Captains: Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde

"Number one rule is make sure you are having fun."

"This is my switch. Stay on your side."

"What are you doing?"

"I better take this leg, also. The winds are kind of strong in Chicago."

"Don't hesitate to challenge me on anything. I make mistakes too."

(ha ha ha) "Great landing. I don't think they felt that one in the back."

These are all things I have heard from the various Captains I fly with. As one can imagine, their personalities are as different as some of the trips themselves. From flight to flight I never really know what kind of Captain I am going to fly with.

My first Captain I flew with on the line for IOE was what we like to call a Screamin' Eagle. On the ground he was great-very personable, relaxed, liked to joke around. When we got into the air, he was completely different, especially as were approaching the airport. He made an already stressful situation into an extremely stressful situation by raising his voice. Looking back on those first few flights, the added stress wasn't a bad thing- if I could handle him yelling on approach, then I could pretty much handle anything else in the airplane.

Since then, I have seen a variety of personalities that either cause me to love the job I have, or make my time in the cockpit excruciatingly long. Captains have their quirks about how they want things to get done. The sooner I can figure out their modus operandi, the better off I will be. As long as it's not illegal or unsafe, I have had to learn to adapt to the different styles of how things get done.

The sequence in the way things get done always remain the same:
Origination Checklist
Before Start Checklist
Engine Start Checklist
After Start Checklist
Taxi Checklist
Before Takeoff Checklist
Climb Checklist
Cruise Checklist
Descent Checklist
Approach Checklist
Before Landing Checklist
After Landing Checklist
Parking Checklist

There is a checklist for every single phase of flight. Running through checklists ensure that the flight is conducted safely and that the flight crew is on the same sheet of music. Paperwork, aircraft logs, even printouts from the ACARS always go in the exact same place each time. This ensures that flight crews can operate the aircraft and conduct the flight the exact same way that they have done with previous flight crews.

On the extreme other end of the spectrum, I recently flew with an ex- Air Force pilot who was so laid back that as long as there was no emergency, he turned everything into a joke. He was safe and is an outstanding pilot, but he was definitely a cowboy.

The best captains are the guys that make you feel at ease in the very beginning. Nothing does that more than a big smile and a firm handshake. I can confidently say that Captains who can put First Officers at ease from the very beginning will get much more out of them when they need it. Captains who like to run things through intimidation and making the FO feel like a worthless crew member because "he just doesn't have the experience" that the Captain does are not going to get a lot from their FOs. Does this put the safety of the flight in jeopardy? Not at all. It just discourages a learning environment for the First Officer and hence becoming a better pilot for the airline.

My second IOE Captain actually laughed at the worst landing I had made to that point (and I have not made one that bad since). Full airplane, among the passengers were other deadheading crewmwmbers. To top it off, a fellow classmate was jumpseating in the cockpit for his required observation flight. The approach into Chicago was fine. However, I was so intent on getting the plane down because Land and Hold Short Operations were in effect, that I unintentionally kept the thrust in and had a descent rate to the pavement that caused the aircraft to bounce off the runway, actually get airborne until I finally pulled the thrust to idle and let it gently touchdown for the second time. The Captain just laughed and although he could have sent me back for more training, he knew the embarassment of the situation was enough for me to analyze what I had done wrong and ensure it never happened again. Now every time I see him in Chicago he jokes around about that landing...I must have made quite an impression!! Too bad I wasn't able to log two landings.

I am able to talk about it, because no matter how great a pilot one perceives themself to be, they will always have one or two landings (or more) in their lifetime that they wish they could do all over. If one doesn't learn from those experiences, then they will have a short career. My point is this: the Captain handled the situation well by putting me at ease and when a mistake was made he didn't hammer me into the ground like others might have. In return, I gained more respect for him and I learned a few great lessons.

So what makes a great Captain to fly with? There simply is no formula. Each Captain brings his own personality, experience, background and knowledge. Generally, the Captains that are personable, don't like to rush, decisive, don't take themselves too seriously, patient, love to teach and love flying more than life itself...those are the guys I could fly with every day and usually make the best Captains.

I had one Captain treat me like I was five and proceeded to try to explain every single thing going on to the minute detail. He was so wrapped up in making himself look so knowledgeable and his explanations were unwarranted, resulting in him making a few mistakes that I caught. This was the same Captain that, instead of taking turns flying each leg, flew both legs because the "winds are kind of strong in Chicago." This is an example of a Captain not allowing the First Officer to learn through experience, and thus not allowing the FO to become a better pilot for the company.

I am continuing to watch each Captain so I can evaluate what I like and don't like, so when the day comes, however long that may be, I will be the best Captain possible.

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What does P. Diddy. Joseph Lieberman and Andre Agassi have in common? The answer may surprise you. It shocked me.

There is a website called MyHeritage.com which takes a picture which you submit and compare it to celebrities and other famous people. Naturally I was curious about who I might be mistaken for.

Yes. P. Diddy came in #1. Come on, you can't see the resemblance? People in the airport ask me all the time if I am P. Diddy.

So obviously this site doesn't do a great job of matching faces. What do you expect for a free internet site that offers you a chance to be flattered?

P. Diddy isn't a bad looking guy. I just don't really like his music. Sachin T...... (not sure who that is) came in a close second followed by Michael Vartan (the guy who played Sidney Bristow's handler in Alias). I am relieved to see that a 65+ year old guy, Joseph Lieberman, is a little lower on the list, though not much.



Off to Chicago today for five days on reserve. I have this next weekend off and will have every weekend off in April!!
I'm still on track to fly out of Dallas starting May 1!!