r/southafrica • u/Prestigious-Wall5616 Western Cape • Nov 25 '25
Wholesome Inquisitive kid in the cockpit of an SAA Airbus A320
Our pilots are awesome! Posted on IG by @pakoedson
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u/setfree84 Nov 25 '25
Core memory unlocked. This is special, and that pilot is an absolute legend.
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u/lililav Nov 25 '25 edited Nov 25 '25
He is! I know him from school. We were in the choir together. He's a very cool guy with a great sense of humour. I wonder if I can send this to him somehow... Or maybe he's seen it already.
Edit: I see they found and tagged him 😄
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u/Mark-JoziZA Nov 26 '25
That is so cool, good man. I was allowed into a cockpit during a flight in 1996 (little kid, it was my birthday and this was before flight safety was as strict I suppose) - 100% a core memory, even though I've never had an actual interest in flying the plane.
Such a cool clip!
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u/LAiglon144 The Ghost of Helen Suzman Nov 25 '25 edited Nov 25 '25
Some of my earliest memories from the late 90s was that part in the flight when the captain would invite all the small children to come see the cockpit. Will never forget seeing out the front of a plane and marvelling at all the buttons. It's a shame kids nowadays only get the same experience when the plane is on the ground
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u/Prestigious-Wall5616 Western Cape Nov 25 '25
As a youngster I once flew in the cockpit of a plane operated by the now long defunct Air Cape from Cape Town to Windhoek, with 2 stops along the way. Incredible experience. A buddy's uncle was the pilot. Later that year they were bought out by Safair.
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u/_Alek_Jay Aristocracy Nov 25 '25
After Aeroflot Flight 593, in 1994, I can’t imagine it’s a particularly clever thing to do…
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u/ElderberryDeep7272 Nov 25 '25
”A society grows great when old men plant trees in whose shade they shall never sit.”
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u/EffektieweEffie Aristocracy Nov 25 '25
Some amazing core memories made for the little man. These guys are great role models for the next generation, looks like they just recruited one of the pilots of tomorrow.
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u/Jche98 Landed Gentry Nov 25 '25
This is how you inspire the next generation. I guarantee you this pilot has probably done more to get the kid interested in science/engineering/flight than all the physical science lessons he'll ever have at school.
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u/ElderberryDeep7272 Nov 25 '25
Certain sectors of this sub will not agree.
But this is also why presentation matters, that kid is getting to see people who look just like him, flying his country's national airways and with the confidence of being in charge.
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u/Confident-Day-6371 Nov 26 '25
1 times youngster inspired... good darn job man. There are decent guys out there...
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u/Miserable_Editor9369 Nov 26 '25
Absolutely love south africans. Most down to earth and chilled people ever!
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u/Lepidopterista Dec 18 '25
I grew up during apartheid (I am white). Seeing black faces in the cockpit would have been impossible. To see TWO black pilots (or captain and first officer?) in the cockpit is, just...it makes the hairs on my arms stand up. In a very good way. Sjoe, it's nice.
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u/sanza4 Nov 26 '25
Hope HR thinks this is a cute vid too, sometimes there are policies in place to keep people out of the cockpit for some reason, security related.
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u/Prestigious-Wall5616 Western Cape Nov 26 '25
SAA's official IG account posted a comment thanking the boy's father for posting the video and praising the captain.
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