Loganair, the Scottish regional airline which operates flights from Dublin to several destinations across the UK, has reflected on the dynamic nature of its flight support services. Their services cover a diverse network ranging from Stornoway to Southampton. In a new episode of the FlightLOG podcast released today in honor of World Day for Safety and Health at Work 2023, Stewart Houston, the airline’s flight support manager, explains the intricate calculations and planning involved in maintaining regional connectivity by air in the UK.
Stewart and his team play a crucial role in flight planning by providing detailed technical mass and balance data that determines passenger capacity and fuel requirements for each flight. Their estimates are essential to the commercial side of the business as they directly impact ticket sales. Additionally, the team offers real-time advice to account for variables such as weather and runway conditions that affect day-to-day operations.
Stewart, who is also a certified pilot and instructor, emphasised the importance of their work in ensuring safe and efficient air travel for Loganair’s passengers:
“Being a regional carrier makes us very different. We’re not like other airlines who have one type of aircraft as we have five types and within them, we have a further 14 subtypes.
“We deal with everything from the world’s shortest commercial flight, Westray – Papa Westray in Orkney taking just one minute in visual conditions, to going into Southampton airport in instrument flying conditions.
“It’s a pretty diverse route network and makes the job really dynamic.”
During the podcast, Stewart elaborates on how he and his team function as a “third pilot,” offering live guidance to flight crews.
He said: “I’ve even had a call from a pilot requesting a performance calculation and when I asked him when he wanted it, he said: ‘Right now – I’m on the runway’.”
According to Stewart, the role of flight operations is an intellectually rigorous and highly dynamic job that demands extensive knowledge and expertise.
He explained: “I have a team of three staff plus a pilot. My team are all university graduates and generally in aeronautic engineering, so they have a real enthusiasm for aerospace, and they’re good at maths, good at science, good at physics and good at computing, and that generally helps with the mental agility required.
“A typical day for me is getting up at 6am, having a quick bit of breakfast then a Teams meeting and a swim before going into the office.
“And then the plan for the day begins to be overtaken by events, and that’s where the mental agility comes in. It could be anything from things like reweighing an aeroplane and updating all the data for that reweigh, planning a charter, or speaking to a pilot if a big rain shower has affected the runway. No two days are the same.”
Episode 5 of Loganair’s FlightLOG podcast is available from today on all major streaming platforms including Spotify, Apple, Google and Amazon Music. The next episode will be released in May.
