Love flying or hate it?

[UA-RESURRECTED]

I have to agree with FN FAL and Turkey Shoot. People who bitch and complain about aviation might think a bit differently if they had ever found themselves dependent on a ********************ty job. And I'm not talking about just some boring office job either. My current job is auto repair, and FN FAL pointed everything out perfectly. Manual labor, getting dirty on the job, working with monkeys, etc... These are the conditions I hope to someday escape. For now, I do it simply because I have to. I don't have my parents paying my way. I work for a living because that's the way it is.

Maybe someday I'll get an aviation job. Maybe I wont. If I ever do though, one thing I can tell you is that I'll be grateful for it, despite any issues you may hear people complaining about.

 

[pilothouston123]

I love flying, I hate Jerks.

 

[152SIC]

Having several thousand hours in jets (primarialy Citation X) at this point, I wish I would have chosen a different path.

I know jobs outside flying as well; having been in the Army as a M1 tank driver/loader for 4 years, worked in warehouses and delivered pizzas too. I held all those various jobs so I could pay for both flight school and college.

At this point I have a college degree (in aeronautical science,) and plenty of flying experience. However, if I could do it over again I would have applied my time and effort into becoming a CPA, attorney, real estate broker or a professional government worker (an oxymoron for sure.)

There is not a promising future in aviation unless you'd enjoy working for a company like Mesa Airlines.

 

[Papps]

AND WE HAVE A WINNER!!!!!!

I spent eight years sleeping on the ground, wearing fatigues and basically living the "not so good life." I've dug ditches (literally), sold cars, recruited, and tossed sod. I simply can not bring myself to hate my job regardless of how much crap they throw at me. I could be being shot at right now in Iraq or Afghanistan but instead I sleep in a motel with a bed when I'm on a trip and get to see my kids frequently.

Unfortunatly, the most militant and angry pilots seem to be the guys that came right out of school and went to flying a jet. They have no other idea how crappy it can be or what it's like to not have Mom and Dad to help with basic survival.

The pay ain't the best and scheduling can suck to deal with but flying airplanes beats working for a living any day.

Thats the problem. The people that stand up for the piss poor life of aviation are guys that are comparing it to something that sucked pretty bad in its own right. Thats like having two girls, one weighing 280 pounds and one 230 pounds. By comparison your nailing a princess if you nab the 230 pounder, but in reality your still taging a fat chick.

 

[mazawakhan]

The worst day of flying beats the best day in an office! I just got a job flying in Alaska with a great company. Yeah the 3am callouts are going to be rough but I can tell you I would rather do this than sit in a cubicle for 40 hrs a week. Saying that I would never work for a commuter or regional. I would have to say for me that that type of job would be the pits. I love flying but I dont love it enough to work for 18K a year. If I did I would be certain that I would be hating my job.

 

[positiveg]

Honestly, I don't think anyone who is member of an aviation forum hates flying so what's the point of asking?

Just saying, not trying to be a d*ck.

 

[pilotyip]

About the working for 18K per year, you only have to work for that until you have the time for your next move. We have GL, Mesaba, etc F/O's who more than double their pay the first day in the DA-20 doing on-demand business. We had one guy, 6 yrs at Mesaba in the Avro as a F/O, got a pay rasie his first day in the DA-20, and will probably be flying the DC-9 with another raise by the end of his first year.

 

[Ralgha]

How can one be 'honorable' in a regional pilot position when it pays less than a starting wage at McDonalds?

With only a couple exceptions (Gulfstream, Great Lakes), you will make more as a first year regional FO making minimum monthly guarentee than working 40 hours a week at McDonalds on starting wages.

 

[BenderGonzales]

Fantastic YIP. There are 29,446 aviators on Flightinfo.com

When are all of our interviews scheduled?

 

[Gobi Gred]

Sorry for a slight thread hi-jack but I have to respond to BizPilot. I know the regional airlines aren't exactly the best job in aviation but far from the worst. I've lost count of how many flight departments I've seen profiled in Professional Pilot that obviously treat their pilots like slaves. No set days off, tied to a beeper 24/7. Gimme a break. It's not just the regionals that degrade the profession. Other sectors of aviation do their part as well.