Why so many think of pilots this way?

[Alaskaairlines]

Hello guys!

I have a question to the guys who actually would know nore than a, a future airline pilot!

I have heard lots of peoples opinions about pilots, some are positive, and lots are skeptic and have negative remarks!

Most think pilots are very corrupt (possibly some are), they engage in negative activities, think they hit on every FA that comes into sight and so on....

Why is this so? I don't agree with the majority of the feedback the normal civilian gives, go figure!

Also, post anything you have heard people, who have totally no idea what they are talking about, say.

 

[Hubie]

Re: Why so many think of pilots this way

Most think pilots are very corrupt (possibly some are), they engage in negative activities, think they hit on every FA that comes into sight and so on....

Corrupt? Negative behavior?

This I gotta here about…

Possibly flame bait but I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt…

 

[Skank]

Corrupt? What opportunity exactly do we have for corruption? Maybe we skim a little of the fuel from every flight to sell on the black market? Or we charge an illicit toll to each passenger? Or do we perhaps, replace our new tires with old retreads, and resell the new ones?
Please, enlighten us on any other scams we've been missing out on.

 

[CRJ puppy]

Well honestly, I make a killing stealing those little snack packets and then reselling them at bars to drunks at night. I think I netted $30,000 last yr. (very little overhead as I already have room in my flight bag to smuggle them out). Almost got caught going through security one time as all the foil from the cheese cracker baggies looked suspect when my bag was scanned...

Had no idea the passengers were suspicious, but maybe it's those drunks when they sober up the next day with the wrappers in their pockets and the foul snack taste in their mouths...

 

[Swass]

Flame Bait City

 

[Timebuilder]

Most think pilots are very corrupt (possibly some are), they engage in negative activities, think they hit on every FA that comes into sight and so on....

I think that what you are referring to is moral corruption, from the standpoint of the general public.

Some of this is firmly laid at the feet of Hollywood. The Captain is, or has been, having an affair with the innocent (?) young (back in the 70's) flight attendant (stewardess), and he is in the process of a bitter divorce with his wife of ten years. The FA is pregnant, and he is encouraging her to have an abortion.

Sound like a familiar movie? It is so cliche'd it ends up in parodies. Unfortunately, the divorce rate among pilots is even higher than the skyrocketing rate for the rest of America. Being away from home with attractive women (not necessarily the cabin crew) is a temptation that some guys find irresistable.

The neighbors see a man (still a majority) that lives well, has a nice expensive home and car, and isn't home a lot. They hear his kids compalin that he isn't around when his kids visit their own kids. His wife confides with other wives that she suspects he is seeing someone on the side, etc. Eventually, she says that he "ran off" with a younger woman.

All of this adds up to a suspicion about the moral foundation of ALL pilots, and their commitment to their families. You and I know that this generalization often isn't true, and that you and I don't fit this profile, particularly those of us who don't hold a line these days at a major airline. No nice house or car these days for many of us.

Also, post anything you have heard people, who have totally no idea what they are talking about, say.

I hope this fills that bill.

 

[LJDRVR]

How does the old saw go?

A pilot want 3 things in life:

To make as much money as his family thinks he does,
To get as much time off as his neighbors thinks he has,
And to get as much ____ as his wife thinks he's getting.

And he wants it all retroactively!

Cheers,

 

[120% Torque]

I think Timebuilder pretty much hit the nail on the head. People tend to mostly remember the negative and Hollywood usually characterizes pilots as cocky, selfish guys that have a weakness for being disshonest and cheating. It also doesn't help to have books like "The Pilots Wife" being discussed in round table discussions like Oprahs book club (ok I was flipping throught the channels and caught part of this episode). By the end of this particular discussion and after all the women admitted to knowing a cheating pilot that lived down the street I swear they were going to round up a few pilots to burn at the stake! Total nonsense but lets face it people will believe just about anything these days and pilots are an easy target.

 

[Alaskaairlines]

Hello guys!

I am not the one who's saying this, but the one who's getting all sorts of unneeded "advice" from the general public. So I came here to see what you have to say about it.

Timebuilder posted exactly what I was talking about, thankfully most people aren't thinking the way they used to, and most know that pilots are a very professional group!

What else?

 

[flyhard]

I think that pilots are held to such a high standard that the general public thinks we cannot make mistakes. The thing they fail to realize is that we are human.

I will say this. If you checked the reputation of doctors, lawyers, and other professionals, I think you would find that pilots would come out ahead everytime. Just my opinion, of course I am a little bias.

 

[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....

 

[Alaskaairlines]

Well Said Timebuilder!

Thats the way I looked at it back then! And now to! There are lots of pilots around that make a big positive impact in there neighborhood, etc.

 

[wil]

Johnny, do you like movies about gladiators?