I know things are bad, but seriously...
 

Wow guys, i know things are bad, but seriously...if you still have a job in the airlines and are STILL crying about it...plz quit so a furloughed guy like me can actually get my job back. I'm sorry, i dont mean to be an a$$, but I love being an airline pilot. Yea, the job has its downsides...crew sked & mgmt treat you with less dignity than the actual seat you occupy, its hard on relationships, pay isnt the best, the list goes on...but gimme a break, quit whining. I've been humping crappy jobs since I've been furloughed and i want nothing more than to be back in the flight levels, being treated like crap again :D Maybe thats what compells us all to be pilots? All I'm saying is, if you really hate the job this much, quit so a guy like me who loves the job, and all its downsides, can get back in the flightdeck.

And btw...no replies telling me you CAN'T...every CA i ever come across reeeeeeaalllly wants that job at SWA, or as a real estate broker, or on the PGA...whatev floats ur boat...but just doesnt want to give up QOL (ie 4on 3off & 60k / yr) :rolleyes: ....rigghhhttt... And as for FO's, if you're complaining already...get the H.E.-double hockey stick- out now if you cant handle it this early in the game...its not like you're giving up such good pay and schedules that you can't afford to leave. Bury your head in books in those hours of downtime in the FLs, at hotels, on reserve, whatever...everyone here knows one of the (perks?) of this job is moments of mind-numbing boredom. Improve your knowledge, go to school...do something else if you're really that cheezed about this job, because maybe then you'll be happier...and I won't have to deal with negative nancys anymore. (btw no offense to anyone named nancy...it's just a phrase I use...i know nancys that are wonderful people :D)

I dont mean to rant...it's just frustrating flying with / talking to guys and seeing ppl on the forum who are such debbie downers and curmudgeons about this job. I love this job and all the crap that comes with it, and I'm sitting by the phone every day waiting for recall. HOW DO YOU COMPLAIN AT FL350...ENJOY IT!!!! CAN I GET A AMEN??!!

AMEN!! I'm right there with you HAL.

I'll bet $50 you would be complaining if you were still on the line...I'm just sayin'...

For whatever it's worth, by complaining about everything and refusing to give in to the logic that we're just "lucky to not be furloughed," those of us still flying are trying to make the industry better so that you'll have something better to come back to when you get back on the line...

What do you want to get from this? I don't feel sorry for many of the furloughees because they all got hired with low time (i.e. less than 1000 total time). I bet you are one of them. Well you aren't entitled buddy. You have to work for it now. Go back to flight instruction... where you should be, then build some time, practice on your complaining/whining skills, and then you might be ready for an airline job.

You are wrong; I do not know what airline you work for, but some of us furloughed guys have thousands of hours, college degrees and a couple of type ratings. Be careful of what you say, because you could lose your job regardless of how many hours you have. Just ask the guys at AA, United, MaxJet, EOS, Eastern, PanAm, TWA, Midwest, and the many other airlines that fuloughed people in the past or went out of business.

And regardless of how many hours a pilot might have, losing a job is still losing a job.

I'm with nicholas, buddy...The job is fantastic, but I'm madder than hell at the business. So yes, I'll complain because it allows me to vent...in turn leading to a cooler, more rational way of thinking -- which is what we all need to end this death-spiraling career.

Enjoy your time off, as you'll be back flying in no time. But also use it to your advantage -- do what you can to make your job in-waiting better than when you left.

nickblonde, i'll give you that much...i probly would. and lemme set the record straight. I'm not saying dont complain about the job...thats an inevitable part of being human. I guess i wasnt being clear. Complaining a little, i understand...its just when guys talk about this job like its the worst thing that ever happened to them, ya know? Its those guys...and theyre like, maybe 5-10% of all the guys that i talk to...who say "when you get furloughed, go get a real job" and aren't joking, y'know? Maybe i really just have a problem with curmudgeons in general, and thats my real problem :D

Flex81...i am flight instructing, performing check airman duties, doing real estate research for an appraisal institute, AND going to school all at the same time right now. I already have a bachelors degree in econ & business, and have had the opportunity to take jobs that pay 4X more than the airlines, with weekends off, working 7-7 M-F...but I would probably hate that job and complain about it all the damn time :D so i hope u get where i'm coming from...i love this job and wouldnt trade it for anything, and it just sux when guys talk about it like its the worst thing to happen to em. complaining is one thing, hating is another, yknow?

Erm, I'm furloughed XJT and have an ATP. :confused:

I mean no disrespect, but you really have no room to speak unless you have more experience than the 950 guys getting the axe at UAUA, the 1,973 guys at AMR who have been on furlough for YEARS after the merge, or the 60 guys who just got the axe at ALK, who I'm sure all do not want to go back and teach in C150s

maybe too many ppl with that attitude is part of the reason the job sucks so bad. too many ppl willing to work for crap just to "be in the flight levels" :rolleyes:

B!tch!ing and complaining about this job is every pilots god given right.

Or as we used to say in the Navy, "A *****in' sailor is a happy sailor."

Great post........... Unfortunately there are thousands of young kids with the same mentallity as the thread starter........ And when he gets recalled back to fly for third world wages, there will be a young kid with "an ATP" right behind him dying to fly a jet........... And the cycle will continue. No end, no fix insight........

Pilots are their own worst enemies. We all know that and we have all sort of been there in a way. I remember when I was working on my CFI and working as an aircraft mechanic I would sit there on the bus going to work next to flight crews all excited to be talking to these real airline pilots. All they had to say was negativity and such which really just gave me insights and that is to never sell yourself short. I couldn't see it from that percepective just all of the crap you have to deal with and just how we as a pilot group are only as strong as our weakest link. For example the new guy walking around all happy go lucky willing to work for free and taken advantage of by scheduling just to say he/she is an airline pilot is essentially screwing the most senior guy on the list. Just like that kid in class that kept getting a 99% on his test while the rest of the class would try their best and only get an average of 75%. No curve today.

So there is no need to be a jerk and complain profusely about your job, but it is quite obvious that pilots have sold themselves short and are not treated appropriately for the amount of work they do for the company. I have noticed in the past few years just how my percepective has changed but I will never become that guy that openly complains. So yes, it really is that bad. One day you will see. And if you have an ATP/loads of hours and are furloughed.......well you should really be the one complaining.

Not a cool comment in any way shape or form.

Because he is a furlough from a connection carrier you assume he has low time.

How about guys at ASA i work with that are 25 years plus military, or former corporate or whatever.

That was pretty low what you said. Are you in a fight with anyone low time or what?

I flew Caravans with a guy who had 20+ years at Eastern.

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Well for those of us that BIATCH about this industry, (and I think I speak for most of us), lets keep it up. We are the one that will change the industry for the better. When you return to the airlines maybe they will be better than when you left.

For the 600 hour wonders that were hired in the last couple of years that were furloughed, well you were lucky to have a job that soon anyway. I still feel bad that you were furloughed but maybe you can improve upon your resume.

Many of us were hired at our first airline with THOUSANDS of hours (not hundreds) so I think that we may be allowed the opportunity to gripe a little more.


X

Life isn't a "hard luck" competition. Just because you're furloughed, and your life currently sucks doesn't mean that everyone else's situation is rosy by comparison.

Think about this one, you are on here whining about being furloughed, when there are medically D.Q'ed pilots that would love to be waiting around for the call back, or even the ability to fly for fun. Its all relative.

Y'know, its actually been real interesting reading everyone's response to my original post. I guess i completely miscommunicated...i'm not saying complaining is wrong...its human nature, especially when something isnt EXACTLY what you want...even when things ARE exactly what you want, you're gonna want more and start complaining about it :) I completely agree with what you have to say, and believe me, i felt like the luckiest man alive to get a job flying a DHC8 for my airline with just over 1000 hours, and I'm doing everything I can right now to boost my credentials and bring credit and value to this job and my position upon my return.

If anything, what bugs me are the guys who complain about the job negatively rather than constructively. Like the grumpy old captain who complains about how the 20+ years he's been in the airlines have cost him 3 marriages and a mortgage, and it was the worst thing to happen to him (extreme case, but you get the drift)...THATS what i'm talkin about when i say complaining. Its the guys who wish they werent in the industry, but feel like they're stuck here, and at the same time feel like they are entitled to better pay and working conditions. And its not just the old farts who complain like that, i've seen young guys who have been flying for less than 5 years who act like flying is the worst thing to happen to them. Those are the guys who I'm saying need to get out of the industry and do something else.

I completely agree with the above posts from guys who say "It's our God given right to complain!!" :) just as long as there's a constructive intent. I believe 100% in voicing one's opinion, as long as it will actually change things for the better...if not, don't cry on my shoulder.

Final thought...I'm not trying to say I'm ENTITLED to this job, and I completely understand and agree with the process of paying dues in the industry. But what gets to me are guys who became pilots for the wrong reasons, and now resent the INDUSTRY for their own misconceptions. I know they're few and far between, but theyre out there, and if they werent...those of us who have a passion for this job might just get our jobs back. C'est la vie?

Its actually funny you say that, i've been on BOTH sides of the sword. I've been flying for over 10 years...4 of which I was medically DQed, but 2 years ago received a waiver, so I got back in the biz...then was furloughed last november. Maybe that's why I appreciate this job so much, I've lost it twice...both times were not my choice. Sooo, mayybe they need to furlough the grumpy guys so they'll appreciate what they have :D kidding...no angry posts plz hahaha

I said "many" got hired with less than 1000TT. For the record I do feel bad for those with a lot of experience that got the axe. There are some out there with just plain bad luck and it sucks! I am just tired of so many of these 250 hour wonders who now have 500 jet and think they are entitled to some airline job. They were lucky to get the 500 jet instead of 500 seminole. That was the point I was making.

I have been hired at two 121 carriers, the first at 420TT and the second at around 650TT. I've never felt entitled to the jobs but that didn't stop me from applying. Sure I got the first job when the regionals were hiring almost anybody with commercial min's but when I was hired at my current job, they had a huge stack of applications. I got lucky but I also studied hard and don't feel like I didn't earn any of this. I won't apologize for my career path. Oh, and I'm not going to stop complaining about how little I make and how much I do. You know it's bad when the part time station agents at your airline are making way more than you are and are home every night and work way less hours. Even if I wanted to give you my job, I'd have to pay around $8,000 of the training contract anyway so that's not happening.

If you didnt instruct/91 your way to 135 or ATP mins...you shouldnt be at an airline. Sorry to those of you that are furloughed who actually took the time to learn something at the lower levels.

*If you dont have a job life sucks.

*If you have a job, you are probably being exploited in the name of cutting cost, and you probably have no quality of life.

***Bottom Line: Life sucks for everyone right now.

First of all I don't want your job... I have one already. Second: I was speaking mainly to those complaining of being furloughed when they got hired with a wet commercial multi. They should be saying "I was fortunate to get some good time in a crj as opposed to a seneca". They will have an advantage over those who missed the hiring boom and have been flight instructing for this whole time. Third: I am not saying you shouldn't complain. The original post was directed toward people like you. I think you have a right to complain about your pay. It sucks and it is in a pilot's nature to bit<h (to some extent).

Amen bro :) I still remember when I first started applying to regionals, I checked out the classifieds to see what other aviation jobs were out there. I remember finding a job flying DHC-8's for WP, and the pay was something like $19 / hr at that time (2006). Just below THAT I found a job working as a TSA agent that paid $42k / yr. Aint that a B :rolleyes: Complain all you want, as long as the effort you put into complaining actually changes something

Ding Ding Ding.....