Emergency Procedures

Today started at 0545, at least that's when my alarm clock woke me up.  Class started at 0700, which is a pretty stupid time to start a ground school course, in my opinion.  We learnt lots of new things in class today.  We learnt how to open the flight deck door in the ATR, the three elements of fire and how many smoke detectors there are in a 72-500, to name but a few!  Lots of new and exciting things, and I wrote lots of notes on the above - mainly to keep myself from falling asleep, but still I wrote lots of notes.

See?  Here's a picture to prove what I did today.  The desk contains a mixture of items, from left to right (what I can see, at least) a couple of oxygen cylinders with masks (one supplementary and one therapeutical, in case you were interested), a megaphone, a couple of smoke hoods, a teddy bear (still haven't worked out what that was for) an infant pretending to be a doll (or maybe vice versa) a portable ELT and a life jacket.

Here is IF not looking very studious at all, and no I did not ask him if I could put him on my blog, and neither do I care whether he wants me to or not.  He doesn't actually have my blog address... so HA!

And finally here is a very boring photograph of some of the information we have to know for tomorrow - which of course, I'm not going to know.  Plan to pass the exam anyway, once again - HA!

Also tomorrow (which was supposed to be today) we are all trolling off to the airport to visit our first Australian ATR.  Unfortunately the aircraft which we were supposed to visit today was commandeered to fly to Port Macsomethingorother to rescue another aircraft that had a bird strike.  Sound familiar?  So sad, we won't actually learn how to open an aircraft door until tomorrow.  How shall I ever last that long?

Apparently the company opens doors differently over here.  Apparently we are supposed to forget how we used to open doors, and learn to do it the company way.  I'm not quite sure what this involves, and how they can possibly make door opening different... but we shall see, tomorrow.  Presuming the birds stay out of the way.

After we go see an airplane, open some doors, etc. we have verbal and practical assessments on things we were supposed to learn today, and a written test.  For example, how many smoke detectors there are on an ATR.  For some reason, all the different aircraft (6 so far) all have their equipment in different locations, although they are all 500 series.  For instance, one might have a fire extinguisher in the left hand hat bin and another aircraft in the right hand hat bin.  Not quite sure what the thinking is for this, but there must be a method in their madness - mustn't there??

Then, after we do all of those highly riveting activities, we move on to the pool to do our Wet drills.  This involves practising the HELP position (heat escape listening posture) which involves holding ones knees in one's arms and trying to get as small as possible in the water whilst held buoyant by the life jacket.  I actually am not sure what a listening posture is, and what meaning it holds, but the position is supposed to increase body temperature and increase survivability by 50% or something like that.  Then we have to hold hands and sing ring-a-ring-a-rosy (is that what it's called?) or at least we have to hold hands and swim in a circle - I am determined to sing, perhaps under my breath?  Then we have to swim 25 metres while pulling someone else who is also wearing a lifejacket.  Another opportunity to demonstrate my amazing doggy-paddle skills.

That, folks, is about all I have to share for tonight!  Nothing particularly interesting to report at the moment - except that I have one place to look at on Saturday with a view to living there... hopefully it is as nice as the pictures, and that the owner actually wants us to live there!

TTFN!!!