Originally Posted by
Jughead135
I'm a recent USAF retiree & Pt 121 new hire. I'm on the cusp of understanding your point here--your final sentence above certainly summarizes my initial impression of things, and yet, I'm starting to think there's more to the picture than I realize....
In the military, the loyalty extends up and down the ranks. We are immensely loyal to our squadron commander, because generally they will back you to the hilt if your actions and decisions are honorable.
And it goes without saying that we would take a bullet for our peers, and move mountains to help them.
We still do that - back our friends, be there for them. But your future supervisor has no parallel to your current commander group. Basically, you have a Chief Pilot in the 121 world, and you can go years without ever seeing the guy. He does NOT have your back. He has his own (and the company's) back. And would hang you out to dry in a heartbeat. Not to say there aren't good Chief's out there - there are, but the relationship is NOT comparable to a military unit.
Your union brothers and sisters have your back in your relationship to the company, and even to the public. In case of "accident or incident", one of the first things you do is contact the union, not your chief pilot.
I'll give a very quick example - CA buddy was accused of being inebriated when he showed up for his trip by a FAM, an Air Marshal. The Air Marshal did not have the authority to detain him. CA takes off into the terminal and barely avoids two airport cops running to the gate.
His first step - call the union. They tell him "Proceed IMMEDIATELY to the nearest hospital and get a blood test; keep the paperwork. We'll meet you." With union help, advice, support, he proved his innocence. What would the company, the Chief, have done? Prior incidents along these lines would indicate that they'd throw him under the bus.
Would you elaborate on this, please? As I say, I feel like I'm this close to understanding, but I'm sorry to say I'm falling short....
I'm doing a bad job explaining this, I think. Maybe someone else more articulate can help. Basically, it's all business to the company. They can and will do anything necessary to increase profit. They do NOT have your best interests in mind...
You are a commodity, easily replaceable. They have the bottom $$ in mind, and will unilaterally create work rules and changes that are deleterious and unsafe.
Without union muscle and support, we'd be flying unsafe aircraft in a grossly fatigued state, at a minimum. You might think "No company would risk catastrophe; it's bad for the bottom line." Yes, they would. It happens all the time. They are NOT the pilots... we are.
The union gives us the power to say "No. No, I will not take this aircraft into Guatemala City without a functioning EGPWS."
Hope this helps a bit. Good luck in your career.
