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I think a lot of fancy jobs that have any sort of coolness factor don't pay well anymore. In the NW pilots are not paid well at all and other working class professions are. My cousin is a LA County Sheriffs deputy with 14 years in and makes 120K. We all would like to be pilots. I was and made a poverty wage.

If I would have been able to earn a real living as a pilot then perhaps I would have a different opinion. In addition none of my peers have done very well either. Of my ex-pilot coworkers most call me to ask advise on how to get out as I have. I am sorry that your niece cant break 60K. Perhaps she should move here and manage a feed store or Dairy Queen I am sure she would do much better. We live in a small town and first year cadet pay for police officers is 48K. In a few short years 60 is within easy reach. The final proof to me is how people live. The pilots that I know all live lower middle class to poverty lifestyles. The working class people who I know all own their own homes and have snowmobiles, ski boats, families ect. They earn enough to actually live well.

Lastly, of course, a lot in aviation depends upon if you make it to the majors. To you flying is a joyful and perhaps painless ride. Most likely you went strait from the military to a major and never went a week without a pay check. Your career was probably made before you even took your first lesson. What isn't to like about that? Everyone gets a few breaks in life and I never held it against my friends who had fathers who were well positioned at a major. The rest of us don't have it so good and suffer. It is almost a closed system.


SkyHigh

Skyhigh...A military pilot isn't just handed their wings...My brother was a Marine Fighter pilot...A-6's, F-18's, A-4's...I know what he went through to get those "Wings"...Probably something you nor I could have endured. Is he a better pilot then me?...I'll tell you no...lol...But just because the Military guy/gal has a straighter path to a more stable income fly'n gig doesn't mean it's handed to them. Am I bitter for all those military guys that get hired at FedEx?, when I have more time as an aircraft commander flying the DC-10 all over the world then most have in total flying time...No...lol...I thinks it's funny...But then again I make more money away from aviation....My advice to anyone and everyone...Enjoy flying for what it is...But get rich doing something else....So stop picking on those pilots that are lucky enough to have an opportunity to make flying career...Karma dude, karma...The big bad circle come'ith around...lol Life gives you what you really feel inside...And if it's doom and gloom...Then the clouds will not part for you my clipped wing friend....Cheers

HD...good post.

One comment...having finished careers in both fighters and a legacy airline, I don't think there is any way to compare fighter hours to airline hours. Apples and oranges, and I won't begin to say that one is 'better' than the other. I really enjoyed the DC-9 and deliberately bid to stay on it. It was one sweet airplane...honest as the day is long and every bit a thoroughbred. The fact of the matter was that the 9 made us pay attention. A poorly flown jet was only the fault of the pilot...no blaming it on the (non-existent) FMS or anything else.

And that was also true of the fighters I flew...so in the end, it all boiled down to the puke pulling on the pole. In either world, some did it with style and others didn't.

skyHigh, I'm beginning to believe that you just have a burr under your saddle for anyone who happened to acheive employement at a major airline. I hate to burst your bubble, but not all pilots who made it to a major were military zoomies, nor were they children of major airline pilots. Some of those who made to a major followed the same career path as did yourself. I know many who started out getting beat up in a Metroliner, Bandit, B1900, Junkstream, etc. They had neither a military background nor a major airline family member to help them out. Yet you drone on along, nursing your disdain for pilots who made it to the majors as if not ONE of them was worthy of the job. The difference between them and yourself would seem to be that they made good contacts, networked, MAINTAINED A POSITIVE ATTITUDE, and perservered until the breaks came there way.

You nailed it.

Thank god for the elite.

I hope I'm in the position to one day bid on a pax carrier plane...Till that time I'm going to enjoy the rest of my military career, family, and friends...

-LAFF

Facts
 

Effort and influence can have an impact on outcome but there is nothing like a few relatives in high places. It is possible to make it without help but not probable. Fighters and airliners do not fly themselves but a few opened doors at the right time can make all the difference in being able to have an oportunity to do either. Perhaps many of you can't recognize this since you were the benefactors of the same system?

I needed a career to build a life upon and not a fairytale land where one has to pin their efforts upon hope and persistence. Pounding your head against the wall might bring about results but most likely will leave you short of your intended goals. If many of you are comfortable with those conditions then I don't know if that makes you heroes or short sighted. The definition of insanity is repeating the same action but expecting different results.

SkyHigh

SkyHigh, if Skybolt is your other secret identity... LISTEN TO HIM MAN:D . On the serious note, its obvious to all that you've had a rough time and its sad and i feel it for you. (I'm not being like one of those people who would see a guy without any limbs and say: I feel your pain). I havent been in your shoes so therefore, I can only imagine, but on the other hand, you havent been in other people's shoe. I know airline pilots who love their job to the death and are actually making MONEY. I mean MONEY. Whether its Air Canada, Air Jamaica... etc... I also know guys with masters in other well educated areas/professions who can't do anything. You've just been dealt the wrong hand and I hope you overcome that and seek an ace. Make the best of it and do what you need to do. Ive actually gotten advices from you in the past, so I can honestly say you have a good mindframe, so your just bitter for the moment.

P.S. I love the definition. Never looked at it that way...

Quick Question: Whom Do Or Did You Fly For Skyhigh. How Far Did You Make It?

No, I don't agree. SH was dealt a pefectly playable hand. He had a position with a good regional airline.

But he played that hand poorly. He chose to quit for a position with an upstart company that then failed.

As a result, he made the 'worst of it', and the outcome was all due to his own poor decisions. The industry didn't put SH where he is...he did.

In his defense, he opted to bail out and seemingly has found a more satisfying life. That's what people due when they are unhappy...but doing so is not an automatic condemnation of their previous position. It's only evidence of their inability to fit in.