Aer Lingus Pilot Lisa Cusack

Storm 10 · 25-01-2017 11:25AM #1

What a truly inspirational lady, all she went through to become an Aer Lingus pilot and it paid off, as the story goes "Never Give Up"

http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/education/going-to-college/i-baked-cupcakes-to-fund-my-pilot-lessons-35394644.html

John_Mc · 25-01-2017 01:19PM

Yeah fair play to her, she had the dream and got there. Very inspirational and good to show what it takes to make it so others go in with their eyes open.

Was surprised to read that she turned around when the engine cut out at 800ft. When I was training in Weston they said never ever turn around as you'll lose your energy. Depends on what was in front of her at the time I suppose!

dudara · 25-01-2017 01:26PM

That's a really inspirational and honest story. Young girls (and boys also!) looking at their career options and what it takes to achieve them could learn a lot from her

ChikiChiki · 25-01-2017 01:37PM

Wow, very inspirational and good on her. Certainly makes me think I gave up to early when the going got tough financially. Flight training is something I've being considering making a return to and that may just plush me there.

H3llR4iser · 25-01-2017 01:44PM

It's a great story and a good "stop playing the victim and do something" angle for a certain specific category of youth.

Without taking anything from the young pilot's achievements, the article might sound a bit unfair and "rubbing salt in the wounds" towards the many others who put in similar efforts and failed; Not everyone is just "lazy"... plenty of people didn't encounter "many acts of kindness", just plenty of blockades and being told off and to just "let it go and get a job in an office!"; Not to mention all the others with similar stories of sacrifice and success which don't get recognized by a national newspaper

Pinch Flat · 25-01-2017 01:48PM

I loved the story, it's written by her and with honesty and the passion she has comes across in every word. I always dreamed of being a pilot for as long as I can remember. When I was younger, I took lessons at Waterford and Kilkenny - had a few part-time jobs to pay for it. Applied for all the the airlines, did the aptitude tests etc. Alas it wasn't to be.

When I had a modest sum from an SSIA a few years back, I was ready to pull the pin and train at Waterford by remortgaging the house to make up the balance - having family down there, so accommodation would have not been a problem. Alas mortgage, family and nervousness of shelling out a six figure sum got in the way. I'd heard a few good stores - a neighbour trained in the same place and now flies commercially - and a few horror stores, another neighbour remortgaged their house to fund their son's training, who completed his flight training and couldn't get a job. They were lumbered with a huge debt.

It can sometimes be a case of determination, luck and the planets aligning. In the case of this young lady, kudos for her in sweating it out an pursuing her dream. Is still have those days where I gaze upwards and wonder what might have been.

martinsvi · 25-01-2017 01:49PM

John_Mc wrote: »

Yeah fair play to her, she had the dream and got there. Very inspirational and good to show what it takes to make it so others go in with their eyes open.

Was surprised to read that she turned around when the engine cut out at 800ft. When I was training in Weston they said never ever turn around as you'll lose your energy. Depends on what was in front of her at the time I suppose!

you don't turn around if engine has failed just after take off.. 800 ft however is enough to do a nice teardrop with a silent engine and some airfields will have you start the cross wind leg at 500ft, so at 800ft you are in even better position to return..

anyway, irrelevant.. What I really liked about this story is that she kept going despite her failures and didn't give up. When you read testimonials for flight schools of a brilliant young cadets, they paint a pretty picture of how someone just walked into their school, got a licence just like that and was flying a shiny jet a day later.. it's a nice reality check for everybody I think..

martinsvi · 25-01-2017 02:03PM

H3llR4iser wrote: »

It's a great story and a good "stop playing the victim and do something" angle for a certain specific category of youth.

Without taking anything from the young pilot's achievements, the article might sound a bit unfair and "rubbing salt in the wounds" towards the many others who put in similar efforts and failed; Not everyone is just "lazy"... plenty of people didn't encounter "many acts of kindness", just plenty of blockades and being told off and to just "let it go and get a job in an office!"; Not to mention all the others with similar stories of sacrifice and success which don't get recognized by a national newspaper

think of it from a sports perspective - you can have 2 people sweating the same amount of hours in the gym, eating the same breakfast cereal, completing the same exercises, yet one is born with freakishly large hands and he goes out and wins the Olympic gold in swimming, whilst the other one fails to qualify for the race.. how is that fair? Well the same way this young lady had something that other candidates didn't. Be it aptitude, perseverance, personality or just a stoke of luck

H3llR4iser · 25-01-2017 02:09PM

martinsvi wrote: »

think of it from a sports perspective - you can have 2 people sweating the same amount of hours in the gym, eating the same breakfast cereal, completing the same exercises, yet one is born with freakishly large hands and he goes out and wins the Olympic gold in swimming, whilst the other one fails to qualify for the race.. how is that fair? Well the same way this young lady had something that other candidates didn't. Be it aptitude, perseverance, personality or just a stoke of luck

Exactly, I was just referring to the slight "anybody who doesn't make it is just making excuses" tone that seems to permeate from the story...or rather, the comments.

Tenger · 25-01-2017 04:03PM

H3llR4iser wrote: »

Exactly, I was just referring to the slight "anybody who doesn't make it is just making excuses" tone that seems to permeate from the story...or rather, the comments.

Thats true. The reality is that there are many others who may have tried just as hard to achieve their dream job but never made it. Perhaps they just didnt have the 'spark' that got them the coveted spot in that airline cadetship.
It doesnt mean that they didnt do their best, or that they werent good enough. It just means that they werent in the top 12-18 positions.

This story is a great one and I have heard a couple like it over the years.

plodder · 25-01-2017 04:21PM

Inspirational story. This part in particular, which has nothing to do with aviation.

What subjects could I pick for my Leaving Certificate that might help? Physics, maths and engineering kept popping up. There was just one problem: in my opinion, I was only average at all of these subjects - an excuse widely used by the younger generation today ("I'm rubbish at maths", etc), who often accept it instead of asking for help.

I asked for, and received, extra tuition in both physics and maths. The additional support made me realise that I actually wasn't as bad as I thought; I just needed to put in a little extra work.

Credit to her school as well.

billie1b · 25-01-2017 07:43PM

The most important piece of info is missing, is she still baking muffins or what???

Stovepipe · 25-01-2017 09:09PM

The core aspect is that she had a plan and stuck to it, was very focused and knew that getting a network of contacts helps enormously. What is ironic is that it's in the Indo, which is no friend of Aer Lingus.....

Bussywussy · 26-01-2017 09:15AM

Stovepipe wrote: »

What is ironic is that it's in the Indo, which is no friend of Aer Lingus.....

Yet they still sell O'Bribes rag onboard

Locker10a · 26-01-2017 12:10PM

Bussywussy wrote: »

Stovepipe wrote: »

What is ironic is that it's in the Indo, which is no friend of Aer Lingus.....

Yet they still sell O'Bribes rag onboard

God knows why, I've heard the Indo pay airlines to supply their rag to passengers, don't know how true it is

Stovepipe · 26-01-2017 01:45PM

The newpaper is sold for a small sum, in the order of thirty cents a copy,just to get access to the travelling public, which is ironic considering that they have to pass a few newsstands to get to the aircraft. Other organisations would have a similar deal.

zuutroy · 26-01-2017 06:24PM

I applied in '97 and got the last 25 or so and didn't make it. Got to the same stage in '98, and got to the final assessment with BA in '98 and again didn't get in. The torture of coming home from college every day throughout the various phases hoping there'd be a letter on the table I'll never forget!

20 years after first applying I went and got my PPL last year and now I'm shopping shopping for a plane (well, a share in one).

Kind of happy how it worked out. Much more preferable to decide where to go rather than be told

donkey balls · 27-01-2017 12:56AM

I remember her when she worked for Sky handling working the ramp etc, A really nice down to earth girl real bubbly always smiling even when things were going tough and the pressure be on to turn the aircraft around.
I remember her telling me about going to the US for the PPL think she went to Kissimee FL as I had flown out of Ormond beach, Myself personally I think its great to see people with such drive even when the numbers are stacked against them not giving up.

Minister · 27-01-2017 02:09AM

What a gal........ Well done Lisa

jackofalltrades · 27-01-2017 02:58AM

If you are willing to work hard, believe in yourself and never give up...you can absolutely be anything you want to be.

It's a nice sentiment but I just don't think it's true.
Fair play to her for putting in the hard work and getting to where she did.
But for every success story they're countless other equally determined and hard working people who don't make it, through no fault of their own.
Getting an Aer Lingus Cadetship is the pilot training equivalent of winning the lottery.
The "never give up" attitude really does depend on you actually being successful.
I doubt we'll see the Indo do a story on broke, heavily indebted pilots, working jobs they hate just to save up enough to renew the MEIR for the 3rd/4th time.
Never give up, but know when to quit.

deaddonkey15 · 27-01-2017 11:13AM

jackofalltrades wrote: »

It's a nice sentiment but I just don't think it's true.
Fair play to her for putting in the hard work and getting to where she did.
But for every success story they're countless other equally determined and hard working people who don't make it, through no fault of their own.
Getting an Aer Lingus Cadetship is the pilot training equivalent of winning the lottery.
The "never give up" attitude really does depend on you actually being successful.
I doubt we'll see the Indo do a story on broke, heavily indebted pilots, working jobs they hate just to save up enough to renew the MEIR for the 3rd/4th time.
Never give up, but know when to quit.

Indeed. Not to take from her achievements but I think in terms of pilot training, a real success story would be about someone who self funded and trained independently, perhaps instructed to build hours/make money, started off at regionals/LCCs and worked their way up to the flag carriers. As you've pointed out, there are countless people out there who couldn't finish training or find a flying job through no fault of their own and who had to make the decision to give up rather than invest more money in what can be a financial blackhole. The Aer Lingus cadetship really is the golden ticket.

1123heavy · 27-01-2017 01:39PM

Indeed. Not to take from her achievements but I think in terms of pilot training, a real success story would be about someone who self funded and trained independently, perhaps instructed to build hours/make money, started off at regionals/LCCs and worked their way up to the flag carriers.

On point.

I actually thought that's what I was going to read, especially with the headline saying she funded her own training (Aer Lingus is fully funded though?) ... of course they meant her ppl which does not cost much at all, certainly not setting up a business.

I must say though, when reading it I had a big smile cos I know just what it would mean to get the Aer Lingus cadetship and seeing someone who clearly wanted it actually get it is always nice to see.

It's certainly likely to boost the numbers of applicants to the next aer lingus cadetship with many people suddenly deciding they've always actually wanted to be a pilot.

The one thing about this article however is that it may give the public the impression that to become a pilot you've to apply to a cadet programme, whilst that is true to an extent, I'm not sure if that's how the majority get in ... indeed the story for most pilots is an awful lot less glamorous. Can we expect to see the story of someone who had to pay £30,000 for 500 hrs in a B737 out the arse end of Turkey? That's how this game is going at the current rate ...

pepe the prawn · 27-01-2017 02:17PM

1123heavy wrote: »

Can we expect to see the story of someone who had to pay £30,000 for 500 hrs in a B737 out the arse end of Turkey? That's how this game is going at the current rate ...

Whilst this was unfortunately true for a period of time, thankfully it seems to be gone back to a more natural approach now in that pilots are sending in their CV's to Ryanair, Stobart, Norwegian etc, and getting called for interviews in relatively short time frames. Payment for the type rating by the pilot is still happening, but I can't see that ever changing for new pilots, it's the industry standard now for that first job with many employers, and to be honest, I can actually see the commercial sense behind it (for new low hour pilots)

Hiring of newly qualified low hour pilots hasn't been this good for donkeys years. So for now at least, the prospect of Pay2Fly in respect of the 500 hour bundles is not as common as it once was.

Long may it continue.

adam88 · 29-01-2017 02:49PM

1123heavy wrote: »

On point.

I actually thought that's what I was going to read, especially with the headline saying she funded her own training (Aer Lingus is fully funded though?) ... of course they meant her ppl which does not cost much at all, certainly not setting up a business.

I must say though, when reading it I had a big smile cos I know just what it would mean to get the Aer Lingus cadetship and seeing someone who clearly wanted it actually get it is always nice to see.

It's certainly likely to boost the numbers of applicants to the next aer lingus cadetship with many people suddenly deciding they've always actually wanted to be a pilot.

The one thing about this article however is that it may give the public the impression that to become a pilot you've to apply to a cadet programme, whilst that is true to an extent, I'm not sure if that's how the majority get in ... indeed the story for most pilots is an awful lot less glamorous. Can we expect to see the story of someone who had to pay £30,000 for 500 hrs in a B737 out the arse end of Turkey? That's how this game is going at the current rate ...

This hour building!!!!! Is this cheap labour or are the planes being flown empty ?

martinsvi · 29-01-2017 03:05PM

1123heavy wrote: »

especially with the headline saying she funded her own training (Aer Lingus is fully funded though?) ...

first couple of cadet programmes after the recession were only partly funded by Aerlingus. You still had to cough up roughly 25k for the opportunity.. They went fully sponsored only in 2015 I think

sashaw · 29-01-2017 03:08PM

Great story! I also think that Willie Walsh is doing a great job back at AL since IAG bought them. Lots of great new direct routes to The USA - SF, Wash DC, Miami etc

martinsvi · 29-01-2017 03:11PM

adam88 wrote: »

This hour building!!!!! Is this cheap labour or are the planes being flown empty ?

not sure what you mean? Hour building is the part where a student pilot or PPL holder builds hours on single engine planes before they can start their CPL/ME/IR training. The 500 hours on a B737 referred to by 1123Heavy is so called "line training", also known as "pay to fly" - low hour first officers would pay money to airlines so they allow them to fly scheduled passenger flights.. it's not even cheap labor, it's even below that.. however it's not happening as much these days, as the recruitment situation has improved.. some few years ago that was the only way to get jet hours..

JCX BXC · 29-01-2017 04:36PM

sashaw wrote: »

Great story! I also think that Willie Walsh is doing a great job back at AL since IAG bought them. Lots of great new direct routes to The USA - SF, Wash DC, Miami etc

San Francisco and Washington started before IAG bought them.

basill · 31-01-2017 04:53PM

This hour building!!!!! Is this cheap labour or are the planes being flown empty ?

When I started out many moons ago the flying magazines were full of schemes in the US for "hour builders". You had ridiculous situations of 2 people renting a twin engine and 1 of them wearing a hood whilst they both clocked up the hours.

Also under the old US visa waiver laws you could pay an hourly rate to sit in the RHS of anything from a King Air up to a light/medium jet. The US FARs allowed you to log the seat time even though you had no experience on the aircraft and you flew off the priviledges of the skipper in the LHS.

None of this time would have "legally" been able to be logged back in Europe under what were then the JAR rules (now EASA) as you would have needed a type rating and IR but many folks would have kept 2 log books in anycase.

The point being that hour building and working for free has been around for years. Most parachute/gliding clubs pay a per diem at most to their pilots.

duskyjoe · 31-01-2017 05:44PM

Total thread drift.....jazuz poor Lisa must be morto with the length of the thread .

Stovepipe · 01-02-2017 08:02PM

Some of the parachute/gliding establishments here and worldwide paid the pilot in breakfasts. It wasn't uncommon for pilots to live in a grubby caravan on the airfield for the season and act as unpaid watchman at night, as well as unofficial mechanic/refueller/dispatcher. I met regional pilots in the US, flying EMB 120s, who shared a house. Sixteen of them.they all worked second jobs just to live. For every pilot who hits the lotto jackpot and gets a cadetship (and more luck to them!) , there's always more who have slogged it out from the bottom of the food chain.

Aer Lingus Pilot Lisa Cusack

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