Pilots wearing backpacks??? lets get campy?

[flyboyzii]

# 252 and counting. This may be one of the reasons.

http://forums.flightinfo.com/showthread.php?goto=newpost&t=58409

 

[405]

This is the spring loaded, unoriginal, crewroom, mindless, default response that the backpack wearers use.....

Next time you fly your high performance jet why not ask ten passengers any one of the following questions...

As long your ticket is cheap, do you care about your pilots appearance?

Since your ticket was cheap is it ok if your pilot looks like a backpacking mormon going to school?

Are you willing to sacrfice your pilots consummate professionalism and appearance for a cheap ticket?

You saw your pilot I-pod jammin in uniform on the way to the aircraft, as long as your ticket was at rock bottom cost, you don't mind if he jams all the way to your destination?






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Now, lets talk about YOUR dollar! Apply the previous questions now that youre the consumer. Youre buying services from an accountant, tax advisor, etc...

Heck.. as long as the food is cheap, do you mind if your waitress brings your food jamming to her I-pod, smoking, sloppy hair and clothes, using profanity, drops your plate on the table and walks away... Who cares right..it is the cheapest food in town. And since she didn't bring you silverwear just lean forward and stick your snout in the trough....? In the Air Line industry that is exactly what you are saying to the passengers... Stick your snout in my trough...


This industry sucks right now but it is everyones fault and you aren't even willing to project a positive image. I hate the reactionary... Simple sheep who are a product of thier environment. They are defined by thier environment... So much for leadership... it is more like sheepship....

Rez, before you stroke out let me clarify my post. I wasn't taking sides on the backpack subject. I could really care less.

I was simply stating that most passengers I have ever seen sitting at a gate have this glazed, I-don't-give-a-sh*t look on their faces. They want a cheap ticket, they want to get to their destination yesterday, they don't want to be delayed and they want whatever airline they're on to NOT lose their luggage. That is all I meant with my post.

Relax.

 

[Rez O. Lewshun]

Rez, before you stroke out let me clarify my post. I wasn't taking sides on the backpack subject. I could really care less.

I was simply stating that most passengers I have ever seen sitting at a gate have this glazed, I-don't-give-a-sh*t look on their faces. They want a cheap ticket, they want to get to their destination yesterday, they don't want to be delayed and they want whatever airline they're on to NOT lose their luggage. That is all I meant with my post.

Relax.

Relaxing.....

I think the look on the pax face is a delusional change in expectations in that when they bought thier dirt cheap ticket they were euphoric, but now they're at the airport they realize they are getting treated like cattle.... They can't make the disconnection....

 

[CA1900]

In the Air Line industry that is exactly what you are saying to the passengers... Stick your snout in my trough...

Ohhhhhh, some days it'd be so tempting.

 

[BenderGonzales]

I agree with Rez,

Yes. The passenger wants a cheap ticket. I want cheap groceries. I want a cheap automobile. Like almost every other red-blooded american I shop around to find the best price for the goods and services I purchase.

That being said...

I still have certain expectations for those goods and services. I expect a physician to be dressed professionally, clean cut, and to have a good command of the English language.

If I saw a young man with long, nappy hair, a nose-piercing, a tattoo on his neck, who was wearing a def-leopard t-shirt and torn jeans and he was introduced to me as my SURGEON... YEAH! I have a problem with with!

First impressions, like it or not, are those that stick.

When I was in college I wanted to get laid. So did you.

There was likely a "big" girl who was willing to do the deed. Unless you were under the influence you probably declined.

Why? She was offering to provide a service. The price was right. (free or the cost of a few tacos) So why did you decline?

Because your first impression of her led you to believe that it would not be a high-quality experience.

She was probably a very nice person. Terrific personality. Very smart, extremely articulate.... but you said no.

Why? Because human-beings are hard-wired to trust our perceptions.

That's why it doesn't bother me if some kid who speaks ebonics and has a comb sticking out of his head serves my McValue Meal. But if the SAME person was representing me in a court of law i'd be distressed. It has nothing to do with what I paid for the service. It has to do with my expectations of a professional.

If you asked your passengers this question, what would the answer be?

"Would you pay $10 extra for an exceptional pilot, instead of an average pilot?"

The answer would most likely be yes. But how does the average airline passenger distinguish between exceptional and average. All they have to judge you by is your appearance. They believe that the way you dress reflects the care you give to everything you do in your job.

If you wear your uniform as your company requires, coat buttoned, hat on, clean cut hair, hopefully a fit-weight (we all try)... then they will translate that to mean that you are just as diligent about the way you approach the FLYING aspect of your job.

You guys can argue time and time again that the hats and the backpacks are irrelevent. The sad fact is that you're wrong.

After being an airline pilot for over 10 years I am now an airline customer. I hear the comments made by other passengers. I know my own perceptions when I see crewmembers wearing their I-pods, backpack slung over their shoulder and carrying their hat so as not to mess up their American-Idol haircut.

Perception is reality folks. Your grandparents would be ashamed of how some of you dress yourselves.

 

[PCL_128]

Exactly. Best post in this thread.

 

[indianboy7]

When I was in college I wanted to get laid. So did you.

There was likely a "big" girl who was willing to do the deed. Unless you were under the influence you probably declined.

I thought fat girls try harder...making the product better...........eh....

Everything else you said was dead on.......if people have a good experience on a flight with people who are professional and properly to their job, they're more likely to come back..........regional or major, cargo or international, it's the same principal everywhere. If we start giving people the impression that the people who are responsible for their lives are immature, we may not have a job next year. I have passengers always ask me how old I am "because you look too young to be flying an airplane"...even though my hair's fallin out and I got a big gut..........the passenger perception of us is a very important part of this business.

 

[Gulfstream 200]

Bender,

good post.

but whats going to change? look at the threads here...

"I just got hired, what bag do I need, what sunglasses?, what Ipod headphones?, do I have to wear the hat?"

Its a lost cause!


PS - easy on the fat chiks...anyone who has not lowered thier standards immensely at the end of the night at least once or twice is a liar and I dont trust them.

 

[BenderGonzales]

Hey man, you dont have to tell me. I MARRIED one!!

 

[ATRCAPT]

I hate to keep beating this dead horse, I just saw a younger looking f/o in PHX the other day in full uniform with rollerbag and flightcase. He was wearing a backpack which, honestly doesn't bother me. What irritated me was the fact that he had his skate board strapped to it. Just my 2 cents, but I thought it looked extremely unprofessional.