Guys, I didn't mean to stir up a $h&t storm. I too was once proud, young and arrogant. I am now 48, a little wiser than I used to be; yet still pretty much a dumb a$$. LOL I have learned to be humble though. To paraphase a good friend, "Humility is not thinking less of one's self, But to think of oneself LESS often. But nonetheless many thanks for the kind words. I have a lot of friends living the dream; yet too many, like myself that feel like the dream is leaving us behind. Frats, L

 

727574drvr,
Take a look at USAJET-37k to start w benifits.
Cape is hiring alse, about 30k to start +OT-could easily break 40-50k

Good Luck!

 

While, not the best alternative, there are good opportunities overseas for current qualified B737 and A320 crews. 6 weeks on 2 weeks off seems to be pretty common. Pay is not bad either.

You won't have to approach "ALPA Brothers" or local houses of worship with your hat in your hand for a temporary fix. You can earn enough to meet your monthly expenses, and put some more aside for retirement. A number of locations oversease are family friendly too.

I've been an expat for some 21 years with a 6 year temporary stint back in the US. At the end of the day, I do miss being home more often than not... but I don't miss the political back stabbing rubbish of the US carriers... especially the US carriers of today... which for the most part are run by a bunch of numb nuts... even in the 119 positions too.

The industry in the US will never return to what it was before the downward spiral began... and that was before 9/11 to.

 

Don't forget Angel Food Ministries. Just Google it. A month's supply of food for $30. Pilot's have used them before. You won't be the first. Or last.

 

Anderson, may I ask whom you work for?

 

he is GOD, so it's ok for him to justify a man's self worth with material possessions

stay thirsty

 

Here's the thing...
The economy stinks, and believe me there is nothing worse than being unemployed (especially as a pilot) right now. As a pilot it is hard to get a job because although some companies are hiring, there are very few jobs available.
As many in the business know it takes a lot of time and training to become an airline pilot. Doctors and lawyers normally spend 7-8 years after high school to achieve a position in their respective fields. Airline pilots are no exception to this. In some cases it may even take longer for a pilot.
As life progress you may end up with a family, house and what not. In other words you gain certain life responsibilities. This is not all that uncommon to most people.
So now lets say, in mid-life you find yourself un-employed or furloughed. You still have to maintain responsibilities that you have gained in life and important part of that is financial means. I think every one of us can agree on that.

This is a very common issue when it comes to our brotherhood of pilots. The options become very limited when put into this situation. As far as flying jobs, it really stinks right now. If you do have a lot of time and experience, regional airlines are very hesitant to hire because they feel you will leave to quick once jobs open up. The flying jobs outside regional carriers may not pay much, but they are quickly consumed up from other furloughed or unemployed pilots. Flying overseas could be an option but you really have to be current and qualified in type. Although pay and benefits may be attractive, you still have to work overseas and that could cause issues at home.

Unemployment does offer programs to assist in returning to the job market. What most unemployment agencies don’t recognize is that you’re in a highly skilled profession. When I was furloughed I looked into these programs and I was told several times that aviation and the airline industry was not a viable career field. This meant no funding for l training to become current and qualified to get a job overseas. I was recommended to consider a career alternative. I applied to every regional that was hiring, and got nothing, no interviews or anything (I met all the qualifications and criteria, no bad history or skeletons). Unemployment benefits don’t last forever either, 6-18 months in most states, and that time passes very quickly.

So now your near broke, no medical and dental, family life is a mess, and your left with fewer and fewer options. Not good times…

I have heard this said way to many times, why do pilots take jobs that are less than standard in pay, because that is what is available. New pilots take jobs with regionals to gain time and experience for very low pay. Experienced pilots will take jobs to take care of their families.

One solution perhaps, is if you are employed and working for a union carrier, why not solicit your unions improve the current state? For example if unions lobbied state and federal governments to support the furloughed pilots, wouldn’t that be great? That means the experienced airline pilot who just got furloughed would not have to become a truck driver! We often criticize pilots for taking jobs for low pay. The reason is simple, we ourselves have done this to our industry. I honestly believe that our pilot unions never saw this one bit. Many other industry Unions do take care of their unemployed. I also believe that as a brotherhood of pilots we should do more to help ourselves within our group. Airline Pilots as a whole should develop more solidarity. So the next time you hear about someone taking a job for low pay, instead of criticizing them, just ask yourself, what can you do to prevent that?

When you point the finger, you got three more pointing back at you. Do what ever you can to help a furloughed/ unemployed pilot out. We should have kept the standards 33 years ago (1978).

I apologize for the long rant; I hope my spell check and grammar check work so it doesn’t get blasted.

 

I expected backlash from my post, but the civility of this response made me realize how judgmental I was. You're right, and it is easy to criticize when not enduring a hardship. 727574, I really hope you're able to find work, and I'm sure you will with the resume you have. Good luck to you.

 

I did !!!

Skyhigh

Laid off long ago and still waiting for my dream job.

 

When you stop to think about it most jobs in aviation do not make sense when evaluated against what it takes to get there.

Skyhigh