Very nice article.
I've always said, if you make one spectacular "save" during your career, just one, using superior training and airmanship to save a crippled or burning 757 full of people, you've recouped every penny your employer pays you over your entire career, X10 at least. Consider a hull at 35 million, plus lawsuits, plus of course the knowledge that everyone lives, and your entire professional pilot life is encapsulated in that one moment. Many pilots make several saves over 30 years, some never do one, but they are prepared to do so, because they are professionals.
"I don't make six figures to fly a 737 from KBOS to KLAX on a clear day. I make six figures when I land overweight, RVR 1200, on fire, after sucking a few seagulls into #2 after rotation, and safely land the jet."