Learning, Earning and Returning

Editorial Comment

For the last several Editorial Comments, the issue of “Aviation Professionalism” has been repeatedly explored, and indeed, given the current high interest in the subject, the conference theme of the upcoming 22nd annual WATS event is “Identifying and Developing Professionalism in the Global Aviation Workforce.”

Theterm “Professionalism” is seen my many to encapsulate so much of what theaviation industry endeavors to achieve every day, by thousands of employees.

It’snot hard to find definitions of professionalism, as Mr. Google will satiate anyand all curiosity. In the aviation context there are some very specificqualities, competencies, ethics and emotional intelligence that most of uscould list, and no doubt vigorously discuss and debate.

Inrecent years, much attention has been paid to the issue of coaching anddeveloping the current generation as they learn how to be an aviationprofessional. As such, a willingness to mentor the next generation must beincluded in any definition of professional. This is seen as “returning to theindustry” and can be seen as the final or ultimate mark of a professional,something that has been called “Learn, Earn, and Return”. An individual’scharacter, conduct and ethical responsibilities all get “topped off” when they “return”to the industry, through such activities as volunteering, participating in acareer day, getting involved in industry associations, and most importantly, creatinga positive image of the industry.

Overthe recent holiday season, I had the occasion to visit with an old friend whostarted ab initio flight training with me when we were both in our late teenageyears. Mike did not pursue the aviation career path, but has had a successfulcareer in engineering. However, he kept himself connected to aviation, flyingvarious single and multi-engine aircraft on weekends with his family.

Neitherof his two daughters chose any aspect of aviation as an interest or career, butMike encouraged them to follow their interests and both are college graduateswith fulfilling careers. One of his daughters completed her degree quiterecently and embarked on her first overseas solo business trip this pastSeptember, a few months after commencing employment.

Mikeremarked that while driving his daughter to the airport, it struck him that shewas completely at ease over the prospect of her first solo business trip,despite the prospect of multiple connections, time zones and one leg servedonly by small aircraft. It occurred to him that one of the reasons for hisdaughter’s comfort level was her observation over many years of the behaviourof a multitude of aviation professionals.

Once,while travelling commercial air on holidays with his family, they all observeda young flight attendant deftly handle an inebriated passenger, de-escalatingthe situation with her colleagues and ensuring the safety and continuation ofthe flight. On another flight they witnessed a flight attendant patientlyexplaining to a new mother how to deal with the distress associated withchanging cabin pressure on an infant.

Later,Mike was pilot in command of a 6-place aircraft with his family onboard whensome propeller issues caused a stop at a small FBO in the mid-west. The youngmechanic on duty immediately offered to investigate despite the early eveningarrival. He told them that he could fix it, but it would take him until earlymorning the next day. He then offered to drive them to a local hotel, assuringhim that he would be finished by their 7am departure time. And sure enough,upon arrival back at the airport, he was waiting for them, having stayed allnight so that he could watch the morning pre-flight and the cycling of thepropeller.

Anotherevent was the witnessing of an exchange between ATC and a student pilot thathad become disoriented during a training flight. Sitting in the passenger seat,Mike’s daughter heard the calm voice of the controller offering vectors, and thecaptain of a commercial airliner in visual contact relaying the position of thefledgling flyer to the controller. Their combined efforts encouraged thestudent pilot, de-escalating the situation and potentially avoiding a tragedy.

WhileMike’s daughter had an unusual and privileged opportunity to observe a largeswath of the industry in action, her experiences also remind us of theimportance of the public perception of “Aviation Professionals”.

Whatimage are you projecting and how are you “returning?”

Safe travels, Chris Lehman, CAT Editor in Chief

Published in CAT issue 1/2019