Originally Posted by
Chiefttp
Vokess55,
You wrote;
“The majority of us just want to have a good day out, keep a roof over our heads and food on the table and get our kicks elsewhere.”
I now see where your coming from…some people view Flying as a job, nothing more, Fly the Jet, get paid, go home….get your kicks elsewhere.
Others view the job as a passion, for some it’s a lifelong love of aviation, aircraft and everything associated with flying. I love hearing stories from military guys who’ve seen amazing things flying amazing aircraft..I also love hearing stories from pilots who took the general aviation path to the airlines like my Son, who is currently flying 777’s. Many of my friends own their own private aircraft, and some have built their own aircraft. Great pilots with interesting backgrounds and great stories.
To me and many others this profession is not, engage the autopilot, get vectors to a coupled ILS and don’t get in trouble or visit the Chief pilot, it’s something much more. it’s the difference between a Pilot, and an Aviator……to each his own, enjoy the links..
I don’t disagree with what you say, except that most pilots will find themselves somewhere in the middle. I love my job, but I also want to be able to do it for another 30 years. I love the lifestyle (the last two years aside) it allows me to lead. But I also love to keep my stress levels low enough to allow me to reach retirement alive. Times have changed. Radar almost everywhere, FDM, FTLs stretched to their limits, everyone having a camera. Every mistake is going to be picked up and every action scrutinised. If I level bust in London airspace on a departure trying to intercept a VOR radial, the first question I’m going to be asked is why weren’t I using the AFDS system? The answer of “well I just love being an aviator” simply isn’t going to cut it. In my airline it would probably land me in the simulator with a black mark next to my name, possibly for the rest of my career. In others, it would almost certainly be a week to pack your belongings and get out of the country.
Whether or not you agree with the way people are trained, the path they take, the magenta line etc is something you’d need to ask the airlines, not the new pilots simply taking the path that will open the most doors to them. All I’d say is look at the connoisseurs of low hour cadet hiring - Ryanair, Wizzair and easyJet - and count the number of hull losses they’ve had over the past 20 years.