Posted on 02/18/2016 9:38:32 AM PST by PROCON
Is 162 centimetres metres (five feet three inches) too short for an aircraft pilot? Lufthansa regulations say that their crew must be at least 165 centimetres tall - but one applicant has now dragged them to Germany's highest labour court for discrimination.
The young woman got through the first few rounds of the extremely tough application process for a coveted pilot position at Europe's biggest airline.
Candidates must speak fluent English and German, be physically fit and mentally dependable.
No standard minimum height
And - one more thing - pilots must be between 165 and 198 centimetres tall.
"That's to ensure that a pilot is able to use all the control elements in the cockpit in any situation without difficulty," Lufthansa spokesman Helmut Tolksdorf said.
But Lufthansa is stricter than many other airlines - even some of its own subsidiaries.
At Swiss - a Lufthansa subsidiary - the rules set a minimum height of 160 centimetres. Air Berlin has no minimum height, and a spokeswoman said that adjustable cockpit seats mean that pilots' size isn't an issue.
Even the Luftwaffe (German air force) sets a minimum height for pilots of just 155 centimetres (five feet).
Lengthy legal battle
Judges at the state labour court in Cologne agreed with the young plaintiff in a 2014 ruling, saying that she had been disadvantaged because of her sex.
With 44 percent of German women over 20 years old measuring up at less than 165 centimetres - compared with three percent of men - the Lufthansa rule was unfair to women, they said.
But they did not grant the applicant any damages in compensation.
Now she has brought her case to the federal labour court in Erfurt, Thuringia, where she claims €15,000 in damages and €120,000 in compensation for her truncated career opportunities.
The judges will have a tricky case to consider, as it is legal under German law for some professions to discriminate.
Navy sailors and police officers have to meet certain height requirements too - although these vary between different federal states, and some states have different minimums for men and women.
But a decision in the wannabe pilot's favour could see those restrictions tumble as well, legal experts say.
Did Otto have the fish or the steak?
I had to study that photo for a long time before I realized “Rico” was not the tall blonde, who certainly doesn’t look 4’ 4”. The photographer somehow set it up so it’s hard to see that there’s a second person hidden in the picture.
The kitchen’s in the back.
LOL the guy is a real talent too.
Glad he got his shot at the bigtime.
I’ve traveled a lot in Germany. I can recall only one German woman under 5’3”. They must be counting Turks as well - some of their women are shorter.
LOL
You make ONE rule that applies to ALL applicants. The rule is based on legitimate requirements for the job. No exceptions.
Stupid stupid question and even stupider lawsuit.
Is the suggestion that Aircraft manufacturers build two distinct cockpits to accommodate midgets?
Or add unnecessary weight to add additional height mechanisms?
Yes, I expect midgets to make the next claim...
Wasn't that Lew Alcindor?
Yeah, that 44% claim sounds like total B.S.
There's a second person in that picture?
And a third??!!??
All the ones I've seen are in the front.
Is the suggestion that Aircraft manufacturers build two distinct cockpits to accommodate midgets?
Or add unnecessary weight to add additional height mechanisms?-———————————————————————————
I think the problem is that other German airlines, probably flying the same planes, don’t have these height restrictions.
At least according to the article.
Yes, it was. Shouldn’t be making light of it. But then I did, as a grim joke. Mea culpa.
They can makes this work, come on! Raise the seat. Oh, then the pedals, then adjust all surface control interface, then one of those grab bars the little old ladies use at the market to reach everything, and a back up just in case. Then see if she can see over the control panel, if not, start the process over from the beginning./s
Then again, just pay her to stay home. That’s the goal anyway, and cheaper too!
I missed the third person also, but he’s wearing black, so that’s no surprise. Actually, even when I went back to the picture, I somehow forgot I was looking for a third person the first time I checked for him. I’m not sure why that is.
And male(ish) liberal lurkers reading this thread are probably saying “there was a woman? Oh! In the bikini! I didn’t see her.”
No more then maximum height is unfair to men.
No matter how you adjust your seat there will be some knobs that you can not reach without a readjustment. That is not acceptable.
The cockpit is designed to fit the "standard person". You are not standard. Deal.
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