[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]ATPLs. The dreaded time which I can imagine any qualified pilot still remembers as part of their training with warm happy feelings. It’s definitely one of the more difficult parts of training as it means flying is essentially put on the back burner while you focus heavily on study. The layout is 14 exams encompassing 14 various subject matters, covering everything from the inner workings of jet engines to the effects of alcohol on the human body (although many of us have been studying that for years).
I always had an apprehension around ATPLs. I am the first to admit that I’ve never been the best person for studying, I would never claim to be particularly academic. For the most part in school for the Leaving Cert as well as in college I never fully applied or pushed myself, it was always just enough to pass or do reasonably ok. However what I have seen is that when you’re studying something you have a genuine interest in, it really does make the difference. Learning all the important details of aircraft and essentially taking a look behind the scenes at how modern aviation really works. If, like myself you have always been fascinated by aviation, you may find you actually enjoy sitting down and learning this information!
Yes the ATPLs require a large amount of work, but contrary to many of the horror stories you hear, they are not impossible. Given that, for the most part, these subjects involve what you need to know for use on a daily basis as a pilot, you want to have a good handle on them. Like anthing in life, if you apply yourself from day one they are managable. If you really want to tackle them, ideally it’s 6 months (for an Integrated student) of study where the best course of action is to lock yourself into a room with the books and forget the outside world exists. Don’t worry, your friends and family will still be there at the end of it, but they might not remember who you are! Of course as well as the self-drive to study, it helps to have the guidance of the instructors at AFTA. Hearing how all of the theory applies to real life situations from commercial pilots is an invaluable learning tool and it really helps understanding some of the more challenging subjects.
Happily for us, it has not been all book based learning recently. One of the most exciting developments has been our introduction to AFTA’s Boeing 737 Simulator. With a cockpit taken straight from a 737 aircraft converted to a simulator with the latest technology it makes for a serious piece of kit. Most training courses would leave any jet orentation until the very end of training but we have the opportunity to begin to learn in the jet from an early stage of training. The idea is to get us familiar with the cockpit environment and the flying of a jet aircraft. It’s an amazing experience to take control of a jet, interact with the flight computers, use the autopilot functions just as commercial pilots would as well as manually landing the plane. Even as a simulator, it’s as real as it gets and an incredible feeling. The greatest advantage is being able to put into practice what we have been studying the past few months. After reading about systems like the Flight Management Computer (FMC) in a book for the last few months to be able to physically punch in navgation data to the real thing makes it all relevant. Interacting with all the systems you have studied in detail, seeing how the aircraft actually handles based on what you have read, it is amazing to see how much you have learnt and can apply for real. I feel like it is something that will really stand to us, starting early in our training means we won’t be completely green when it comes to the eventual orientation with a commercial cockpit.
Unfortunately we can’t be in the simulator every day, as much as I would want to be. But it’s great to know that over the coming months we have numerous sessions in the simulator to really get a grounding in jet operations. Something to look forward to apart from study and with the second round of ATPLs rapidly approaching I hear the books calling my name.[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_empty_space][vc_single_image image=”2321″ img_size=”full” style=”vc_box_shadow_border” onclick=”link_image”][vc_empty_space][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_empty_space][vc_single_image image=”2319″ img_size=”full” style=”vc_box_shadow_border” onclick=”link_image”][vc_empty_space][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_empty_space][vc_single_image image=”2320″ img_size=”full” style=”vc_box_shadow_border” onclick=”link_image”][vc_empty_space][/vc_column][/vc_row]