Every year, billions of people take to the skies. From security lines to boarding gates, most travelers experience the same routine—double-checking their passport, hoping their slightly oversized carry-on goes unnoticed, and settling in for the flight ahead.
But beyond the familiar rituals of air travel lies a world most passengers never see. Luckily, across several Reddit threads, airline staff, pilots, and crew members have spilled some fascinating behind-the-scenes secrets about what really happens when we fly. So, if you’ve ever been curious about the hidden side of aviation, keep reading, there’s plenty of tea to go around.
#1
The tail rotor diameter of a Robinson R22 helicopter is 3′ 6″. This is because that was as wide as Frank Robinson’s kitchen oven would go, where he had to bake the first rotor. It hasn’t been changed.
Image credits: anon
#2
Some airlines don’t pay pilots or flight attendants for flights that cancel. Which doesn’t sound so bad until you start thinking about the safety implications of it.
A little short on the rent this month? Then I don’t see that hydraulic leak, I can’t afford to have the flight cancel.
Child needs to see the doctor? Maybe I don’t report the torn up carpet that you might trip on in an evacuation, because carpet takes too long to replace–so the flight would cancel.
…not saying this happens all the time, because most crews are true professionals and can put their job ahead of their paycheck, but it happens enough to give you the goosebumps. Throw in some seriously low pay (sub $20K a year for many first year pilots) and you’ve got a subtle incentive to overlook safety issues.
Image credits: hitchhiketoantarctic
#3
My dad’s been an airline pilot for almost 20 years, and apparently planes get struck by lightning all the time. Also if a passenger is causing a scene in the jetway he can refuse to let them on and take off without them.
Image credits: D_rock95
#4
Not airline secret but airport. You know that 1st class line at security? Yeah, thats an airline thing not TSA. Economy passenger? TSA doesn’t care. Step right up.
Image credits: FatBabyGiraffe
#5
I used to be an Operations Control Center manager for a regional airline. (about 900 flights a day) Ultimately, I was the guy that decided if your flight was going to cancel. Most people don’t know I exist. When passengers hear “cancelled due to ATC or WX or MX”, its really just a small team of people deciding if your flight is going to make it and often its not even your plane or flight that has the problem.
In the case of ATC and weather, we will be allowed X number of arrivals and hour. We decide which ones are going and which ones will stay or re-position to another city. Passengers are usually one of the last items of consideration. Safety is always first, we won’t send it if there is reason to believe it is unsafe and if we can blame it on weather we will. It’s much cheaper for the airline if it is blamed on WX since they don’t have as many benefits for the customer, (food vouchers, hotels etc.) Next most important is which crews will time out, and how critical it is that they get to their next stop. The way crews are routed we often have to cancel something today to save 3 flights that would need to cancel tomorrow if the AC and crew don’t get to the right place by the right time.
Next is where the AC is routed since they are often carrying mx items that expire at a certain date and can only be fixed in specific bases.
After that is cargo and bags. Bags cost a LOT more to get re-routed than passengers. (the reason for this is that passengers can go on the next plane, but if their bags dont make it we deliver them to you. Not the airport that you were going to. Couriers can get expensive quick so its better business to have your bags waiting for you rather than the other way around, even if that means kicking you off the plane and taking your bags.)
Last is passengers, sometimes based on a “priority list” of VIPs and sometimes based on doing the most good for the largest number of people.
Ultimately, regional airlines only have one customer. The major airline they serve. They are paid based on a number of metrics to summarize their performance and there are tiers for “penalty” and “bonus”. The airline knows EXACTLY (to the minute) where they are in relation to these goals, and we will often sacrifice one for the other. Example: if we are near penalty for on-time departures within 0 min of scheduled departure time but have a good cushion on completion factor, we will cancel a flight just to make one go on time.
**TL;DR** I got a D in ethics, but I’m really good at math.
Image credits: Trout_Slayer
#6
You are able to unlock airplane lavatories from the outside. There is usually a lock mechanism concealed behind the no smoking badge on the door. Just lift the flap up and slide the bolt to unlock.
Image credits: threeway
#7
When a plane is landing at night, they dim the interior lights **incase you need to evacuate** upon landing… your eyes are already adjusted to the darkness so you’ll be able to see better once outside the plane.
Image credits: bonestamp
#8
This will get buried, but there are cracks all over the turbine blades. Crack growth is a pretty well-characterized science, and part of the point of inspections every X flights is to make sure the cracks haven’t grown to a point where they’re actually concerning. They’ll take a look at them, measure them, and if they think they still have say… 2000 hours until failure, they’ll send the plane back out and check it in a few hundred hours of use.
Image credits: Bibliotequa
#9
The air inside the jet engine of an airplane is hotter than the melting point of any component of the engine.
cvtopher12:
The components in the hot section of the engine have cooling systems which bleed off air from the compressor and direct it through holes in the part surface, creating a film of cool air that protects them from the high temperature of the combustion gases.
Image credits: BarefootSeagull
#10
Pilot here.
We only get paid when the doors are closed and the push back has commenced. If we’re delayed or sitting with the door open, we’re just as annoyed as you are.
At altitude we’re constantly in contact with air traffic control and change to different “center frequencies” (or control for other than US locations)
We’re also doing fuel checks to make sure the fuel burn isn’t abnormal, dodging weather, and probably complaining about scheduling.
Image credits: cornbreadcasserole
#11
One of my all time favorites is the Captain accidentally broadcasting his passenger briefing (welcome aboard, weather in chicago and so on) on frequency instead of the aircraft PA system, blocking up ground, ramp, tower, etc. for a solid 15 seconds. You automatically become the laughing stock of the airport.
#12
Bring an unopened bag of or box of chocolates for the flight crew, especially long flights…they’ll treat you like a king for the whole flight.
Image credits: the200sx
#13
– When you experience a hard landing in bad weather it wasn’t because of a lack of pilot skills but it is in fact intentional.
If the runway is covered in water the airplane has to touch down hard in order to puncture the water layer and prevent aqua planing.
– Mobile electronic devices won’t really bring an airplane down but they can be really annoying to pilots. Just imagine sitting in the flightdeck descending to your destination and hearing the interference of a 100+ cellphones picking up a signal. I have missed a clearance or 2 that way.
– The air you breathe on an airplane is actually compressed air taken from the engines. A large portion (25% to 50%) is blown in the flightdeck, the rest is for the passengers. The air leaves the airplane via a small hole in the back of the fuselage.
– The captain has almost limitless authority when the doors are closed. He is allowed to arrest people, write fines
– At most airlines the only difference between the captain and the co-pilot is their rank. They divide the workload fairly and switch the roles of pilot flying and pilot non-flying each flight.
Image credits: Virgadays
#14
Pilot here. Late to the party as usual. But, sometimes the passengers may be having a nice quiet flight in the back while the pilots are upfront dodging thunderstorms and yelling their heads off.
We transport live transplants, like hearts and lungs. I particularly like the live transplants because we get to cut to the front of the line for takeoff and we get all the short cuts to our destination.
Tip for those who get motion sickness: try not to move your head around. Pilots move their eyes instead of their heads to look at the instruments in the flight deck. Also try to sit in a seat over the wing. This area of the plane doesn’t rotate as much during climbs and decents.
Flight attendants can’t do pilot’s job, but pilots can’t do flight attendant’s jobs for sure. We aren’t hired for our people skills.
Don’t take off your shoes to go to the bathroom. People pee on the floor all the time.
Image credits: purcerh
#15
Will probley get buried but i am an aircraft fueler.
One thing i can not stress enough is how your pets are treated.
While your airline will take the best possible actions, some things cannot be avoided, like the noise on the ramp.
I can not stand out there without ear protection, and imagine your pet sitting out there on the ramp waiting to be loaded onto the plane being exposed to the same amount of noise i am.
Please people, think twice before flying your pets.
————————————————-
Edit: Ahhhh so much karma, was not expecting this.
So many questions too, so ill try and just hit some main points.
– Flying with pets is sometimes unavoidable, I am in no way saying that flying your pet makes you a bad owner, Just bare in mind the conditions that they will be experiencing. (They might need some extra cuddles when they get back)
– A lot of baggage handlers I have seen are really good about pets, but not everything. The people that are moving your pets onto the plane are not very well paid, at least what they deserve.
– Every airline is different, check with your airline and see what their pet policy is, and ask about any VIP or in cabin options, while not the best, it may be more comfortable for your pet.
– The people who I have seen that look after your pet before they are loaded onto plane are really great guys, and love what they do. Again, results may very from airport to airport.
Image credits: parad0xy
#16
Posted this in a similar thread a while back.
I have a friend who’s a commercial pilot. Around five years ago he was doing a flight from LA to Tokyo when an anonymous caller phoned in a threat while they were over the middle of the Pacific. Apparently they have procedures for this kind of thing, but there was nothing anyone could do in this situation except stay calm and not alert the passengers (obviously). He said for the rest of the flight every bump of turbulence made his adrenaline spike. They took this case especially seriously because there was a group of foreign dignitaries sitting in the first class cabin.
Image credits: arrialexa
#17
Your bags are thrown and dropped very frequently. Then they are put in tiny cargo compartments, where 50-150 other bags are set on top of them. Then they slide around until you land. Then they are dropped and thrown and finally, you retrieve them.
#18
Not really a secret, but as a baggage handler if you don’t use a regular suitcase with handles on the top and bottom, I absolutely hate you
Edit: Also, those of you who travel the world with your body sized backpacks are the spawn of the devil. I can’t decide which is the worst piece of luggage to try and stack in an orderly manner, those huge backpacks, car seats, or golf bags.
#19
I am a commercial aircraft fueler. At my airport we get a lot of small jets (crj200,700,900, erj 145, 737’s, MD 88,95,DC 9). One of the main things as a fueler is having to over wing a plane. We do that when the single point on the plane is inop and have to pump 600-1000 gallons of jet a into the plane. This is when you see us (1 on each side) take a small fuel pump (usually the ones you put in your car) and balance out the fuel on each side. It’s a long process, usually 2 gallons/sec. Fueling is labor intensive but no where near as bad as the ramp agents.
I also was a ramp agent for united, and most any ramp agent will tell you, don’t buy expensive luggage. When your bag weighs 30-40 pounds and I have 50-100 bags coming to me at once, I can’t treat yours with love and care that you would like. They usually want small jets out in 20 minutes ( this includes scanning bags, downloading, dropping off, scanning new bags for departure and loading and pushing back).
Another tidbit, if you are pushed back and sitting there it’s because either your wheels up got pushed back or your delayed. Pilots don’t get paid when brakes are set. They get paid pilot pay when the brakes are released.
You can only be pushed away and sitting there waiting to leave for 2 hrs, after that you return to the gate and this way you can take care of business .
Your flight will get delayed or cancelled if your coffee pot is broke or inop.
Planes break, it’s unfortunate but respect it. The airlines care very much about safety, they will ground your plane for the smallest issue. I have seen a plane cancelled because the lave was clogged. But at the end of the day you should be thankful.
First time poster but I love my job, and planes and decided to give some insight.
#20
There’s a special frequency called Guard that all aircraft are supposed to monitor. It’s for emergencies, or for when an aircraft ends up on a wrong frequency and the controllers need to get contact with them to change them to the right frequency.
It’s full of pilots meowing at each other, and people accidentally asking for gate assignments and making other radio calls.
#21
My uncle was a pilot. He says that most people don’t understand how much of the airplane is run by computers. The pilots are necessary but a lot of the elements of flying are automated nowadays.
#22
As an Air Traffic Controller we are constantly swearing and yelling at pilots when we’re not on the frequency and then when we key up we use our nice guy voices.
#23
You can bring mini bottles of liquor through TSA. If you want to save some dough but still booze a mile high, bring a few along.
#24
Flight attendant.
Pilots don’t fix the plane. They fly it. If it’s major, they call maintenance. Stop asking the pilots to just fix the plane. Sometimes it takes awhile. I’m sorry. Deal with it.
My day is long. So long. Please be nice. I see hundreds of people in a day. If I’m abrupt with you in any way, I apologize. I’m trying to 1) expedite the boarding process so we can leave on time 2) I’m running on very little sleep and I’m cranky 3) I’ve dealt with too many jerks and/or delays that day and my spirit is utterly crushed. You’ll rarely see me upset, but many other FAs are jerks. I am sorry. They don’t love their job like I do.
We only get paid when the main cabin door is closed. I make less than 20K a year. This is common.
I know that you know how to put on a seatbelt. I still have to do a safety demo. It’s a liability issue.
Don’t treat me like a waitress. I’m not. I get paid less and my hours are longer, and the job involves MUCH more than serving you a drink and some peanuts.
I personally don’t care if you use your electronic devices. HOWEVER, don’t be talking on your phone during taxi. If I can’t see your phone I don’t care if you’re playing angry birds. We’re not going to crash. Many airlines have changed their rules but mine has not and I have to enforce the rules.
People vent their frustrations about flying to me. It’s hard being complained at knowing you caused none of the problems. Believe me, it’s in our best interest to keep you happy. Why would we want otherwise? The FAA makes the rules, not your flight crew. We’re just the crew. Every decision comes from above. Remember that.
BE NICE.
#25
On some 747s (Air France and possibly others) the upper deck economy class seats have a little extra room (and storage) on the Window seats. They have a tiny bit more legroom too iirc. Air France used to block these off for picking seats ahead of time unless you have a higher tier card. If you check in a bit early you can get them.
It’s so probably been mentioned but seatguru.com is *the* resource for checking seats for whatever steel you’re flying on.
Edit: Additionally, if you order any kind of special meal, you get your meal first. Diabetic meals, low salt, kosher, vegetarian, whatever.
#26
Arm Rests – aisle and window seat : Run your hand along the underside of the armrest, just shy of the joint you’ll feel a button. Push it, and it will lift up. Adds a ton of room to the window seat and makes getting out of the aisle a helluva lot easier. :).
#27
Aluminium, unlike steel, doesn’t have a lower stress limit for fatigue cracking. In layman’s terms this means that whenever you apply load to it, it cracks. Planes are designed so that under normal loads the cracks are microscopic, but they’ll always be there and they grow with repeated stress cycles i.e. Every time the plane is flown the cracks grow. Maintenance crews are responsible for knowing where they are on each individual plane and tracking their growth.
(Source is my Mechanical Engineering professor from college days).
#28
I’m a flight attendant. Not really any secrets that haven’t already been said… But when we are in the aisles serving drinks, you should *reaaalllyy* try to wait until we are out of the aisles to get up and go to the lav or whatever. Also, if we are in our jumpseats because of the turbulence I would suggest you be in your seats as well.
#29
10 year airline customer service professional checking in…here are a few tips:
1. The “FAA regulation” on carry-on bags is actually an airline specific choice. They set their own requirements and commit it to policy, and they are then held accountable through audits (FAA, TSA, internal) for compliance.
2. Customer service agents will bend over backwards to help you when you take the time to be respectful and courteous. I cannot tell you how many times I have broken a rule or made an exception for someone just because they were nice about it.
3. If you want to bring booze onboard, just ask the flight attendant to pour for you. This is so they have control of your consumption, and can cut you off if you start to get lispy. The altitude affects your blood oxygen levels and you will get drunker faster thank you are used to at sea level…the rule is “one on the ground equals two in the air”.
4. We are required by law to offer up to $1300.00 in a check if we involuntarily deny you boarding due to an overbooked flight. The offer for volunteers will always continue to go up. It is based on the fare you paid, and the amount of time it takes us to get you to your destination as opposed to when you would have arrived had you been able to take the flight you had purchased.
edit: words.
#30
An instructor told me that he and his training buddy BOTH fell asleep for about 45 minutes at the same time, while gaining hours for licensing. The plane was in complete auto pilot mode, clear skies, zero turbulence. They both swore if they ever flew again they would “hand off” sleep like handing off the controls
EDIT (for further context): He told me that after both of them awoke, they were terrified. Neither had no idea what had happened, even *if* anything had happened. Luckily, it was over the Gulf of Mexico and at a low enough altitude where it wouldn’t impact commercial airliners. Their trim was set before “the nap”, so they only gained a couple hundred feet of altitude. But rest assured, each were not happy with themselves. They immediately contacted ATC, verified their position, and turned around to go back to the airport, white palming the yoke the entire way. Oh and this was at night too (they needed the night experience).
EDIT 2: They were in a Cessna 152. This wasn’t an oxygen issue. It was just two buddies not communicating with each other and both assuming the other was flying
EDIT 3: You’re right. C152s don’t have autopilot. By autopilot I meant trim, which would confuse people. They were also very lucky the trim was set to gain altitude, not lower. I was just speaking in layman terms for the non pilots to understand better. Like I said, they were definitely thoroughly freaked out and both admitted how badly they messed up.
#31
-Prisoners are transported on commercial airline flights sometimes (law enforcement officers are escorting them)
-On days with low ceilings/visibility and overall bad weather, we may end up being within minutes of making the decision to divert due to fuel, especially if we end up having to hold. This isn’t to say we don’t have enough fuel. Legally, we must have enough fuel on board to shoot an approach to our destination, go around, fly to & land at our alternate airport if we have one, and even then, still have 45 minutes of fuel on board.
-Armed law enforcement officers on board sometimes (not escorting anyone)
-Flying faster to get there earlier if a crew member has a commute to catch home
-Chatting/joking with ATC (if frequency isn’t busy)
-Delta pilots reporting light chop
-Pilot making PA announcement over frequency rather than PA
-Yes, the meowing on guard, as well as other nonsense
-Asking ATC how the rides are only to be told they suck at all altitudes. We try to get away from the turbulence but it’s not always possible. And we can’t predict it, and can’t see it. Can only make educated guesses as to where it may be
-It’s hot back there (during the summer mostly), we know, we have it blowing as hard as it can and cold as it can, we’re sorry it ends up feeling like a baby’s breath. Meanwhile our air vents are keeping us cool (if we’re lucky)
-The iPad you may see us in the cockpit has all our manuals, approach plates, maps, checklists etc. Basically almost everything we need, it really is incredible. Just hope that they both don’t decide to brick themselves at the same time in the air
-Yes, there isn’t a single cloud in the sky where we are now, meanwhile our destination is encompassed by a massive thunderstorm. We don’t like being late either. But we’re paid to deliver living passengers. And we can’t collect that paycheck if we’re also dead
-There’s a chance your flight could be a pilot’s very first flight in an actual jet. He could be fresh out of training, out of the simulator, and actually flying that jet aircraft. Scary, right? Well that pilot could probably explain every single system of that aircraft in-depth. Guys that have been flying the line for years? Maybe not quite as in-depth. Oh and that brand new jet pilot is flying with a check airmen, who is there to further teach that new pilot about flying on the line.
-The autopilot can fly for a majority of the flight. We have to atleast take off and land (auto land isn’t used for everyday normal operation). Different airlines have different rules on autopilot use. We must have the autopilot on above FL200 (20000ft) unless it is inop. So we can hand-fly up to that altitude, and sometimes do. If we never go above that altitude, we can hand-fly the entire flight, never turning the autopilot on, which we also sometimes do, and is often encouraged to maintain piloting skills.
-you could be asleep in the back while the pilots are battling caution messages about some system that decided to throw a hissy fit
-Planes often have broken equipment onboard, it’s just the nature of the business and things break. Can’t always fix it, so there is an approved list of things that may be broken, and how long they may be broken before they must be fixed, could be something that doesn’t affect us much, like a brake temperature sensor isn’t working, or be something that requires some the crew to account for it, like a thrust reverser being inoperative, or navigation GPS inop. Not stuff that makes the flight unsafe, just maybe more work for the pilots. Also, the Captain can always reject an aircraft if he feels it is unsafe
-If you ask us not to turn on the chemtrails this flight we are legally obligated to comply
>(Yes it’s a joke, no one has asked, but if you do, I bet the pilots would get a kick out of it. Also, they are called Contrails)
-We’re not customer service, we don’t know where your flight is leaving out of, or how to help your problem, we’ll try to help, but will usually try to direct you to a gate agent or actual customer service who can help you. We’re not trying to be rude, we just really can’t help you.
-Another person may be sitting upfront with the pilots in what’s called the jumpseat. It could be a pilot commuting to or from work, a check airmen observing, or an FAA jumpseater observing to make sure we are following regulations
-Pilots and their families get flight benefits (same for Flight Attendants), we can fly for free(or discounted). We list on a standby list, and only after all paying passengers are onboard, standby passengers may be boarded.
-It’s hours of boredom interrupted by moments of sheer terror
-When a fatal aircraft accident happens, all pilots mourn. Pilots are a close knit group, we may hate each other’s guts at times, but never wish the worst.
-The view from the cockpit is amazing. Sunsets, Sunrises, lightning storms at night, flying over mountains and landscapes never gets old.
-The Captain (Pilot) and First Officer (Co-Pilot) are both fully capable of flying the aircraft. Each pilot is designated a role, either Pilot Flying (PF) or Pilot Monitoring (PM). PF is the one actually flying, PM is monitoring what the PF is doing, to back him/her up. Usually crews switch roles every flight or every two flights, so captain is PF for first 2 flights, then FO is PF for next two flights. Yes the FO actually does fly the plane.
#32
Pilot here, most of the time the passengers are not given the full answer on why a flight is delayed or cancelled. Airlines will typically blame cancellations on unrelated events (weather) instead of mechanical issues so they don’t have to pay for hotel rooms/meals etc…
Also, chemtrails are not real. For those of you who believe they are real, give your head a shake.
#33
1. One split second of instinct combined with piloting skill decides if you land on the runway or on the side of it. Most of the runways are 45 metres wide and on a gusty summer afternoon or during thunderstorms I take god’s name more than pope himself.
2. A smooth landing is not necessarily a good landing. One can make a smooth landing and it will feel good for passengers but it could be a risky landing if the pilot decides to use extra runway. Never shout at your pilot for a bad landing unless he crash lands. And if he crash lands and you can shout at him, understand that you are alive because of him.
Bonus Fact: Many a times aircrafts coming in to land go back up in the air. This is a scary experience for many as engines, after being relatively quiet for a while, roar back to life and aircraft is pulled back up. This is called a go-around. This happens because either the runway is not clear, weather is something that can’t be negotiated properly for landing or the pilot is not at the right place and right configuration. Go-Around is something that is emphasized by all the senior trainers and authorities as it is better to go back up in the air than to be in a precarious position while forcing in to land. So whenever your pilot does a go-around, be happy that he is a safe pilot.
#34
I worked with a pilot that was really old. He couldn’t stay awake in flight. The first officer kept having to poke him and wake him up. We kept feeding him black coffee but it didnt help much. I asked him if he was retiring soon but he said he couldn’t afford it because our airline has no pension program and the pay scale is pathetic.
Pretty scary.
#35
We sat in a backed up (Queue) for hours in Denver one time. The weather had the airport socked in, nobody was going anywhere until this giant supercell cleared the end of the runway.
During that time suddenly there appeared a mechanic at the front of the cabin on the PA holding up a two foot long piece of metal he had pulled from one of the tires. He explained if the plane hadn’t been sitting waiting he might have never spotted it. It could have come flying out during take off roll and penetrated the planes wing, igniting fuel, or whatever…
…everyone cheered him, what a hero, he possibly saved our lives.
To this day I have no idea why they let him come on board and tell us this.
#36
Ex airline employee here. Often we’d have someone on board with terrible body odor. You can set the temperature in one end of the cabin hotter and it localized the smell to one part of the plane. If you see coffee filter bags hanging anywhere its because someone smells somewhere on the plane.
FAs often talk about the “hot guy in 23B” or whatever seat he’s in.
Pilots mess around a lot up front. They’ll take pictures, post on FB, watch movies, automation has taken over a lot of the work on long flights.
Edit: Not really on topic, but don’t ever walk barefoot or in socks on an airplane. The same mop that mops the lav, mops the galley.
#37
My cousin is a flight attendant, its not mid-flight, but airplane lines will fly attendants all over the country just in case there needed elsewhere. My cousin had to fly out from Portland to Seattle and some other places all in one trip, never having to work. Also, if you are sick you have to show up anyway and let the people in charge decide if you can fly or not. If you don’t, you get 3 warnings then your fired.
#38
That if the cabin were to depressurise, there is only 12min of oxygen available from the masks, this needs to last for the descent from the depressurisation (usually flying at just under 40k feet altitude) to a ‘safe’ altitude of 10k feet, this time includes a hold at 14k feet of around 7 and a half minutes.
EDIT: Also, the reason why they tell you to put your oxygen masks first and then assist children is because at an altitude of 40k feet you will only have 12-20 seconds of breathing normal air before you become unconscious. There is no problem if a child becomes unconscious for a few seconds as they will regain consciousness when the oxygen mask is put on.
#39
The stress on an aircraft’s tires is much greater on takeoff than landing. Mostly because the plane is then at or near it’s maximum weight due to fuel. Landing is no problem, even though the tires screech and smoke as they accelerate very rapidly, as the overall weight is much lower. Second fun fact: MOST of the tires planes are running on (maybe 70-80%) are NOT new but have been retreaded, many several times. The carcasses are strong, the treads wear away quickly. Source: self, worked in the aviation tire business long ago.
#40
Passengers have no idea how complicated a flight is from a pilots perspective. Let me walk you through it.
We show up around an hour before the flight and get the paperwork. Is the weather ok? Is the forecast for the destination going to be above our minimums? Is it above minimums, but requires an alternate airport to be listed in case the weather doesn’t go quite as planned? What equipment is broken at the airport that might affect these minimums? How about the departure airport? Do we need to plan for an airport to go to if we take off and have a problem, but can’t get back into our departure airport due to weather, slippery runways, etc.?
How about the airplane? Is everything working? Certain systems are allowed to be broken. Are there any of those on this flight? How will it affect us? Will it change the weather minimums we checked out earlier?
Where is my first officer? And the flight attendants? I guess they must be at the airplane. I’ll go there.
Nope, they’re not at the airplane. It’s getting close to boarding, I’d better find them. Called scheduling, they said that they are on an inbound flight that just arrived, but on the opposite side of the airport. It’ll be 10 minutes for them to swim their way through the terminal.
I’ll do the walk around while I wait. What’s that on the belly? Must be hydraulic fluid, that’s about all that is around there. Better call maintenance.
First officer and flight attendants are here now, that’s good. But we’re 10 minutes past boarding now.
Maintenance shows up and checks out the mystery fluid. It’s hydraulic fluid they say, but it’s old. They wipe it off. If you see any more when you get to your destination, let us know. Probably just spillage from when they serviced the hydraulics last.
Tell the gate agent we’re ready to board. It’s 10 minutes to departure time now.
5 minutes pass. No passengers get on.
A passenger is being wheeled down the jetway in an aisle chair (a narrow wheelchair designed to fit in the aisle of the airplane.) Takes 5 minutes or so to get him situated. The rest of the passengers file on.
Meanwhile, the first officer is getting our clearance. Bad news, there is a ground stop at our destination. We can’t leave, and we don’t expect any more information for 30 minutes. Not that we can leave in 30 minutes, just that we will get an update in 30 minutes.
The passengers have all filed on at this point. I make an announcement apologizing for the slight delay in boarding, we needed to have maintenance come out to check something, but we’re all good in that regard. Unfortunately, ATC is telling us that we can’t depart yet due to weather and traffic, and we will know more in 30 minutes.
You can hear the grumbles from the cockpit.
30 minutes pass, during which the first officer and I get the checklists done as far as we can, and get to know each other a bit. After all, I’ve never seen this guy before in my life. There are thousands of pilots at this airline, we don’t all know each other.
The first officer calls to find out about the update. Good news, you can leave, but you have to be airborne in 5 minutes. S**t. We’re still at the gate with no engines running. Can we get them both started, run the checklists, and taxi to the runway in 5 minutes? Better have a go at it, otherwise we might miss our slot.
We scramble and get it done. We take off 40 minutes late. Not too bad considering the situation.
Halfway through the flight, we see a group of thunderstorms on the radar right along our route, blocking it and any options to the left of it. We as ATC for a deviation to the right to get around that line.
“Unable due to traffic” is the reply.
Great. Now what?
“Center, we can take higher or lower if needed, but we need a deviation to the right.”
“Spudmunkey 17, uh, descend and maintain 14,000, passing 16,000, deviations to the right up to 20 degrees approved. Advise when direct to wherever.”
S**t, we’re still 2 hours from our destination. If we descend to 14,000 feet, are we going to have enough fuel?
A quick punch in the flight management system, and we do, but barely. If anything else happens, we’re going to have to go to plan B.
Luckily, nothing else goes wrong, and we land, although the extra weather deviations and lower altitude result in another 10 minutes added to the flight. We land 50 minutes late.
We park at the gate and open the cockpit door. Various comments come in from the passengers ranging from the most common: an apathetic “thanks,” to the occasional “this is why I don’t fly your airline” or any other variation of it.
The plane is empty, and we have to start the process all over again for the next flight.
The problem now is that we didn’t start it all 1 hour before departure. It’s departure time now, and the gate agent is asking if you are ready to board. You haven’t even looked at the paperwork yet.
So, you want to be a pilot?
EDIT:
I’m not looking for sympathy. I merely meant to answer the “what’s something people don’t know…” part of OP’s question. People tend to think that pilots just roll in at leisure and hit the autopilot button. I meant to educate those people a bit.
My situation is hypothetical, the numbers are arbitrary, but the point still stands. This is not an abnormal day for a pilot. It’s not a good day, but it’s not a bad day either. Throw in a diversion or a ramp with no gates approaching the “passenger bill of rights” times for being “held hostage” on an airplane, and things get a LOT more interesting. Like we want to keep you on the airplane. Because we’re evil like that.
And thank you for the gold, random stranger. I genuinely appreciate you supporting this fine web site on my behalf. It needs the support. And I’m proud to have inspired it.