Training and work of S7 pilots. Pilot Andrei Duncic: I have the best view from the window in my office About family, hobbies and the best view from the window

S7 Airlines (Siberia Airlines) is a Russian airline based at Moscow Domodedovo Airport, one of the largest in terms of the number of passengers carried. At the time of its 20th anniversary, S7 Airlines has 146 destinations of its own route network in 26 countries of the world. The company, founded in the center of the continent, today operates flights to the most extreme points of Eurasia, many thousands of kilometers away from each other.

The history of Siberia Airlines begins in 1957, when the first civilian flight was made from a military airfield in the Novosibirsk Region (future Tolmachevo Airport). It was on the basis of the Tolmachevsky squadron that Siberia Airlines was formed in 1992.

Tu-154
This aircraft is an integral part of the history of domestic civil aviation. For a long time, the Tu-154 was the basis of the fleet of the a / c "Siberia". In 2012, for the 20th anniversary of S7 Airlines, a memorial aircraft Tu-154 with tail number RA-85628 was installed on a pedestal near the entrance to Tolmachevo Airport, which made a huge number of flights with the airline.

Novosibirsk International Airport (Tolmachevo) is the largest transit hub beyond the Urals on key routes between Europe and Asia.

For a long time, the airport was the base for S7 Airlines, and today it remains the main hub in the eastern part of the country.

The rapid development of the airline has led to the need to go beyond the Siberian region.

Since 2001, the company has begun an active expansion of the route network, opening new flights from Moscow and other cities of Russia

Moscow Domodedovo Airport is the largest in terms of passenger traffic in Russia, one of the largest air hubs in Europe.

Today Domodedovo is the main and key airport for S7 Airlines

The company has the most modern and one of the "youngest" aircraft fleets on the Russian air transportation market.
All flights are carried out only on liners of foreign production of Airbus and Boeing companies.

The airline's fleet includes 20 Airbus A319s, 17 Airbus A320s, four Airbus A321s and two long-haul Boeing 767-300s.

S7 Airlines planes have a bright green color scheme, which makes them visible at almost any airport in the world.

The company, founded in the center of the continent, today operates flights to the most extreme points of Eurasia, many thousands of kilometers away from each other. Every day, S7 aircraft make 197 flights to 146 destinations in 26 countries.

Here are some extreme points of the airline's route network:

Westernmost point - Dublin (Ireland)
Ireland is traditionally associated with Guinness beer, whiskey and the famous national dance.

Hong Kong Airport (Chek Lap Kok) is one of the busiest in the world. This is one of the southernmost points in the S7 Airlines international route network.

Easternmost point - Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky
From the east, Kamchatka is washed by the Pacific Ocean, and in summer the sun rises on the peninsula at the moment when people in Moscow have not yet gone to bed
- the difference in time is as much as 8 hours.

Kamchatka has no land connection with the mainland of Russia, so you can only get here by plane.

Northernmost point - Norilsk

Norilsk is located beyond the Arctic Circle in the north of the Krasnoyarsk Territory. The city has an extremely harsh climate, winter here lasts at least 8 months, and the historical minimum recorded in Norilsk is -64.7 degrees!

Westernmost continental point - Madrid (Spain)

Self check-in

luggage tape

While passengers are waiting to board their flight in the airport lounges, ground services are busy preparing the aircraft for departure.
They are faced with a difficult task - to carry out routine procedures in a short time, refuel the aircraft with fuel, water, load luggage and do everything necessary to make the upcoming flight safe and comfortable.

The minimum standard for aircraft ground handling time is approximately 37 minutes.

The crew of the aircraft receives power, checks the operability of the on-board systems and the readiness of the aircraft for departure. Airport services clean the cabin, and flight attendants check the readiness of each seat

Before each flight, the pilots perform an external inspection of the aircraft: they check the units and components of the aircraft for damage, the engines - for icing in the winter

Airport shuttles bring passengers to the aircraft.
The average daily passenger flow of S7 airlines is 22600

If the aircraft takes off in weather conditions that predispose to the formation of ice on the surfaces of the aircraft, it must be treated with a special anti-icing fluid.

All checks have been made and the plane is ready to take off. The crew has already conducted a pre-flight briefing, and the tractor is towing the liner onto the taxiway. The pilots start the engines and proceed to the starting point on the runway.

- Tolmachevo - start, Siberia-174 on the executive, let me take off? - Siberia-174, takeoff is allowed!

The engines of the aircraft are slowly filled with thrust, a pleasant rumble is heard throughout the cabin, and the liner rapidly begins its movement along the runway.

Separation

Landing at Vladivostok airport.

Reverse

Vladivostok Airport "Knevichi" is a large regional hub of the company in the east of the country.
The city is more than 9,000 km away from Moscow: traveling here by train will take a whole week!

Khabarovsk

Since 2010, S7 Airlines has been a full member of the Oneworld global aviation alliance.

The alliance includes the world's largest airlines: AirBerlin, AmericanAirlines, BritishAirways, CathayPacific, Finnair, Iberia, JapanAirlines, LAN, MalaysiaAirlines, Qantas, RoyalJordanian, QatarAirways, as well as more than 20 affiliated carrier partners

S7 Group office

mission control center
The technologies implemented in the S7 Airlines Flight Control Center allow real-time control of the aircraft movement, ground handling process, obtaining data on payload, the state of the liner’s resources, as well as taking measures to comply with the vessel’s traffic schedule and perform scheduled flights.

On the control screens of employees, the schedule of aircraft movement for the current day with airports of departure and arrival is reflected.

Aviation Training Center "S7 Training" is the largest pilot and crew training center in Russia and Eastern Europe.

The center has several integrated flight simulators (Full Flight Simulator).

They are designed to train pilots for Airbus A320 and Boeing-737 aircraft.

Water rescue training in a specially equipped pool.

The training complex for conducting emergency rescue training allows you to simulate various types of emergency situations that occur on board an aircraft

For all questions regarding the use of photographs, write to e-mail.

Article from the corporate newspaper S7 2009.

Perm school: make flying enjoyable

Two and a half years ago (end of 2006) a flight unit was created as part of S7 in Perm. Today it is one of the airline's four regional squadrons. We asked Squadron Commander Yuri Gennadyevich Panov to talk about the current work of Perm pilots.

Yuri Gennadievich, can we talk about the features of the Perm flight school?

Yes, each major division of civil aviation had and has its own characteristics. The history of aviation in Perm begins with the first basic aircraft that appeared in 1940. There were two airfields in the city, one (Bakharevka, now closed) - for local lines, where An-2 and helicopters flew, and the second, built in the mid-1960s - Bolshoye Savino with An-24 and Il-18. The mass development of transportation began with the appearance of the basic Tu-134 and Tu-154B in the late 1970s - early 1980s. The flight schedule included the whole country: Khabarovsk, Tashkent, Sochi, Leningrad, Kaliningrad, Kyiv, etc. An-24s mainly flew to the Urals and the Tyumen north, cargo An-26s also carried out charter flights throughout the USSR, from Komsomolsk-on-Amur to Grodno.
As in other large aviation enterprises of the MGA, the pilots gradually climbed the career ladder, starting with the first independent flights on the An-2 in Bakharevka, then on the An-24/26 already at a large airport, and then, having gained experience, they came to the Tupolevs.

I myself came to Bolshoe Savino as an An-24 co-pilot in 1980 and went the same way. Already on the An-24, senior comrades instilled in us their experience, introduced us to their approaches to flight work. Since then, I clearly learned that piloting should be as smooth as possible, imperceptible to passengers. Technique always allows you to do, if necessary, energetic maneuvers. It is designed for this and the pilots know it. But passengers are sitting in the cabin, who may not understand sharp rolls or declines and simply get scared. So we were taught not to frighten passengers with our dashing skills. Of course, if everything is in order in flight. If, however, weather conditions or other reasons set their own operational tasks, then the task of performing the flight safely, using all the capabilities of both equipment and flight personnel, comes to the fore.
In 1992, we began preparations for flights on international routes, and the following year we opened the first flights abroad from Perm. These were popular tourist destinations, as well as charter flights to various countries. There were several bases: we flew An-26 in England and Iran, Tu-134 - in the Emirates and Nigeria. The flight squad had its own English teacher. Therefore, later, by the time of retraining for western liners in S7, we had sufficient and versatile experience to master new equipment.
In 1996, the Perm Aviation Enterprise began operating the new Tu-204-100s. These were the first aircraft in the "-100" series, the time was difficult, so we had to deal with the issues of aircraft certification, at our own expense. We mastered the liner. They flew on it mainly by charters from Moscow (Vnukovo) and Perm. But the state-owned enterprise could not bear all the expenses and we were forced to return both planes. Moreover, one (RA-64017), as you know, went to Siberia, where he then flew for several years. At the same time, in the late 1990s, the first Perm pilots went to Siberia.

How was the process of transition to Western technology?

Our flight squad was created as part of S7 in December 2006. Even then, green Boeing 737-500s flew to Perm, and we were offered retraining for this type of aircraft. The selection of pilots was already initially held with this sight. The first group of Permian pilots from Tu-154 and Tu-134 went to retrain in Denver already in January 2007. In total, seven of our crews visited the USA, and in the summer they began independent flights as co-pilots. There were plans to enter the commanders, but it was already clear that the S7 would continue to fly on the A319. Therefore, in the fall, a new retraining began - on Airbus. The main foreign part this time was held in certified centers in Tunisia and Jordan. I retrained myself in Tunisia. I didn’t get to America on Boeing, since at first there was a lot of organizational work in the detachment.
In 2008, they started flying on the A319. Moreover, the training was immediately carried out for the entire model range, so it is not difficult for us to pilot the new A320s today. It is interesting that many pilots for the first time in their many years of practice sat at the helm of new aircraft. This is a very interesting feeling, there is both self-respect and pride in the company.
Colleagues from the Moscow Flight Detachment No. 4 and the Directorate of Flight Standards provided us with great help in the process of forming the detachment and retraining. We communicated directly with the leadership, and our "base" in Domodedovo was squadron No. 4 under the command of Mansur Badrakov. I would also like to say a big thank you to the instructors of S7 Training, where we underwent initial training for Western equipment.
Today, the staff of the Perm squadron includes 11 FACs, 10 co-pilots and four command and flight personnel. We all fly on Airbus. Literally in May, we celebrated the first solo flights of five co-pilots, who managed to retrain on the A319 in the winter.

What is the geography of flights of Perm pilots in 2009?

In connection with the decommissioning of the Tu-154 last year, today we operate flights from Perm on only one route - three times a day to Moscow. There is no base for the aircraft yet, but we hope for it next year. Passengers and, of course, we - all employees of the S7 branch, are waiting for the resumption of flights on historical lines from our millionaire city.
Since three flights a day are not enough for us, we often fly on business trips. It looks like this. In the morning we fly to Moscow, from there we immediately carry out a short daily flight, for example, to Rostov or St. Petersburg, we spend the night in Moscow. The next day - a flight of medium duration - say, to Germany or Novy Urengoy. Then another night in Moscow and in the morning - a return flight home to Perm. We also took another chain to the Far East. From Moscow we fly to Novosibirsk, where we rest, then we fly to Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk via Khabarovsk, two days relay race on Sakhalin - and back to Novosibirsk via Vladivostok. One more rest and return to Moscow - Perm.
Thanks to such schemes, we have a monthly flight time for each pilot of about 80 hours, that is, we practically fly the sanitary norm every month.

Have Perm residents mastered the new A320 simulator?

Yes, I just flew it myself for the first time. Great preparation tool! The feeling of flight is complete, starting from overloads during “air maneuvers” and up to “touching the strip”. Compared to the Tu-154 simulators on which we trained earlier, these are completely different levels. We will be here twice a year and I am sure that such modern equipment will significantly improve the professionalism of our guys.

Passengers love it when pilots communicate with them during a flight. What is the attitude to this issue in Perm?

It's really a delicate moment. When passengers hear the cheerful, confident voice of the commander, they calm down and the flight is much more comfortable. We paid attention to this factor in the early 2000s. Even then, on all flights of Perm Airlines, our pilots began to communicate with the cabin. This was one of our differences in terms of competition.
Naturally, this practice continues now. In advance on the ground, we agree with the flight attendants who and when what information is voiced, so that there are no repetitions. We get in touch three times - we greet passengers on the ground before starting the engines, in flight at flight level we talk about the flight and conditions at the destination, and we say goodbye after the aircraft is parked. Hope the passengers are happy.

How do you see the development of the squadron in the future?

These are not very bright times for all airlines, for obvious reasons. Perm is a large city with a population of one million and has its own passengers. And we have an excellent backlog - a professional team, new, one of the best aircraft in the world in its class, and a desire to fly. Therefore, of course, we hope to expand the geography of our "home" flights. In the meantime, we have stable work at home and demand on other S7 lines.

Clear skies for your squadron, Yuri Gennadievich!

Previous story on the history of Perm aviation and S7 -

Even in kindergarten, to the question: “What do you get for your birthday?” I answered: "Airplane!" As he got older, he began to go to an aircraft modeling club, where he first collected kites, and then the first gliders and cord models with engines. I myself come from a family of doctors: my father is a surgeon, my mother is a psychotherapist. All my childhood was connected with medicine - my father even took me to operations, but I was not interested. Realizing this, my father told me that it is better not to be a doctor at all than to be mediocre.

I graduated from a school with initial flight training in Yeysk, where, in addition to basic subjects, they taught aerodynamics and aircraft design. In the 10th grade I already flew the Yak-52. The school taught me to live independently and, of course, gave me good physical training: even loping - a swing that trains the vestibular apparatus - was taught to twist.

The only difficulty in terms of physical education that I encountered later, already at the military aviation school, was skiing. I was born and raised in the Crimea - you know how it is with the snow. But I got out of the situation: I unfastened my skis, threw them on my back and ran. And, incidentally, he was not the last to arrive. A physical education teacher, once seeing this, said: “I don’t give you a deuce just because you reach the finish line.” True, then I got used to skiing.

After college, I served eight years in transport aviation, and then I decided that it was time to change something, I came to Moscow and underwent retraining as a passenger aircraft pilot. And already in 2007, he began working for S7 Airlines, which at about the same time completed a large-scale rebranding - at the same time, a recognizable color of the aircraft appeared.

About technology in aviation

Our airline is actively introducing modern technologies, which is very convenient for both passengers and airline employees. For passengers, this is, first of all, a service: booking tickets and checking in for a flight is possible on the website or in a mobile application. You can even find out in advance who will be your seat next to you!

And for us, this is primarily AIMS (AirlineInformationManagementSystem) - a program that helps plan and optimize the work of the airline as a whole. It allows you to monitor the turnover of flights, optimally plan crews, take into account working hours. Previously, we could only find out the schedule for the next day. For example, to fly tomorrow, we called the duty officer, he told us when and where. Now the system allows you to find out the composition of the crew, your plan for the month, taking into account weekends, vacations and studies. You can even keep track of the expiration of your certificates, and depending on this, training is planned here in the system.

At our airline, when planning work, safety comes first, and only then the economy. According to the norms, a pilot can fly no more than 90 hours a month, and the system clearly monitors this. Everything is taken into account: night and day flights, number of landings, etc. A significant advantage of the introduction of modern technologies by our airline is the ability to get away from paper carriers. Now S7 Airlines aircraft are equipped with tablets with programs for calculating takeoff and landing characteristics and all kinds of maps. What used to be carried in a separate suitcase is now available electronically. But there are a number of documents that are still flying in "hard" copies, in particular, certificates. When an inspection comes, especially abroad, they are simply delighted that we have everything clearly laid out according to the list - please, here in Russian, here in English ...

About autopilot, aviation complex and flight insight

Previously, crews of five to seven people flew. Can you imagine how many people? Because the control system itself was extremely complex, and each performed its function. In modern aircraft, there are two people in the cockpit. And now the autopilot, and computers that calculate the data for the navigator, and the autotrust system, which works for the flight engineer, will help us. On the one hand, the load on the crew has increased, on the other hand, automation, of course, removes a number of tasks from us. Now, due to automation, it would be correct to call the aircraft an aviation complex.

During my work at S7 Airlines, in addition to extensive experience in piloting civil aircraft, I have acquired, in my opinion, a rather valuable quality - “flight insight”: the ability to foresee the situation and calculate not one, but several options for action. This is what comes with experience. For example, you are just driving to work, and already on the way you begin to think about the upcoming flight: analyze the weather conditions, remember the features of the destination airport. This is very important for a pilot. Our work involves great responsibility - for ourselves, for the crew, for passengers, for the aircraft, for the image of the airline. But this is compensated by moral satisfaction from work. I am a happy person - I go to work with pleasure, I return home with pleasure.

About passengers and good manners

I love our passengers. They always thank the crew for the flight, they are sympathetic to various circumstances - this is really touching. For example, in winter, before takeoff, there is often a small hitch due to the queue for “drying”. In such cases, I always explain to passengers the reason for the flight delay and the importance of de-icing. By the way, from the outside, this procedure looks as if the plane is being watered with Fanta.

For pilots, the rule of good manners is to greet the controllers in the language of the country you are flying to. There are some peculiarities here. For example, if I fly to Frankfurt, I say “Gutentag”. But the Bavarians may not respond to such a greeting, but if you say “Grues Goth” to them, they will definitely greet you. In Düsseldorf there is one dispatcher who tries to say “Happy journey” in Russian. He's still not good at it, but I'm very pleased.

About preparing the aircraft for departure, safety and reserve crew

Preparing an aircraft for departure is a whole process that is strictly regulated and carefully worked out. In addition to technical services, we also inspect the board: first, the co-pilot is outside, and I am inside, then we change places and undergo a secondary inspection of the board. The same procedure is followed after the flight. There are no exceptions, even with turning flights. The main duty of flight attendants is not to deliver food, but to ensure the safety of passengers in the cabin. Even when they conduct briefings before takeoff, they observe passengers and assess the situation in the cabin.

Safety is ensured by regular training of crew members and certification. In fact, we learn all our lives. Every six months, seasonal training is held at the training center. Now the spring-summer one has passed, which includes a list of questions that we need specifically for summer navigation. For example, wind shear, use of locators, bypassing thunderclouds.

Once a year, the entire flight crew undergoes an extensive medical examination, once every six months - less severe, but just as mandatory. And, of course, directly medical examination before departure. In fact, if you don't feel well, it's better to call and say: "I can't, I'm sick." The reserve crew of the airline is always on duty, which is located in a hotel near the airport and is ready to start the flight at any time.

About the attitude to the aircraft

A few years ago, I was one of the first pilots to fly aircraft just received from the factory - just then the new Airbus A320 appeared in the airline's fleet. S7 Airlines has a very young fleet, we regularly receive new aircraft. It is very pleasant to fly on a new liner - the atmosphere of novelty is felt in everything. The feeling can be compared to when you get into a newly bought car from the salon, only the scale is completely different.

Although it is not entirely correct to talk about the plane "new" or "old". If an airline has a well-built system for servicing aircraft in compliance with all technical regulations, and, most importantly, strictly monitors their implementation, then they will be as good as new in ten or fifteen years and meet all flight safety requirements.

In general, a lot also depends on the personal attitude to the aircraft. Here my instructor told me: “You got into the cockpit, and now you are the master here, you need to treat everything with care. The next crew will come and he will be pleased that everything is clean and tidy. After all, this is our workplace.”

About family, hobbies and the best view from the window

My wife and I met at specialized English courses. She is also a pilot, only I fly Airbus, and my wife pilots Boeing. She is one of the first women in the country who learned to fly these planes, and she was then 25 years old. Prior to that, she worked as a flight attendant.

In my spare time, I collect airplane models. I have a son, he is also interested in it, but so far it turns out badly - for a seven-year-old child, this is too delicate work. I entrust him with something easier, for example, to sharpen a part, and he is offended: "I want to glue something."

I don't know if my son will become a pilot. He wants to, but this is still, of course, an immature decision. Although he is already measuring my and my mother's caps with interest.

There are no random people in aviation, because you have to love it. If you just came to earn money, you won’t last long.

In general, I like to joke that I have the best view from the window in my office. Especially when you fly towards Yerevan and you can see Elbrus ahead.