Is ours such a bad life?
Ok, this is not a rumour,nor is it news as the forum was once called so it may be redirected but meanwhile may I respectfully ask you to pause briefly and think about why you became pilots.
So many threads either whinge on about terms and conditions or descend into slanging matches, even scoring points on grammar or spelling, that I feel many of us have forgotten what a privileged position we are in. I realise that there are many problems within the industry and am not trying to suggest that all is rosey merely to inject a shot of positivity.
I can appreciate a 35 year career guy being a little cynical but I also meet 250hr pilots complaining about what a cr&p job they have and I wonder why they don`t leave and work in industry.
We are paid for what we CAN do not what we actually do but isn`t this also part of the satisfaction of being an airline pilot ?.On a good day, say an early Geneva or climbing out of Milan at sunrise we can see all the beauty of Mother Nature from our office window whilst on a bad day we work harder but have the tremendous satisfaction of breaking cloud at minima, laying off the drift just right for that "greaser"(well,in my dreams) or even dealing with the bells and red captions.
We often don`t think about our passengers reasons for travelling but just occasionally see a family reunited as we walk back through the arrivals hall or see a babe in arms boarding and realise what trust these people place in us.
Does "High Flight" or "Jonathan Livingstone Seagull" still bring a lump to your throats or is it time to get a real job?
Rant over, now back to join in the "stinking thinking" in the crew room next time I am called out from standby.