Airline pilots, how hard is it to remain physically active and fit?

Weightlifting and rock climbing are very dear to me. I wonder with how often y'all are just at a hotel or sleeping wild hours whether it's hard to go to the gym/keep fit as an airline pilot.

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Why isn’t “Thrust Reverser Deployment in flight” not an EPC?

Edit: sorry mistyped and added an extra not in the post title…

I’m currently getting typed on the Ejet and I did my first inadvertent thrust reverser deployment (it actuated at V1)

For those who don’t know, the Emb-175 automatically goes to reverse idle if the thrust reverser deploys in flight, even then though,

The plane shakes like hell, and it’s worse than a V1 curt because now one engine is actually creating reverse thrust (as you all know) I found it incredibly difficult to maintain directional control, to maintain airspeed, climb, etc. The same was the case for my sim partner when he did it (but we were actually airborne for his so he had more airspeed to play with)

My question is, with all of this, WHY ON EARTH, IS INADVERTENT THRUST REVERSER DEPLOYMENT A QRH ITEM AND NOT AN EPC?

The QRH just makes you shut down the troubled engine, it just takes longer because you have to transfer radios and controls, dig through the fat book, and go through its flowchart. Meanwhile, the PF is fighting for every ft gained without losing airspeed!

Why can’t they just either make an EPC for it or put it under the EPC for Fire severe damage / separation?

Sure, the plane remains controllable, but so does a plane with an engine that is on fire or that fell off, why can’t we just shut it down ASAP and just go to flying single engine?

Maybe a pilot with more experience can answer this, I do not have the answer.

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Help!! Confusion with engine fire and emergency descent

When doing an simulated engine fire, do you have to do a spiraling descent with it? Do those two go together?

All of my training when I’ve done an engine fire I just pitch for 100kts towards my landing point. I just had a different CFI tell me that I should be doing this while in a spiraling descent.

If my DPE calls an engine fire, do I not spiral descend unless they specifically tell me to do so? I’ve gotten mixed answers from different CFIs and my checkride is coming up….

EDIT: where we practice all of our maneuvers is over water and sometimes far from the shore

https://redd.it/1s6ja00
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What’s the worst turbulence experience you’ve had in a light aircraft?

Went up with a student the other day on a usual windy day. Winds aloft were showing about 20kts from the NE. Terrain is to the W so I didn’t expect anything unusual besides some ordinary chop.

Headed back from the training area we crossed a town closer to terrain and had a pretty nasty downdraft and dropped about 300ft in a couple seconds. Student was a little shaken. Good thing he had his harness on tight, he would’ve most definitely hit the canopy.

https://redd.it/1s6vh12
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When can I descend after receiving my Instrument approach clearance

CFII here, looking for some clarification on approach descent rules—had this happen to me recently and want to make sure I’m thinking about it correctly.

I was on an IFR flight plan, in the clouds, and got:
“Cleared RNAV 16, cross JUKVO at or above 3,000.”

I was at 5,000 ft and still about 15 NM outside the IAF. No “descend and maintain” was given, so I ended up requesting lower because I wasn’t 100% sure what the correct move was in that moment.

My understanding now:

* On a non-TAA approach, I should **not descend** until I’m established on a published segment of the approach.
* On a TAA approach, I **can descend immediately** within the TAA to published altitudes.
* MSA doesn’t authorize descent at all.

Does that sound right? I wasn't sure why ATC cleared me for the approach, but no step-down. Or is there a nuance I’m missing—especially when it comes to descending prior to the IAF?

Appreciate any insight from those with more experience.

https://redd.it/1s6vjh4
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What should my plan of action be?

I am a 15 year old sophomore in high school going into my junior year this year, I also turn 16 during the summer. I want to be a pilot 100% but I am kind of stuck between going the regular/college route (through Purdue if I make it in since I get in state tuition) or through the military route. I honestly would be fine with either but I also do not want anything to fall through with my plan and my pilot dreams go away. I have a 3.7 GPA for all of the classes I have taken. What should I do now and which path would be better to pursue for the incoming future? I have a bunch of local airports near me too.

https://redd.it/1s6w8ai
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AirlineApps "Not Qualified" for Missing ASEL—Even with ATP

Hey everyone, just wanted to share a fix for a major issue I ran into while applying for Endeavor (and other airlines using AirlineApps).

I hold an ATP certificate, yet my application kept showing as "Not Qualified" because I was supposedly missing my Airplane Single-Engine Land (ASEL) rating. I have thousands of hours, and this was incredibly frustrating.

It took a while, but I finally figured out the quirk:

The Problem: I had my "ATP" listed as my highest certificate, and I also had a separate "Commercial" entry that listed my ASEL. The AirlineApps algorithm ignores the separate lower-tier entries. It assumes that if your ASEL isn't listed within your ATP folder, you don't actually hold those privileges.

The Fix: Go to your ATP certificate entry. look inside that ATP entry for Ratings or Privileges. And Commercial Privileges with ASEL and that should fix the issue.

Hope this saves time for someone who’s running into similar issue. Good luck with your applications!

https://redd.it/1s6z8kr
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B-1 Lancer Aerial Refuels During Operation Epic Fury
https://redd.it/1s70lw0
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Fuel management on low-wing aircraft question...

Have owned a high-wing Cessna and am now looking to buy a low-wing aircraft (Piper, Beech, etc...). In a Cessna, the fuel is gravity fed from the wings above, don't have to switch any tanks. On low-wing aircraft, you have to switch tanks from the left-side to the right and back periodically. How do you manage the tank switching task so that the prop keeps turning? This has always been a big concern of mine about low-wing aircraft because we ALL know of "off-airport" landings that occurred because one tank ran dry while there was still plenty of fuel in the other.

https://redd.it/1s6yiwc
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Boeing 757 taking off in only 20 seconds

https://redd.it/1s72f9j
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Do airlines care about the "quality" of hours

When i was little, i really wanted to fly for the flag carrier of my country.

Now i am just a normal pilot flying his C152 around the country. IFR and VFR. Sometimes its just to literally fly around. The largest aircraft i ever flown is a P2006 to get my MEP

So far, i am at 300hrs with just hobby flying.

I plan on maybe changing carrers in the next 5-10 years. Just like thousands want, to become an airline pilot. Something that doesn't involve running a business.

Again, ALMOST all my flight time has been in little planes, for personal flying only. I could go up to 800-1200hrs by the time i get the ATPL. And i'll be in my early 30s

https://redd.it/1s75e6n
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Is it ok to just post videos of nice takeoffs and landings in this sub ? Would it come under “Planespotting” ? (Asking because the video is from “Inside” the plane)

https://redd.it/1s77dh0
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Block time: engine start, wheel movement, or door close?

I've always tracked block time as engine start to engine shutdown — for GA that's pretty standard. But I ran into a question from a Part 135 pilot who defines Time Out as first wheel movement to Time In being final wheel stop. As I've been digging, I'm finding even more definitions out there: door close to door open, brake release to brake set, etc.

Curious what you all use and why — especially if you fly Part 135 or 121, or if your company has a specific (or surprising) definition beyond these.

https://redd.it/1s78lxt
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Frontier 2539 Level 3 Security Threat

https://redd.it/1s797ez
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Support NASA X-59 LEGO build!
https://redd.it/1s7e345
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Going back to GA from 121

I've been at my home airline for a while now and decided I needed a place to burn all this extra cash so why not go back to flying GA because that burns it pretty quick. So im pursuing my tailwheel endoresment because why not do something different and wow did I forget what it was like to fly these things. Like I cant believe they let me be an airline pilot with how behind I am in a C140. For the most part air work was fine but pattern work and approaches were rough to put it lightly.

Anyways for those that decided to get back into the fun flying of GA from the 121 world, how long did it take before you felt you were confident in them again?

https://redd.it/1s7d771
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New video of DCA midair

https://redd.it/1s7fr96
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My 10 month, $40k, 133 hour journey toward becoming a Sport Pilot

Passed my checkride today, so I figured I’d make a post about my experience of getting a Sport Pilot Certificate.

I initially learned about MOSAIC back in late 2023. I started thinking about how much of the aviation world would be available to me as a Sport Pilot after MOSAIC. I have a pretty complicated medical history (cancer, diabetes, depression, sleep apnea, etc; nothing disqualifying but stuff that makes getting a medical difficult). When I was a kid I got to fly in some Cessnas with friends and did a few glider lessons and loved it. It wasn’t until recently that I had the disposable income, free time, and lived close enough to an airport where I could pursue a pilots license. Back in April my wife gave me the go-ahead to start flying.

I tried finding an LSA for rent in my area but wasn’t having much luck. The only one I could find was having maintenance issues and was down. So I found someone offering instruction in a Cherokee close to my work and figured I’d fly 1-2 times a week until MOSAIC went into effect then take my checkride. I did two flights (2.3 hrs) in the Cherokee which I’d consider “discovery flights” then took a few weeks off to travel, finish up studying for my written, and coincidentally in that time found someone offering instruction in a J3 Cub about 90 minutes from my home.

So after Memorial Day I got back from my vacation, passed the written, and took a couple of discovery flights (3.1 hrs) with two different instructors in the J3 Cub. One of the CFIs was my primary, with the second CFI being the guy I’d fly with when the first one was unavailable. I was averaging 3 flights per week in the Cub for June/July but couldn’t really get the hang of landing it. I started getting better flying with my secondary instructor, but after 51.3 hours I still hadn’t soloed and the Cub started having mechanical issues.

In August I found another instructor 30 minutes from my house that was offering instruction in an RV-12. I went on a discovery flight with him and never went back to the Cub. This instructor is great, had a good way of explaining things, and was a great teacher. I soloed that RV-12 after 9 flights and 12 hours. Everything was going well, I was on the schedule for my solo XC in September and would’ve been able to squeeze in my checkride right before MOSAIC went into effect in late October. But then the RV-12 started having mechanical issues.

It was down for a few weeks so I wasn’t going to get my checkride in before MOSAIC. The owners of the RV-12 primarily use it for instruction so it’s not really available for rental if I’m not working on a rating. So I joined my local flying club to start flying their 182 (which I hope to eventually take on XC trips with my wife). Same instructor, which was nice. But it took me a while (17 flights, 23 hours) to transition and get comfortable flying it. Plus scheduling was an issue with the club (lots of people like to take that plane on week-long XCs).

So I finish my solo-XC in early January and immediately contact my local sport Pilot DPE (big name guy in the Houston area that’s well-known/respected/connected and gets mentioned on this sub quite a bit). He booked me for a February checkride and I started working with the owner of the plane to get shoulder harnesses installed because the DPE won’t fly in a plane without them. The DPE called me a few weeks later saying that there was an issue with the FAA/MOSAIC and that I’d have to take my checkride in the RV-12 (we find out later that the FAA resolved that issue, but not until after I switched back to flying the RV-12 again so I decided to stick with that through the checkride). Checkride day came in February and the DPE calls me the day before saying that he had a call into the FAA but it sounded like I might not have been legally soloing in the 182 as a student pilot without a medical and that my solo XC wouldn’t count (we later find out that it did count and I was legal). Fortunately I made a training flight in the RV-12 that also

counted for my solo XC.

So MOSAIC woes aside, checkride day comes and I pass the oral with flying colors. But the visibility and ceilings were worse than forecasted so I had to reschedule the flying part of the test. My reschedule date comes and the gusts were too gusty, so I rescheduled again. Then again. At this point I’m 6 weeks past my original checkride date and I’m getting antsy. I see the gusts in the forecast thinking I’m about to reschedule again but I opted to fly with my CFI the day before in similar gusts just to see how I’d do. I felt confident, so I moved forward with the checkride and passed it today!

Here’s some stats:

J-3 Cub Hours: 51.3

RV-12 Hours: 45.7

182 Hours: 33.7

Cherokee Hours: 2.3

Hours I’d consider to be “discovery flights”: 7.7

Dual Hours: 107.9

PIC Hours: 25.1

Avg # of flights per week: 1.7

Plane rental costs: $22k

CFI Costs: $13k

Other Costs: $5k (headset, Kings Ground School, books/supplies, iPad, ForeFlight, club dues, etc)

So, what’s next? I’m planning on flying to every airport restaurant within 200 miles. Gonna fly with my father-in-law a bit (he’s a pilot too, working on his BFR after having not flown in 30+ years). I wanna get a few more flights in before I start taking my wife on trips. She gets nervous, so I want more experience before flying with her.

That’s my experience. Lots of hiccups along the way made it take a lot longer and cost a lot more than it should’ve. I had a great time learning and I’m looking forward to being a part of the GA community.

https://redd.it/1s7dif5
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