A few lessons stuck with me from the day. First, everyone’s path into aviation looks different. Some people discover flying early, while others come to it after completely different careers. There isn’t a perfect timeline. Second, listening is just as important as sharing. Some of the most valuable insights came from simply hearing people talk …
Weekend at Future Pilot Skills Event – West London Read More »
Once the discussions wrapped up, the evening shifted into a more relaxed setting with canapés and the chance to speak with exhibitors from across aviation. That’s where some of the best conversations usually happen. People could ask questions, share their own journeys into aviation, and connect with others who have similar ambitions. Personally, I really …
A few lessons stood out from the day. First, ask questions and speak to people. The aviation community is usually very open and willing to share advice, but you only benefit from that if you start the conversation. Second, keep an open mind about pathways. Aviation doesn’t have one fixed route. People come into the …
On Saturday I attended Pilot Careers Live with The Air League — and it really is one of the best events around if you’re even slightly interested in becoming a pilot.
Recently I had the honour of attending the Air League Annual Reception in Westminster, where I was incredibly grateful to receive a Marshall of Cambridge Award. It was a really special evening and one I’ll remember for a long time. I left the reception feeling very grateful — not just for the award, but for …
Special Evening with friends at the Air League Annual Reception Read More »
Last week I had the chance to spend three amazing days volunteering with The Air League at the Royal International Air Tattoo (RIAT) in RAF Fairford, and it was honestly such a memorable experience. Overall, three days at RIAT weren’t just fun — they were energising, inspiring, and a reminder of why I love helping …
Three incredible days in the TechnoZone – RIAT, RAF Fairford Read More »
This week I had the chance to volunteer with the Air League at the full-day SciENGINEERING event in Millennium Point, Birmingham, and it was such a fun and inspiring day. Being able to share that excitement and help ignite a spark in these students reminded me why I love volunteering for the Air League. There’s …
Inspiring Future Aviators at SciENGINEERING – Birmingham Read More »
I recently had the chance to volunteer with the Air League at the British Airways Engineering Open Day, and it turned out to be a really eye-opening day.
Last week I volunteered at the two-day Sustainable Skies World Summit 2025 and Careers Fair in Farnborough with the Air League, and it ended up being one of those events where you leave having learned a lot more than you expected.
Careers in Aviation & Aerospace Fair Last week I volunteered with the Air League at the Careers in Aviation and Aerospace event at the University of West London, and it was honestly such a great experience. The room was full of students curious about aviation — some already passionate about flying, others just exploring what …
Careers in Aviation & Aerospace Fair – UWL, London. Read More »
Visiting British Airways, Waterside Your Flying Future, BA Waterside. In February 2025, I attended the ‘Your Flying Future’ Workshop at British Airways, Waterside. In summary – It was a fantastic workshop run by British Airways at their Waterside campus – super insightful with lots of take-home messages. This blog will give you a taster of …
‘Your Flying Future’ Workshop at BA Waterside (Feb 25) Read More »
FlightPad, University of West London Future Pilot Skills Event – Volunteering with The Air League. In January 2025, I volunteered for The Air League at FlightPad’s Future Pilot Skills Event at the University of West London. This was a last minute decision – as I had booked a ticket to attend and decided to also …
Future Pilot Skills Event – Volunteering with The Air League (Jan 25). Read More »
Evening talk with a Concorde pilot – Heathrow Yesterday marked 121 years celebrating the Wright brothers who changed aviation forever. Last week, at British Airways Waterside I was fortunate enough to meet Captain John Tye, one of only 134 pilots to ever fly Concorde for British Airways in the whole 27 years of service. Captain …
Evening talk with a Concorde Pilot – Waterside, Heathrow (Dec 24). Read More »
December 2024 Volunteering – ‘Propel to Flight’ Engineering Workshop. When I signed up to volunteer at a full-day bootcamp with FlightCrowd, I honestly didn’t know what to expect. All I knew was FlightCrowd is an incredible organisation pushing on open doors and introducing opportunities to young people – and I wanted to be part of …
Volunteering – ‘Propel to Flight’ Engineering Workshop (Dec 24). Read More »
Seminar run by Louise Pode at BALPA – November, 2024 Attending a Resilient-building workshop I felt like this was preventative therapy. One of the best workshops I’ve been to. I’ve always dreamt of being an airline pilot, I knew that the road ahead wouldn’t be easy. Some of the stumbling factors include – the rigorous …
Full day Resilient-Building Workshop at BALPA HQ (Nov 24) Read More »
Hosted at the Royal Aeronautical Society (RAeS), London. Young People Networking Evening In November 2024, I attended the Young Persons Networking Reception hosted by the Royal Aeronautical Society (RAeS) in London. In support by Aviation Logistics Network Ltd. As someone who’s really passionate about becoming an airline pilot, I jumped at the opportunity to network …
Air League’s Annual Reception at the House of Parliament, London – Nov, 24. Attending the Annual Reception 2024 In November 2024, I attended the Air League Annual Reception. , London. This took place in the Terrace Pavilion at the House of Commons. The annual reception is a great networking event that brings aviation and aerospace …
Volunteering with The Air League at RAeS, London. Royal Aeronautical Society Careers Fair In November 2024, I had the fantastic opportunity to volunteer with the Air League at the Royal Aeronautical Society’s Careers in Aerospace Fair. This took place at the Royal Aeronautical Society, London. The event brought together aspiring young professionals exploring careers in …
Volunteering with The Air League at the RAeS Fair (Nov 24). Read More »
Visiting Heathrow Airport with The Air League. Heathrow’s Animal Transportation Facility I recently had the chance to visit the Heathrow Animal Reception Centre and also learn about the world of cargo transportation at London Heathrow Airport. While many of us think of airports as places for passengers to catch flights, there is so much more …
Tour at Heathrow’s Animal Reception Centre (Oct 24). Read More »
#InspireTheNextGen On Saturday 20th July 2024, I spent the day at the stand with the Air League inspiring the next generation of aviators. As the UK’s leading aviation and aerospace charity, the Air League is on a mission to increase social mobility and make aviation accessible to all. As someone who is equally on a …
On Thursday 16th May 2024 I attended the Sustainable Skies Summit 2024 at Farnborough International Exhibition and Conference Centre. As the world races to tackle climate change greener technologies are more important than ever if we are to decarbonise skies and make travel sustainable! In this blog post I will give you a glimpse of …
I recently attended Pilot Careers Live at Sofitel Hotel, Heathrow Airport. This event is a MUST GO if you’re interested in the aviation industry – I usually attend every year and bump into past friends or some incredible people I haven’t met before. I also attended it in November 2024 – all information is up-to-date. …
Attending Pilot Careers Live – London (Apr 24) and (Nov 24) Read More »
ACS Flight training held a pilot careers and training seminar on Saturday 23rd March 2024 at the Holiday Inn, Glasgow Airport. It is Scotland’s largest annual pilot career event with organisations like TUI and Loganair presenting and answering all the important questions to a career in aviation! It was a long day and I learnt …
Attending ACS Pilot Exhibition in Glasgow, Scotland (Mar 24) Read More »
My Great Experience at the Future Pilot Skills Event 2024.
In this blog I will be talking about the ACS Aviation Flying Scholarship. This is a fantastic opportunity for those who have little to no hours and are looking to get into aviation! ACS are running an invaluable flying scholarship – 5th year running! Two winners will receive 10 hours towards their Private Pilot’s License, …
Dear Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou, I am writing to express my sincere gratitude for your kind generosity as a sponsor to my flying scholarship with the Air League. This letter will detail how the flying scholarship has benefitted me and has fuelled my motivation to pursue a career in aviation. I cannot begin to express how …
A Letter to the Sir Stelios Philanthropic Foundation (Dec 23) Read More »
I attended the 2023 Air League Scholarship Awards Reception at the Royal Aeronautical Society, London. In this blog I will talk about my experience, some of the interactions I had and how it went as a whole. For context – recently I was awarded the 5-hour flying scholarship funded by the Stelios Foundation in association …
Scholarships Award Reception – Mayfair, London (Nov 23) Read More »
A Greener Aviation: Reflections from the Two Day Sustainability Skies Summit in Farnborough, 2023. A Sustainable Aviation. THE TWO TECHNOLOGY COMPANIES THAT CAUGHT MY EYE ON THIS GREAT SUMMIT! Recently, I attended the 2-day Sustainability Skies Summit 2023 in Farnborough. A host of organisations and SMEs were present to showcase how they are making aviation …
Two days at the Sustainability Skies Summit in Farnborough, 2023. Read More »
As you will already know I work as Ground Crew at my local airfield. As of recently I am now a rescue and fire fighting (RFFS) responder to aircrafts in distress. Let’s hope there is no such emergency but it’s great being trained up to work in a team to respond in emergencies. Although I …
Ground Crew To Firefighter: Life At The Airfield. Read More »
A Day Out With Me: ACS Flight Seminar in Glasgow. I’ve attended the ACS flight training seminar in Glasgow, Scotland (in collaboration with BOSE). It was an incredibly insightful event. The flight was fairly quick. It departed from London Heathrow at 07:30am and arrived in Glasgow just short of 9am. The pilot seminar started at …
Born to Fly: Reflections from the one day ACS Flight Seminar in Glasgow – P.2 Read More »
This is my second flight flying with a private member at the airfield I work at. The aircraft I flew in was the Yakovlev YAK 12M. I was in the backseat whilst two well-experienced pilots flew the plane. We intended to do a few circuits – so it was a relatively short flight! Interestingly enough …
V1, Rotate: My Thrilling Adventure Flying in the Yakovlev YAK 12M. Read More »
Flights have been booked! I look forward to attending my first flight training seminar in Glasgow, Scotland. I’m really looking forward to attending this event. As you may know I have always attended the Pilot Career Live events in Sofitel Hotel, Heathrow. When I came across this event – I thought why not attend one …
Taking Flight: Looking Forward to Fly to Glasgow for the Annual ACS Flight Seminar – P.1 Read More »
This is an unusual post for once. It’s not about any insights, nor is it educational nor is it of any experiences attending talks. Instead, this will be a nostalgic, inspirational post rewinding back to my childhood and my dreams for the next generation of young males and females in aviation. Let me give …
Unveiling The Past: My Childhood – Get to Know Me. Read More »
Recently I attended a talk by Kate West MBE hosted by FLYER. Previously, she held a talk at PCL in Heathrow, London. THANK YOU to the Young Air Pilots for posting this on their social media! I managed to tune into this at the last minute! I will give you a summary of the talk …
An evening webinar with the world’s youngest Captain. Read More »
Do you feel you lack the intelligence? Lack of funding? Or is it your age that sometimes holds you back in becoming a pilot? In this blog I really hope to inspire and motivate you to think otherwise. I will use real-life examples of inspiring comments and people I’ve spoken with that are the epitome …
Motivational Mondays: A little Grit… A little Motivation – By The Proficient Airman. Read More »
B737 flight simulator – My experience Recently I visited Flight Pad for a session on their Boeing 737 fixed Flight Simulator. In this blog I will explain my experience, insights and what I learnt. Enjoy! This was my first time using Flight Pad’s state-of-the-art flight sim. Flight Pad is based in West London at the …
Blue Skies And Contrails: Flying A B-737 Flight Simulator at FlightPad. Read More »
UPDATE 2024 – Please note TUI has changed their vision from 2023 onwards. I have created a new 92-page document for all TUI 2024 applications. This blog is dedicated to inspire those considering the TUI MPL Pilot Cadet Programme 2022-23 (which I will explain below). I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I …
APPLY NOW: EVERYTHING To Know About TUI & The TUI Pilot Cadet Programme 2022-2023 Read More »
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. …
Creating Connections: Reflections From Attending A Future Pilots Networking Event. Read More »
Written by: The Proficient Airman, Mubashar Yasin. Attending a pilot seminar: 2Fly Pro Pilot Academy 2FLY is an ab-initio flying organisation providing training to aspiring pilots for 20 + years across the USA and Europe. Recently, I attended a seminar hosted by 2FLY at the Hilton, London Heathrow Airport. It was a great opportunity to …
Let’s Talk Integrated: My Reflections from a 2FLY Seminar in Heathrow, London. Read More »
Runway Visitor Park I’ve always wanted to visit the Runway Visitor Park at Manchester Airport. Aviation enthusiasts like myself will have seen countless YouTube livestreams from the runway visitor park. Something I always did as a kid at primary school when I was supposedly ill and took the day off from school was to watch …
This year Pilot Careers Live exhibition took place at Sofitel Hotel, Terminal 5 – London Heathrow Airport. For those not aware this event provides EVERYTHING one needs to know about a career as a professional pilot. This event encompasses exhibition stands by leading training organisations, airlines and universities. As well as talks and seminars by …
Let’s Connect: My Insights From Attending A Pilot Careers Seminar in 2022. Read More »
This blog will provide my full experience on how I won a 1-hour trial flight and my experience at Leading Edge Aviation. Winning A Trial Flight at Pilot Career’s Live Back in 2019 on Friday 1st November I attended a Pilot Careers Live event in London. It is Europe’s largest independent exhibition where aspiring pilots …
Let’s Fly: Reflections From Winning A One Hour Flight With Leading Edge Aviation. Read More »
Written by: The Proficient Airman, Mubashar Yasin. Attending an Instagram LIVE at 8pm – British Airways Recruitment Team. I recently attended an Instagram LIVE by the British Airways recruitment team and training cadets. The purpose of this session was to provide an informal opportunity for aspiring pilots to ask questions to BA on their recruitment …
Evening Excitements: Insights From A British Airways Webinar. Read More »
Written by: The Proficient Airman, Mubashar Yasin. Want to know the BEST spot for a coffee with a view at London Heathrow Airport? Keep reading and find out… 3. Myrtle Avenue – 27L (approach/Takeoff) If you’re like me then a good spot is all too important when it comes to catching a glimpse of the …
UNBEATABLE spot for a coffee with a view – London Heathrow Airport Read More »
Written by: The Proficient Airman, Mubashar Yasin. Wednesday 9th November 2022 As ground crew I undertake runway checks first thing in the morning and whenever there is a runway change. This blog will explain the runways at the airfield and how I undertake checks at the airfield. The runway becomes active from 8am every day …
Reflections as Ground Crew: Runway Inspections and FOD Read More »
I currently working at an airfield alongside my weekday and weekend job. I joined the airfield on a voluntary basis as I was super passionate to get involved in aviation any way I could before starting training. I’d definitely recommend anyone passionate as I am to get stuck in and get to work with their …
Life as Ground Crew: Fuel Inspections & Contaminations. Read More »
*CLICK HERE* PILOT CAREERS LIVE 05/09/22 Let’s Mingle: Reflections From A Pilot Exhibition Event in London. Every year, I regularly attend Pilot Careers Live (PCL) in Sofitel Hotel, Heathrow Airport. Their website boasts to be ‘Europe’s largest independent training exhibition’ with airlines, training organisations, university/colleges, current and future cadets present. Therefore, it is useful to attend …
Let’s Mingle: Reflections From A Pilot Exhibition Event in London. Read More »
My experience and what I learnt Pilot Careers Live event at Sofitel Hotel, Terminal 5 – London Heathrow Airport. This event provides EVERYTHING one needs to know about a career as a professional pilot. This event encompasses exhibition stands by leading training organisations, airlines and universities. As well as talks and seminars by airline pilots …
