Do pilots really hook up with flight attendants?

IT’S the sky-high secret we all want to know about. So do those who fly together end up flying into each other’s arms? A pilot dishes the dirt.

A Boeing 747 flies in front of the moon.

IT’S the sky-high secret we all want to know.

Do those who fly together ever end up flying into eachother’s arms? Is there such a thing as love at first flight?

A First Office for a regional airline in the US has dished the dirt on his mile-high lifestyle for the website FlightClub. Here are some of the best bits.

Do pilots often hook up with flight attendants?

“I can honestly say that if this has happened on any crew I have been a part of, it has been very well disguised. I can’t think of a single time in which I’ve noticed anyone in my crew head back to a hotel room together. There are some couples that are dating and bid to fly together, but I’ve never seen a random hook-up.”

Do pilots fly slower to make more money?

“Yes and no. We fly slower than we could be, but the little bit of extra money it makes us is an unintended consequence. Over the last few years the speed at which we fly in cruise has been dialled way back in the interest of saving fuel ... On top of cost savings, arriving to your destination with more fuel gives you more options if you can’t get straight into the airport.

“I have flown with a few people who do fly slow everywhere they go because they think they’re padding their paychecks. But they tend to be the extreme minority ... and to be honest, you can add more to the flight time by taxiing slow or taking the second turn-off on the runway instead of the first.”

Pilots fly slower sometimes to save fuel.

What’s your favourite plane to fly?

“If I was going up in a general aviation aeroplane just to fly for pleasure, I’d probably pick the Diamond DA20 Katana. It’s light, it’s manoeuverable, and it has a very large windshield through which I can admire the view.”

And as a passenger, which plane do you prefer?

You can’t beat the 747. The A380 may be bigger and a more comfortable ride, but the 747 was the first big passenger aircraft ... and is much better looking.

The prettiest plane ever, the 747?

A Boeing 747 flies in front of the moon.

Do main-line pilots look down on you for being a regional pilot?

“Most of us look out for each other, even if they work for a competing company. Unfortunately aviation is not immune from the general guideline that 10 per cent of the people on this planet are idiots. One day after giving a 737 pilot a ride home to HSV [Huntsville, Alabama], he stopped me on the jetway and told me that he hoped I would become unemployed by next year. Some people are just unhappy in life and feel the need to take it out on others. But all in all, we get along.”

Read more of the interview at FlightClub.