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Summary: A co-pilot's job description includes obtaining a weather briefing, plotting a safe route for the flight and splitting duties with the captain. Hear a co-pilot and experienced flight instructor describe his job in this free video on career information.
Dennis Conroy has been a flight instructor for over a year at the Ogden Airport in Ogden, Utah.read more
A co-pilot, also known as a first officer, is the captain's right-hand-man on any flight, whether it be commercial, military or otherwise. Both the captain and the co-pilot equally share the responsibilities of flying an aircraft, but the co-pilot remains second-in-command and can only take over in the event of an incapacitated captain. Education and training to become a co-pilot of an airplane is extensive, requiring several different licenses and ratings. In this free video series on career information, an experienced flight instructor discusses the career of a co-pilot. Get an accurate job description, and find out about co-pilot salary options and qualifications. Weigh the pros and cons of being a co-pilot, and find out how to become a part of the aviation field. For flying career information direct from the source, learn why this co-pilot chose his profession.
"I'm Dennis Conroy out here at Leading Edge Aviation based out of the Ogden Airport in Utah. I've been a Flight Instructor for these guys for about a year now. Co-Pilot basically is the guy sitting in the right seat of the airplane. He's responsible for safety of a flight, getting people or whatever the operation consists of from spot A to spot B. Day to day responsibilities of a Co-Pilot are going to be first off, he's going to show up for the day usually a little bit earlier than the flight's going to take off, he's going to get a weather briefing or find his own weather depending on the operation, he's going to plan out a route, best route based on time and distance and possibly how to avoid certain weather. After you get a weather briefing, he's going to find out the route the Pilot and plan you're going to take, he's going to figure out a weight and balance and figure out if the airplane is loaded properly to make the flight safe, and how much fuel he can take, if it's going to be enough to make it to their destination. As a Co-Pilot, usually your job's going to be split up one of two things. The Captain, the Co-Pilot split duties as far as who's going to be in control of the airplane and who's going to do the other responsibilities as far as talking on the radios, setting up equipment as far as coming into an airport, shooting what they call IFR approaches, or basically preparing the cabin and passengers for a landing."
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