Originally Posted by
Flying Ninja
I can't even begin to express how flawed this mentality is, and how angry this basis for hiring nonsense makes me. There is *no way* you can accurately depict if this is the case for everyone. Sure, there will be people walking through the door stinking of eau de toilette, but you can't tell me that people behave the same at a job interview vs. in the company of fellow pilots. I'll even add this. What are you talking about up there in that cockpit? I thought you are supposed to monitor the progress of the flight, manage the systems, negotiate procedures, communicate with ATC, and maintain situational awareness in the interest of safety and passenger comfort. If that's the case, what does my personality have to do with this? And after we get to the hotel, your time is your time, my time is my time. Don't tell me every captain hangs out with every FO/FA and vice versa all the time, every day, every trip.
At an interview, I'm putting my best foot forward, prim and proper. Behind closed doors, the inappropriate jokes, humor, sh!t talking, all comes out. And not for nothing, that's personality expressions that you will not get at an interview. Plus, just because the interviewer can't stand the guy, doesn't mean the rest of the pilot group who ACTUALLY flies with this guy, will feel the same way.
This is such a screwed up mentality to hire someone on.
I agree with this. Some of the people I fly with are stiffs, some are extremely intelligent, some are blustering, racist, woman-hating windbags. The important thing is that, professionally, we get along fine and operate the aircraft safely. We don't have get a drink on the overnights or be best buds by the end of the trip.
Sometimes it feels like the airlines shoot for a certain type instead of embracing the differences and just hiring professionals.