Originally Posted by
John Carr
It was much less complex, and labeled as/eeoc
Not really. But the manager of pilot selection at UAL in the mid 90’s into 2000 era stated many times that by a certain year, she wanted half the pilots in United cockpits to be women.
One merely has to look at the pictures of the new-hire classes at United for the last 5 or 6 years to see that it's still an overwhelmingly white male dominated place. Statements by any company or HR person are calculated to "sell" something - in this case DEI is the sale-du-jour.
But it never happened at any real scale at United - certainly not half. United does (I believe) have the highest % of women pilots and I've flown with scores of them over the years. Hold on to your hats - it's like 7% of the pilots at U are women. And U leads the U.S. with that too - LUV had like 4%...
Over the 30 years that I flew at United, I've flew with all the alledged "DEI Hires" and I will tell you they are/were ALL good pilots that put up with a ration of schidt white guys didn't.
I can't tell you how many times someone would poke their heads into the cockpit to ask something - the gate agent, purser, passenger, mechanic, etc. and they'd address me - the junior white guy F/O in the right seat and not the black, asian, female, etc. Captain. It's deeply baked into the American phyche to just ASSume the white guy is in charge. (Our current "situation" is a good example of reverse DEI...)
So did I want to have dinner and a beer with them, some yes, some no... just like the white guys I've flown with. The % is the same whether white, black, male, female, gay, straight, etc. Same % are really great to fly with - super proficient, and people you enjoy a burger and beer and conversation with on a trip. Same % are competent pilots who you will slam-click. Same % are at best average - safe, but not raising the bar for a professional pilot. I never flew with anyone who I wouldn't put my family on their plane.
Anyone who's flown for any length of time knows, everyone has a lull in their career, God know's I did. Maybe it's a few days, a trip, or even several months while they deal with some personal problem(s). Illness at home, divorce, death in the family, etc. If you haven't had that in your own life yet, get ready for it because it happens to all of us eventually. And maybe, just maybe you extend some grace to that "DEI" pilot you're paired with who may be having one of those issues in addition to putting up with the racism and misogyny that exists. Turns out it's just as easy to assume the best about someone versus the worst...
[MOD EDIT]