They’re one of the most inquisitive groups on the whole planet, so what happens when some very curious, very cute children put our pilot in the hot seat? Armed with their own million-dollar questions – kids, it’s over to you...

Ellie: What’s the best thing you’ve seen out of the cockpit window?
Captain Rob: That depends on whether you’re looking up or looking down. If you look up, sometimes you see the beautiful northern lights or the odd shooting star. And occasionally, if you’re really lucky, you’ll see the International Space Station flying overhead. If you’re looking down, there are snow-covered mountains, the occasional desert island and fireworks on Bonfire Night or New Year’s Eve. The very best thing about looking out of the window is that it’s always sunny on top of the clouds.

Ellie: What three skills do you need to be a pilot?
Captain Rob: The first skill you need to be a pilot is coordination. Flying is a bit like riding a bike without stabilisers or patting your head while rubbing your tummy in circles because your hands do different things at different times. The second thing you need to be good at to be a pilot is maths. We use a lot of maths. And, finally, the last thing you need is a love of adventure. As a pilot, you get to travel the world, meet amazing people and experience different cultures and foods. You need to be adventurous to enjoy these wonderful experiences.

Ellie: What age do you need to be to become a pilot?
Captain Rob: Well, that depends on what type of plane you want to fly – for gliders or small planes without engines, you need to be 14 years old. When you get to 17, you can get your private pilot’s licence and fly small propeller planes. And then when you get to 21 – assuming that you’re good at maths and science – you can study to become an airline pilot. If you’re too young right now, you can always learn to fly on a computer. Or you can fly a plane in the Let’s Go See app.

Isaac: Can a plane go to space?
Captain Rob: No, but how cool would it be if they did? They have been trying to build space planes for a few years now and they’re making really good progress. So maybe one day we’ll be able to fly from London to Australia in just two hours, rather than 24.

Isaac: Can you get sucked down the loo?
Captain Rob: That’s a great question. If you could get sucked down the loo, do you think I’d still be here after 20 years of flying planes? Some people think that when you flush the loo it gets sucked outside. That’s definitely not true, either. It does get sucked. But it’s stored in a giant tank on board the plane.

Isaac: How many countries have you been to?
Captain Rob: Honestly, Isaac, I’ve lost count. That’s because I’m so lucky to have been a pilot for more than 20 years. To give you some idea, I could start by seeing how many of the continents I’ve been to. Let me see… I’ve visited Europe, North America, South America, Asia and Australia. I haven’t been to Antarctica yet, but I’d love to go one day and see the icy landscapes and the penguins.

Mia: Do you sleep when you are on the plane?
Captain Rob: You’ll be pleased to hear that I don’t fall asleep when I’m actually flying the plane. Sometimes, though, on the really long flights, we do have three or four pilots and we take it in turns to have a rest. Did you know that on some of our planes we have a secret bedroom above the passengers’ heads? And in that secret bedroom, we have two armchairs and a couple of beds.

Mia: How does a plane stay up in the air?
Captain Rob: Good question. For a plane to fly, it needs two things: firstly, the planes need huge wings and secondly, they need to go really, really fast. And, unlike a bird, the wings on the plane don’t flap. But the high-speed air rushing over the wings produces what we call ‘lift’. And this is what makes the plane stay in the air. The faster we go, the better the wings work and the higher we can go. When we take off, the plane’s engines make it go faster and faster on the runway until the pilots are ready, and they can then fly into the air.

Mia: How fast does the plane go?
Captain Rob: The plane goes at different speeds during different parts of the flight. For take-off and landing, the plane goes at about 160 miles an hour. So how fast is that? If I had to guess, I think you could probably run about four miles an hour. So the plane is 40 times faster than you running. Also, 160 miles an hour is twice as fast as the fastest cheetah. In flight, when we’re high above the clouds, we can fly along at up to 600 miles an hour and that’s ten times faster than your family car.

Mia: How high does the plane go?
Captain Rob: Really high! Generally, a plane flies along at about 40,000 feet. That’s the same as 2,600 double-decker buses stacked on top of one another, or 40 times higher than the highest building in London, The Shard.

Rob Johnson is a Captain and author of the children’s book series Pilot Ollie & Pilot Polly's Amazing Adventures. To buy your copy, click here

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This article has been tagged AV FUN, BA