Flying for the airlines in the 1970's & 80's

[AA717driver]

xdays makes an excellent point. In the 60's and 70's, major airline pilots didn't make squat for the first few years. There wasn't a "B-scale" but pay certainly didn't take a huge jump in year 2.

Widebody or 707 Int'l FO's made pretty good money but it was mostly reserved for the Captains. And there were few 5 year captains in those days (the early 60's hires excepted). TC

 

[mobie]

I think I can shed some light as my DOH was 8/65. First 6 months pay was $400 pm. Jumped all the way to $450 the next 6 months. The next year $1000 pm.

5 years to left seat and never laid off or bumped back a seat. Great luck until I lost my retirement after 38 years. Now still out there punching holes in the sky 135/91. It was a great ride while it lasted, let me know where some of those Gulfstream jobs are so I can ride the high tide again.

 

[pilotyip]

College degrees were not a big thing back then, my PPC I flew with in Vietnam was a Nav Cad, 2 yrs of college and he was was hired by Delta basically on a walk up interview back in 1968. Of course UAL was hiring Private pilots with 250 hrs back then also.

 

[VMA214]

"my DOH was 8/65."......."I lost my retirement after 38 years. Now still out there punching holes in the sky 135/91."


If that does'nt say it all, I don't know what does. Show that qoute to people wanting to get into this business.

 

[PHXFLYR]

"my DOH was 8/65."......."I lost my retirement after 38 years. Now still out there punching holes in the sky 135/91."


If that does'nt say it all, I don't know what does. Show that qoute to people wanting to get into this business.

I did. And my cousins kid STILL wants to do this for a living Go Figure!!

PHXFLYR

 

[C-150ETOPS]

For an accurate comparison of pay in a given year, plug in the numbers here:

http://woodrow.mpls.frb.fed.us/Research/data/us/calc/index.cfm

mobie,

Your second year pay of $1000/mth in '65 would be worth $6177/mth today. My second year pay at AA would be worth about $3500/mth today.


At my company, it was pretty common during negotiations for guys to screw up the COLA numbers when making salary comparisons. I always ran across (and will in the future), senior guys who think they "scraped" by on some pay level back in the late 60's. One guy, in justifying our continued B-Scale by telling me how much rougher it was back then on his pay. His 3rd year in todays dollars would be $100,000. His $17K in 1966 did sound bad unless one knew the facts like I did.


good luck mobie, I know guys like you have eaten the ultimate chit sandwich.

 

[CaptainPablo]

Some comparisons....

I think I can shed some light as my DOH was 8/65. First 6 months pay was $400 pm. Jumped all the way to $450 the next 6 months. The next year $1000 pm.

450 bucks a month doesn't sound so much, but just some numbers for you: price my parents paid for their first home in Chicago in 1966, was 25,000. (about an average price then in Chicago) price that same house just sold for? 525,000 !!!

so your 450 bucks a month X 12, for an annual salary of: 5400.00 Using your annual salary of 5400, that comes out to about 1/5th of what that house would have been worth in those days, easily affordable on your salary in 1965. well, let's use today's figures, shall we? 525,000 / 1/5th (or 20%) would be: 105,000 !!!! so when all the old timers start throwing out these numbers like 400 bucks a month, wow was i underpaid....well 450 bucks a month could easily afford a 4 bedroom house in a nice neighborhood in chicago in 1965. ask your average first year F.O. if he can buy a 525,000 house.

 

[VVJM265]

For an accurate comparison of pay in a given year, plug in the numbers here:

http://woodrow.mpls.frb.fed.us/Research/data/us/calc/index.cfm

Good site. Thanks for posting.

 

[B-J-J Fighter]

Bump for later reading.