Being aloft this week at the controls of a 757 reminds me why most of us are in this profession. Partly, it is the sense of independence and control we feel, that for a while, most of the troubles we encounter remain earthbound at least for a few hours or more.

The completion of a successful flight and a good landing gives us immediate gratification. We sometimes believe this immediacy extends to how our companies are or should be run, and most of us come up disappointed when it doesn't. We tend to see our careers on a upward linear progression. The vagaries of the marketplace we operate in leaves us befuddled and wondering how we came to the place we are.

Here we have the US guys and gals chomping at the bit to be at AA's or DAL wages so it's no wonder they've taken over the AA forum. My fellow AAer's in their desire to have anybody but the current AA leadership at the helm are willing to sell themselves to the unknown for a chance to be in "control" of their destiny all the while knowing that it's mostly a pipe dream. We have a CEO like Doug who longs to be ranked with the Titans of the airline industry so he'll go to any means and make any offer to massage his ego.

Life has a way of bringing us all back to earth. There are very few pipe dreams, if any in this world. It's about doing the hard work, and building something that will endure. Unfortunately, there are so few great leaders in this business and I include all of us as well. The amount of dissent on this forum especially among the US group, not to mention the friction between some of the AA and ex-TWA folks tells me we'll find ourselves as the most dysfunctional airline were we to merge with US. I'd love to be proven wrong! The fact that Doug showed none of the outpouring of blessing upon his own team tells me this is really about stroking his ego more than it is about bringing teams together.

I don't know the future with Tom Horton and his new team seeing as how he's only has the top job for 5 months.

But I am an AAer through and through, so this is my team through thick and thin.

I do wish everyone who post here the best for the remainder of your careers. If you're in this profession to chase the last marginal dollar, you'll never be satisfied no matter who's at the controls.