Aviation

My Journey to the Flightdeck (so far)

DA42 Simulator at a Flight School Open Day

At a Glance

Name: Tristan Marc M. Lord
Current Role: Year 10 GCSE Student in the UK
Flying Experience: Student Glider Pilot (working towards solo) - March 2025 to Present
Academic Experience: Predicted Grades 8/9 in GCSEs, including Mathematics, Physics, English Language
Socials: Growing Aviation Community of 4,000+ followers/subscribers across Instagram and Youtube
Skills: Playing piano, video editing in Davinci Resolve, built flightsim-ready PCs, amateur photographer

Inspecting a Puchacz Before Flight

About Me

Hi! My name is Tristan, and I'm a student glider pilot and prospective commercial pilot in the UK, of Welsh and Filipino heritage. Having discovered my passion for aviation as a toddler through frequent flying to visit my Filipino family, as well as a childhood obsession with Disney's Planes, my love of aviation has firmed the very foundations of my purpose.

After visiting the flightdeck of an Airbus A320 at 8 years old, my ambition to be a commercial pilot transformed from a childhood dream, to a lifelong goal. Since then, I have pursued every opportunity I've been able to, from becoming an avid flight simmer and active VATSIM member, to enrolling in British Airways' Speedbird-Z, to an aviation content creator, and even my proudest achievement (so far), becoming a student glider pilot.

I've taken great pride in the discipline of unpowered flight (gliding), and I'm currently working diligently, as often as my situation permits, towards my first solo, as I'm highly conscious of the costs involved with flight training. Nevertheless, gliding is awesome! Since beginning my gliding journey, it's taught me 2 key things that I will take with me throughout the rest of my aviation career. The first is the art of energy management. The freedom of flight without an engine is incredible, and learning how to balance speed and altitude is a crucial skill, and is one that I'll always value! The second is the power of teamwork. Just like in a commercial airliner, teamwork is integral to the safe operation of the flight and everything that it entails, and I couldn't be more happy to put teamwork in action with preparing the gliders, filling in the logbook, assisting at the launchpoint, and of course, in the air with my instructors. For me, gliding is the most invaluable, first, collaborative and practical stepping stone that I'm taking towards the flightdeck of a commercial airliner.

Combining my academic achievements, with my passion for aviation, and skill for teaching complex aviation topics, my life so far, and over the next few years, is preparation for the rigorous, intensive experience that is earning an ATPL. But for now, you'll find me soaring through the skies of the UK Midlands, breaking down the fundamentals of aviation on YouTube and Instagram, and working towards the strongest GCSEs (and later A-Levels) that I can possibly muster.

A320 Simulator at a Flight School Open Day

Want to get in touch?

If you're considering reaching out to me, I have to say, I'm honoured. To do so, you can reach me by dropping an email at:

tristan(at)flightdeckfocus.com

Please substitute @ in place of (at). This has been done to avoid address scraping by spambots.

Thank you for your understanding!

Thanks for taking the time to get to know me!

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