Dubai: A six-year-old boy who once amazed some airline crew during a random visit to a cockpit finally got the opportunity of a lifetime.
Etihad Airways announced on Thursday that it had invited a little boy named Adam Mohammad Amer to "fly" an aircraft at its training academy.
Wearing a specially made pilot uniform, Adam was given the chance to operate an Airbus A380, the world's largest passenger plane. "If we overshoot the runway, I’m gonna have to shout ‘turn around’,” the little boy told his “co-pilot”.
The airline had invited the kid, who is of Egyptian-Moroccan origin, to become a pilot for a day after he impressed the crew with his aviation knowledge.
Earlier this month, the boy took a trip with Etihad and during the flight, he talked with the cabin crew about his passion for planes.“The boy clearly wanted to fly the plane and was passionate about aircraft.”
The crew decided to create the opportunity of a lifetime for Adam by allowing him into the cockpit when the plane landed. The child demonstrated how much he knew about planes by giving detailed procedural accounts of aicraft operating systems and expressing a deep understanding of emergency procedures.
“If you have no hydraulics and your plane is taking right, you reduce engine one and increase engine two then the plane will go level again,” he explained.
Adam’s brief encounter with the pilots was caught on video by captain Samer Yakhlef. The clip has gone viral since, attracting more than six million views on social media.
After the first video went viral, Adam showed up again and this time, he's given access to operate a cockpit during a simulation flight.
“Adam became an Etihad pilot for a day, and actually had the opportunity to fly his favourite aircraft in our Training Academy,” the airline said.
The boy went through several Airbus A380 simulator sessions.
Captain Majed Al Marzouqi, Etihad vice president for flight operations, said the boy's enthusiasm reminded him of his own as a child, with dreams of becoming a pilot.
"It really is a wonderful opportunity for us to engage with the children of our community. Adam shows incredible intellect and knowledge, having learned complex operational procedures from YouTube videos. I hope he has enjoyed his day in the life of a pilot and that it encourages him to pursue his passion when he is older," he said.
Watch the new video here.
