TV Report: PILOTS ON FOOD STAMPS

[Beetle007]

No doubt that pilot pay needs to and will go up from where it is now.

It won't go up with attitudes like yours. You act like as supply decreases pay will obviously go up. I think it is more likely that the pay will decrease (when adjusted to inflation) and that the quality of applicants will simply decrease. We have already seen this happen in the Regional industry. Look at how the minimums have dropped across the board.

Some airlines in Euruope love to hire 250 hr pilots straight into the A320 and B737 as part of their cadet programs. It saves them lots of money.

 

[Redmeat]

The guy was a former pilot trying to help out our industry. You should just be thanking him, not trying to discredit him!

But that wouldn't jive with the historical trend of pilots being their own worst enemies now would it?

Management always banks on this and are always proved right.

Someone said it on this board somewhere else and it rings so true so many times:

'Pilots are the stupidest smart people'

 

[CKJET]

[He then went on to say that you can only earn 80 hours per month?? WTF?? I think 95 + would be a more accurate credit projection for most regional contracts./QUOTE]

Hmm, last I checked, under 121 rules you could only fly 1000 hours per year. Divide 1000 by 12 months and you get 83.3 hours per month to time out at the end of the year. It may happen that some guys do time out, but I have yet to meet someone actually do it. We did have a guy do it four years in row at Air Wisconsin, but he got fired because he was caught popping circut breakers to keep the ACARS still logging block time while parked at the gate (true story).

I have loged 1000 in a year once, At Tower Air two or three guys a year would do it. It was long hard International flying, not up and down all day in a RJ but it has been done. Of course this came with having to live in Saudia Arabia evey Nov/Dec for the hadj flying but you could rack the hours up there if you wanted. However it was not at anything near Food Stamp wages once you got into extended duty time etc....

As long as guys/gals keep running to the reginols for these wages they will keep paying them.

 

[Beetle007]

The biggest thing we are missing is that, in other industries, people only have to start at the bottom once. If they switch companies, they almost always start at the same or higher pay. I don't have any friends that have ever left a company for a pay cut.

How many pilots in this industry will be privileged enough to work for one regional and one major their entire career? Most will start at the bottom several times. This is the biggest reason that starting pay at every airline needs to be raised.

Of course, this industry is all about the ME. Why should I care what the starting pay at my company is after I have been here a few years?

 

[superrav]

if you have to fly 95 hours a month to make a living well then i think there is a problem. We should be making a decent living at our monthly guarantee...I'm glad that the NWA pilot was on there..its about time the public heard of our poor wages.

 

[capt. megadeth]

I've SEEN the food stamps with my own 2 eyes working at PCL. 1st year F/O with a wife and kids (if the wife doesn't work) DOES fall under the median poverty level and they DO qualify.

Here's part of the problem.

The wife needs to GET her a$$ to work on the husband's days off. This wife at home $hit is just what it is....$hit! When the going gets though, Suzie needs to get off her a$$ and contribute. For Christ's sake, I don't get it how you guys let your wives get away with this bu!!$hit!

 

[SplitBar]

Yes, it is,,, 1st year.

I've SEEN the food stamps with my own 2 eyes working at PCL. 1st year F/O with a wife and kids (if the wife doesn't work) DOES fall under the median poverty level and they DO qualify.

This occurs at many regionals 1st year. No amount of later pay in your career justifies the abysmal compensation offered by many airlines, including some Legacy carriers.

Personally, I hope the pilot supply trickles so low it forces more than a couple regionals out of business and eventually raises those pay rates. The only people (other than pilots) I know who made less than $45,000 their 1st year after graduating college are the ones who didn't bother to plan ahead and job search.

Not to mention the geniuses that go spend $100,000+ on a "tech school" to get all their ratings and don't even have a degree to show for it. Pay THOSE student loan payments while making less than $50,000 a year with a family. Ain't happening.

So with a wife and multiple kids you accepted a job that pays food stamp wages? Sad you had nothing else going on for yourself.

If no amout of pay later in your career justifies for the abysmal pay then why did you do it? You are nothing more than a hypicrot for preaching on your soap box whilst at the same time you were the one who flew for food stamp wages. My 1st year at a regional I didn't need foodstamps and I doubt I qualified.

As far as $100,000 to get your ratings without going to college, again Lear70 you show your ignorance and prove you are the biggest tool on flightinfo. Keep posting away pal, I'm sure you will catch up with your idol, General Lee, really soon.

 

[time builder]

Been on food assistance, lived in subsidized housing, and I even had my loans paid off and a few thousand in savings before starting my first job. What can I say, it's reality, many new pilots are on welfare, plain and simple (and utterly disgraceful).

Talking to a former co-worker a couple months ago I asked "Have you seen The Pursuit of Happyness? I'm sure all of us can relate to that at one time or another, except the part about being homeless."

"What are you talking about?" he asked, "when we picked up ______ he was living in a tent on Lake Mead."

"Oh, right, I forgot about that."

 

[GuppyPuppy]

Here's part of the problem.

The wife needs to GET her a$$ to work on the husband's days off. This wife at home $hit is just what it is....$hit! When the going gets though, Suzie needs to get off her a$$ and contribute. For Christ's sake, I don't get it how you guys let your wives get away with this bu!!$hit!

Would you be my sugar momma?

GP

 

[Captain Morgan]

The wife needs to GET her a$$ to work on the husband's days off.

Wanna get married Cpt. Mega??? J/K.

Finally a girl that get's it in today's world. I'm actually married with a baby on the way and my wife is a nurse. She works 2 days a week for 12 hour shifts. She brings home as much as I do. All she has to do is work one more day a week and she brings home 50k+ I'm trying to get her to do that while I think of how to get back into the 121 world and all I get is bitching. That doesn't stop her from coming home from the parents on Southwest and saying, "babe, do whatever it takes to get to Southwest..." I tell her, "Hon, you couldn't handle what I would have to do to get to Southwest." and then I just laugh and walk away.

CM