain is drinking coffee. Thus is my existence.
About an hour later with all my ducks in a row, check complete, engines running, we call call ANC ground freq. for taxi.
Short taxi to Runway 32 today. Cleared into position from tower, take off thrust set, the rotate speed today is 178 knots, we use a lot of runway, we are heavy at 780,000 lbs take off weight.
The climb out of ANC was breathtaking. One of those moments that actually makes doing what I do worth while. We turned east over Eagle River and climbed up this pass with a glacier that flowed into a fjord that had the most amazing colours.
Flight time to JFK was 5:45 and we ate somewhere over Winnipeg. Catering out of ANC is outstanding, much better than our Asian catering.JFK was busy as ever when we arrived at midnight, but no holds were required and we did a straight in ILS for 32R. Weather was marginal, around 500 feet and 2 miles. No problems until we got off the RWY and had no idea where to park the damn thing. We had been trying to call company Ops for 45 minutes, apparently they were too busy ordering pizza to pick up the radio. Anyway, eventually we find our stand and shut the thing down.
No one to meet us really, just down the stairs again with my crap thru the cargo building into the waiting hotel van.
and the trouble begins.........................
Our usual hotel in Manhattan can’t accommodate us and we are this crap DoubleTree in Rockaway - for 2 days!!- NOT. But before I even go there , we try and check in and they want payment from us, the company has neglected to provide a CC to the hotel. So half an hour our calls half way around the world are required to sort that out.
Problem solved, new problem. "how do I get out of here ASAP" ????
The company planned on commercialing us to LAX on Tues. I figure I would rather be in the Crown Plaza Redondo Beach than Rockaway, so the next call is to the company travel agent to move the flight up.
Booked AA3 (B767-200 that makes Air Canada's B767's look like Schizer) leaving at noon (about 8 hrs away at this point), send some emails and go to bed. Once again the phone rings and disturbs me. Oh time to get up....... I don’t have an alarm, phones wake me up all the time. It is becoming tiresome............I digress yet again.
Trip to the Airport all good. AA took good care of us seating wise ;) , but as per my life I have the dreaded SSSS on my boarding pass. I don't really mind too much now as I flirt with the agent (male or female) and try to see how uncomfortable I can make them instead of the opposite. Generally I try and leave something awkward on the top of my bag so when the open it they are embarrassed. (why a king size vat of cherry lube would embarrass them I have no idea....) Oh the games I play..
Off to the gate , no waiting. On time departure, and 3 JD and Cokes later I am typing to you folks. Looks like Kansas outside the window.
Tomorrow night (like the next day AM) we operate LAX for ANC again. Thats is the life of a B747 pilot in glorious detail.