Had to double check my paycheck at SKW on the BRO my first year I made a little over 19K. (22/hr) At 3rd year BRO FO, I just made 29K (29.32/hr). So yes even at the larger regionals make around 20k first year. I would hate to know what a first year at GL makes based on 1st year (16/hr). I dont know how someone can break 17k at GL first year.

That's my method, too. And, btw, there are plenty of pilots at the mainlines who are too cheap to buy hotel rooms and sleep in the crew room too.

So, its not just a regional issue. Fatigue is a safety issue. Don't forget the universal crew scheduling motto:

"If its legal, it MUST be safe."

Call me a socialist or even a commie, but maybe the government should chip in to solve this problem. The bottom line is that none of the regional first officers can afford reasonable and legal (which meets all the fire codes and building codes as ABC NEWS pointed out) accomodations in many of these places while supporting a spouse and a couple of kids, so we are being forced in to situations like these. This problem is real, it is here, and the government should do something about it now.

Yes, complete social answer. "Make the gubbmint pay for it!"

How about this... you pay people what they need to be safe, and what they're worth. If you can't do that, and provide a product that can make money, then you fail. You have to let the system work, government as gotten completely out of control and the LAST thing I want to see my tax dollars doing is subsidising yet another broken system. It's why we're in this mess. Capitalism works, let it.

That said, as long as there are chumps willing to work for those wages, the problem won't go away. Make all the excuses in the world about how and why, not a single pilot at any regional ever had a gun to their head and was forced into servitude. If you willingly take that job for that pay, you have no leg to stand on. If you have a wife and kid, and opt to take a $20K/year job, THAT WAS YOUR CHOICE. The lack of personal respobsibility and entitlement makes my eyes bleed.

What exactly can the government do? Minimum wage for pilots? That won't ever happen.

Perhaps government funded bunk rooms in airports? Unless they're like the Japanese capsule hotels, they won't be any better than crash pads anyway.

Japanese Capsule Hotel

The government could add a small surcharge to every airline ticket that goes directly to pilot pay bypassing the airline itself. It would take some work/negotiating, but I think it is the only chance we have of this situation ever being fixed.

What a concept! LOL. I kinda like it. Every major airport be equipped with government sponsosred accomodations or pay for our night at the airport Hyatt. Also they could either pay for or make it manditory for the companies to pay for positive seat travel to and from the base.

I have to echo the sentiments that pilots put themselves into crashpads voluntarily. No law says you have to fly for a poor paying airline. There are plenty of jobs that pay more, and will allow adequate rest.

What the government can and should do is complete the new rest rules. What pilots can do is not sign up for jobs that pay so poorly, that crashpads are the only option.

But then, that would be taking responsibility for you actions. Probably not going to happen, so let's have the government tax and spend a fix for this ;-)

No one is being forced into anything. It may be a tough choice but, it is a choice.

No way the government, (taxpayers), should pay for that...

If they did, would I get a tax credit for not commuting?

Oh, Come on, be real dude. They chose to do this so they can continue paying for their student loans, support and feed their families, instead of foreclosing their houses and declare personal bankrupcies and force everyone in the family to work at fastfood restaurants.

Maybe in a perfect world you may wait until you get an airline job offer starting at $50k right after the flight school. Unfortunately, we live in an imperfect world with real problems. In a perfect world, people also don't strap themselves with explosives and try to blow themselves up in airplanes, but because we live in an imperfect world, some do and that's why governnment pay for TSA to protect the passengers. I bet whatever they do to solve this problem, it would cost the government far less than what they are paying for maintaining TSA.