Who Is The New Pilot?

Things have changed in aviation in the last 5 - 10 years. The pilots have changed. The people who want to become pilots have changed. Here’s what we wrote a year or two ago. It’s at least one thing that’s as true now as it was then.

Who is the “New Pilot”? What makes them the new breed that they are? Well, they’re someone who is equally likely to be male or female, works hard, plays hard, is disciplined, results-driven, performance-oriented, self-critical but self-confident, determined, persistent, relishes challenge, looks forward to the future but respects the past without nostalgia. They’re:

Can-do

Will-do

Punctual

Prepared

In fact clearly they’re just like the OLD pilot… complete wan…no hang on, I didn’t say that.

Anyway you’ll agree that CNN’s Ted Turner knows a thing or two about how to be a success (in aviation or otherwise). Here’s what he says:

“I’ve never run into a guy who could win at the top level in anything today and didn’t have the right attitude, didn’t give it everything he had - at least while he was doing it - wasn’t prepared and didn’t have the whole program worked out. “

Yup, that’s the New Pilot. That’s the pilot that makes it into the airlines today.

So there was an image that went with all that:

The guy’s name is Kamil. When we took the photo he had completed his PPL with us, and his CPL with us and was training for his Flight Instructor Rating with us. Later on he also worked as a charter pilot with us.

Kamil is now flying jets for an airline in Europe. And that’s no accident.