Nearly true rascal, for a typical major airline furloughee, you'd go from say the just sub par 100k/yr or maybe 120/yr depending on longevity. And then find yourself on the street, or making 20k/yr at a regional, unless you go to a "DE captain" position, then you might be looking at the 50-60k range (still not bad...unless you've got lots of bills) but if an individual has a solid back up plan (aka. Something to do to pay the bills while you wait out the downturn...which could be anywhere from 6 months to 7 years) then you're probably not in a terrible place....

The other bad thing i've noticed for many friends and co-workers...is going from a 20k/yr regional FO job, to furloughed, to 20k/yr FO job, with the potential for another furlough on the horizon. That'd would be a very disheartening place to be in...however, some will endure it, and i wish everyone who has to the most sincere best of luck.