A Pilot Visits Airport 126

Last week, my DECE and I surprised our class with a visit from a real pilot! We thought what a better way to have some of our students' questions answered than by an expert! Prior to his arrival, our class looked back at our blog to review some of the questions we had around airplanes and airports with hopes that our visitor could answer them! The following video was put together to celebrate our learning from Pilot Ryan at our school's Good News Assembly on Friday and below is the interview our class had with our surprise visitor:

About Pilot Ryan: 
Pilot Ryan works for Toronto Airways and he teaches people how to fly and help them become pilots.

J.S. (SK): How does an airplane fly when it's so big and heavy?

"An airplane needs three things to fly: lots of speed, air and gas! Once it gets speed and goes fast enough the wings become weightless and then the airplane can fly into the sky."

T.B.: What places have you gone to in your airplane?
"My favourite place to fly to was Chicago and it took me 3 whole hours to get there! 

S.M.: Do you fly an airplane everyday?
"I like to fly airplanes when the weather is nice and sunny like today. It's the best time to fly because it makes it easier to see everything on the ground which helps make it safe and fun!"

I.D.: How do you fly an airplane? We learned from Daniel Cook that you can push and pull the steering wheel to make it fly.
"You have to use a whole bunch of controls and there's little dials called "instruments" that tell me how fast I'm going, how high and in which direction. The steering wheel is called a "yolk" in an airplane and you're absolutely right! When you pull back on the yolk towards your belly button the airplane will go up and when you push the yolk it will go down."

J.S. (JK): How does an airplane know where to land?
"Before you go flying, you have to make a plan using a map to figure out where you want to go and how you're going to get there. Bigger airplanes have something called "autopilot" and with that button the plane flies all by itself because of computers. It uses something fancy called a "GPS" and that tells the plane where to go. The job of the pilot then would be to monitor all the systems and make sure the plane is flying safe and using the right amount of gas."

L.D.: I have a GPS in my car! You have to push buttons for where you want to go and it tells you where to go. 

S.M.: What are all the buttons for in the cockpit?
"The majority of the buttons are all for emergencies. I have to go through a checklist before I can fly to make sure they are all working. The buttons that are in front of me are the ones I use and they are sometimes the "autopilot," radio buttons, gas buttons and safety."

L.D.: How does the pilot know where the airport is?
"We have the GPS' on an airplane and the computer will guide the airplane where it needs to go but there are also indicators on the ground that tell the pilot where to go and where you are. Every airport has different ones that tell the pilot where the runway is, what direction it is going, etc. If it's really cloudy outside then we use our radios and the airport workers help us navigate and guide us where we want to go."

Ms. Theis: Does an airplane need a key to start like a car does?
"When you have a small airplane you need a key to start it like a car. A bigger airplane needs the pilot to push a button to start the airplane. They have lots of different steps to take before it'll start the engines."

A.C.: What do the people in the towers do?
"People in the towers have a very important job to do. They help pilots when they can't see anything like when it is foggy outside. They tell pilots where to go and how to get there safely. They give directions on how to find the runway and how to land their plane safely. They also give pilots permission to take off and land on the runway so there are no accidents."

W.F.: Why is the airplane wing shaped like this?
"It is shaped like this with a curve because it needs to let the air go over and under it to help the plane fly. The gasoline is also kept in the airplane wings."

Pilot Ryan brought in his Pilot License too which looked a lot like our passports! 
"Pilots need a license in order to fly an airplane just like you need a license to drive a car. It looks like a passport but it also has all of my information about my health too. You have to be very healthy in order to stay safe when flying. You have to go to the doctor every year for check-ups."

W.V.: What is your special badge for?
"This badge shows that I'm a pilot and the role that I play when I'm at the airport. Different airlines have different pins for their pilots." 

I.D.: What do the stripes on your shoulders mean?
"The stripes on my shoulders mean the position I am in within a company. The three stripes mean I am a teacher. If you have two stripes then you're a "Second Officer" that sits at the back of the cockpit. If you have four stripes then you're a "Captain.""


Thanks to my wonderful grade partner Melanie (@mel4education) for giving us his name and helping to coordinate this surprise visit! 

We look forward to visiting Pilot Ryan at his airport very soon!