EvilMonkey

The guy that wears a fancy ANR headset and does the walk around with no earplugs and the APU running.

Senior Skipper

I don't think the guys who wear the uniform outside are tools. More likely that they are looking for attention. It takes less than a minute to remove the tie, epaulettes and wings.

Sobchak

Jumpseaters who arrive at the cockpit 45 minutes before the push. It's crowded in here-prefer it when they show up along with the final paperwork.

gloopy

You know, I get that. I really do. While I never go anywhere in it other than work and a portion of the to and from, there was a time when it was a BFD and people respected it. While its weird to romp around town in it, it would be nice if it still represented some of the well earned status it once commanded out in public.

IOW, party foul wearing it to the mall, but right on at parties and stuff, amirite?

RunnerMark

Flying out of Anchorage, controller, "Giant 355 turn left heading 1-5-0."
My capt leans over to me, completely unprompted, and says, "Giant, that's Atlas. Just in case you we're wondering."
Me. "I know. And I wasn't."

I only have 4500 hours, I must a complete retard. Which one's the gear handle??

-TOTD

RunnerMark

I wear my uniform to the supermarket after almost every trip. It's on my way home. The cashier is hot. She likes pilots. End of story.

(And quit acting like a pilot uniform is the equivalent of a Nazi uniform.)

RhinoPherret

Wearing a uniform outside of conducting official business is always a touchy subject. An airline should have a uniform policy for its flight crews that provides clear guidelines on when it is appropriate to wear your uniform and when it is NOT. Of course, creating something as simple as a uniform policy seems to be asking a lot from some airlines and enforcing it is a whole other ball game.

Of course, we should take extreme pride in wearing our uniforms. Hell, you went through so much crap to earn the right to wear one! The uniform is certainly a status symbol to most of the lay public. However, when and where you wear your uniform outside of work norms can lead to odd situations and sometimes unexpected problems (excluding strip clubs, of course).

If the decision on when to wear your uniform is left up to each individual, that opens up a huge can of worms! Where you and I may wear our uniforms off-duty can be like night and day. Think that over for a minute. I bet you can imagine a ton of places folks would wear their uniforms that just doesn’t make sense and can cause more overall harm to pilot’s images and the profession. Anytime you trust everyone to use common sense in making a judgment call on issues of this nature, grab your ankles and hang on brother! My shirt comes off at the very minimum when outside of work norms (I know, that was a loaded line ) but that’s just me.

Ok. Time to Duck and Cover now for the responses.

Sink r8

I think if you're putting it on specifically to go somewhere that is not incidental to work, ...you might be tool. Exceptions might be a presentation at your kid's career day, etc. Our airline has guidelines, and I follow them, generally. I wouldn't refrain from stopping at the grocery store on the way home, and I wouldn't change if I was on the way home, and some personal friends had a small party, and I wanted to catch the end of it. If I'm picking up the kids, or there is a 1/2 a game to watch on the way home, I'll do that to. That's about it. If there is a logical reason it should be on, I wear with pride. If there isn't, I wear something else.

If I'm ever going to a party, and my wife is putting on a dress, and I'm putting on my uniform, I'll know I've gone off the deep end.

I guess there is an evolution to the uniform. There is a time when you can't wait to wear one, because it's a symbol of something you're trying to accomplish. Then you get to play for the JV, and some guys feel slightly rebellious, and do all the cool stuff, and try to look different. They roll up their sleeves (classy), and try all kinds of variations on their ID positioning (hanging from the epaulet, groin-shot, etc.). My favorite is the Presidio look, black sweater and epaulets outside.

By the time you get on varsity, you're seeing a few guys get creative with the hat (remove the donut, etc), if that. Then you don't want to buy new stuff, so you go for the weathered look. Eventually, you're stuck having to buy new stuff, and you just become a pilot. You go to work as a pilot, your neighbors know you as a pilot, and if they see you coming or going to work, you're not mortified. You don't feel compelled to have them see you in uniform, but you don't don't run out of the house in A&F, hiding your stuff in a shopping bag, like some sort of mortified teenage girl.

...

What's interesting about the TOTD thread, other than the fact it's often hilarious, is that it often shows us how quickly we jump to conclusions, and how judgmental we are. A lot of times, we find out we haven't considered the reason for certain behaviors. More often than not, someone ends up throwing out a tool grenade, only to find out it got tossed back on their laps just as it goes off.

DeadHead

I wear my uniform when I cut my lawn, technically I'm still home in that equation so I get a pass on being labeled a tool.

Timbo

My wife makes me put mine on before we...

But...she used to be a F/A so 'scewing a pilot' is the only way she can "Get Off"

She wanted me to wear Eli Manning's uniform, I told her I'd rather masterbate, and I did, all over her Eli shirt!