Career Story: Pilot
Angelo is a commercial airline pilot who feels financially stable and is in a position to help his family with bills. Find out how he’s building up to his goals.
My name is Angelo Bautista.
I'm 29 years old.
I'm a commercial airline pilot.
ANGELO, 29
COMMERCIAL AIRLINE PILOT, COMPASS AIRLINES
I work for Compass Airlines,
and they contract with Delta
and American Airlines,
and we fly their smaller planes,
and their shorter routes
to the hub of Los Angeles
International Airport.
My number one responsibility
as a captain of the airplane
is safety.
When I walk in the aircraft
ANGELO’S RESPONSIBILITIES:
I check the maintenance log book
-SAFETY
and make sure
the aircraft is air worthy.
-INSPECT AIRCRAFT
I check the weather,
REVIEW FLIGHT PLAN AND
WEATHER FORECAST
I check the flight plan
and the fuel planning
to our destination.
I am also responsible
for an on-time departure.
-COMMUNICATION
With that being said,
I have to communicate
with a gate agent,
the dispatcher,
COORDINATE WITH FLIGHT TEAM
AND GROUND TEAM
air traffic controller,
ground crew members,
flight attendants,
and my first officer
to keep everybody in the loop
to make sure we push out on time.
If there's any weather delays
I make sure I promptly
advise the gate agents
and the air traffic controller,
and also the passengers
-SHARE FLIGHT INFORMATION
WITH PASSENGERS
so they can be in the loop
and be advised.
My final responsibility
is flying the airplane.
-PILOT THE AIRCRAFT
Once the doors are closed
I actually make an announcement
to the passengers
to introduce myself and my crew,
giving them an expectation
of the flight,
if it's gonna be smooth
or pretty bumpy.
I also give them
an estimated time of arrival
so they know if we're gonna
be late or on time or early.
A commercial airline pilot makes
roughly around 15,000
to up to $250,000 a year.
THE MEDIAN SALARY OF A
COMMERCIAL AIRLINE PILOT
The reason why there's
wide spread for that
IN 2015 WAS $102,520 A YEAR.
SOURCE: BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS
is when you're starting off
in the airline business
you start off on a small airplane
getting paid less,
right, and then
you work your way up
to be a captain of a large aircraft
for international flights,
and that's where you get paid
the big bucks of 250,000 a year.
I roughly make
about 90,000 a year,
BENEFITS OF BEING
A COMMERCIAL PILOT:
and in my position
as a regional airline captain
that's pretty average.
Benefits and perks
of a commercial airline pilot
IF APPLYING TO BE A COMMERCIAL
CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS
is flight benefits.
PERSONALITY
PROBLEM SOLVING
I can have my parents
JUDGEMENT IN CHALLENGING SITUATIONS.
and my girlfriend fly for free
-FREE FLIGHTS
anywhere in the US
and anywhere international
where a US carrier flies to,
anywhere, any time as long as
there's a seat available.
Other benefits I get
as a commercial airline pilot,
I get 401K,
-401K
-medical benefit,
-MEDICAL & DENTAL BENEFITS
dental benefits
and life insurance.
-LIFE INSURANCE
A typical day for me
is arriving at the gate
45 minutes early.
Sometimes it's the morning,
sometimes it's the afternoon.
It just depends on what schedule
I was awarded with.
I meet with the flight crew,
with the first officer
and two flight attendants
and usually I have never
flown with them before.
And the reason behind that
is I have a new crew
every single time I fly
in a series of flights.
It could be a day trip
meaning we go to Los Angeles
and go to Dallas and back.
Or I go to Los Angeles
and we have
five days worth of flying
and we don't come back
to Los Angeles until the fifth day.
Some of the traits
that you have to have
in order to be a successful pilot
I think you have
to have good judgment.
KEY TRAITS OF SUCCESSFUL PILOTS INCLUDE:
-GOOD JUDGEMENT
Also, you are stuck
in the cockpit with somebody
for an extended amount of time.
-COOPERATIVE NATURE
You are flying
with the flight attendants
for extended amount of days,
and I think you should be
able to work as a team
-STRONG PROBLEM-SOLVING SKILLS
to solve problems,
think on your feet,
and fly the aircraft safely
from point A to point B.
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