Originally Posted by Smokey23

Thank you for your service, jiggs. B..u..u..u..t...t...t...you're not in This Man's Air Force anymore. Hence, you're no longer kind of a big deal. Please do a huge favor to everyone you will be sharing a cockpit with in your second act and either accept that fact, or go off and enjoy your hard-earned retirement.

Your new gig really doesn't expect you to be wrapped so tight anymore. Many of your predecessors have established a certain stereotype...please don't perpetuate it.

Originally Posted by tunes

Settle down FO happy


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Originally Posted by mrjiggs287

Thank you to Guppy for his original post and to those who chimed in to support. I just retired from the AF with 20 years flying BUFFs. We had only UHF capability. Sure, every once in a while some knucklehead would tone or say something unprofessional over 243.0. But, it was rare.

Well, I just completed my first 4-day 121 OE trip yesterday. I must say I have never been so disillusioned in my profession as I was during this trip. We are supposed to be professionals.

During my trip I heard fart noises, swearing, and some of the most juvenile displays of behavior imaginable. There was even an argument. Finally, someone with a bit more decorum finally put a stop to it. I think it was an Air Defense controller.

I say profession because that is what it is; a true profession with higher levels of competency, thought, performance and behavior requirements than a mere occupation. How would you like it if your wife's gynecologist made fart noises while giving her a check up or your father's cardiologist gave your dad a wet willy on the operating table to "impress" the cute nurse during his heart transplant. Or, when drafting your will, how would you feel if your lawyer said, "Really, you are going leave this junk to your kids when you die...just kidding”?

I know some troll is going to write, "...Really?? You are comparing us to doctors??", or something else totally out of context. And, I am sure I am going to get flamed like Guppy. To those people I would say grow up; go watch the movie Idiocracy because that is where we are headed. Then, I would say your right; we don't hold your father's life in our hands during his heart transplant. During that CAT II mins approach in gusty winds, you hold in your hands the lives of our daughters', sons', mothers', fathers', grandmothers', husbands', wives', etc… plus the lives of dozens of other passengers and anyone's whose home or business you are flying over. God for bid, if something did go bad, how would your mom or dad feel if one of the last things they heard on the CVR was you making a stupid joke over an emergency frequency? Do you want them to think, even for a moment, "...my son/daughter killed all those people because he/she did not take the responsibility seriously enough?"

On this board I have seen a lot of complaining, from pilots at all levels, that we don't get the respect we deserve from the company, the passengers, the controllers, the FAA, etc... "We need to be compensated for the professional training and 'internships' we had to endure to get here" is a common theme. Well, the next time you are about to key the mic to broadcast your latest pearl of comedic genius or the zinger to the poor guy who made the mistake of not getting his wafer switch all the way over to the PA (I'm sure you never made that mistake), think about it. Remember, you reap what you sew.

To those professionals out there who are on the right side of this issue, thank you for upholding the standards.

Finally, to that guy; you know who you are. When my LCA asked over Clearance, "Are there any delays to Reagan this morning?" and you just could not control yourself. You had to blurt out, "IT'S NATIONAL AIRPORT!!!" I think you qualify as the tool of the day. Read the approach plate title. It says "Ronald Reagan Washington Natl". Leave your politics at home because that is just as bad as the buffoonery on 121.5.

Originally Posted by mrjiggs287

Realtalk, et al,
Thank you for your thoughtful response. I understand where you are coming from. I promise my intent is not to take away anything from the pilots who came up through the GA ranks and those who paid their dues in 135 or 91 flying. In a lot of ways those paths are much more difficult. To be honest, my 121 training has been a bit humbling. I am flying a CRJ now and it has been kicking my butt. The pace of operations, the automation, the complex approaches, the busy arrivals and the confusing taxi instructions are very eye-opening. I have a much deeper respect for the 121 job than I did. And, I am in no way trying to say my skills are any better than anyone else's doing the same job. I do not have hands of gold. Those guys get Raptor's out of UPT.

Also, I enjoy a good joke from time to time. Sure, on Monday I smiled when the guy made his 45 second long arrival announcement to passengers over guard and the first couple quips came out. But, after the 9th or 10th one it became r-i-d-i-c-u-l-o-u-s. And, yesterday when two guys got into an argument over guard that ended in swear words being exchanged and the Air Defense Controller having to step in...I was embarrassed for the pilot mafia. Maybe it was a particularly bad day.

Bottom line, my intent was not to come off as holier than thou. I did not intend to offend anyone. I simply thought the exchanges over guard on the last half of this trip left an ugly mark on the profession. It is this simple man's opinion that it went way too far. The line between funny and unprofessional is not that blurry.

break, break,

Prex, I too saw the apathy in the rampers and gate agents this trip. It was frustrating. As for the passengers... granted I did not have a lot of interaction, but the ones I did interact with were actually pretty decent. We had several delays and none of the passengers gave us or the FA much grief. That may have been in part to my CA being very proactive with the updates. Having said that, I am sure it can get very ugly at times and I am not judging your opinion...you have been doing this a lot longer than I have. As for the separate frequency... that would be interesting. I am guessing the FAA would shoot that down pretty fast.

Originally Posted by ZapBrannigan

I don't think it's Delta guys being guard police. I think it's young commuter guys with ADD. They're bored, they can't TWEET or update their status. Nobody is paying attention to them, so since they've never had a real job the only thing they can think to do is get on 121.5 and be an A-hole. It's obnoxious to listen to all day every day.

I don't remember anyone doing it when I flew for the commuters, but I guess we didn't monitor guard back then.

Originally Posted by ZapBrannigan

I don't think it's Delta guys being guard police. I think it's young commuter guys with ADD. They're bored, they can't TWEET or update their status. Nobody is paying attention to them, so since they've never had a real job the only thing they can think to do is get on 121.5 and be an A-hole. It's obnoxious to listen to all day every day.

I don't remember anyone doing it when I flew for the commuters, but I guess we didn't monitor guard back then.

Originally Posted by WesternSkies

It's mostly fat people who play on guard.