Road to the Left Seat 1: Welcome back

After having sat in the right seat for nearly 9 years, it’s time for the next step in my career. I look forward to taking you along on this new adventure of mine and to share my unfiltered story with you once again. Welcome to my ‘Road to the Left Seat’!

But first, ladies and gentlemen, a short view back to the past…

I truly enjoyed cargo flying. The versatility of the operation, the night flying, the cool night stops (or day stops, I should say), and flying the B737-400SF — or, as I like to call her, Miss Stubby Wings.

Over the course of two years, I had the pleasure of working with 74 different Captains, flying to 54 different airports in 25 countries and racking up a little over 800 hours on the Boeing 737-300 and -400. To this day, I am incredibly grateful for all the experience I gained at ASL and for all the great places I was able to discover.

It all felt nice and comfortable. Nice colleagues, a fun operation, a great contract, being based close to home… I really had nothing to complain about whatsoever. And hey, with the prospect of becoming a First Officer on the Boeing 747 at the age of 22, I couldn’t possibly think about leaving, right? … Right?

In the spring of 2019, I spoke with a friend of mine who was very fond of KLM. He told me that they would soon post a vacancy for pilots again and that I simply had to go for it.

To give some background information, KLM has its own flight school, from which they normally recruit the majority of their pilots, so vacancies for external pilots were very rare, to say the least. But in all honesty, I had never really considered KLM as an option for me. I was very happy at ASL, with good career prospects ahead of me.

The idea of applying to KLM stayed in the back of my mind for a few weeks, but at some point I thought: “Perhaps I should just take a look. You never know.”. I then found out that the vacancy had already closed. To this day, I vividly remember the uncomfortable feeling I got in my stomach.

“Did I miss out on a big opportunity?”

“Should I have the idea of flying for KLM more thought?”

Miraculously, a second vacancy opened later that year, so I decided to do some proper research and figure out whether applying to KLM was actually worth considering. It didn’t take long for me to realize that KLM had a lot to offer and, after listing all the pros and cons, I figured I had to give it a shot. After all, I had nothing to lose. So, on July 10th 2019, I submitted my application.

The Selection Process

A month after submitting my application, I was officially invited to take part in the selection process. The KLM selection back then consisted of an online psychological questionnaire, a simulator assessment, a live psychometric assessment and, finally, an HR interview. It was safe to say that I had quite some preparing to do!

After successfully completing the online questionnaire, I was invited for the simulator assessment on September 3 and 4. There is no doubt in my mind that KLM holds the record for the most extensive simulator assessment, with not one, but two sessions of three and a half hours. Yes, you read that right. A seven-hour simulator assessment. This was done on the Boeing 747 simulator, so I guess I got to fly her after all!

My sim partner and I were well prepared and were able to demonstrate our skills with smiles on our faces. We both passed and were invited to the next, and most feared, step of the entire process: the AMC.

This step consisted of personality questionnaires, a psychological interview, a roleplay exercise and a wide variety of aptitude tests. The good news? I had already completed the AMC assessment two years prior during the selection process at ASL and knew what was coming.

So, I prepared as best I could, using my old AMC report as the foundation. And I spent hours practicing aptitude tests, as these would be my weak spot. Perhaps I was fortunate to know what was coming, but on the other hand, I really had to demonstrate how I had actively developed myself since my last assessment during the interview.

On September 13th, it was time to do exactly that.

After wrestling my way through the aptitude tests, it was time for the psychological interview. As I walked into the room, I was greeted by a familiar face: the same psychologist I spoke to for my selection at ASL. I wasn’t sure whether to feel reassured or stressed.

But, I came prepared, felt confident and made the most of it. It wasn’t a walk in the park, but aside from some of the aptitude tests, I walked away with a positive feeling.

It was supposed to take about a week to receive the result, so you can imagine my surprise when I received my AMC report literally the next day. And with a positive hiring recommendation in my pocket, I could now focus on the last step of the assessment: the HR interview.

On September 24, my now-fiancée’s 23rd birthday, I suited up once again, hoping to consolidate all the work I had put into the selection process.

At the office, I was welcomed by two pilots and an employee from HR. They created a relaxed atmosphere, we discussed how my selection had gone so far and, of course, I was asked about my motivation to fly for KLM.

In the end, their goal was to see whether the reports matched the person sitting in front of them, while also trying to answer a very simple question: “Do I want to sit next to you in a cockpit for 10 hours straight?”. After about 45 minutes, I walked out the door again with nothing left for me to do except hope for a positive outcome.

Let’s just say I had a good feeling about it.

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Thank you for reading Part 1 of my Road to the Left Seat! The outcome of the selection process won’t come a surprise, so I can already tell you that next time we will take a closer look at the transition from packages to passengers. See you then!

And should you have any questions whatsoever, don’t hesitate to get in touch via my Instagram: @bobthebelgian