Russia fears that some pilots have fake licenses!

This, fresh off the AP wire today and quite a thing to consider....I must say. This isn't just talking pilots flying cargo in single seater hops around Russia. If only it were....

MOSCOW (AP) — Russian investigators are searching the state aviation agency to see if some pilots may have fake licenses — part of an investigation into a plane crash last month that killed all 50 people on board.

Markin said there were reasons to believe that the pilot who sent the Boeing 737 into a near-vertical dive after an aborted first landing attempt had received his license illegally in a small training center that was no longer functioning.

Source

Oh..my.. It hadn't even crossed my mind to consider in that recent crash, it might have been GROSS Pilot error by an unqualified and unskilled Pilot. I think we make certain assumptions, and we should, about a basic level of ability to men flying passenger aircraft.

I certainly hope Russia gets a handle on this one quickly. What a scary place to find phony ID's being produced.

Woah, that is scary.

If I am right, I remember seeing a while back an article about how Russia is the worst place to fly? Or something along those lines.

Good spot! S&F

OMG, I wonder if this is limited to just Russia?

reply to post by Wrabbit2000


It is even more scarey that hardly no one even checks the validity of a pilots license with the exception of maybe commercial airlines. They may look at the pilot license but that could be a forgery.

I doubt that this was an unqualified pilot. He had 2500 hours in 737s, and almost 10,000 hours total IIRC. However, this is a pretty scary thing to hear, especially with all the new pilots that are entering the fleets over the next few years.

Sammamishman
OMG, I wonder if this is limited to just Russia?

Well, in personal experience, I can only talk to one area I know and that would be licensing of commercial truckers in the United States. There have definitely been scams where trucking schools who also got themselves certified as 3rd party testing centers have "trained" and "tested" generally unqualified people right into a valid CDL in their pocket. It's a scary proposition.

I'd naturally assume that forged licenses for Pilots are more to do with background and history or level of training than having any training at all....since unqualified truckers park it in the ditch but pilots wouldn't survive the first trip for pure 'on the job training' out of phony paperwork. (I'm about 90% sure I could take off....Landing? Well... I'll bring a parachute, I dunno about everyone else.. )

Were do I get a fake piolets ID?
Lets see now Im in the seat of the 747
Humm wonder whats this button do ?
Ok now I have some noise going (hoping I didnt just flush a tolit and its the moters I hear.
Now flaps flaps wate shouldnt I be moving ?? OOO ok I am moving .
Hey how do you ster this thing? walll ster turn TURNNN you dum mechine .
wow close one .Ok so now im moving stuff is just wissing by .
Flaps now right? to go up flaps go down ((Well I hope but 50 /50 shot.
plans not leaving ground still going faster ?? really getting worred not
News flash dud with fake ID Doen NOT fly plan And after his fire death wont be flying another.

reply to post by midnightstar

News flash dud with fake ID Doen NOT fly plan

Really?

Are you sure?

The first guy flew for 13 years before being arrested.

reply to post by midnightstar


In all seriousness, you ought to check Youtube for home-made simulators. I was amazed and in true wonder to see what some people have done with top of the line flight-sim tech, multi-screen technology and a BUNCH of what must be USB cables all over for controls to mimic the real aircraft. Some of these guys really, for fun, fly the actual RL routes ..in real time (I'm sleepy just thinking about it).

The same or very similar levels of training tech used by the high dollar commercial flight schools. It's all a question of motivation and drive, I'd say. The rest is technical and regulatory issues that obviously need addressed in a huge way.

reply to post by Wrabbit2000


There are people that buy the front portion of aircraft and tie the simulator into the real instruments of the plane. It takes years to do it, but they're out there.

LOL well all i can say is lots of guys who couldnt fly hit things .
trees buildings ((not including 911)
So just because one guy mannages to learn enough to do it you say we can just as well higher guys who play ww11 dog fights to fly?
air comp will love that 25k a year base pay saves them lots.

reply to post by Wrabbit2000


Yah, I wonder about that. The Bare Foot Bandit never learned to land either (crashed both times he stole a plane) he self taught himself to fly and was able to navigate from IN to the Bahamas. Reminds me of DiCaprio's character in the movie "Catch me if you can".

reply to post by midnightstar


You think that the airlines know they're fake? You think they would have allowed an engineer to fly for 13 years if they knew it was fake? That's the whole point, they're so good they fool the airlines and people doing the checks.

My whole point is that wile the ID may be a great fake .
You cant pretend to fly a plane its not a simalator .
So far most people who have used similatorsd to try and learn to fly and managed to get in a piolets seat have crashed ((again not including 911))
I could clam to be a race car driver .think taht will stop me from crashing into teh wall at 150?
Yep know cars well enough start car push peddel go very fast turn here .
walllll

reply to post by midnightstar


A surprising number of them fly just fine. I can learn in a simulator and almost guarantee that I won't hit anything, and land just fine. That's kind of the point of simulators.

God please dont let zep get a Fake piolets ID .
Dude you watch to many movies.
You cant not learn to fly in a simalator >Sure a piper cub is almost liek driving a car simalator or not a few instructions and a little luck a 13 year old boys lands plane after piolet has heart attack!
True story.
Now a jet is no piper cub
heck even learning how to drive a car takes a little effort enough of it that many young people crash .
Known as I was one who crashed LOL had a Bug stick shift driving it no problem but humm downshifting on hills is a good idea . opps curve AKKK tree .
Bug smashed on tree SPLAT .lucky I wasnt hert and the tree pulled through as well.
LOl I sure learned down shfit that day.

reply to post by midnightstar


Then why do airlines and the military use them to train pilots? Simulators are almost as real as flying a plane, and a lot cheaper than flying the real thing, especially when getting type rated in a 747 or something.

But you're right, you can NEVER learn to fly anything but a Piper Cub in a simulator.

Wow dude Ok so you think what the mitiary says hey heres a simalator and after say a wekk Ok dude heres a F 16 Go kick some but.
And off he goes?? In real life the simalator saves the time of learning every button and keeping a plane grounded taht could be used.
once said buttons are learned and many flights simalated NEXT the wanna BE Pilot Starts In a TWO person jet In which the controls are DOBBLED and the flight instructor is reday to take over .
One a few flights have been done then a First solo VERY By teh book flight is taken .
Even ONE error Minor you mite be starting all over

for the last and FINIAL time you can NOT pilet a moderon JET from JUST simalator TIME .
Jets dont take kindly to even the smallest mistakes .
The few times a passanger ever mannaged to land a JET in emergency ((even JUST land mind you dead pilets or some such))
Took crash nets foom and well go find the videos on you tube .
yes a piper cub or other prop plane barn busters we use to call um heck a 13 year old can fly taht in a few lessions lol easy as driving a car.
So simalate away . A jet better have a few practice flights with a instructor .Mite be a real good idea.

reply to post by midnightstar


And you have how many hours of flight time under your belt? You seriously think that someone doing the slightest thing wrong in a 757 is going to cause it to go tumbling out of control and crash? Give me a break. Commercial aircraft are some of the most forgiving aircraft built.

So how many 737s, 777s, 787s, 747s are out there just to use to train pilots? Come on, you can find them I'm sure. There have to be hundreds to train all the pilots that fly them, so they should be easy to find.

Learn what you're talking about before trying to smack someone down. No airline in the world has planes set aside just for training new pilots on them. They use simulators to get the pilots familiar with them, and then pair the with a training captain to certify them.

The same with the military. They learn on simulators, and then two seat versions if they have two seaters. For single seaters like the F-22, F-35, and A-10, they fly simulators until they're comfortable and can pass their exams, then they fly the plane itself.