Gloomy Tivat. Part 2/2

We have reached 5000 feet. Extended the flaps to 1 and then to 5. Podgoritsa sent us to Tivat Tower, so, the most interesting things are going to happen right now.

Who will become a winner - the Nature or the green Bird with the busy crew and a quiet cabin?

To move the Mountain

- Denis, why do you need all this? You won't be able to move the mountain!

The First Officer whom I was checking today told me these words and I really got very excited. Our session has already finished, I'm doing a debriefing and trying to break another stone with my head.

The stone that lies there, where I could hardly imagine it even yesterday.

Gloomy Tivat

Part 1 of 2

November, 2013

- Guys, I undersood! It's all because of sinful Ksenya. We were together in my previous flight to Ulan-Ude, and unexpectedely landed at the alternate, Chita. And now, it seems that we can go to Belgrade. Ksenya is sinfull, I'm sure.

It's an old pilot joke - if something goes wrong it is due to somebody's sin:

- Ok, girls! Be honest - who sinned yesterday?
- Oops, not me! I slept at home, with a husband!
- Whose husband?

And the atmosphere in the cabin becomes not so stressed though things awaiting us ahead are not trivial... Moreover, this flight was promissed not to be boring from the very beginning.

"Chemical" flights

I started my career flying as a First Officer on Antonov-2. Could you believe, that this biplane which first flight was about 70 years ago is still flying?

Moreover, for dozens of years most of Russian student pilots used An-2 to learn how to fly. It wasn't the simpliest and cheapiest way to do it, but nobody in the USSR took prices into account. The education was free of charge also!

Sunrise from the Cockpit

And some other photos

It was a return trip from Moscow, DME (Domodedovo - my Home Base) to Kemerovo, KEJ. Not an ordinary flight - it was schedulled just before midnight when all normal people are going to their beds, but not the crazy pilots.

Welcome to my Blog

Greetings to everyone!

If we haven't met yet  - my name is Denis Okan. 

I am an airline pilot of one of the major Russian airlines.

Nowadays I fly B737 as a flight instructor (CFI) - this is a guy who teaches others how to build a friendship with this brilliant bird. Also, as a type rating examiner (TRE) I am responsible for checking proficiency of the pilots of my company. 

And as a Deputy Director Flight Operations and Planning, I work in the office, and responsible for crew rostering and overall job organizing within flight operations department.

All my interests (more or less) deal with civil aviation. My goal is to provide and popularise safety in flight operations - for  pilots and, of course, our customers.

I do it by publishing materials on proffecional subjects (my own and other's) and telling the stories about my flights. As far as my company does allow it, I' take photos and describe some routine problems giving the ideas how to solve them in daily operations.

If you speak Russian, may be it will be interesting for you to see my base blog: www.denokan.livejournal.com. 

Why I'm here?

I want to improve my English, so this blog is a good challenge for me, who doesn't have a great routine speaking experience. So, if you find my mistakes, please, feel free to let me know and help me improve :)

Yes, it is the first reason why I've started thinking about an international blog. But as I kept thinking more and more about it, I found that this idea may be great as I could find new friends all over the world, and may be, my stories would be interesting to passengers, and moreover - I could discuss some problems with my foreign colleges.

So, please take your seats, fasten your seat belts and lets try to get this bird into the air!

Your Captain Den.