I’ve flown both Airbus and Boeing aircraft as Captain and I like the Airbus very much, but you have an appreciation for the A380 that I cannot fathom. It is an ugly monstrosity compared to some of the really beautiful aircraft out there, like the 747 and the new A350. It is a wind tunnel test to see if you can build a 550 seat double decker that will fly halfway efficiently and it hasn’t worked.
As for Emirates, Airbus virtually gave away their first tranche of aircraft to get a flagship airline on board, and it may well be suited to their flying. Indeed, as a replacement for two 777s on a route, it may well be considered a reasonable replacement. However, as a commercially viable aircraft it is sorely lacking. Sure, people like it, because it is a novelty and it has upper end amenities on some airline configurations. However, an aircraft doesn’t need to have Jennifer Anniston in the shower to be a great airplane. History will not treat it kindly, and it will be a footnote to the excesses of the government subsidized aviation build up and industry replacement of the Middle East, specifically Emirates.
Dream job other than this one? Realistic ones would be orthopedic surgeon or architect as a profession, but if I could do anything at all, with no concerns about money, I would be a cancer researcher on the team that cures that horrible disease or National Park Ranger giving tours and leading hikes for children. Life is about feeding the mind and the soul, and I think those qualify.
As for the job I do being easy, because you can push buttons and make the aircraft do things...well, it is knowing which buttons, why and when, and what to do if that doesn’t quite work out right, isn’t it?! I usually hand fly up to above FL180, and down below about 7-10,000’ but the rest is simple Aviation masturbation, because a trimmed aircraft will sit there and do what you set it up to do all day, autopilot or not!
Today I went Chicago-Columbus-Chicago-Salt Lake City, and flew the legs to Columbus and SLC. Beautiful, severe clear days of high pressure and sunshine, so I flew a bit more than normal and shot visual approaches to both, with both being very different (flat fields vs mountains and high desert) but you try to make them feel the same as you can.
One tries to fly with the AP off only as much as realistic for then conditions, because the other guy is forced into doing a lot of work while you are hand flying! Flying into Newark or Chicago in a winter storm is an autopilot event until down very low, if not an auto land event, because the conditions warrant both pilots giving their maximum attention to the aircraft in the conditions and constant review of location, conditions, configuration, and sharing the duties of flying as much as possible.
In short, for me it is about making the flying experience as safe and comfortable as possible for the passengers and I take pride in receiving the compliments sometimes received at the end of a flight. In the cockpit, you already know how the leg went without the pax saying a word, but it is always nice to think you help them enjoy their time in your aircraft.
I have seen some clusterfuck approaches end in a smooooth landing and people clap! Whereas I have also seen some brilliantly flown difficult approaches end with a bit of a bump and nobody say a word...or say, “Is the pilot an ex-Navy guy?” because they are implying it felt like a carrier landing! Sometimes, the approach and conditions call for a “carrier landing,” but I don’t expect the pax to understand that.
I’m glad you have such an interesting in aviation, but I fear you’re blinded by that A380 fetish ;-)
