To be a successful pilot goes beyond just completing flight classes, training, and practical tests. It requires a combination of skills and attitude. You will need to maintain composure in the face of difficult situations, and make the right decisions. A single mistake can cost a life, if not lives. That’s why pilots need to have certain qualities, besides their educational qualifications and training, to succeed in their career. Here is a breakdown of those qualities.
The Ability to Maintain Calmness
Great pilots don’t panic. This is a straightforward trait that can take many years to master since it involves muting one’s own inborn characteristics. Panicking sets your mind racing, leading to poor decision making. As a pilot, you need to stay calm when dealing with any eventualities. Typically, pilots complete stressful flight training programmes to harden, and develop, calmness in the face of an emergency. Remember, this is important; especially for those trainees who cannot naturally develop the ability to remain calm under pressure. Many flight training students who quickly become nervous, fail to make the cut.
Leadership
Leadership quality can either be natural in a pilot or can be acquired through learning. Leadership is necessary because it helps pilots to effectively manage their cockpit, ensuring that correct procedures are followed to the letter, plan for any unforeseen threats and minimise the chances of errors. As a pilot, you will need to lead your crew, and your team will respect your commands if it believes that such orders improve success and safety on board. Sure, it may take a while for the crew to have trust in you, but you don’t have to worry about this. Trust will come with time, especially if you’re confident about what you’re doing, and if the decisions you make, work.
Thirst for Knowledge
Great pilots value recurrent flight training. Whether you have flown over 80000 hours or more doesn’t matter, as it is through recurrent training that you will improve your confidence, and skills, in flying an aircraft. More knowledge also comes through humility; the ability to accept learning from other more experienced pilots. With many flight training schools out there, flight training has never been more accessible. Just like Livi provides healthcare services via an app, some flight training schools offer the training via apps, making it easy for many pilots to learn recurrently.
Precision
This is perhaps the only sure way to having a successful flight, and many airlines tend to be keen on this quality when hiring. A good pilot must be precise with almost every aspect of flying the aeroplane, including proper altitude, airspeed, and heading. Experimenting, guessing or making apparent errors, while on board, is next to sinning, and great pilots understand this pretty well.
Confidence
Flying an aeroplane can be scary. How would you respond to emergencies like bad weather or low fuel? Despite all these terrifying phenomena, many pilots manage to develop from timid trainees to confident aircraft experts. However, it is important not to be overconfident, as aviation can bring you down to earth.