I think the saying goes something like, "You aren't a real pilot until you've been furloughed, divorced and can drink scotch straight."

Although I certainly wouldn't go into panic mode, it's always smart to be thinking about what you would do if you were furloughed. I got furloughed after 9/11 and hadn't even considered a back-up plan. From the day 9/11 happened to the day I was standing on an unemployment line was 19 days. Not much time to put a plan into place.

Personally, I lived off of my unemployment until it ran out 5 months later. I wasn't able to find ANY kind of job in ANY industry for quite awhile. I then took an entry-level position at the airline that furloughed me (allowing me to keep my medical and flight benefits) - until I was able to get another flying job, approximately a year and a half after being furloughed.

The biggest problem I found while I was on furlough was that there was absolutely NO telling how long we would be out for. Right after 9/11 they were telling us to expect more than 5 years. There were so many variables involved, it was very hard for the company to predict. Then, all of a sudden they started recalling 2 years after we got furloughed, and everyone was back on property within a few months.

It was hard to plan your life - or guarantee a future employer you weren't going to bail in 6 months or a year, or feel comfortable going back to school, etc - when you didn't know how long you had before you would be returning to work. Had we had that answer up front, furlough would have been much more pleasant.

Again, it's very smart to be thinking about it now. Everyone I know that has been furloughed is always thinking about "What if?" regardless of how their company is doing, or how much seniority they have. And conversely, everyone I know that's never been furloughed comments that they're looking forward to the "vacation."