Why so many think of pilots this way?

[Alaskaairlines]

Agree with you flyhard!

 

[bigD]

...discussions like Oprahs book club (ok I was flipping throught the channels and caught part of this episode).

Uh huh. SUUUURE you were just "flipping through the channels."

 

[HPaul3]

Maybe I'm idealistic and naive, but....

My mom has a picture of me at age 3, holding a balsa-wood rubber band powered airplane (a Sleek Streak, no doubt), looking up at the sky. Now, I'm quite certain I had no idea women even existed, let alone that they were supposed to be the primary reason (with money secondary) I would choose to be an airline pilot some thirty-some-odd years later. Go figure.

People will attack any profession they don't understand or have intimate knowledge of. We're just an easy target. Look what's happened to lawyers. I remember when being a lawyer was a decent, respectable profession to which to aspire. Now it seems most lawyers spend much of their time apologizing for choosing the profession. I think that's a shame. In any case, it seems the public, aided by the media, have gone from one profession to the next, discrediting and defaming many once-proud vocations. I guess we pilots should expect nothing less. After all, when was the last time you saw something really positive in the media about the airline industry or its workers?

So what do we do? Most of all, remain positive in your relations to the public, and try to live by the golden rule. Make sure your conduct is above reproach. Treat your co-workers with respect and kindness. So what if someone has the wrong idea about you. You'll be secure in the knowledge that your conduct is correct and appropriate, and your true self will become apparent to all who would challenge your integrity out of ignorance.

And if you're single, what's wrong with a little flirtation here and there?

Cheers!
HP

 

[ATA1011]

"Most think pilots are very corrupt (possibly some are), they engage in negative activities,"

Two words, KIT DARBY of Air stInc.

 

[BE90CPT]

OK, who really cares what others thin of pilots. I am a pilot i don't care what others think of pilots or for that matter what they think of me.
If you are that worried about what others think, it's time to work on that self-image problem you are carring around. Before you go out on a date, do you send her a letter asking your date to check the box ___ do you like me ____ do you not like me ___ would you go out with me.

If you just sit back and think about it, itsn't what your asking about that childish?

 

[Timebuilder]

No.

If you live in a vacuum, or on a remote weather station on Antarctica, it may not be of consequence.

However, what we do as people, how we conduct our lives, what we strive to achieve, the standards we uphold, even our appearance of good health is important to a great many people. There can be an impact on our suitablitity as employees, mates, business partners, customers, parents, and friends.

Possibly the most important aspect of this is the influence we bring to bear on others, particularly the young, who look to us for an example of a life well lived, even when they aren't aware that they are looking for adults to model.

 

[BE90CPT]

"Most think pilots are very corrupt (possibly some are), they engage in negative activities,"

Two words, KIT DARBY of Air stInc.

I think this is just bait. But i bit, so now i'll chew.

I do not think people think pilots are corrupt. I have been around the industry for many years. We are still looked at with great respect. My comment regarding who cares what others think has more to do with the above quoted comment.

I still think our proffesion is respectable.

After all. How many other occupations have a requirment that says they must "Be of good Moral Characture". That is still a ATP requirement.

 

[Timebuilder]

After all. How many other occupations have a requirment that says they must "Be of good Moral Characture". That is still a ATP requirement.

Other than a background check to look for incarceration, I don't see any interview gouge that indicates that this ATP requirement still holds any decisive power. Unfortunately, the public still sees pilots being hauled off planes for being drunk on the job, indicted for stealing student tuition when they close their flight school, and bitter spouses and children from failed marriages.

Because we are supposed to maintain a higher standard, it is more disappointing to the public when we fail in that regard.

How many would be fired if the ATP requirement was strictly enforced by random checks in hotels?

 

[Alaskaairlines]

BE90CPT,
I agree with you. Many do look at pilots with great respect! I remeber myself 10 years back (was a child) when I didn't have a clue what aviation was all about, but the guys in the suits with stripes and hats always gave them my respect!

 

[Timebuilder]

That's my point, Dmitry.

You had a high expectation of good moral character among pilots. As a child, you had little knowlege about where men stumble in their lives. That's why we have to work a little harder than joe six pack to be considered worthy of that kind of respect.

Wouldn't you like to visit every neighborhood to find that there were no rumors about a pilot's infidelity, that his kids were on the right track, and that he was a pillar of the community, a sober and compassionate man?

That's the way I saw it until I was about twelve....