When you’re on a long-haul journey, there are a few things you can do – either sleep or see what movies your plane has to offer. But what do the pilots do during the entire flight?
Piloting isn’t an activity we get to observe outside of the cockpit, and many of us who have never flown a plane probably imagine it’s similar to driving a car or a train.
However, flying a plane is much more complex, considering all the navigation tools, buttons, and flight territories involved.
So who could manage that on a 12-hour flight without needing to leave the tiny cabin?
Fortunately, you don’t have to wonder anymore, as a US-based pilot has the answers.
You couldn’t blame them for maybe kicking their feet up when they have thousands of miles ahead of them and no form of entertainment – unless they have Netflix up there?
However, Pascal explained that it’s a lot different than you’d think.
In his YouTube video from 2023, he detailed his day flying to Fort Myers, Florida, on a six-day rotation.
Initially climbing to cruising altitude takes around two hours, and during that time, the pilots will be checking their readings, contacting Air Traffic Control to verify everything is okay, and checking the weather for their route.
After receiving clearance, he and a team of pilots had to ‘cross-check the fuel’ and create an alternate plan for ‘if something would happen’ as well as check what runway they’ll land on if they have to divert.
But once that’s all done, it’s time for the autopilot to kick in.
Following that, they mostly have to monitor the flight path, weather conditions, and prepare for any emergencies.
According to Pascal, every pilot in the cockpit has to create an alternative route or flight path in case something goes wrong up in the air. He mentioned that they are responsible for planning four different alternative routes for the entire flight.
He also discussed reaching cruise altitude, which he says happens ‘half an hour after we get up in the air’.
“So after we lift off and reach cruise altitude, obviously there’s not that much to do as during a climb out, but we still have to circumnavigate weather pretty often over the Atlantic,” he continued.
Depending on which area they are flying, there’s also a lot of constant communication with ATC or other pilots regarding flight planning.
Of course, there’s often more than one pilot on the plane, so Pascal says pilots are allowed to sleep on night flights. However, it’s more of a power nap or a ‘control rest’.
“I do it often for half an hour,” he says, adding that he will ‘put his chair back’ or maybe ‘put a sleeping mask on’.
In some cases, they are afforded a ‘real break’ to go to bed, as Pascal was allowed to do on his flight to Fort Myers, which had a ‘three-party cockpit’.
And depending on how long the break is, Pascal says he can sneak in some Netflix ‘from time to time’ after an hour’s kip. But only when he’s not in the cockpit, as the main priority is making sure the flight goes smoothly.
So in short, they don’t have time to sit and watch their favorite binge-worthy show.