Originally Posted by
Whacker77
SkyHigh
Things can change, but I don't think the econmy is bad shape right now. Certain areas are hurting (housing, credit), but the consumer remains strong. Just look at the stock prices of AAPL and RIMM. If consumers can buy high end smart phones, things are pretty good.
Oil is the wild card though. Speculators are having their say, but these prices can't hold and won't hold. The 65 rule hurts things, but oil may not be the factor six months from now that it is today. We suffered two short recessions in 1992 and 2001, but today's situation is much different in a good way. JMO.
All I can say is that I lived through both recessions as a pilot and they were horrible. The industry still hasn't even fully recovered from the 2001 slowdown yet.
Regional hiring is usually very competitive. The RJ boom of the last few years is most likely over now. Airlines are contracting. Pilots are working longer. Oil retraction or not it still adds up to tuff times in aviation for a long while.
SkyHigh