Airbus A320 takes off the WRONG way! Air Arabia flight 111

Use my code MENTOURPILOT to get $5 off your delicious, healthy Magic Spoon cereal by clicking this link: magicspoon.thld.co/mentourpilot_0222

I understand how the flight crew felt here. I entered the circuit the wrong way once during my military training. It was my 4th flight of the day, and the runway direction had changed just before that flight. A weather check request came in just as I was entering the circuit, which didn't seem like a problem at the time, but the increase in workload made me not check the runway direction and instead I just went the direction I had in the previous 3 flights of that day. I only noticed the mistake when I saw a fast jet flying the opposite circuit, which really startled me - I immediately did a half orbit and announced the mistake and action to ATC. When I got back to the hanger, I was surprised I wasn't yelled at, but instead I was calmly asked whether the weather call had been a contributing factor. That's why I love aviation!

I really like the fact that you do both crashed and non-fatal incidents in the same playlist. That way there is always some suspense on what's gonna happen.

I just have to say that as a frequent flyer (who used to know very little about the manufacturing, maintenance, or operations of aircraft before binge watching Mentour) I truly have a different perspective when I get on an airplane now. I never realized just how much is going on in the cockpit (and in ATC) while we're just sitting there in the cabin. I will never take it for granted. I have a newfound appreciation and respect for air crews because of these videos.

When I was learning to fly, probably 30 hours total flight time, I was in a Cessna 172. I had my instructor in the front seat and my dad in the backseat. My dad was in the air force, and I was nervous and excited to show my dad I was a good pilot. I lived in a major metropolitan area, and we were doing touch-and-goes at about six different airports around the city. At one of the airports, I was cleared for runway 22R. I entered the pattern, did the downwind leg, turned base. I'm confidently flying the base leg, and my instructor asks, "Are you going to turn final yet?" "Nope, not yet." Two seconds go by, and he asks again, "Are you turning final yet?" "Not quite yet," I respond. He immediately says, "My airplane," and turns final. As he starts the turn, I'm trying to figure out why he took command. Not long into the turn, I saw why. Yep, I'd been going for 22L, not 22R. Thankfully my instructor was alert because that could have been bad. He told me anytime I was given a runway to land on, I should immediately visually pick out that runway to avoid that happening again. Great advice. My dad mildly teased me about it and called it a good learning moment. I still think he was proud of me for learning to fly - at least, I hope so.

Your attitude of "the important thing is not who is guilty, but why it happened and how we can prevent dangerous situations in the future" is such a constructive way of looking at any incident, aviation related or not. I hope there are many of us coming out from watching these videos not only informed on a technical level, but with a better way of handling situations in our own fields of work.

This is the pilot equivalent of "if we never talk about it again, it never happened!" Great video, Petter!

I noticed that it appears the pilot in command never briefed which way to turn for the intersection departure, especially as the FO was in training. Additionally, the intersection departure and rolling take off should have been extensively briefed as it was her first. Thanks for the great presentation.

Lining up in to wromg direction is one thing, but the decision to continue instead of a reject with 57kts is an absolute desaster.

I’ve flown into Sharjah a number of times and frankly, the taxi time from the terminal to the B14 holding point is far too short for a single-engine taxi. Considering that the traffic in Sharjah is usually very light, and the fact that there’s a trainee with less than 100 hours on type would be all the more reason to be prudent and start both engines during pushback. This is where a Threat Forward briefing would’ve really come in handy. I know it’s much easier to say so in hindsight, but having the trainer say “we’ve been operating from runway 12 the last few days, but we must keep in mind that it’s flipped today” could have made the threat more obvious.

I have to say, the mistake made by the First Officer here, is possibly the most understandable and relatable mistake I've seen covered in one of your videos. It's also not surprising that the training so far had gone really well, because that's when it's easy for the trainer to start relying just that little bit too much on the student's ability.

The captain is the perfect example that many times ANY decision executed immediately is better than no decision. Reject was obviously the right answer, but the agressive go decision gave them just enough performance to make it work.

Truly a fantastic instructor. He realized the trainee made an error and proceeded to teach her the best way to aggravate the situation and attempt a Runaway excursion 😂.

Your use of the simulator to recreate the incidents in your videos is truly remarkable! It really takes the video to a whole new level when we can actual see what you are describing (both the overall situation and also in the cockpit). I always learn a lot from your videos!

As an air traffic controller I can tell you, this happens much more often then you would think.

6:00 I as a passenger once experienced an unusual rolling takeoff when the takeoff thrust was set when the aircraft was still on the taxiway perpendicular to the runway. The thrust threw the aircraft forward, the pilot sharply lined it with the runway and took off. It only happened once in the 50 or so flights that I went through.

It's crazy to me that every single aircraft just about these days has direct satellite connection for internet access...but the CVR/FDR don't get automatically uploaded to airline servers...Like the full amount of data for the entire flight, not just the last 30 minutes could be stored for every single flight easily. But they just don't?

In my private pilot training, fairly early on, it was drilled into my mind that as soon as I line up with the runway, I do a verbal check "Active runway 3-0; magnetic compass 3-0; numbers on the runway 3-0". In this particular case, numbers on the runway were well behind her, but compass heading would have immediately told here that she was going the wrong way.

Great video Captain. Balanced and well explained. How true, everyone can make mistakes. That's why in every industry SOP and further upgrades are implemented. Constant training and building experience are growing our safety.

A startled pilot, "startle" feeling of shock or alarm. As a new first officer on the MD 80 I suffered from this after my first 18 landings. I have seen situations were being startled led the first officer to loose confidence and ultimately led to him leaving the pilot career. I do hope the first officer of the Air Arabia flight is fine. Thanks Petter I love your videos and would love to fly with you one day.