Sorry everyone. I had to spend the day in the field today and missed all the action.

Thank you for all the kind words of support. I know that my message comes off sternly at times however I enjoy the art of making a colorful point in the written word. In addition it takes some might to break through sometimes.


It is often mentioned that I made a mistake by going to National Airlines, and hindsight is 20/20. My choice was to stick it out at Horizon Air and get lost in the swelling sea of paper throwing regional airline captains or throw a Hail Mary into the end zone. I was getting older and I knew that had I stayed I would still be there today. Like someone else mentioned my dream was to fly a big jet at a fancy airline. I had no interest in wasting my days away in a Dash 8 headache machine. Mediocrity was not something I was willing to accept.

I guess it is left to everyone to decide what "making it" means to them. I could have stuck it out at Horizon Air and over the years perhaps lucked out and gotten hired at FedEx at 47, but to what end would it be to achieve the left seat just a few years before retirement? In essence my entire career would have mostly been in the FO position and always junior. To me there is an all important momentum that needs to be started while young and maintained into the majors. My strategy was victory or career death. As I got older and saw the door to my dreams beginning to close I burned the candle at both ends. I got farther than all of my friends and most of my peers. In the end the ball dropped just a few inches short. I am not sorry I took the chance. Better a clean break and a fresh start than a slow death at a regional.

The movies would like you to believe that if you "try hard enough" you will get what you are after. I don't know if I agree with that. Life isn't like the movies. I have three good friends who died in the pursuit of their flying dreams and many dozens more who had to hang it up. Fairy tales don't always have a happy ending.


Your humble servant,

SkyHigh