Originally Posted by Breakfast Burrito
His view was that flying an airliner was a slightly more sophisticated train driver style job and said, bluntly, that some train drivers now earned more than pilots, which was as it should be in his view, especially for FO's who he viewed as a legal requirement but otherwise woefully overpaid for their contribution.
Not an untrue comment about the $$.
First year as a trainee train driver, $45K, second year $55K, third year $95K, and now I'm going into a company that pays $140K for working only 6 months of the year driving trains, 2 weeks on-2 weeks off. I'm going to have to learn how to fish for my off fortnights.
Why anyone would want to spend megabucks to get their CPL and a bunch of other tickets, to then get a job that pays bugger all out the back of bumphuck for upto 5 years is beyond me.
Flying is meant to be
fun, and while I'm certainly not trying to take anything away from those who have done the hard yards, and are driving the heavy metal, I wouldn't recommend anyone pursue a career in flying in this day and age anymore than I would recommend a career in the military. I've got the opportunity and the $$ to do so and I can't see the sense in it. There are jobs out there with half the stress, hours to suit and that pay much more than a lot of airline jobs, thus allowing you to fly on
your terms, and to me at least, that's what its' all about.