Who says "Hi" in the terminal?

[enigma]

In another, on-going, thread, the subject/question/accusation came up about greeting each other in the terminal. It seems to a decent subject for discussion.

So, who returns your greetings?


For myself, being a pilot with a uniform that somewhat resembles CAL, and being one who always make eye contact: I get a response about 90% of the time. Not always verbally, but some response. About half return a verbal greeting. Overall, I'd say that Eagle pilots are the most responsive. My qualifier for that statement is that I don't see many UAL, AAA pilots; I commute from DFW to south FL and fly mostly the east coast. I see mostly: AA, Eagle, DAL, DCI, AirTran, NWA and SWA.

No flaming please, just your opinions about the most friendly pilot group. Someone else can start a thread about the most unfriendly group.

regards,
8N

 

[Dep676]

Funny you should ask? Everytime I am in an airport I notice that crews don't even look at each other. I would think that crews would at least say hi to each other. I know they all may not know each other just thought they would say hi to each other.

 

[Beechnut]

UAL seems to be 50/50 whether or not they'll acknowledge you. SkyWest is a safe bet for a greeting where ACA is pretty sure they'll ignore you. Everyone else seems to be friendly enough.

From an AirWis guy,

S.

 

[njcapt]

Man, I always smile and say "Hey how ya doin" like a good Chicago boy. I don't particularly care whether its returned or not. If not I just assume that the other person is socially retarded.

At home in MDW most of the other pilots (ATA, SWA, and most transients) say hi back. Good people, them Chicaga folks.

 

[Kaman]

If you can get them to pry their cell phones away from their ears you might get lucky and get a grunt of acknowledgement from the ones at the company I work for.

Regards,

ex-Navy rotorhead

 

[EagleRJ]

In the past, most AA pilots would make the "cross-check" and their eyes would go right to your hat. They wouldn't return your greeting until they determined if you were Eagle or American.
It has gotten a LOT better in the last year or so, and most of the AA pilots are friendly, but there are still some senior old coots who give us nothing but ice.

 

[SeaBass]

What I found in my pilot penguin suit travels in terminals, if you have 3 stripes, the 4 strippers look right though you but other FO's grunt, nod or say hello. As far as FBO's go...everyone seems to be pretty pleasant....whether you are wearing the typical pilot outfit or in corporate attire.

 

[DC9stick]

Ya'all be real careful about say'in HI to your friend JACK now!

 

[calfo]

Hey, I always say hello to whoever/whatever I see in a crew uniform. Most everyone smiles and says hi back... It's kinda funny how a smile and a nice greeting helps to link us together just a little bit more.

The crews in Newark and Houston REALLY get set back when I do it there... CLE is smaller and more close-knit.

We've even adopted a few AA and other strays when the crew gets together for a few during the evening "debrief".

 

[ACWild]

Every pilot is friendly and smiley when they want the jumpseat...

 

[FlyingSig]

Prop Trash... I like your avatar. Imagine the response to baseball arbitration if we could get everyone to give $5/month....

 

[hyper]

Well, as "freight trash", I'm usually regarded as a second rate pilot. It's all I can do to get a "good evening" reply in some FBOs. It's ironic since all I ask (after buying fuel consistently 5 nights a week) is a place to catch some zzzzs, while I see allot of the corporate guys (no offense) empty the coffee carafe and leave behind a mess on the table as they get the 5 star treatment and bright smiles. Must be the monkey suit.

I just kill 'em with kindness. Heck, I don't even drink their coffee or eat the complimentary cookies or popcorn!

 

[SeaBass]

While I was freight trash...my biggest thrill was going into the FBO's late at night when all the corporate guys were dead tired and I was just coming alive and stopping in for fuel... the aghast ooks they would give us as we hopped out in our cargo shorts and sweat stained shirts just made me smile...I knew deep down they were jealous. Kind of made me strut just a little more...kind of like Jake and Elwood in the Blues Brothers when they were in that fancy resturant..."How much for the women???"


See ya!
--Seabass

 

[TwinTails]

Yeah, gotta love those looks you get. Wearing cargo shorts, sandels, and a t-shirt. They're all sitting around waiting for the weather to pass as your just about to turn and burn. Not saying I'm a lifer but it's sometimes nice to know that the boxes don't give a **CENSORED****CENSORED****CENSORED****CENSORED**e

 

[hyper]

Good one Seabass. Definitely something to be said for yankin' and bankin' in jeans and a tee shirt. The plus is that I'll make over 2 times first year regional pay for having fun while only responsible for my own life. It's a backa$$wards world isn't it?

 

[skydiverdriver]

I say hi to everyone, ALPA pin or not (I can't believe that one!). I find that most flight crews return the greetings, but many gate workers do not. I mean, they even seem rude enough not to even notice you said anything. I have heard that some gate agents think pilots are arrogant, and I'm sure some are. However, as a general rule, anytime someone tells you a certain group is all alike in some way, take that advise with grain of salt. Everyone is different, and no groups have individuals who are all alike in every way.

 

[csmith]

However, as a general rule, anytime someone tells you a certain group is all alike in some way, take that advise with grain of salt. Everyone is different, and no groups have individuals who are all alike in every way.

A quote: "big heavy drivers thinking they are better than everyone who flies smaller jets." ---SDD

I guess you're making the exception for the big, heavy drivers?

 

[MetroSheriff]

A quote: "big heavy drivers thinking they are better than everyone who flies smaller jets." ---SDD

I guess you're making the exception for the big, heavy drivers?

Good one. ROFLMAO

 

[skydiverdriver]

Good one, thanks for calling me on it. However, you took one half of a sentence out of context and the meaning was changed. Here is the entire paragraph...

.......................................................................................................
Oh, and this is of course another example of big heavy drivers thinking they are better than everyone who flies smaller jets. You could have just answered his question without the sarcasm, but I guess some of the things we think about mainline pilots must be true.
.......................................................................................................

I was speaking about one person, and this was a reply to a very rude comment he made, and it was specifically directed toward him.

So, csmith, perhaps you need to be more careful when you try to lie about someone. Don't make it so easy to verify next time. Thanks again for your candor.

 

[skydiverdriver]

Proptrash,
Perhaps you are correct, I might think differently if I worked where you are. I am only speaking for myself, and I have worked at Piedmont who is getting hurt by ALPA right now, and Comair, who went on strike for 89 days with no scabs on our list. This is my fourth airline, but perhaps I don't have enough experience for you to let me decide.

I may choose not to wear an ALPA pin for other reasons, and it does not mean I would ever scab, or only think of myself. My pin has a star on the top of it, what about yours?