I love an FO gripe fest as much as the next captain but I think dealing with flight deck interpersonal issues is one of the areas traditional training programs do a decent job preparing for captaincy. I just went through my third long term training as a captain, and first time as a widebody-ish captain. I think one of the areas a mentorship program can be most beneficial is giving insight into the other workgroups that you basically become a manager of as captain.
As the ultimate authority, we win pretty much every battle with other employee groups unless it is completely out of line. That being said, in my experience, the amount of times I’ve had to exercise that is minuscule. We have about 10 seconds to build a working relationship with FAs, agents, dispatchers, etc. Impressions are typically not made during a manual mandated briefing, but when we have to drag our bags through the galley 4 min prior to boarding and the FAs are trying to make sure they have all the catering they need and are prepping for pax. Understanding the job of others we work with, and how to tailor your actions in a way that makes their job easier is how you get buy in to your leadership. It’s more an art than science, but I’m continually amazed on positive feedback I get from agents/FAs for things I do that seem a basic part of being a captain.
A recent trip I was on, we took the van with our cabin crew, a different one than came in with us. One of them brought her bf who was nonreving back with us. I briefly checked the app on the way to the airport and saw we would have some seats open. About 15 prior to departure the agent sticks her head in and said they are almost ready and ask if we are good to close and I said yes. I then remembered about her bf being onboard so I sauntered back to the 2 door to ask the lead if he had gotten on before we close the door. She said yes and you think I would have been handing her gold bars. The other FA even called up to thank me for checking. This seemed like basic stuff to me and I was kind of embarrassed I wasn’t more proactive about it, but the response told me that must have been beyond what most captains do. Now did that actually do anything other than make them feel good? Probably not. But don’t you want your crew to have buy in that you care about them on a flight where everything does hit the fan? Understanding what’s important to those around you and using your authority to show you care and have their back makes life as a Captain much easier.
I think some good discussion questions with new captains would have to do with interacting with other non pilot employees.
“When you step on the plane and see the FAs, what’s the first thing you say?”
“You are late getting to the plane and it’s 40 min prior to departure and you want more fuel that dispatch has given you, what do you do? What if you are weight restricted at a high altitude airport?”
“The gate agent comes down 15 prior days they are ready to close early and there are pax in the window waving at you to get on. What do you say?”
I think questions like this are a good way to start discussions about the actual job roles of other departments and what they care about. Interpersonal skills can make all the difference in this job, and are typically lacking in most upgrade training programs
