By Derek Royal
WHAT'S it like being a corporate jet pilot, operating some of the world's most high-tech equipment and flying missions that are often clouded in secrecy? Derek Royal finds out.
DAY 1
PROFESSIONAL JET OFFICE, GOLD COAST AIRPORT, QLD
0730
CORPORATE pilots Bronwyn Carr and Tim Hayman are discussing details for their upcoming mission – flying two coal mine executives from the Gold Coast to Gunnedah, NSW. Tim has prepared the flight plan using a computer program and after inserting the weather conditions he confirms the Cessna 525’s optimum altitude will be 34,000 feet (FL340) and provides Bronwyn with sector times.
The pilots then read the weather and NOTAMS and note that while Gunnedah is CAVOK, some scuddy stuff is expected on the Gold Coast when they return home.
“Visibility is expected to be 4000 metres in rain at the Gold Coast,” Bronwyn says. “But there’s a tempo with thunderstorms and a visibility of 3000 metres for our arrival. I’ve done the weight and balance calculations and we’ll need around 2800 pounds of fuel, which will enable us to complete the flight (including fixed and variable reserves) and have 800 pounds excess to hold, and if necessary, divert to Brisbane. Unlike Gold Coast Airport, Brisbane has an ILS and the weather is forecast to be above the alternate minima.”
Bronwyn and Tim work for Gold Coast-based Professional Jet, a major player in the local business jet community who operate a fleet of corporate aircraft that includes two Citation IIs, a Citation Jet, Phenom 100 and a very impressive LearJet 60.
“There are more small jets arriving and successful people who need the speed and privacy,” says Professional Jet CEO Howard Veal. “We’re getting our share, particularly the CJ (Cessna 525) as it is clean, quick and economical.
Many of our customers have discovered that it’s a better option (by cost and time efficiency) to have your aircraft managed and crewed than to undertake the cost and pain of setting up your own ticket.”
Bronwyn yesterday took the time to make sure the Cessna was equipped with tea and coffee and presentable for the passengers, who are regular Professional Jet clients. A light breakfast has been requested and this has been collected from a bakery en route to the airport. Tim has also bought today’s newspapers and some ice to cool the drinks.
Also included in the brief for this mission are operational requirements, client requests, emergency or abnormal procedures, along with threats and associated strategies for the flight. Both pilots are command endorsed so they’ve agreed that Tim will be PF (Pilot Flying) for the trip to Gunnedah and Bronwyn will handle the return leg home.
At just 23 years old, Bronwyn is considered young for a corporate jet captain. So why did she choose a career as a pilot?
“As a five-year-old I visited the cockpit on an international flight and loved it so much I became hooked,” she says.
“Flying often amazes and captivates the imagination of children, but as I grew older the interest never faded. For me, flying is immensely rewarding and like most pilots, I take great pride in doing it accurately and safely. I enjoy going to work each day.”
After leaving high school Bronwyn studied an aviation degree at the University of New South Wales and during holidays she scored her first flying job with S. Kidman on Anna Creek Station near Lake Eyre.
“This a property the size of Belgium but with only a dozen people living on it,” she says. “I flew a Cessna 172 doing low level property inspections, mustering, and transfers to other properties in Australia. I also worked for the local charter company, Wrightsair. After graduating from university, I started working for Professional Jet, initially flying light twins. As the opportunities came up, I progressed onto the Citations as a First Officer and now as Captain. I’m part of a great company, working alongside some fantastic people and I get to fly – who could say no to that?”
Professional Jet’s maintenance engineer tows the aircraft out of the hangar, the battery is connected, fuel is checked and Bronwyn lets the refueller know how much juice the 525 will need for today’s mission. With the daily inspection completed and the maintenance release signed Bronwyn begins filling in the flight record sheet. The duo then organise the cockpit and get as much done as possible before the passengers arrive.
“The C525 is not fitted with an auxiliary power unit so we’ve connected the GPU and inserted the flight plan into the flight management system, copied the ATIS, received an airways clearance and completed checks,” Bronwyn explains. “As per company procedure, we’ve completed all our tasks half-an-hour before the passengers are scheduled to arrive and now it’s just a matter of waiting.”
GOLD COAST, QLD TO GUNNEDAH, NSW
0900
The passengers arrive on time at 0900 and because they’ve flown with the crew before, share some banter prior to boarding the jet. Bronwyn loads their luggage into the nose locker in accordance with weight and balance and discovers the passengers have turned up with more luggage than planned. This will place the aircraft over maximum takeoff weight so the pilots decide to remove two life rafts and overwater survival equipment that was carried on the jet’s previous mission.
“The overwater survival equipment is not an operational requirement for an inland flight and it will save us 50 kilos, placing the aircraft under maximum takeoff weight,” Bronwyn says.
Bronwyn then helps the passengers into the aircraft as Tim settles into his seat and starts the right engine. Once the door is closed and secured he starts the left engine as Bronwyn delivers a safety brief to the passengers. Brief completed, Bronwyn then climbs into the cockpit and they complete the before taxi checks before receiving clearance from the tower.
As Pilot Flying (PF) Tim pushes the throttle forward and Bronwyn sets the power. The Cessna rushes down the runway, Tim eases back the control column and as the aircraft climbs off the ground, retracts the gear. The pilots conduct an APAGI 9 departure and get step-climbed to FL340 (34,000 feet) underneath traffic departing from Brisbane. Once established in cruise Bronwyn unbuckles and checks on the passengers. The two executives are familiar with the layout of the cabin so they’ve already helped themselves to breakfast and are busy drinking coffee and browsing the newspapers.
“Our Descent Point is 80 nautical miles out of Gunnedah and we use the GPS arrival Sector A to maintain a safe altitude,” Bronwyn says. “There is no weather service over the radio at Gunnedah but from the forecast, Runway 29 is favourable.”
There’s no traffic in the circuit so the 525 joins for a left base on Runway 29. After landing Tim taxis to a corner of the apron outside the small terminal building and shuts down the engines. Shutdown checks are completed and Bronwyn alights from the aircraft to chock the wheels. She then unloads the passengers’ equipment as Tim finishes the relevant paperwork.
“The passengers have advised us they will be back at the airport at 2pm, which is in about four hours’ time,” Bronwyn explains. “Normally we look after ourselves until then, but apparently our clients have organised someone to drive us in and out of town.”
The clients head to the mine while the pilots put the covers on the aircraft and check oil levels. They then remove rubbish from inside the aircraft and run the handheld vacuum over the carpet so everything’s spick and span for the clients’ return.
The designated driver arrives and welcomes the two pilots to Gunnedah. His name is Joe and he offers to show the pilots around before driving them to a cafe for lunch. Joe has lived in Gunnedah his entire life and speaks of the town with pride.
The pilots discuss the sector back to the Gold Coast over lunch and use company ipads to access updated weather and flight plans. Visibility at the Gold Coast is still 4000m in showers with a tempo of thunderstorms and visibility of 3000m.
“The Gold Coast doesn’t have an ILS so we anticipate either the VOR or RNAV approach on Runway 14,” Bronwyn says. “For Runway 14 the minima is 700 feet and 4000 metres. If the thunderstorms are present we won’t be able to land and we calculate that we have enough fuel to hold and then divert to Brisbane for an ILS.”
GUNNEDAH AIRPORT, NSW
1300
Joe drives the crew back to the airport at 1pm and stops at a service station en route for the pilots to buy some ice to cool the drinks. They farewell Joe, thank him for his hospitality and then complete a pre-flight, leaving the jet’s door open to get some fresh air into the cabin.
The temperature at Gunnedah is 38 Degrees Celsius and the aeroplane is warm after sitting on the tarmac closed for a few hours. Without a GPU the cabin cannot be cooled until they fire up an engine. Bronwyn, who is flying the return leg, briefs the procedure that once the passengers arrive, she’ll start the right engine to cool the cabin while he loads the passengers’ equipment. Tim must also brief the passengers that the engine is running and ensure they remain to the left of the aircraft.
Half an hour before the passengers are scheduled to return to the airport, Bronwyn and Tim are ready to go. But at 1415 Bronwyn receives a call advising that the clients are running late.
“The clients are running late and they’ve requested an overfly of a property that has been isolated by floods ... before we head back to the Gold Coast,” Bronwyn explains. The local area is unfamiliar but Bronwyn extracts area detail from ERSA, a WAC and a mining map and a description of the property’s location provided by the client.
“This diversion will probably add about 15 minutes to the flight,” Bronwyn says. “So now we have to consider our fuel and how this will affect our arrival at the Gold Coast. The tempo thunderstorms are still forecast during our arrival and the extra time will use up our holding fuel. So if we’re not able to land off the first approach at Gold Coast we’ll have to divert to Brisbane straight away for an ILS.”
Bronwyn decides on the details of the airwork, including maximum time until they regain their track to the Gold Coast, a minimum safe height to fly over the property and, consulting the Jeppessen low chart, checking that it will not place them in any restricted areas nearby. She also briefs the procedure for flying visually at 500ft AGL.
“As pilot flying I will be ‘eyes outside’ the whole time whilst Tim will be responsible for monitoring the aircraft’s airspeed and altitude and calling them out to me,” Bronwyn says. “We’ll then call up Brisbane briefing and will amend our flight plan to include the delayed departure”.
The passengers arrive and Bronwyn starts the right engine. Tim loads the equipment, briefs the passengers and supervises them as they board the aircraft. Once the door is closed Bronwyn starts the left engine and with Tim completes the relevant checks. The flight plan is entered as they make their way to the departure runway, while taxi checks and radio calls are completed.
Bronwyn eases the throttles forward and in a moment the sleek Cessna punches its way through the sky. After takeoff, Bronwyn maintains 1500ft AGL and remaining visual, follows the roads on the tourist map to the property. She then descends to 500ft and conducts a few orbits before tracking for the Gold Coast. The passengers are pleased they’ve seen the property from the air and as they settle down for the flight back to the Gold Coast, ATC is notified that their airwork is complete. Bronwyn commences a climb to FL350 (35,000 feet) and points the jet towards home.
“We’ve copied the ATIS well in advance and while there are showers at the Gold Coast with 4000 metres visibility as forecast, the tempo is nowhere to be seen,” Bronwyn says. “We’ve been cleared to conduct the GREAV5 arrival that will put us onto the VOR approach for Runway 14.”
Bronwyn guides the C525 towards Gold Coast Airport and greases the landing on Runway 14. She taxis the aircraft to the hangar and after shutting down, Tim assists the passengers out of the jet and unloads their equipment into a waiting vehicle. The pilots farewell the grateful passengers as the Cessna is towed into the hangar; wrap up the paperwork and clean the aeroplane before signing off at 1700. It’s been quite a day, time to head home for some rest.
CELEBRITY FLIGHT
BRONWYN’S not scheduled to fly the next day but at 2330 her mobile phone disturbs her from a deep sleep. She rolls over and looks at the phone: “It’s work”.
“I always keep my phone nearby and switched on at all times because every now and then I receive a charter at short notice,” Bronways says.
Professional Jet has received a job to fly a celebrity client to Fiji in the company’s new LearJet 60. It’s a short notice charter and the passengers want to leave straight away. Using the company’s Fatigue Management System Bronwyn has been approved to do the flight alongside the company’s chief pilot, Byron Bailey. Byron will be in command and Bronwyn will be co-pilot.
“I’ve been told that the flight may be a drop off or we may wait in Fiji for a few days then fly the passengers home,” Bronwyn says. “We won’t know any further details until we land in Fiji.”
After receiving the call, Bronwyn climbs out of bed and leaps into the shower. Due to the on-call nature of charter she always has a clean, pressed uniform ready and keeps a small clothes bag packed to save time. She dresses, collects the bag and heads back to the airport, which is a mere eight minutes away.
The passengers, a movie star and his wife, are in a hurry and have advised Professional Jet that they want to depart immediately. They’re on their way to the airport. From the time the charter is confirmed the jet can be airborne within one and a half hours but because this is an international flight, there are plenty of details to take care of and the Professional Jet team spring into action.
Our operations assistant has already organised a diplomatic clearance, customs and immigration by the time Bronwyn arrives for duty.
“With only two passengers we can take full fuel, which will be preferable as it minimises the amount to be refuelled at Fiji,” she explains. While the aircraft is fuelled, Bronwyn submits the flight plan and checks the weather and NOTAMs. Professional Jet has predetermined Ramp weight and balances already for full fuel and two passengers, so Bronwyn adds the expected cargo and fuel burn. Byron, who lives further away from the airport than his co-pilot, arrives and looks over the paperwork while Bronwyn completes a daily inspection.
PROFESSIONAL JET OFFICES, GOLD COAST AIRPORT, QLD
0045
The pilots then sit down and brief for the flight. Byron will be PF (Pilot Flying) for the first leg and Bronwyn will handle the second, whenever that may be. They then start the APU, enter the flight plan and data into the FMS and start checks. At 0045 the passengers arrive and CEO Howard Veal escorts them to the LearJet. Bronwyn welcomes the celebrity clients and gives them a safety brief. They smile but are keen to get the show on the road. It will be a three hour flight to Nadi.
“It’s outside tower hours so the Gold Coast has become a CTAF,” Bronwyn explains. “I’ve obtained a clearance from Brisbane and make CTAF radio calls as we do our checks and taxi. Hardly anyone else is around in the middle of the night so the radios are very quiet. The storms forecast earlier in the day have dissipated.”
Byron eases the Lear into the night sky and is cleared initially to 6000 feet. After being identified the aircraft is cleared to climb all the way to its cruising altitude of 43,000 feet. The lights of Australia fade slowly and as the aircraft crosses the South Pacific Ocean, everything becomes pitch black. Once through transitions and established in the climb, Bronwyn leaves the cockpit to check on the passengers. They’re hungry so she heats up some food in the microwave before they recline their seats and drift off to sleep.
Bronwyn says they’ve lost VHF coverage so she contacts Brisbane on the HF radio and does a SELCAL check. Three hours later Byron eases the jet onto approach into a pitch-black Nadi Airport where he conducts the ILS for Runway 02. This involves tracking overhead the VOR outbound until 17DME then conducting a base turn to intercept the localiser.
The pilots are aware of the high terrain in the area so they carefully monitor the approach and touch down on Runway 02. Byron brings the aircraft to a stop at Bay 1 at the terminal. Bronwyn wakes the passengers and moments later customs and immigration arrive at the aeroplane, where they check the spray used by the crew at Top Of Descent along with everyone’s passports and paperwork. The ground transport arrives and the passengers discuss their requirements.
Meanwhile, Bronwyn and Byron complete more paperwork as they await further instructions from Professional Jet. Will they return home empty or will they enjoy the Fiji sunshine for a few days? Unfortunately, the duo is advised to return home empty as the clients have decided to extend their stay to a couple of weeks.
NADI, FIJI/ TO GOLD COAST, QLD
The refueller fuels the aircraft and with no time pressure Byron and Bronwyn enjoy a coffee and relax in the cabin.
“We didn’t have time to submit a flight plan for the return leg before we left the Gold Coast so we’re going to consult the Jepp chart and weather to plan our trip home,” Bronwyn says. “This time I will be PF (Pilot Flying) and Byron will be PNF (Pilot Not Flying) but as the aircraft captain, he will still be in command.”
It’s still dark when the LearJet departs from Runway 02. There is high terrain northeast of the airport so the SID requires a left turn no later than the departure end of the runway. Byron monitors this carefully to ensure Bronwyn meets the requirements. As the aircraft heads towards Australia the sun starts creeping up on the horizon and the HF radio is so quiet that Byron shares some stories from his flying past. Byron’s flying experience is vast, he has flown fighters in the RAAF, been a line pilot at Emirates and a corporate pilot for many years. Bronwyn enjoys the interlude but before long, the aircraft is back in VHF coverage of Australia and the pilots start setting up for descent into Gold Coast Airport. The sun is shining as Bronwyn eases the craft onto Runway 32 and traffic is heavy.
Bronwyn taxis to the Air Gold Coast hangar where other Professional Jet staff are just signing on for the day. The pilots finish the paperwork, put the covers on, check the oils and tidy the aeroplane before signing off. Bronwyn’s last 48 hours have been typically unpredictable, which, for a corporate pilot, goes with the territory. Her job now is to get home, undertake some exercise and get some decent sleep. She wants to be available to fly if another jet charter is required.
Flying a corporate jet for a living is definitely one of the most prestigious jobs in aviation. So what would the 23-year-old consider to be her ultimate job? “Well, she says, “aviation is an unpredictable industry and I was told once just to focus on making the most of each opportunity. Who knows what the future will bring?”
By 0830 Bronwyn arrives home and hits the sack, just as her neighbours are waking up or heading to work.
“They won’t believe me when I tell them over dinner tonight what I’ve done in the last 24 hours,” she says.
Indeed, such is the life of a corporate jet pilot.
