I recently attended a Future Pilot Networking event at the University of West London. This was a full day event of exhibitions starting from 9am to 3pm.  

First I would like to say attending such events is always a privilege. I love meeting like-minded people and I appreciate the advice I get each time. I hope I can pay this forward as an exhibitor one day. I hope you enjoy this read and benefit from some gems I picked up on!

There were a few exhibitors present – such as The Honourable Company of Air Pilots, FTE Jerez, Heathrow Airport, Leading Edge Aviation and CAE to name a few. This event was fairly small but gave me a fantastic opportunity to have extensive conversations with exhibitors. I later met the organiser who mentioned this is their first pilot skills and networking day and not much marketing has gone into it – despite this the turnout has been quite good.

Honourable Company of Air Pilots

The Honourable company of air pilots is a philanthropic organisation that aims to encourage and assist those looking to become a pilot regardless of their background. One of the ways they do this is to offer scholarships and bursaries in order to support those looking to get into the industry.

I had a real insight talking to one of the members at the Air Pilots. I have met the Air Pilots many times at various Pilot Careers Live – and once again here today. First, we spoke about the fulfilling career the member had in aviation flying all over the world until eventually retiring and joining the Air Pilots. I am looking to apply for their PPL scholarship in the 2023 round of applications so this was a great opportunity to ask questions. Just before I explain what we spoke about – I would highly encourage all of you to send an application for a scholarship, particularly if funding gliding or PPL is a struggle and you have a burning passion for flying like me. Applications will open in Jan-Feb so do keep a look for them. I am a genuine believer funding should not be the reason you cannot fulfil your dream – so reach out to the Air Pilots they’d be more than happy to help you. For those interested, click here to follow to their page.

I have spoken to many awardees and have researched online abut how their application process works – I wanted to hear it from the Air Pilots themselves – perhaps there’s a bit of advice I could take away. He kindly described how the selection process works for the scholarship – which includes an initial application which has to be hand-written followed by an interview at the HQ in London.

The gentleman gave me two really important bits of advice. One is to demonstrate passion – this is one of the most important if not the most important aspect to the application. I suppose it’s easy for an individual to say they have a passion for aviation when they are in a chance to be awarded 45 hours of flying for FREE. So it’s important to Air Pilots to filter out these type of applications and look for genuine students with the passion and the lack of resources (funding) in order to fulfil this. Another thing they are looking for is a sense of direction. For example, what do you plan to do once you have finished the gliding or PPL scholarship? Do you plan to go commercial into airlines? Do you plan to get an instructor rating and instruct? Or is this a bit of fun in your gap year before going to university? Again these are all things you want to be demonstrating in the interview. Air Pilots wants to see a cadet that is genuinely passionate and wants to either progress to airlines, become an instructor or equivalent.

Another thing he mentioned that may not necessarily reflect Air Pilots as a whole and may be a personal preference is the actual application itself and how it is written. For example, they request the application to be hand-written with a max 200 word count for arguments sake. Now if an applicant types this up and submits a printed document with the application this will automatically be rejected. The same goes if an applicant goes over the 200 word count – make sure it is within the word limit or you risk having your application rejected. And the last bit of advice is to ensure your application looks perfect – what I mean by this is for example many times they come across applications with words crossed out. Rather, start a fresh application it will look far more professional!

Following our great conversation, I also had a go at their pilot aptitude testing. This involved coordinated flying through various shapes at increasing speeds – this was to demonstrate coordination, concentration, accuracy and being calm under pressure as the plane sped up. I also did some maths test which I believe also involved some aspect of multi-tasking to achieve a goal. This was all great fun and I really enjoyed being able to have a hands-on experience of their aptitude testing software.

My humble recommendations

I would recommend completing an Air Pilots Pilot Aptitude Test at their London Office, Air Pilots House. This will give you a good insight on your strengths and areas to improve on – particularly if you look to become an airline pilot. I would also sign up to the Young Air Pilots (for Under 35s) which is hosted by Air Pilots. This is a fantastic opportunity to great involved more with like-minded people and build on your skills. As I say the people you meet and get to know will pay dividends – especially once you get to understand what has worked for them in their training and what hasn’t worked for them. And what you can learn from based on their experience. There is so much more to the Young Air Pilots – I have attached a flyer below which I picked up at the event for all of you to have a look at:

Conversations with few of the many exhibitors I came across

I also had the opportunity to speak to other exhibitors. I spoke to Leading Edge Aviation –not too long ago they opened a campus in Alhama, Spain and it’s doing really well which was great to hear. Usually there is a lady called Deb that I meet at these type of events – but instead there was one of the students there. I have met the student who also works in the office at Leading Edge – I remember meeting him at the HQ when I dropped to say hello to Deborah.

I also met Sheldon England, the director of 2FLY. We got talking again about their pilot integrated programme – I’ve uploaded a blog providing an honest insight into 2FLY, so feel free to check it out. We got talking about how flight training organisations do some of the marketing that attracts students to their school. Interestingly, he mentioned he has given presentations to aspiring cadets a few years ago and out of the blue they will call up to join the programme 3 years later. Other times he will have a student joining the school he has never interacted with prior to then. If I was to add my two cents I’d definitely say the first interaction makes a difference to who a cadet ends up doing their training with. If they feel welcomed and can see potential in the school and their training – then the school in question will not be one they will forget in a hurry!

I also met many cadets in training and pilots. We discussed the skills and competencies that will make you an excellent airman. Situational awareness, leadership, working in collaboration are just a few to name some.

Towards the end of the day I bumped into Kathan Dudhela – who I follow on social media. Kathan is the UK’s youngest flight instructor. At the age of 17, he trained with the air cadets and later received a PPL a year later whilst juggling A Levels. He later became an operations manager at Elstree where he did around 300 hours and eventually an instructor’s course. Currently, he takes part in aerobatics competitions and instructs those looking to get their PPL.

Here is a picture of Kathan and I:

Kathan and I got talking about how he funded his training – he mentioned one of the ways was through the air cadets and doing paper rounds. Currently, he has 13 students who he instructs and are working towards their PPL.

Kathan and I agreed on two things – one is there is no correct pathway to the cockpit. Each and every one of us will have our own unique ways – whether that is self-funding, scholarships, parents bank or even having worked as cabin crew for a little while! We all have our own story. But the most important thing is to have that burning desire and passion. Keep the fire burning – don’t let go of that childhood dream. Eventually you will become a pilot flying passengers all over the world.

Overall experience

Overall, attending this networking event was an incredible experience. By far one I enjoyed out of the many I have attended. There was a calm, relaxed nature to this event – because it was a small event it was a fantastic opportunity to really get into a good conversation and talking more than just the training. Being an exhibitor and inspiring others is something I really look forward to doing (at least once) to ensure the next generation have the support and guidance to make the right choice for them. Until then I’d like to extend my gratitude to the organisers and exhibitors for this event.

I hope there is something you learnt or picked up from this blog.

Happy Flying.