preludespeeder

sky high,

I have been reading on this board for quite some time now, only lately have I been posting. I also have family and friends that are involved with different aspects of flying so I am not immune to the bad sides. I understand that the dream I carry is a difficult one at times and hard on a normal standerd of life. One thing I hate more then anything though is normal, maybe that is what triggers a little part of my interest in the airlines. I listen to all these pilots and future pilots on this board with an open ear and apply their thoughts to my situation and goals; which helps me plan for the future. Your comments are always ones that I like to read about becuase you have experienced the worst I have heard of.

Punkpilot48

Ok so I think we have narrowed it down......everybody elses life is better than us and we dont deserve a good one. No thats not it at all. We as pilots dont have proper training. No we are over trained. Wait Were we trained or did someone pay to work? Anyone seeing where Im going with this. Its a long thread and I dont remember has anyone put a number out there? How much should we make should we be rewarded for our bravery or punished because any 22 year old punk can do the job. (haha hopefully thats me)

Heres something I just thought of....

Floorers and roofers and plumbers and bus drivers and realators and your next door neighboors nephew all make more than a pilot right? But how often out any of those proffesions do you hear of a floorer not being home for christmas? Or a plumber losing his family cause he is only home 3 nights a week? Sure these are things we know to expect before we become pilots but shouldnt there be some sort of compensation from the companies?

Damn the man!

dckozak

All this just to get a decent seat to look out the window

CruiseFL310

from my first post on page 14 to now has been some pretty entertaining material. all i can say is that many of you older pilots seem to have some pretty big egos. none of you can stand it if a less than prestigious job is compared to an airline pilot or if a less than prestigious job happens to make as much or more than an airline pilot.

as a third year first officer i make a salary that allows me to live a decent life and i dont live in a one bedroom apartment with six other roommates. when i upgrade to captain i will make even as a regional captain as much or more than my friends who work in a wide range of career fields all with college degrees. in fact my third year first officer salary is not much different than what these friends made when they entered the job force out of college. most of them happen to be a couple of years older than me and there salaries have increased since. if i fly for a major one day i will make more than them easily. i make good money and get to fly. works for me. it either works for you or it doesnt.

many of you like to bring up these less than prestigious jobs that some happen to make as much or more than a pilot doing. truth is these people making that kind of money in those fields are very little. should pilots be paid well--yes. but we dont necessarily deserve to make more than everybody else. it is ridiculous to live with that mindset and that mindset is exactly why many of you are miserable. even as a regional captain i will end up making no less than i would if i had gone another route and gone into careers like my friends. i know if i had i would be miserable.

you have to do what you like and if you do you should be happy. there are negatives with any profession. ive seen people lose jobs pension and a host of other benefits in other industries too. the economy and industries abroad are suffering. dont get caught up in that we are alone.

Ranger

Maybe. No, let me correct that. Your comment is b.s. Ego? Not really.

I have the equivalent of a doctorate in my profession. And I have over 25 years of experience doing what I do. I'm at the pinnacle of my industry flying the best equipment (at least in my companies opinion) that money can buy. I have a college education. You better damn well believe that I think I should make a lot of money. And oh by the way, I miss Christmas, birthdays, anniversaries, etc. Yes, it comes with the territory but I still miss them. So pay me what I'm worth. Pay me based on my education, experience and the fact that I could save your multi-million dollar asset, millions of dollars worth of freight and maybe even a few more lives than just the 2/3/4 people on the airplane. I don't call that ego. I call that a reasonable expectation. That reasonable expectation includes believing that I (we) should make more than a plumber or a truck driver.

You obviously think that a lot of us have set our sights way too high. That's not the case. You've set yours way too low. A perfect example of the economic Peter principal.

SkyHigh

You have to admit that most of the big pay cargo guys on this forum are a bit arrogant in the face of what is going on in the rest of the industry. Sooner or later the correction will come to cargo. Nature abhors a vacuum. Besides, what makes you so different from everyone else as far as experience and education? The world is polluted with guys like you. I have a friend at Gemini who is a captain on the same equipment on the same routes and I'll bet that he earns a third of what you do. Your only value to the world resides in your FedEx seniority number. Outside of that you might get a job as an apprentice plumber if you are lucky.

SkyHigh

dogpilot

A doctorate doesn't mean big pay for everyone, there are a million people with doctorate degrees barking up that tree. What you say is right on the money it is all about responsibility and the ability to handle difficult situations. Handling equipment worth millions and lives worth untold amounts if you make that mistake and lawsuits begin to fly. Everyone is the pilots best friend when all hell breaks loose, but when he/she is sound in his operation and things go smooth all the sudden he/she is overpaid.

CruiseFL310

there is the problem. you and many other pilots think you should make more than everybody else especially a job that is not prestigious. how dare that plumber or truck driver make more than me! truth is the majority of plumbers and truck driveres do not make more than pilots. some do but a majority do not. some doctors do not make much more than 150,000 a year but they spent 100,000 in medical school and ten years worth of schooling to get to that point. from your perspective it wasnt even worth it for that doctor to become a doctor he could have just become a plumber or truck driver. forbid maybe he just loves his job and still makes more than the vast majority of the rest of the country.

face it regional pay will always be where it is but is not less at captain pay than i would make in other jobs. major is still more money than you would make in other jobs. unless you only set your sights on those rare people making 200,000 a year or more. get real. do you all think everybody but pilots are making millions and living it up? haha! my friends all work outside of aviation in fields from business to working in plants etc. many of them work 60 or more hours a week and there job doesnt end there. they come home stressed and still have paperwork they have to complete. they dont make any more than i will make as my first year as a captain at my airline. they all know how much i make now and still are envious at my job. i may not always be home and i may have to miss some birthdays and holidays but i get to do what i love. i also get to come home and leave work at home. i can enjoy my time off rather than look back and stress over the boring day at my desk.

it doesnt take much to become a plumber atleast according to you so if they are so much better off and you can make as much or more doing that job than being a pilot quit and become a plumber. atleast then you will not have to miss any more birthdays or holidays. until then accept your pay which is probably more than the vast majority of what other people make and do your job you chose and quit complaining. i get blamed for the problems with the industry because i supposedly have too low of standards yet or is it just that i can see the bigger picture and that is being a pilot is not a job that requires superman nor is it as low paying as many pilots would make you think.

SkyHigh

Speeder,

Just wait till your friends get a little older, then you will hear some horrific stiories and witness a few friends lives implode. It might take another decade before you or your friends can measure what has been lost.

Try reading that post from Captain Drew in the Flight training forum So, you want to be an airline pilot?. That sums it up nicely except there probably will not be a 200K job waiting for us at the end.

SkyHigh

SkyHigh

PunkPilot,

Don't forget that floorers, roofers, plumbers, bus drivers, Realtors and your next door neighbors nephew actually work for a living. They get compensated for doing something for their money. (except for Realtors that is).

SkyHigh