Cleared for Takeoff: Day Three – Layovers and Lucky Encounters

Day three of IOE was a short one—just a single leg from LGA to IND, which meant most of the day was free. I planned to swing by the training center to catch up with some familiar faces, but the universe had its own lineup of surprises.

Right before departure at LaGuardia, I bumped into a newly minted captain who was in the upgrade class during my initial training. He’s the one who showed me how to properly set up my prefbids—something I wouldn’t have figured out on my own in time. Thanks to him, I landed a trip instead of reserve for May. We had a quick chat before heading off in our respective directions. Small world, big airport.

Last night, I met up with MS and grabbed some late-night food truck fare (not exactly memorable cuisine, but the company made up for it). We synced up on our IOE experiences—pretty wild that we crossed paths, both of us on our first trips as first officers.

And just when I thought that was enough serendipity for one trip, today in Indy I ran into AW—an instructor I knew from back home. We earned our CFI licenses under the same mentor. She joined the company about a year and a half ago and is already eligible to upgrade. Haven’t seen her in forever, and now here she is, FO on the outbound crew of the very same aircraft we flew in on. This industry really knows how to bring people together in the most unexpected places.

Today also marked my last leg with JR, my first line check airman. Patient, calm, sharp—exactly the kind of pilot you want in the left seat when you’re figuring everything out. I asked him a million questions and he never blinked. Just a class act all around. I feel lucky to have started my line flying under his guidance.

Tomorrow I’ll be flying with a new check airman and the schedule’s a bit more packed. Hoping I’ll feel even more at home in the plane, but either way—I’m looking forward to getting back up in the sky.