Hear, hear, Artie.
I have loads of Uni mates who went into the City. They earn double my pittance but I'd wager I work fewer hours and have more fun. Working in the City is not 'fun'. None of my friends ever discuss their jobs out of work. They all want to know about flying. I also live in a far nicer house with half the mortgage of my friends because I don't pay City prices. Oh, and I get far more quality time with my child (temporarily, due to my current basing).
I can only presume talktomegoose has been watching too much Top Gun (great movie
) or working at professional recruitment fairs! There is a place in the profession for that kind of enthusiasm and, yes, there are the odd occasion where there is a perceived glamour. However, that is on the decline due to the deteriorating terms and conditions under which we serve our time. To suggest we all sign on the dotted line to seek such superficial rewards is nonsense.
By the way, I did as much actual study for the ATPL as I did for my two degrees, each of which were pretty undemanding despite being a a red brick Uni in very well regarded academic subjects. So, don't assume a degree is difficult: any idiot can get one from any number of the plethora of universities. Many people who get degrees would struggle with the ATPL let alone the basic flying, IR or TR. Yet ironically, in my opinion it's the dumbing down of the ATPL (multiple choice questions do not require you to understand the subject matter) that has made it too easy to become a commercial pilot.
Truckflyer and Superpilot
We've all experienced the cultural differences. Paradoxically it's one of the things I love about flying. I've met people from so many different backgrounds and nationalities in my airline. There are stereotypes and some days you have to bite your tongue or resist saying "Your controls" because they might as well fly the plane...but I must add that I have also flown with people from certain countries where issues are said to exist with CRM or attitudes to SOPs who have been inspirational pilots. Ironically, my least favourite pilots are just as often those from my own culture as from abroad.
