Saturday, September 24, 2011

"Pilot's don't work"

I'm sure I caught EVERY pilot wife with that header! I hope it irratates you as much as it does me. Ok, here is the scenario.

Sitting at lunch with a few former co-workers and a friend says, "Yeah, tell them where your husband was headed yesterday?" (Side note - this happens a lot, actually. I think my husband's travels are cool, so I don't mind sharing. I just try not to be annoying and bring it up first. Only my closest friends are given that privilege!)

So I mention that DH flew from Las Vegas to Honolulu yesterday then had the day in Honolulu today before heading back to Las Vegas.

THAT opened a can of worms, you know because these three 50+ year old ladies know ALL ABOUT the industry.

"Pilot's never work"
"They always have three to four weeks off at a time"
"And they make so much!"

Please people. If we weren't in a resteraunt, my head would have spun and I would have divulged in a 40 minute conversation about the stupidity of those statements. So just to clear up any confusion non-pilot individuals may have, you get to hear it.

The first statement is loaded. For one, please realize that when pilots aren't working, they aren't paid. Just like most people. Plus, they are hourly and that hour starts at take-off and landing. That means commuting to work (typically in a different state), pre-flight checks, loading and unloading of passengers, etc. Lots of hours go into one hour of work.

Second, I don't know many pilots that are off three to four weeks at a time unless they are furloughed, and I have never seen that as a positive. Pilots are home several days in a row, but they are also gone. Away from family, friends and everything familiar. I've never done the math, but if you added up the hours a business, 9-5 man spends at home at night and during the weekends and the hours a pilot does, I'm almost positive a majority of the time, the business man comes out on top.

As for the last point, if they land the right job at the right company, they have the potential to make a lot. For the rest of them, I'll leave you with the article BFF Tyler posted.

Pilots can earn less the airport window washers

I must apologize for the rant. Since it is a little whiny, I'm not going to particularly advertise this post. Just needed to vent a little bit and ask people in the general population to be conscious of their diction. I am guilty of this as well but must always remember that I don't know what battle someone else may be fighting.

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