Just so you everyone understands. Pilots refer to flight hours. That is when the parking brake has been released to when it is set again when on the gate. As a general rule pilots put in 3 hours work for 1 hour pay(pre and post flight duties and ground time in between flights are not paid). Hence comparing 80 hours that a pilot works to other professions is like comparing apples to oranges. Some airlines have duty rigs which then guarentees pay in the event they sit around the airport all day long in between flights. ie. 1 hour flight, sitting 7 hours and then 1 hour flight home would pay only 2 hours unless you have duty rigs which then would pay 1+7+1 = 9 hours duty. You devide that by 3 and get 3 hours pay for the day.
But you are right. Engineers do work hard. Long hours, technical issues, hot airplanes and ramps. I do appreciate the work that you do and providing a safe aircraft for us to fly. Both engineers and pilots are necessary for a safe flight.
Cheers