My Career: Pilot Clodagh O’Farrell

Tell us about yourself
This is an amazing opportunity to shed some light on an extraordinary job that most people assume is inaccessible. Aer Lingus is launching a Future Pilot Programme which is a fully sponsored route for an applicant to be trained from having no flying experience, all the way to operating an Aer Lingus Airbus aircraft. The programme takes just under two years to complete. We are actively striving to increase the number of female applicants to our programme given only 7% of applicants in our last recruitment drive were female. There are no quotas and no advantages given to applicants because they are female.

Like most other careers, the life of an airline piIot can be challenging, but with challenges come rewards. Having three children, myself and my husband, who is also a pilot, have juggled rosters for 17 years and have not needed any formal childcare in all that time. I am super proud that we have managed to find the correct work-life balance whilst doing a job that we both love.

There are many perks of the job, including pension, staff travel, an input into your own roster preferences, whether you favour flying early, late or overnight. Working with like-minded, highly trained professionals with clear career progression is highly rewarding and most importantly, there is no gender pay difference in Aer Lingus.
There are not too many people who can say that every day of their working life is different. During my career, I have had the pleasure of flying families to Rovaniemi in Finland to visit Santa, I have brought hard-working families on their long-awaited holidays, I have carried sick passengers abroad and home for cancer treatment. I have carried diplomats to Brussels, Rock Stars to NYC, helped transport body parts for transplant and if you can believe it… strawberries from LA!

I hold dear the beauty in nature and have seen sunrises, sunsets, cloud formations, thunderstorms, icebergs, oceans, the Aurora Borealis and stars that would take your breath away. I’m proud that Aer Lingus is part of the first airline group in the world to commit to net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. Our transatlantic fleet of 23 aircraft includes eight Airbus A321neo LR which offer a 23% fuel saving versus its predecessor, with an additional six A321XLR aircraft on order which are more fuel efficient again. They are also quieter to operate.

The view from my office, the flight deck, is unparalleled – another perk of the job! I can pick out the Eiffel Tower from 6 miles above Paris, I can spot at least ten of the football stadiums on the approach into London from Wembley to Tottenham, West Ham, Crystal Palace etc. Not to mention the beauty of the aerial view of Manhattan with its perfectly aligned streets and avenues that twinkle in the darkness of night.

Did you always want to be a pilot?
My passion for aviation began at a young age. I grew up in Portmarnock with the flight path into Dublin airport in full view from my back garden. My dad used to point out ‘the birdies’ on approach. It was a constant source of intrigue and entertainment. As a child, I used to say that I was going to be a pilot so that I could see the sun every day! On occasion, we were brought to Dublin airport to watch the airplanes land and listen in on the ATC using a handheld radio. It was super exciting, the sight of a massive noisy aircraft gracefully descending and touching down so close to you… it was awe-inspiring and gave me an appreciation for the skills of pilots and air traffic controllers.

In college, I studied… the Bachelor of Business Studies with German four-year degree course in DCU. The week I graduated, I joined Aer Lingus where I began my training in Florida to become a pilot with sixteen other class mates. We formed friendships for life and I actually married one of them! I completed my training at the British Aerospace flight- training centre in Prestwick Scotland.

My most formative work experience was… the opportunity to experience the world of military aviation in an F14 simulator in California having a dog fight and landing on an aircraft carrier – just for fun! Many airports send a vehicle to the edge of the apron to direct inbound aircraft to their parking stands. These are normally run-of-the-mill cars or vans. I was delighted to be met by a Lamborghini in Bologna airport for a look-see! All in a day’s work!

The most invaluable thing I learned early on in my career was… never be complacent and always be respectful of others.

A common misconception about what I do is… ‘Sure those planes fly themselves’. In reality, modern aircraft do indeed have a high level of automation, however, every take-off is completed manually, and every landing is completed manually with the exception of when the visibility is poor and in that circumstance, we then program the aircraft to land itself. Despite the fact the aircraft is fully automated, as a crew, we monitor every detail and if for whatever reason the approach or landing is not working as expected, we intervene to discontinue the approach. Another big misconception is that we get to travel the world, frequently visiting exotic destinations. The reality is that we work very demanding schedules and can often struggle to get leave when other family members are off. Many people think that being a pilot is a glamorous job but, depending on your roster, you may set your alarm clock to go off at 3 or 4am to begin your day’s work or on the transatlantic operations, you may report to work at 10 or 11pm Irish time to stay awake through the night while operating eastbound across the Atlantic. When you arrive at the aircraft, you complete an exterior check of the aircraft in rain, gales or snow, cautious not to slip on de-icing fluid on the ramp… You may have an air traffic control restriction placed on your flight which causes a delay to your departing passengers which is always a disappointment, especially when we are managing onward connecting passengers. It’s all part of the job, but not so glamorous!

My main responsibility in work is to… be fully informed – checking weather and information regarding the airfields we will be operating into and out of that day; keep everybody safe, crew, passengers, ground staff alike; fly the aircraft in a safe, compliant, legal, comfortable and sustainable manner; go the extra mile to enhance the service provided to our passengers.

Do you have a career mentor or someone you look up to/seek advice from?
We have a number of base captains who are always available to us for advice or assistance. The ops controller and executive on call and our engineering staff are always there to assist when we reach out. We have a very supportive training department within Aer Lingus. Once a pilot is fully qualified, licensed and type rated, we complete six-monthly simulator programmes. The training encompasses a wide range of emergency procedures, scenarios and skills to ensure pilots are well-prepared to deal with failures or events should they occur.

The first thing I do at work is… meet with my First officer (co-pilot) and go through the paperwork in preparation for the flight. An unusual thing about my job is that I might be flying with someone for a duty which can span up to four days. You meet some fantastic people, and form great friendships; the flight deck is a small place. And then, you might not cross paths with that person again for another year. That is why it is so important that we all have defined tasks, checklists and procedures to follow so that we perform well as a team on every flight that we do.

I usually spend the first portion of the day… reading through our flight plan in detail, checking our route, the outside air temperatures at our cruise level to ascertain how high we will fly as well as where areas of weather or turbulence are forecast on our route and how we plan to manage that. We check what weight we can actually lift off the runway given the ambient weather conditions and the condition of the runway, whether it be wet, dry, covered in snow, ice or slush. We see if we have an ATC (Air Traffic Control) slot and if so, liaise with flight planning regarding a possible re-route. We check airport notices for the latest news regarding, for example, taxi way closures or maybe lights out of service or runway closures etc. We decide on what fuel we require for the safe conduct of the flight. We then go to the aircraft where we meet the other part of our team, the cabin crew. We meet with our ground staff who will supervise the boarding and loading of our aircraft. If I’m lucky, I might get to hold a baby while a mammy or daddy folds up their buggies and gets themselves together. There is the constant pressure of ensuring all tasks are completed correctly and in a timely manner while prioritising our passenger experience. We then engage with our ground crew and engineers who maintain our fleet to such high standards. And all that before we even talk about setting up the flight deck… flying the aircraft is the easy bit, and sadly, it’s only a small part of the job!

I break for lunch at… I make every attempt to stay hydrated, especially on long-haul flights. It’s a challenge, particularly when crossing time zones, to eat healthily and to make time to exercise and stay healthy when you are abroad. My favourite duties have me going to America and I can be away for two or three nights at a time which removes you from your daily routine. The beauty of my job is that I can go to a yoga class in New York City, go to the pool in our Boston hotel – there is rarely an overnight stay that I wouldn’t clock 15,000 steps whether it be walking the Brooklyn bridge, walking around the Washington landmarks, visiting Harvard university etc.

The most useful business tool I use every day is… I love my iPad and my Apple pencil. I use Notability and Pages a lot – we’ve been an Apple family for over twenty years. I have a collection of apps that I use to check the weather and  I love PDF Expert for annotating my flight plans.

The best part of my day is… coming home to my family. The wonderful thing about being a pilot is that once your aircraft has ‘chocked on’, that is pretty much the end of it, save for a little paperwork. There is something quite liberating about the flight being concluded and that’s the end of your day with nothing more required of you until the commencement of your next duty

Before I go to bed, I… make sure my uniform is ready, my iPad is charged and updated, I’m packed and my ID, license and passport are where they should be.

I often prepare for tomorrow by… getting enough rest.

The accomplishment I’m most proud of is… I am proud to be a captain and I love meeting children on the flight deck and showing them the controls and hopefully inspiring them to follow a career as an airline pilot.

If you want to get into my line of work, my advice is to… follow your dreams and work hard. There may be setbacks along the way and these will help you become resilient. No job is perfect, but being a pilot has many enjoyable aspects. To this day, I smile when I line the engines up for take-off. At the moment, Aer Lingus is launching a ‘Future Pilot Programme’ which is a fully sponsored route for an applicant to be trained from having no flying experience, all the way to operating an Aer Lingus Airbus aircraft. The programme takes just under two years to complete. We are actively striving to increase the number of female applicants to our programme given that only 7% of applicants in our last recruitment drive were female. There are no quotas and no advantages given to applicants because they are female.

I’ve just finished working on… I’ve just finished supporting a pilot recruitment campaign where I was interviewing prospective candidates and assessing their technical knowledge and aptitude. I really enjoyed meeting the next generation of pilots. I also recently attended The Bray Air Display representing Aer Lingus while promoting our upcoming Future Pilot Programme.

How about being a female working in a male-dominated environment?
When I began flying the BAe 146, the captains were of a young demographic. They were very knowledgeable, relatable and we had a good rapport. Even though there were very few females, I really was treated equally. I then moved on to the Airbus A330 where the demographic was a lot older. The captains I flew with had vast knowledge and experience. For me, it was like going to work with your dad! It was a very respectful working environment and we all adapted. I do recall a funny story when a captain asked me ‘What colour is the sky? The sky is blue… if women were to fly, would the sky not be pink?’ To this day when I see a beautiful pink gilded sunrise or sunset, I smile to myself! 

Imagery courtesy of Clodagh O’Farrell