Who defines the correct career path?
Why is it that it resentment sets in when someone else has a different path to their success? Sour grapes? Why do we each envy the pilot who got a break? We all pay our dues some way. There are those who are lucky and don't realise it. Others work their tails off and have little to show.
Ours is the only profession, where you are punished if you change employers, either by your own volition or under duress. You can be punished for staying, too.
Yes, I have been notified, that my services were not needed four times. Restructuring, policy changes, and bankruptcy have been causal factors. When you step onto the property, you have no real idea what will happen to your aviation career. I knew and worked with former Pan Am and Eastern captains, while working for a foreign carrier. I know guys that took a chance at both National and Jet Blue. What about the TWA crewmembers? It is a crap shoot either way.
We are an odd group. Our passion for flying and travel keep us taking what no other professional would. When we sign for the airplane, we take on responsibilities not grasped by the general public. We gladly accept living a statisticaly shorter life. We know that we will be forced to retire before we can get a Social Security pay out. Because we fly, we must be cheating on our spouses. And thanks to the "Wal-Mart" mentality, we should be happy with a regressive pay scale.
So, why do we attack our peers, when we have the odds and opinions agains us? Are we adults or are we a bunch of kids fighting over who is mom's favorite?
See you in the air patch!