Curious kid aboard an SAA airbus
Posted by almostrainman@reddit | aviation | View on Reddit | 110 comments
Og Post : https://www.reddit.com/r/southafrica/s/jvyXOZKASm
Posted by almostrainman@reddit | aviation | View on Reddit | 110 comments
Og Post : https://www.reddit.com/r/southafrica/s/jvyXOZKASm
usrdef@reddit
I can tell you right now. I wish I could go back to being like 12 years old. Just so a captain would invite me in there to see the cockpit for a few minutes.
The closest I got was as a kid, I had to take a plane ride. My parents said that I started acting goofy, and was making people on the plane laugh. We hadn't even taken off yet.
And in the mix of making people laugh with whatever I was doing, apparently the captain came back and said hi to me and shook my hand.
Apparently I was yelling "Green Acres! Green Acres!" because someone came on the plane that looked like the main character.
But damn, that kid will probably remember that.
fzwo@reddit
It's still possible! I have a photo of my kid when he was about 3ish hitting the APU master switch on an EasyJet A320 just a few years ago. I wasn't on that same flight, so maybe the secret is having an attractive mom…
Lionheart-Q@reddit
Me as a man, get so much attention from the male stewards… I am like a magnet for these guys, at a point my wife finds it weird.
Last time was flying business to South America with KLM, and this dude was just loading me with extra amenities and food, snacks drinks. Even got two Dutch houses instead of 1! My wife was sitting next to me, getting the usual from the ladies. She was jealous for sure.😂
Haven’t met gay pilots yet, but if they allow me in the cockpit for some pictures, no problem for me sir!
usrdef@reddit
Can I borrow you for a day if you're free? I'd like to see a cockpit. lol
I'm pretty sure if someone my age asked to see a cockpit, especially in-flight, things would not go well.
I've seen the stuff in videos, but there's just a huge difference between seeing something in a video, and being able to physically experience it. Definitely would be cool as heck.
That picture of your son is cool. He may get into aviation later, definitely save that picture. I'd be framing it lol
Carlito_2112@reddit
You can ask politely. If the flight crew has time, they will often let you visit the cockpit while the aircraft is parked at the gate.
usrdef@reddit
To be perfectly honest, in the world we're in, I'd be terrified to.
Grown adult walking up and asking "Can I take a tour of the cockpit" would at the very least, get TSA / airport police alerted.
"The hell is this grown person wanting to go up to the cockpit for. He's acting strange".
Weak_Ad1500@reddit
Not at all. When the plane is parked at the gate and if the crew have time for you, and you ask it, they often let you in to have a look, take a photo or talk a bit with the pilots.
In my airline, most of the time we allow people who want to enter to the cockpit when we parked, and we don't care if that person is a "grown up". As a grown up you could still have the child in you, especially when you love aviation.
Not just only a children could be curious, and happy when there's an opportunity to check the cockpit. It's very good for us too to make someone extra happy on that day.
fzwo@reddit
Sorry, I can’t just lend out my wife to random internet strangers
usrdef@reddit
Hey, it's not just for me. You're more than welcome to come in too. I'm not stingy.
Addicted-2Diving@reddit
This response 💀
I_d0nt_know_why@reddit
It's still possible! I have a post-9/11 photo of me as a child in the cockpit of an A320!
320sim@reddit
Pilots are happy to talk to anyone interested. You’re still welcome to ask, and no one is going to turn you down over your age
fiittzzyy@reddit
Yeah I remember it well going up to the flight desk when the plane was cruising. Remember it especially at night and the whole cockpit was lit up like a Christmas tree and it was just amazing to me at the time that somebody could know what each and every one of those buttons did, it blew my mind.
I'd go up to the flight desk most flights and it was awe inspiring every time. After 9/11 it all stopped, obviously.
usrdef@reddit
If a captain gave me the chance to be able to sit in the damn co-pilot seat and just stare at the view, hell, I'd probably cut off my damn left arm.
Must be a hell of a view, 30,000 with nothing but a blanket of clouds below you.
Addicted-2Diving@reddit
u/usrdef, only do it post flight so you can assist in the landing /s
Honda_TypeR@reddit
I had similar story for myself except captain gave me pilot wings pin he put on my shirt (I guess they had souvenirs pins for kids)
Consistent-Fox-3774@reddit
Omg❤️ I love this ! Probably the pilot was like him ahaha
HokieBirdsBootyHole@reddit
Charlie Kirk in shambles if he is on this flight
Frosty-Inspector-465@reddit
plane are scary af lol can't believe it's a billion dollar industry smh
Lucy_4_8_15_16@reddit
Sorry to hear you are scared of something beautiful but also you know guns are also a billion dollar industry and they are scary fuck even horror movies are probably a billion dollar industry
Frosty-Inspector-465@reddit
you're not gonna die going to see a horror movie and guns don't kill people, people kill people
Ornery_Year_9870@reddit
Frosty-Inspector-465@reddit
oh boy here goes the first virtue signaling cornball who is acting as if planes don't crash smh
Lucy_4_8_15_16@reddit
Guns do kill people the failure rate of a every gun is way higher than your average airliner and I have seen enough guns "randomly" explode in people’s faces due to manufacturing error sure if we don’t count those guns need people to kill but if we don’t count manufacturing errors aircraft also need people to kill
Ornery_Year_9870@reddit
Huh?
Frosty-Inspector-465@reddit
"huh"..........smh...don't know what i said that's so confusing
TrainWreckInnaBarn@reddit
Royal treatment! How cool is this?
Longjumping_College@reddit
This is how future pilots are made
Aint_that_a_peach@reddit
“Now what should I do?” Smart kid.
KeithWayneMacgregor@reddit
Yes, very smart abd inquisitive.
KeithWayneMacgregor@reddit
Indeed. So inspiring.
Piggybumm@reddit
I was thinking, I really hope this boy becomes a pilot!
The_real_c00lh4nd@reddit
A next gen pilot just realising what he wants to do when he gets bigger :-) Well done to the two crew for taking the time with him...
Caminsky@reddit
I am just going to leave this here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RrttTR8e8-4
GmoneyKaddy87@reddit
Not relevant but okay 👍😃
xternocleidomastoide@reddit
only if the kid likes movies about gladiators
Mc-Lovin-81@reddit
Yes!
KeithWayneMacgregor@reddit
What a beautiful and inspirational moment for such a young boy.
Thank you all for encouraging him and posting this.
I hope that this video goes viral on social media all around the world as a sign to others to do the same for children in what ever way they are able to.
Hot_Illustrator_4998@reddit
Charlie Kirk rolling over in his grave
huhuhuhhhh@reddit
“I'm sorry. If I see a Black pilot, I'm going to be like, 'Boy, I hope he's qualified.'” - Mr. Kirk
Senior-Repair-8000@reddit
Obligatory Fuck Charlie Kirk
huhuhuhhhh@reddit
FCK !!!
philocity@reddit
Are you lost?
huhuhuhhhh@reddit
Charlie Kirk would nope his way out of that plane or be immature about it online as soon as he saw the color of those pilots skin.
"I'm sorry. If I see a black pilot, boy I hope he's qualified" - kirk
These are two aviation professionals who know what they're doing. I hope this kid becomes a pilot one day.
No-Commercial8139@reddit
I absolutely love this
CocaColai@reddit
I remember being let into the cockpit as a kid - while we were in the air. It was amazing. Little did I know at the time that my eyesight would prevent me from becoming a pilot. I mean, honestly, what’s a teeny tiny bit of red/green color blindness amongst friends? Apart from that I had exemplary vision..
Unfortunately now - or at the very least I strongly suspect - that isn’t allowed anymore because of the dickheads who want to spoil things for everyone because of some idiotic religious conviction or otherwise crackpot ideology.
Binspin63@reddit
When my son was young, every time we flew anywhere, I would ask the flight attendant if he could see the cockpit. They never turned him down and he usually got a set of plastic wings to top it off. He never got tired of it.
publius-esquire@reddit
“Now you’re the pilot” and if I say I cried
37-inna-row@reddit
Awesome!
hoodieweather-@reddit
I'll always remember getting to peek inside the cockpit of some your row passenger jet as a kid. I said I was thinking about becoming a pilot when I grew up, and the captain said there's a test they do: memorize every blinking light on the panel.
I stared at it, locking in, and then he hit... something, and the entire thing started flashing like a Christmas tree, buttons blinking everywhere, and I had no idea what to do. My mom laughed and thanked the pilots for letting me see the cockpit and we went to our seats.
I never did learn to fly after that, wonder why.
No_Poem_2169@reddit
A pilot let me do this in the late 1980s and it changed my world. I figured this tradition was dead post-9/11. Then another pilot let my boys up front earlier this year. I was so thankful for that. My words didn’t feel like it was enough.
Basic_Climate_2029@reddit
Now imagine this kid go to Royal Thai Air Force Museum
Basic_Climate_2029@reddit
Congratulation you have created 1 new pilot in the futu
XJRS@reddit
I’m curious would the gear actually pull up if he pulled the levers? I know engines are off but it’s probably on APU or EXT
Only asking because I read a pilot did this on a stationary plane and the gear pulled up, not sure which plane.
One-Pea-6947@reddit
I think they have sensors to register there is weight on the LG, they cannot retract while on the ground.
insideoutdoorsy@reddit
If only that little boy turned around after getting the hat and said “look at me! I’m the captain now!” What an awesome moment. Core memory for sure.
poser765@reddit
I love kids that are excited when they come up front. 9/10 that come up are always scared shitless. Still always excited to see them.
I had one guy come up once with his kid that was about 10 or 11. We were in a wx delay and about 2/3rds of the people got off. They asked if they come come up. Hell yeah get up here. We chatted for a few minutes and they both had a bunch of questions. Finally they sat down in the pilot’s chairs I pulled out the jumpseat and we just chilled and chatted aviation for like half an hour. lol I even had them load the box.
Another story. FA said “hey guys you have a little visitor”. I turn around and it’s a lady in her early 20s. She asks a bunch of questions and is super into. We learn that she’s actually working on her commercial. The captain is doing most of the talking and I’m getting everything set up and ready to go. She finally turns to me and says “so I guess you must be the flap operator”. lol daaaaamn. Harsh, but accurate.
My point is, lots of us love it when people come up and I’d love to let you push buttons… however old you are.
Unsettling_Skintone@reddit
This is beautiful!🙌❤️
RepulsedCucumber@reddit
Little pilot in training
Frunkit@reddit
Kid will remember that moment the rest of his life. Very wholesome!
Flyby-1000@reddit
This made me happy!!! Kudos to the flight crew... I really hope that this child's experience inspires him to become a pilot, or at least an aircraft maintenance technician in the future...
Addicted-2Diving@reddit
I had the opportunity to do this many moons ago, and it was so neat to see all the screens and lights going, as well as the two kind pilots attempting in vain to explain what some of the switches did.
I do wish I had been allowed to sit in the chair, that is neat they let the little boy do that
muuchthrows@reddit
I love how the captain keeps pushing the thrust lever back to idle every time, wouldn’t want the next crew to accidentally miss that.
64bittechie@reddit
Wow. What a lucky kid! I wish cockpit observations were a thing. Would inspire so many kids to become pilots!!
joseraulcorrada@reddit
I’m a grown as 35 year old man and I’m jealous I did get that
RTXplumber@reddit
This made my day , very cute
airport-codes@reddit
I am a bot.
^(If you are the OP and this comment is inaccurate or unwanted, reply below with "bad bot" and it will be deleted.)
moduli-retain-banana@reddit
Bad bot
Loud_Boysenberry_736@reddit
Bad bot
tag-ur-it88@reddit
Core memory unlocked for that kid! Someone did this for me when I was a kid. Became a private pilot as an adult…
onethousandmonkey@reddit
I love this so much!
Cali_Bluntz860@reddit
This is a very wholesome video and it is so awesome to see this!
MikeW226@reddit
I like when the pilot's like, go'head, push those throttles all the way forward! The kid looks at him a sec before doing it, like, you SURE we ain't gonna blow this thing right into the terminal?! ;O)
BodybuilderSalt9807@reddit
Flying then was fun. Now it’s all about entitled passengers who just make it so hard for everyone else
KompulsiveLiar88@reddit
Joey, do you like movies about gladiators?
BoringBob84@reddit
"I think you're the greatest, but my dad says you don't work hard enough on defense. And he says that lots of times, you don't even run down court. And that you don't really try... except during the playoffs."
Waltenwalt@reddit
"The hell I don't!"
buzzard302@reddit
tell your old man to drag Walton and Lanier up and down the court for 48 minutes!
rwalker920@reddit
Have you ever seen a grown man naked?
mrbiggzstuff@reddit
This made me smile 😃
Independent-Lie-6169@reddit
So freaking cute
njsullyalex@reddit
Ok this is adorable!
Pilots are bros and that kid will grow up to be a pilot one day!
Lost_Foot8302@reddit
Anyone getting "Airplane" vibes from this?
Raaazzle@reddit
"Hey, you're Kareem Abdul Jabbar!"
BoringBob84@reddit
"I'm sorry son, but you must have me confused with someone else. My name is Roger Murdock. I'm the co-pilot."
TeriBarrons@reddit
Cute video! Ironically, I just finished watching the Mayday episode of the Aeroflot plane crash where the captain let his 15 year old son “fly” the plane and caused a crash that killed everyone on board.
GunGeekATX@reddit
Spent every summer as a kid flying from where we lived on the west coast to my grandparent's in the midwest (early to mid 1980s), and I always asked to see the cockpit before takeoff. One of these flights when I got to visit the cockpit, the pilot asked if I wanted to join him for the pre-flight walkaround. Of course! So I got to go down to the tarmac with him and he pointed out everything that he was checking.
Unbereevablee_Asian@reddit
This is truly wholesome
superflousman78@reddit
This was my favorite part of flying when I was a child back in the 80's. The flight attendant would actually come and ask children if they wanted to visit the cockpit and meet the pilots. They were always super friendly and answered the million questions I had. Plus getting my own set of wings to pin on my shirt was a real.treat.
MacGibber@reddit
This is awesome!
smootypants@reddit
“Touch everything” 🥹🥰
SirBowsersniff@reddit
I literally could not love this more.
Nok1a_@reddit
Oh men I miss the 80´s. 90´s while you could walk to the cockpit to talk with pilots and you could bring whatever in the plane to eat
thenegativeone81@reddit
This is so awesome! Made that kid's day!
yojusto187@reddit
This was me as a kid. Now I’m in school for aviation maintenance and engineering. I love this 💙
5h4tt3rpr00f@reddit
*gets hat on* "Look at me. I'm the captain now"
BathFullOfDucks@reddit
Its like the popes hat he is officially the captain now and responsible for anything currently hidden underneath the crew rest mattress.
DadCelo@reddit
ONE OF US!
ONE OF US!
Sinaju_Duck@reddit
Its all fun an games till the kid pushes the engine fire bottle push switch lmaoo
Business_Pangolin801@reddit
Oh that bring me back, I used to be shown the copit all the time when I was a kid taking SAA.
ADSBSGM@reddit
"Now what should I do?"
"Touch everything!"
Wow!
CrappyTan69@reddit
Flashbacks to the 747 in the late 80s and 90s, me as that kid.
Absolutely awesome.
Also, after Cpt said "touch everything", the FO "I guess we're restating the before-startup check list" :D
Squash__Bucket@reddit
I was on a Porter flight last summer. Kid about 12 asked Captain if he could look in cockpit, Captain replied “why don’t you come in and sit in my seat?” Kid was beaming and probably highlight of his trip.
Original-Fig4214@reddit
He sooo wants to press some buttons.
Camarupim@reddit
What a well behaved wee kid - 5,000 shiny buttons there to press and he’s just listening and politely waiting to get to sit in the boss seat!
Which_Material_3100@reddit
Love this! Way to inspire the next generation.
APOC_V@reddit
Love this for that little man!
BarracudaEfficient16@reddit
And that’s how a future pilot is made!
micgat@reddit
As a kid in the early 90s, I was flying with my family on a KLM 747 (-200 or -300). My mother always had a fear of flying and during a spell of turbulence the fly attendant asked us if we wanted to meet the pilots to help calm my mother's nerves. A few minutes later we were on the flight deck talking to the pilots and engineer at altitude somewhere over the north Atlantic (going from LAX ot AMS). I'll never forget seeing the northern lights from up there.
Flying will never be the same again after 2001.
almostrainman@reddit (OP)
Originally posted on IG by @pakoedson