Working with your hands and/or physical control skills is key to most jobs or positions where direct hands on manipulation and control is needed. Both "Airman-ship" and "Seamanship" are based upon having and a working knowledge of the craft and operation and said types of equipment plus it's nomenclature, teamed up with actual hands on experience!
“Airman-ship” is an anachronistic word, it is applied without prejudice to women as well as men. Its full meaning is difficult to convey. It includes a visceral sense of navigation, an operational understanding of weather and weather information, the ability to form mental maps of traffic flows, fluency in the nuance of radio communications and, especially, a deep appreciation for the interplay between energy, inertia and wings.
Airplanes are like living things. The best pilots do not sit in cockpits so much as strap themselves in. The United States Navy manages to instill a sense of this in its fledgling fighter pilots by ramming them through rigorous classroom instruction and then requiring them to fly at various bank angles without limits, including upside down. I have personally witnessed the Navy Blue Angels, flying in upside down close order formation out over the Pensacola Bay! This was close order drill and a very detailed training maneuver! It is excellent training requiring split second responses!!
The same cannot be expected of airline pilots who never fly solo and whose entire experience consists of catering to passengers who flinch in mild turbulence, refer to “air pockets” in cocktail conversation and think they are near death if bank angles exceed 30 degrees.
The problem exists for many American and European pilots, too. Unless they make extraordinary efforts — for instance, going out to fly aerobatics, fly sailplanes or wander among the airstrips of back-country Idaho — they may never develop true airman ship no matter the length of their careers. The worst of them are intimidated by their airplanes and remain so until they retire or die. It is unfortunate that those who die in cockpits tend to take their passengers with them.
** There a many other jobs or positions which require more than just a base knowledge. Much of these skill levels are built upon actual hands on experience and personal wittiness! This is where so many younger people today have lost touch or never acquired the necessary skills to perform at satisfactory work or skill levels. Which is only available thru training skills and aptitude!
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