This is from the latest addition of AVWeb. Note the part where they talk about a Delta first year pilot making $56 an hour having to "live on mac and cheese" and wear "cheap shoes". These people like the rest of the media really don't have a clue.
[font=arial,helvetica,geneva]What's A Pilot Worth?...[/font]
[font=Arial,Helvetica]Wage Rates Vary On The Lines...[/font]
[font=arial,helvetica,geneva]...And They're Going Down In Some Cases...[/font]
Delta, which is publicly involved in very trying financial times, is eyeing up the pay packets of its pilots to help cut expenses. It wants its 7,200 pilots to cough up $800 million a year in concessions (an average pay cut of about $11,000 each) and analysts say that might not be enough. Meanwhile Air Canada pilots have already swallowed $300 million in pay cuts (an average of $10,000) but they still have some esprit de corps left for the cause, as evidenced by a very public gesture of support for the airline -- a $200,000 ad campaign. AVweb is aware of some pilots willing to fly for (and some airlines willing to pay) substantially less. The Air Canada Pilots Association (ACPA) is funding the campaign to convince passengers that it's safe to book flights in advance (we'll still be here) and that the airline is positioned to survive for the long haul. The campaign, called "This Is Your Captain Speaking," is the pilots' way of assuring the public that the airline, which the ACPA terms "an essential service," is "not only going to survive, it's going to thrive and prosper," said spokesman Jean-Marc Belanger. The pilots were apparently not willing to bet their investment portfolios on that optimism and politely declined (at least for now) the airline's offer to provide a $250 million equity infusion required under a refinancing deal. With help from some U.S. investors, Air Canada hopes to pull out of bankruptcy protection on Sept. 30. Now, flying the big iron doesn't always earn you a membership to the country club. In fact, it seems like there's more than a few pilots trying to sell their skills and finding (if not creating) a buyer's market. We don't normally quote from online forums but the Professional Pilots Rumor Network (PPrune) has a lively discussion going about what the "market rate" is for qualified pilots looking for work. The exchanges suggest that the situation overseas can be far less rich and that the many pilots happy for work regardless of pay are driving pilots' earning power down. One correspondent laments that he's been offered the right seat in a 35-year-old wide-body for a Middle East charter company (registered in an African country) for $2,300 a month plus $50 per flying day (yes, that's day, not hour). He said he turned it down but others suggested he should have been happy to get the offer, given the current climate.
[font=arial,helvetica,geneva]What's A Pilot Worth?...[/font]
[font=Arial,Helvetica]Wage Rates Vary On The Lines...[/font]
Given the climate of ensuing and/or continuing Chapter 11 filings among major carriers, a list of who pays what to fly which airplane becomes interesting and potentially volatile reading. Safely and routinely transporting many hundreds of passengers over many many hundreds of not always hospitable miles, ultimately translates to some monetary value and Airline Pilot Pay claims to track that value. According to the Web site www.airlinepilotpay.com (and with numbers "updated for 2004"), Delta pilots lead the pay-scale pack receiving $320 for every one of the 65 hours its most senior captains (12 years or more) watch the screens and otherwise command Boeing 777s. The lowliest of four-stripers make $212 per flight hour. According to the pay-scale numbers listed by Airline Pilot Pay (currently) successful airlines like JetBlue and Southwest don't go up quite as high, the pilots fly more hours and the two airlines fly one type each. Delta's bottom end is a flat $56 an hour for all first-year first officers, regardless of engine or passenger count, but it more than doubles after 12 months of Kraft Dinners and cheap shoes. A career FO can make up to $218 per flight hour. Northwest's range is $40 to $273 for 63 to 69 hours a month and Southwest ranges from $47 to $179 per hour but works its pilots 77 hours a month. Similarly, JetBlue ranges from $51 to $126 per hour, working its pilots a guaranteed 70 hours per month, according to Airline Pilot Pay.
[font=arial,helvetica,geneva]...And They're Going Down In Some Cases...[/font]
Delta, which is publicly involved in very trying financial times, is eyeing up the pay packets of its pilots to help cut expenses. It wants its 7,200 pilots to cough up $800 million a year in concessions (an average pay cut of about $11,000 each) and analysts say that might not be enough. Meanwhile Air Canada pilots have already swallowed $300 million in pay cuts (an average of $10,000) but they still have some esprit de corps left for the cause, as evidenced by a very public gesture of support for the airline -- a $200,000 ad campaign. AVweb is aware of some pilots willing to fly for (and some airlines willing to pay) substantially less. The Air Canada Pilots Association (ACPA) is funding the campaign to convince passengers that it's safe to book flights in advance (we'll still be here) and that the airline is positioned to survive for the long haul. The campaign, called "This Is Your Captain Speaking," is the pilots' way of assuring the public that the airline, which the ACPA terms "an essential service," is "not only going to survive, it's going to thrive and prosper," said spokesman Jean-Marc Belanger. The pilots were apparently not willing to bet their investment portfolios on that optimism and politely declined (at least for now) the airline's offer to provide a $250 million equity infusion required under a refinancing deal. With help from some U.S. investors, Air Canada hopes to pull out of bankruptcy protection on Sept. 30. Now, flying the big iron doesn't always earn you a membership to the country club. In fact, it seems like there's more than a few pilots trying to sell their skills and finding (if not creating) a buyer's market. We don't normally quote from online forums but the Professional Pilots Rumor Network (PPrune) has a lively discussion going about what the "market rate" is for qualified pilots looking for work. The exchanges suggest that the situation overseas can be far less rich and that the many pilots happy for work regardless of pay are driving pilots' earning power down. One correspondent laments that he's been offered the right seat in a 35-year-old wide-body for a Middle East charter company (registered in an African country) for $2,300 a month plus $50 per flying day (yes, that's day, not hour). He said he turned it down but others suggested he should have been happy to get the offer, given the current climate.
