Great story and prolly true. Question though.... Do you think this lack of situational awareness is unique to captains only?

I ask because it seems like some(maybe not specifically you) seem predisposed to paint captains as out to lunch. I am just curious why that was part of your story. I can suggest/guarantee that if I were to say something like you did but substituted FO where you put captain I would be savaged unmercifully.

I ask again in general ....why the division politics(or was it unintentional)?

 

Ummmmmm.... Perhaps he's an FO, and he predominantly with--wait for it--captains??

 

Ive had similar experiences with captains not knowing much of at all. I agree with you, being in the right seat isn't an excuse to park your lazy butt and cruise by not knowing anything, BUT being a CA and actually having the income to have more skin in this financial game, i do kinda expect them to be a little more informed on this stuff

 

Gosh....thanks for pointing that out to me. I never thought of that <s>. Are you possibly guilty of making assumptions that "captains" are too ignorant to figure that out ?

Is your answer material to my question or a "circle the wagons"?.

Again....the question is, do you think there is a division between Capt and FO as to general ignorance/apathy? Am I to believe that somehow when a FO makes captain he matriculates into a dolt? Are FO just inherently smarter than captains? IOW, what's the relevance of the "captain" in his story? I ask you since you seem intent on opining and answering for Freezing, I'm genuinely interested in your take.

 

You do understand that this is offensive don't you? What if I substituted FO where you said capt....what if I substituted female where you said capt..... what if I said Black....what if I said Hispanic.....what if I said trans....gay....agnostic....liberal....conservativ e.....


I had to give lots of examples because(how did you phrase it?)... "I've had similiar experiences with FO's not knowing much at all". You get my drift?.

 

Pre C2019, we actually were getting meals on a domestic leg. I had one guy go off about how names aren't on the crew meals, and we're not going to get anything. I asked "ok, then why don't make it a briefing item to TELL the flight attendants that we have crew meals, tell them you'd like to check the contents, and when we'd like to be served".

Looked at me like I was a crazy man. This was after a 20 minute rant on captains authority.

 

Sadly, making serious coin is a recent phenomenon for Delta captains.

In 2015, crediting 1,000 hours as a 747 Captain would only generate $750 of spill cash.
-1,000 hours * 270/hr
-2015 compensation limit was 265k
-15% of the 5k overage is $750

2016 is the first year that any meaningful number of Delta pilots would have exceeded the IRS 415c limit. In that year a 777 Captain with 1,000 hours would have generated 9k of spill cash. Most of those pilots are retired, so you won't be flying with any of them. In 2016, a 7ER Captain would have generated $450 of spill cash on Flight Pay of 268K.

The premium pay from the staffing disaster of 2019 finally created a widespread amount of pilots earning over the IRS compensation limit of 280k. The new payrates of 2023 should make this a "problem" for every Delta Captain.

As a group Delta Captains are relative newcomers to the high income echelon. I would not expect them to be well versed in "rich people problems". Over the next couple years I would expect them to become more financially literate.

 

Buck, I'm not sure who you're shadow boxing with here. I've sat in both seats and can assure you that (at least in MY mind) captain does not equate with old, out of touch and daft and FO with young, sharp whipper snapper on top of it all. Or whatever version of that argument you think is being made.

The only reason I said "captains" was because as Jughead correctly guessed, I am currently an FO and therefore often find myself flying with...captains. (There was one jumpseater who was an FO but he was clueless. Couldn't even spell MBCBP.) Those just happen to be the people that I've brought it up with hoping for some wisdom, perspective or at least just a good conversation. There is no malice here; no FO/us vs CA/them so you can put your victim card away.

 

I had a similar conversation with my financial advisor and came out the other end with much the same conclusion. I was very much on the fence but am now leaning towards IN for the tax sheltering and forced savings in what is basically an FDIC insured account. We discussed adjusting positions outside the MBCBP to be more aggressive and allowing the MBCBP to fill the role of long term conservative growth and capital preservation.

For reference, I've got 22 years left and dabble in real estate investing outside the usual investment vehicles.

 

This! Thanks GF for adding this perspective to the discussion!