UK Edition
Married BA co-pilots say it's an ideal working partnership
When Captain Hugo Webb introduces his co-pilot to passengers over the intercom at the start of their BA flight he leaves out one crucial detail.
The First Officer sitting alongside him is his wife Hannah.
"Although I introduce Hannah at the beginning of the flight, I have never mentioned she is my wife," said Mr Webb. "I suppose some customers may guess."
Not that the couple are at all ashamed of their working arrangement. In fact, they say flying together helps them with the ups and downs experienced by every working parent.
"It certainly helps that we can discuss and understand each other's jobs,” said Mr Webb. "We both appreciate the demands of the flying lifestyle.”
The couple, who yesterday flew together on the London Heathrow to Milan route, are one of a handful of BA pilots married to each other, and because they are both trained to fly the airline’s Airbus A320 they find themselves rostered together every few months.
Mr Webb, 32, said: "We are both short-haul pilots and try to get home most nights of the month, although a few nights away can be a nice break from the daily commute."
The couple, from Alresford, Hampshire, both joined BA in 2011 and married the following year. They say being a short-haul pilot is "a great profession to have as a working parent".
Mrs Webb, 34, said: "The shift patterns allow us to see our children both during the week and on the weekends.
"We have taken our children on a few work trips. Our son came to Milan and our daughter joined us in Lisbon for a couple of nights."
Naturally there might be one question that would spring to passenger’s mind should they realise the people in charge of their flight are married - what if they had an argument the night before?
BA dismisses fears that any ensuing tension amid the close proximity of the cockpit might lead to turbulence.
“They are extremely professional, just like any of our other highly trained pilots,” said a spokesman for the airline.
For his part Mr Webb said: “On an operational level, it's no different from flying with anyone else."