Airline flying is stressful, noisy, boring and subject to incredible pressures from beancounters, schedules, ATC, and the dreaded management.
If it wasn't in my blood i would have given it up. But it is in my blood, I've known all my life this is what I wanted to do. The dream of it is very different to the reality - in many ways worse, but in most ways simply different.
But there's something about the adrenaline rush as you pound down the runway in 150tons of metal, the flush of pleasure as you grease it down after a textbook approach, the feeling of omniscience as you look down on an entire country at night, the crystal clear starry nights, shooting stars, rainbows and bursting from murky overcast into glorious sunshine at 6.00am that stirs you inside like nothing else. And this on a daily basis!
I can live with early dark morning starts, long delays, CBs, windshear, tech problems, premenstrual hosties, psychotic passengers and erratic Spanish ATC because at the end of the day I AM AN AIRLINE PILOT and I've grafted all my life to get there. I may jump ship, but I'm not dumping this career! As long as nobody takes it away from me, I'm not going to give it up myself.
Do I really want to do this job? Hell yes!! And if anyone had told me how bleak the situation was when i started training, I still would have done it. As a wise man said, if the odds are a million to one, there's still a chance. And I'm damn glad I took it. And if you're reading this and wondering whether to go for it - well, go figure!