I’m curious to see how incredibly competitive military pilot slots become in the coming months.

 

Cashier. If you’re gonna pay peanuts then I want a job with very little responsibility.

If you were a cashier making $10 an hour and they said they wanted to promote you- so now you’re going to manage three franchises, but they still want to pay $10 an hour, would you accept? Of course not. Being a pilot is no different. If I’m gonna be out there making decisions that directly impact the safety of passengers then I’m going to be paid appropriately or I’m going to find something else to do.

Not to mention the time commitment. Spending half the month on the road needs to come with a return on investment. Otherwise it’s hard to justify why you’re living in crashpads alone eating junk-food while the cashier living next door to you is relaxing at home with his family eating a home cooked meal. Especially when your pay check is the same as his.

That doesn’t even take into consideration everything you invested into a college degree and ratings.

People on this forum talk about “scabs” like they’re the worst thing ever. I don’t know why people who sell the industry short would be treated any differently

 

Cashier in a heartbeat. If flying wages dropped below 17 an hour I’d go back to waiting tables. Why would I do a difficult, stressful, life-shortening job when I could make conversation with people, carry food, and be home every night for the same pay?

Flying is cool. The responsibility is rewarding. But those things do not offset the negatives unless there is solid financial incentive.

 

Mileage may vary by person. Again, if I'm going to be paid poorly, I'd rather it be something interesting instead of something mind-numbingly boring. To each their own.

 

Being a pilot is very different than being a cashier.

It's a lot more fun and a lot more interesting. Plus with every flight hour your resume increases the chances of getting a better job.

Now the reality is that those of us who have training debt have to take a job that pays the bills. Sometimes that limits our options out of taking low paying jobs. In other words some people simply cannot afford to work for $10 or $15/hr etc.

 

It's always competitive to get in. Their problem lately has been retaining experienced mid-career pilots to provide mentoring, training, and leadership. That cannot be fixed by training more noobs.

It will get somewhat more competitive but not because there are a bunch of civilian pilots on the streets, but rather because the economy will be bad and fewer employers will be hiring. The military (all branches) typically gets more applicants in times like that. But previous flying experience is not necessary to get a military flight slot, and it only gets you limited extra credit as an applicant.

 

lets hope sonicflyer is never on any airlines negotiating committee. Mgmt would have a field day.

mgmt: we’re cutting your pay to $10hr with no benefits

sonicflyer: awesome! At least I get paid to do what I love!

ridiculous.

 

Nah, I see sonic's point. To some, it's not about the money. It's about the challenge, and as far as him not being good on an "airlines negotiating committee" he's posting on a forum with other pilots. He's expressing his opinion, which is that of mine.

 

nobody do anything drastic. this is a "wind your watch" moment. July-ish we should have a better sense of how this will play out.

Not doom-and-gloomee but expect the worst (and lots of reasons to prepare that way....), anything better will be a pleasant gift

 

Ya don't have to worry about that ever happening.