Tips for Being a Great Captain

[fu_manchu_72]

Has anyone discovered a secret to winning the best praise of the Airline for Captain of the Ship? I have over 34 flights and receive applause for my landings, descend at no more than 500 fpm, remember the seat belt and smoking signs, use power settings well within the recommended values, standard turns and etc. In spite of all this, the pilots log says my career is slipping or that the airline is not happy with me. Can anyone make a few suggestions?

[rahoward144]

Just guessing for you... but how much is it costing the airline per mile? I try to keep my per-mile costs as low as possible. With a headwind there's not much you can do, but in general if you cruise at 1600 RPM and 27" MP (or whatever works for you) then you will keep the cost fairly low. I've had a few in the high 30-cent range but most are in the mid-to-high 40-cent range (50's era). Strong headwinds can push it into low 50-cent range but that's not the norm. Early in my Connie career, a lot of flights were 60-cent range or higher and I wasn't making much progress.

Also, even though the passengers clap, this doesn't mean it was a top-rated landing. You need to get atta-boys from your crew. You're looking for comments from them like, 'Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful" and things like that. Those go a long way toward improving your standing, especially when a VIP is on board. Conversely, a "forgettable" landing with a VIP can hurt your rating.

[fu_manchu_72]

Thanks for the reply.

My latest cost per mile is 63 cents, not very good it seems. I have been going with the recommended cruise of 29 inches, 2200 rpm and lean. I did not deviate from that because I thought that is was what the software was looking for. Right now it is weird because I am not sure where to focus my efforts, the manual says to keep the ball in the center so I have been putting extra effort into that, also climbing up to smooth air and making sure the seat belt and smoking signs get turned off. Trying also to not descend more than 500 fpm but that can be hard sometimes. If the baby cries, I figure you blew it.

Chris

[rahoward144]

I think lowering your cost-per-mile will help make the airline happy. In addition, I always make sure to select the Heavy passenger preset so that at least 98% of the seats are filled. Not sure if that helps or not but that's how I've been doing it. It does track total passenger miles so maybe it matters.

I routinely descend at 600 fpm. Below 2,000, I try not to exceed 500 fpm, but it's common to have the baby cry for a few seconds on short final. It is a little distracting, and like you, I thought it hurt my rating. But as long as they stop after a few seconds it doesn't seem to have a negative impact. I've had really good post-flight passenger and crew comments even with the short bouts of crying.

Finally, I've even flown through bad weather, so that after landing a crew member breathes an audible sound of relief... and still had good ratings. I think the cost-per-mile and really soft landings account for the bulk of your ratings. So if you've got all those other things under control, then I think you're almost there.

[fu_manchu_72]

Sounds like a plan, I'll try focusing on fuel economy improvement. I may be able to speed up the process by shorter hops, i.e. 50 miles with a full load. I'll try to report back in 5-10 flights to see how my cost per mile improves and if the airlines don't give me the ax.

Thanks,

Chris

[Scott - A2A]

You can have a great career if you just take a load of short flights. The landings are key - it's very hard to be seen as an outstanding pilot if you are not acing your landings. Also the comments from passengers will help you determine what areas you are doing good or bad in too.

Scott.

[fu_manchu_72]

Flew two more flights today and here are the results: Flight one was from Philly to St. Louis, bad headwind but went very smoothly, good landing and no bad comments from passengers. But due to a 60 knot headwind, my cost per mile went from 63 cents to 68. I made the reverse trip from Pittsburgh to Philly and had a great tailwind, great landing. I received the comment that I know my plane pretty well, I think this was because I saw a carb ice warning at two separate intervals during the flight and my quick action was to hit the carb ice switches. I did violate ATC by descending before they gave me permission so I blew that part of it but I don't think that is taken into account. Anyway, my cost per mile went back down to 63 cents and everybody is happy.

Thanks Scott, you and your team have created a very challenging and rewarding airplane. Thanks for keeping FSX alive. Can't wait to see what A2A Simulations is working on next.

Chris