A very subjective topic. I was 23 years on the 88 concurrent FO/Capt. Call it Stockholm Syndrome but I’ve grown accustomed to the trips. What I can say now is many of the trips are more reminiscent of regional flying in that for the duration of a 4 day trip you may not have a chance to put on street clothes one time. All meals are consumed in uniform. Forget about a run, workout or getting a beer.
That to me is a BAD trip. Part of the enjoyment of this job was the layovers. Even in a less than optimal location, DAY for instance I’ve found a good coffee, great breakfast and a nice neighborhood to take a walk through. But if for 96 hours TAFB you are either in the monkey suit, or your underwear….. well to me at least it’s pretty miserable and the prospect of this definitely keeps me from putting in for a GS and has me constantly contemplating retirement.