We would all like to pat ourselves on the back and tell ourselves that we are worth more since we have so much responsibility. The world however doesnt work like that. Many common jobs take on huge responsibility and are not paid even close to what they are worth. Even though it is romantic to think of the brooding pilot up front who is deeply concerned for everyone in back, the truth is that there is only one person on the plane that they really care about and hopefully the rest make it too. If we were to award pay to the job that deserves the highest merit in regards to risk I think it should go the the foot soldier in Iraq. Not only is his life at risk but takes on the daily risk of killing adversaries and innocents alike. The results are that they will have to live with the mistakes for the rest of their lives. If pilots mess up they usually are not around to live it down.

SkyHigh