Night Hawk 6

You are not listening. This is a great job and those doing the job deserve to be respected and compensated for the professionals they are. Did you know that at one time pilots were always at the very top of every poll when the public was asked which profession they most admired? Did you know that a senior wide body captain could buy his captains' house with one years salary and earned a Cadillac a month, working 75 hours per month? Did you know that pilots were treated with respect by their fellow employees and that the Captain was truly the Captain of the ship? Since deregulation pilots have let all of this get away from them, that is the message The "associations" still act and do business like it is still 1977. Is stating historical fact preaching doom and gloom? Go ahead and kill the messenger if you like but without a major change in the direction our profession is currently headed the next generation of pilots will come from the ranks of those who have far less formal education and far less experience than those who have gone before them. 100k per year will not attract the cream of the crop. Take a close look around you. It's already here.

ForeverFO

What Night Hawk is saying IMO is accurate, but he is addressing just a portion of this career, the never-ending battles between unions, management, the RLA, and the courts.

The beginning of the end started after deregulation with Crandall's B-scale. All airline managements soon learned to use the RLA and the courts to bludgeon pilots' unions into submission. Once they learned how to manipulate the RLA in their favor, and buy off federal judges (Lane), compensation and rules took a nose dive.

Even in 1991 when I was hired, I had a whiff of what it used to be like. A senior CA was bringing home $15,000, which is, adjusted for inflation, the equivalent of $25,000 today. I don't know about you, but I wouldn't mind $25K smacks per month doing 72 hours.

All that said, there is still potential in this profession. I agree with NH in that the RLA needs to be attacked. Without a real ability to strike, we are a rottweiler with all our teeth pulled. Nothing but bark and gums.

slammer1906

Are you refering to AA here only? You DAL or UAL folks, do you agree with this statement??

Sliceback

How much of the loss of respect is due to "I'm the Captain of the ship!" mentality? Most folks get who's the boss without having to hear "20 yrs ago blah, blah, blah." Some don't get it and we hear about the random issues over and over again. Think Captains didn't get challenged years ago? Speak to an older timer, or read the history of unions, and you'll realize it's been going on since 1903.

AA gear puller

A good career airline? There is no such species. Bankruptcy laws coupled with a bankrupt U.S. industrial policy has forever ruined the airline career.
If you want one of those your only option is UPS or FedEx. If someone would have told me 20 years ago that flying rubber dog **** out of HKG would ever pay that much I would have tried to sell them a certain bridge.
Good Luck.

DCA A321 FO

UPS has guys on furlough.

KillingMeSmalls

As a third generation pilot I can personally attest to this.