Originally Posted by
SkyHigh
Recently I have been accused of a lack of respect for my own chosen profession and that is not entirely true. I had a deep respect and admiration for my job and with head held high strode to work with steam in my stride because I thought I was doing something important in this world and that I was building towards a bright and growing future.
Experience has taught me otherwise. I wish the reality matched my beliefs but like a kid who discovers that most of the magic of childhood isn't true I watched as every one of my highest held beliefs about aviation fell.
I respected my profession. It was the profession that didn't respect me or my friends. We can all pound our fists in the sand and say it isn't so but the writing is on the wall. Employers don't care about pilots anymore. The job has been devalued. A flood of pilots with thousands of hours of empty RJ time pile in at every job fair and convention.
Most of the arrogant captains today wouldn't come close to qualifying if they were to try to get hired today with the resumes they had even 10 years ago. The market is awash with jet time and glass cockpit magicians. It isn't about the educated and skilled professional anymore but about how much a pilot will sacrifice for the job.
Who has respect for experienced pilots anymore? Man I wish I knew.
SkyHigh
WTF are you talking about? It's not like you're Ghandi, Rosa Parks or Biko. You picked a career, you had [fill in the blank] bad luck, bad timing or made the wrong choice at the wrong time. Now if you were a teacher, who got into teaching based on the noble desire to improve youth and society and then had a run of bad luck, got disillusioned and quit you might have something valid to say...but that isn't the situation here. You seem like the kind of pudknocker who went out and bought a Rolex after completing IOE posing in the terminal on your days off in uniform...real noble.
Before you get your already up your butt panties anymore up your butt, I'm on my fifth airline including a furlough and bankruptcy, and guess what...I didn't give up and go sniveling to those who were doing "better" than I was at the time. I got off my ass, kept going to work (while supporting a family), did whatever it took to make ends meet. Now I've got a great flying job and likely will to retirement. That is both a measure of me doing my research and picking a job based more on business than emotion (cargo vs. pax) and...guess what, some good luck. If I had made a wrong choice and/or had some more bad luck I sure wouldn't be on a pilot website justifying my lack of fortitude and commitment, I'd be using my energies and hopefully knowledge gained by my shortcomings and get it right somewhere else. But for all I know, this may not be your first (or last) pityfest.
Diminishing regional captains on a pilot website is such transparent bitterness on your part it's pathetic. And you know what else? Management has NEVER respected pilots anymore than many here who have forgotten more about aviation than you'll ever know will ever have for you. Get a grip.