dhc8fo

Agree, well said. But I bet his night shift sweeping the gym floor began and he is off of his computer for a few hours.

Brown Cow

How were your eight 60 mile legs today in the prop? You are right, I do work the nightshift. But today it'll be the dayshift: KIX-ANC. I know it must have been difficult for your Mommy to let you start working out of state; but when you grow up and have freed yourself from her bosom and your Mommy lets you leave the country!!!!!!!........I'll tell you about these fantastic places.

Incidentally, this message board was started by one of my colleagues; so were the payscales. You know, the one you look at all the time when you dream of what your life may (highly unlikely) become. I have no one to impress here.......just having a little fun.

FlyingJack13

Ha Ha I dont know what is funnier the fact that this thread turned into a middle school fight, or the fact that I actually spent the time reading all of the replies myself. As to my opinion on the subject, does it really matter how each of us got (or where we hope to end up) were we are? I enjoy this forum because I like to hear and see all the different ways to getting to a job in the airlines whether it be in a jet or a turbo prop. I myself am going to have to go the most common way and earn my ratings and then flight instruct/ freight dog it/ banner tow...etc. I guess I myself am jealous in a way that I am not getting to jump in a jet with only a few hundred hours TT. But from what I have seen in my own eyes I am almost looking forward to hopefully someday fly 7 legs a day in a prop. In my own personal opinion I think that is what flying is all about! Any trained monkey (or pilot) can set up a flight plan and let the plane fly it on its own. But anyways, congrats to all on being where you are today, I hope to be amongst all of you sometime soon!

dhc8fo

Great attitude FlyingJack13! That is the way it should be. There is far too much member measuring in aviation....such as with Brown Cow.

By the way, some of us actually enjoy flying (as previously posted). Do you think I would be staying here if I didn't like the seven leg days in my prop? As the number one person in base, I enjoy my weekends and holidays off.

Are there things that suck? Yes, but everyone else's grass is always greener. I will take the upgrade when and if it comes, but until then I will enjoy my more than ample pay and my very satisfying lifestyle. No one to impress either Brown Cow...the difference is that I don't go around bashing people for their place in aviation.

I hope that your colleague sees what an a$$ you are on his board.

HSLD

And?

iflyjets4food

I saw your colors flyingjack, are you by chance a VU guy?

FlyingJack13

VU? not really sure what ya mean there, so I'm gonna go out on a limb and say no! Ha, well if ur talking about school I'm going to South Dakota State University in Brookings, SD. Yeah ya know the one above Nebraska between Wyoming and Minnesota!

flyaway

Brown Cow,

I happen to be one of your colleagues, and I certainly don't appreciate your thought process! I wouldn't mind knowing exactly who you are!!

gringo

You say that now (don't worry, I did too). Just wait until you get to experience the joys of 14 hour duty days with a couple of 3 hour "airport appreciation tours", all to get maybe 6 hours of flight time... (in case you didn't do the math, that works out to 8 hours of sitting around, either on a turn or on an airport appreciation tour, waiting to go fly again, all while earning your $1.5 or so in perdiem.)

Repeat after me- 7 legs a day sucks.
5 legs a day will have you exhausted.

And, oh yeah, after your required minimum rest, you're off to do it again tomorrow!

I'm not trying to dissuade you or anything. It is a fun job. It really is. I just hope you don't come here all doe-eyed and bushy tailed thinking that 7 legs a day in an RJ or a turbo-prop is the coolest thing since sliced bread- you're gonna get severley dissapointed really quickly. I had a few of these 3-400 hour guys come in from Flight Safety or wherever in my class- all of them were disgruntled in less than 2 months after flying the line.

Enjoy where you are RIGHT NOW, in that Piper, or Cessna, or Diamond, or whatever. For the next couple of years, I guarantee you, it's the best flying, the most FUN flying you'll do. Once you get a uniform and a showtime, you'll understand. When you're sitting at a gate 2 hours delayed, having figuring out that, when you factor in all the time spent in uniform (not counting overnights), you're making less than minimum wage, you'll be wondering why you ever even chose this career- think back to the Cessna days.

Sky_Bound

"Can anyone tell me what would cause a person to spend about $75,000 to get a job that pays $24/hour? Unreal."


ME.

I'm looking into Delta Connection Academy

Tuition cost $64,500
buys me 1000 TT
100 ME

I could bum time from friends and even get ME time from one or two of them but I'm not a moocher.

I can't afford to pay them going rates and I doubt the finance company would cut me a check to drop them their costs of equipment and time.

Now one of my Capt buddies has done all this for his son to set him up in their charter business but alas I was born to GM factory workers.

College ? well even partially came from my own pocket for the semester I was able to attend.

I'm 39 as of a few weeks ago.
When I was younger and had the time to "earn" my hours and ratings ( tongue in cheek) I was busy building a business.

I eventually hired a friend of mine from highschool that had been out of a private college around 2 years that had him around 65k in debt.

He was back working a job that he had worked through highschool plus plowing in the winter.

Since he was a normal 4 year BS student with no specialized training meant he didn't have much to go after except those jobs that liked to see sheepskins and paid about 2 more bucks an hour for them.

So here I was a highschool grad that was a "road scholar" paying him and my college grad brother.

I would tease them about spending all that money on college when they hadn't obtained any "skills" to get a good paying job. I'd regularly say, "I'm driving a Porsche and your paying off tuition."

I pretty much had the same logic as the original poster in that scenerio.

I've had career changes since selling my company and have been for awhile uncertain of what to do for the next 20 years or so for more income.

I saw a DCA in a scuba mag while waiting for a hair cut and thought , hrmmm
I've always wanted to fly. When I had the money I didn't have the time and when i had the time I didn't have the money. Not necessarily be a commercial pilot, but well I am looking at a new career and this could be a decent ride for the next 19 years.

So I did some research (some of which lead me here) and currently am waiting to do my Med exam next week.

One of the first things I looked at was the need and the income.

Yeah it's all fine and dandy to say a senior Capt with the majors makes a quarter mill but I'm concerned with what I can make and the limitation of only being able to make it in 19 years.

Sure entry level Tier 1 regional pay bites the big one and add on the repayment of the loan it's even worse than a walmart 40 hour/wk job.

But Walmart ain't flying and I doubt they'll bump me up to about $60 -$75 and hour after 10 - 12 years.

So I find myself @ 39 doing what many people I know did at 18 or so.
Get themselves or even their parents into debt for an education.

Although I sell mine to myself, brother and friend that at least I know the job I'll have after I complete my education and that's flying and not to shabby pay once you get down the line.

So far my research has lead me to keep forward with this process.

If any one out there could show me that I can get to the same point of that career using financed funds and the same time frame I'd be willing to listen.

errr read :P