Quote:
I have been a judge for a long time and I hear testimony and evidence from both sides all the time. Your story sounds credible, but unfortunately the same story makes you appear ignorant and simplistic. I do not doubt that you were unaware of the consequences of flying struck work. However, this profession is such that ignorance is not a defense.
Where anyone ends up in life depends on both luck and the choices you make. You were unlucky in that you got called by scheduling so soon after supposedly being off for two weeks. I believe you when you say that you still had no idea what was going on, but once you found out that there was a strike, you made the choice of flying the return flight. That one mistake will cost you a career in aviation.
I salute your courage in posting here and explaining yourself, but I think your struggle is with the Spirit MEC and the Spirit pilots, not a bunch of anonymous posters on an internet board. It is them you need to convince of your ignorance and subsequent contrition, remorse and sincerity. I urge you to donate to the Spirit strike fund. I also encourage you to volunteer walking the line and educate others of the very hard lesson you learned. Doing this will not erase the scarlet letter, but I hope you will find some measure of peace and balance after all this.
Vagabond...nice to see you! Good weigh in with some reasoned commentary based on your legal backround.Originally Posted by vagabond
Caveat: this post is my own personal opinion and has nothing to do with my role as moderator.I have been a judge for a long time and I hear testimony and evidence from both sides all the time. Your story sounds credible, but unfortunately the same story makes you appear ignorant and simplistic. I do not doubt that you were unaware of the consequences of flying struck work. However, this profession is such that ignorance is not a defense.
Where anyone ends up in life depends on both luck and the choices you make. You were unlucky in that you got called by scheduling so soon after supposedly being off for two weeks. I believe you when you say that you still had no idea what was going on, but once you found out that there was a strike, you made the choice of flying the return flight. That one mistake will cost you a career in aviation.
I salute your courage in posting here and explaining yourself, but I think your struggle is with the Spirit MEC and the Spirit pilots, not a bunch of anonymous posters on an internet board. It is them you need to convince of your ignorance and subsequent contrition, remorse and sincerity. I urge you to donate to the Spirit strike fund. I also encourage you to volunteer walking the line and educate others of the very hard lesson you learned. Doing this will not erase the scarlet letter, but I hope you will find some measure of peace and balance after all this.
Next question is for the Spirit reps...my understanding was that the Captain was retired from an ALPA legacy...which means he has lifetime pass benefits...I would hope that if this is correct and verified, that you would be insisting that the MEC at that carrier work to ensure his free ride is over.
What this guy did is bad enough, for a former ALPA member to do it is completly inexcusable.