 | This article includes a list of references, related reading, or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations .(November 2021) |
In aviation, the first officer (FO), also called co-pilot, is a pilot in addition to the captain, who is the legal commander. In the event of incapacitation of the captain, the first officer will assume command of the aircraft. [1]
Control of the aircraft is normally shared equally between the first officer and the captain, with one pilot normally designated the "pilot flying" and the other the "pilot not flying", or "pilot monitoring", for each flight. Even when the first officer is the flying pilot, however, the captain remains ultimately responsible for the aircraft, its passengers, and the crew. In typical day-to-day operations, the essential job tasks remain fairly equal. Often the first officer will log time as pilot in command under supervision (PICUS), for the purpose of working towards an airline transport pilot licence.
Traditionally, the first officer sits on the right-hand side of a fixed-wing aircraft ("right seat") and the left-hand side of a helicopter (the reason for this difference is related to, in many cases, the pilot flying being unable to release the right hand from the cyclic control to operate the instruments, thus they sit on the right side and do that with the left hand). [2]
On a long haul flight, there may be multiple captains and first officers on board, to act as relief crew. While the captain rests, the senior of first officers sits in the left-hand seat, as for example on Air France Flight 447.
Many airlines promote by seniority only within their own company. As a consequence, an airline first officer may be older and/or have more flight experience than a captain, by virtue of having experience from other airlines or the military.
Some airlines have the rank of "junior first officer", for pilots who are not yet fully qualified. [3] Modern airliners require two pilots. When a junior first officer is undergoing training, a safety pilot will sit in the jump seat to monitor the junior first officer and the captain. [4] [5] A junior first officer is sometimes known as a second officer.
After a certain number of flight hours and experience, a first officer can be promoted to senior first officer. [6] A senior first officer will typically have at least 1,500 hours flight experience. [7] Some pilots prefer to remain a senior first officer than pursue an upgrade to captain. [8]
Ryanair Holdings PLC is an Irish ultra low-cost carrier group headquartered in Swords, Dublin, Ireland. The company includes the subsidiaries Ryanair DACTooltip Designated activity company, Malta Air, Buzz, Lauda Europe and Ryanair UK. Ryanair DAC, the oldest airline of the group, was founded in 1984. Ryanair Holdings was established in 1996 as a holding company for Ryanair with the two companies having the same board of directors and executive officers. In 2019 the transition began from the airline Ryanair and its subsidiaries into separate sister airlines under the holding company. Later in 2019 Malta Air joined Ryanair Holdings.
Philippine Airlines Flight 434, sometimes referred to as PAL434 or PR434, was a flight on December 11, 1994, from Cebu to Tokyo on a Boeing 747-283B that was seriously damaged by a bomb, killing one passenger and damaging vital control systems, although the plane was in a repairable state. The bombing was a test run of the unsuccessful Bojinka terrorist attacks. The Boeing 747 was flying the second leg of a route from Ninoy Aquino International Airport, Pasay in the Philippines, to Narita International Airport, in Tokyo, Japan, with a stop at Mactan–Cebu International Airport, Cebu, in the Philippines. After the bomb detonated, 58-year-old veteran pilot Captain Eduardo "Ed" Reyes was able to land the aircraft, saving it and the remaining passengers and crew.
A low-cost carrier or low-cost airline (LCC), also called no-frills, budget or discount carrier or airline, is an airline that is operated with an emphasis on minimizing operating costs and without some of the traditional services and amenities of traditional airlines, resulting in lower fares and fewer comforts. To make up for revenue lost in decreased ticket prices, the airline may charge extra fees such as for carry-on baggage. As of April 2020, the world's largest low-cost carrier is Southwest Airlines, which operates primarily in the United States, as well as in some surrounding areas.
Aircrew, also called flight crew, are personnel who operate an aircraft while in flight. The composition of a flight's crew depends on the type of aircraft, plus the flight's duration and purpose.
Air China Flight 129 (CCA129/CA129) was a scheduled international passenger flight, operated by Air China, from Beijing Capital International Airport to Gimhae International Airport in Busan. On April 15, 2002, the aircraft on this route, a Boeing 767-200ER, crashed into a hill near the airport, killing 129 of the 166 people on board.
Midwest Express Airlines Flight 105 was a scheduled domestic passenger flight that crashed into an open field in Milwaukee, Wisconsin shortly after taking off from General Mitchell International Airport on September 6, 1985. The airplane, a Douglas DC-9, was carrying 31 passengers and crew. None of them survived the crash.
Pilot error generally refers to an accident in which an action or decision made by the pilot was the cause or a contributing factor that led to the accident, but also includes the pilot's failure to make a correct decision or take proper action. Errors are intentional actions that fail to achieve their intended outcomes. The Chicago Convention defines the term "accident" as "an occurrence associated with the operation of an aircraft [...] in which [...] a person is fatally or seriously injured [...] except when the injuries are [...] inflicted by other persons." Hence the definition of "pilot error" does not include deliberate crashing.
Aeroflot Flight 593 was a passenger flight from Sheremetyevo International Airport, Moscow, Russia, to Kai Tak Airport in Hong Kong. On 23 March 1994, the aircraft operating the route, an Airbus A310-304 flown by Aeroflot, crashed into the Kuznetsk Alatau mountain range in Kemerovo Oblast, killing all 63 passengers and 12 crew members on board.
A Weapon Systems Officer (WSO), nicknamed "Wizzo", is an air flight officer directly involved in all air operations and weapon systems of a military aircraft.
In aviation, a safety pilot is used during pilot training.
Third officer is a rarely used civil aviation rank. It was primarily used by Pan Am, particularly on its Clippers flying boats during the infancy of extended range airline routes. The third officer would serve as a relief pilot and aircrew member, and could move between pilot, co-pilot, radio officer, and flight engineer positions to provide a rest period for the primary crews.
Second officer is a civil aviation rank, also known as junior first officer. It is used for pilots at an early stage of their career.
Jeffrey Bruce "Jeff" Skiles is an airline pilot for American Airlines. On January 15, 2009, he became known globally as first officer of US Airways Flight 1549, when he worked together with captain Sully Sullenberger to land the aircraft on the Hudson River after the plane lost both of its engines. They were widely celebrated as heroes for landing the plane with no loss of life.
Invicta International Airlines Flight 435 (IM435) was a Vickers Vanguard 952, flying from Bristol Lulsgate to Basel-Mulhouse, which crashed into a forested hillside near Hochwald, Switzerland on 10 April 1973. The aircraft somersaulted and broke up, killing 108 people, with 37 survivors. To date, this is the deadliest accident involving a Vickers Vanguard and the deadliest aviation accident to occur on Swiss soil. Many of the 139 passengers on the charter flight were women, members of the Axbridge Ladies Guild, from the Somerset towns and villages of Axbridge, Cheddar, Winscombe and Congresbury. The accident left 55 children motherless and became known in the British media as the Basle air crash.
Dana Air Flight 0992 was a scheduled Nigerian domestic passenger flight from Abuja to Lagos, Nigeria. On 3 June 2012, the McDonnell Douglas MD-83 aircraft serving the route suffered a dual-engine failure during its approach to Lagos. It failed to reach its intended destination and crashed onto buildings, killing all 153 people on board and six on the ground. With 159 deaths, it remains as the deadliest commercial airliner crash in Nigerian history since the Kano air disaster in 1973.
Northwest Airlines Flight 85 was a scheduled international passenger flight from Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport in the United States to Narita International Airport in Japan. On October 9, 2002, while over the Bering Sea, the Boeing 747-400 experienced a lower rudder hardover event, which occurs when an aircraft's rudder deflects to its travel limit without crew input. The 747's hardover gave full left lower rudder, requiring the pilots to use full right upper rudder and right aileron to maintain attitude and course.
Airline pilot uniforms were introduced in the early 1930s by Pan American World Airways at the beginning of the airline's Clipper era. At present, mainstream airline uniforms are somewhat standardized by the industry and widely used by airlines from the Americas, Europe, Asia, Australia and Africa, from small regional operators to large international companies.
Downeast Airlines Flight 46 was a scheduled airline service in the United States from Boston's Logan International Airport to Rockland, Maine operated by Downeast Airlines. On May 30, 1979 a de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter operating the flight crashed during a nonprecision approach to Rockland's Knox County Regional Airport. All but one of the 18 people on board were killed. The cause of the accident was controlled flight into terrain (CFIT) after the failure of the flight crew to stop the aircraft's descent below the minimum descent altitude for the non-precision approach at Knox County airport. The investigation into the accident looked into the airline's corporate culture as a contributing factor to the crash; this was the first time an investigation took this approach to an air crash.
US-Bangla Airlines Flight 211 was a scheduled international passenger flight from Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka, Bangladesh, to Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, Nepal, that crashed on 12 March 2018 while landing, killing 51 of the 71 people aboard. The aircraft, a 76-seat Bombardier Q400 operated by US-Bangla Airlines, burst into flames after the crash. The 20 surviving passengers were seriously injured from the impact and the fire. It remains the deadliest aviation disaster involving a Bangladeshi airline, and the deadliest incident involving the Bombardier Dash 8 Q400.
In-flight crew relief, is a term used in commercial aviation when referring to the members of an aircrew intended to temporarily relieve active crew members of their duties during the course of a flight. The term and its role are almost exclusively applied to the secondary pilots of an aircrew, commonly referred to as relief pilots, that relieve the primary and active captain and/or first officer (co-pilot) in command of an aircraft to provide prolonged breaks for rest or sleep opportunities.