I was a bit young at the time of the going down of the 89 nastiness....but I know several 'Glorified Bus Drivers' that went on to remain as CX 'A' scalers for many years and retiring obscenely wealthy...some so much so that they returned home early to 'retire' in GA....
....that was not the case for ALL of course!, but there are those that privately acknowledge it was the best thing that ever happened to them...$ wise....