Norman Stanley Fletcher
Glad to hear you enjoy the job you have. I, too, started relatively late (mid- 30s) in professional flying and paying for all my licences & ratings from day one. You are lucky & more power to you. However, I suspect you could be in the minority.
I'm not trying to flame you, really, I'm not. Just trying to put a very different perspective on this industry & its long-term effects. Quite simply, some of us have the Midas touch, many others do not. I know plenty of friends who have never been out of work by being lucky and in the right place at the right time.
While I love flying and devoted most of my life to it, it has been nothing but heartache for me and my family.
There are ads out there for careers saying "be all you want to be" etc. However, sometimes it does not matter how hard you try, how good your attitude is, how loyal or dedicated - it simply does not matter. I'm trying real hard to think what an almost 50-year old can do to "start" another career/job who has been flying 20+ years, several times almost made the LHS but always prevented because the company suddenly went bust. Sure you take risks in life, but 5th lay off in 12 years, the enthusiasm starts to wane.
If I had my time over again & knew what I now know, I would definitely
not choose aviation. It's far easier being either a doctor or lawyer AND you make more money! How many lawyers or doctors do you know that have ever lost their jobs let alone 4 or 5 times? How many of them have to do on a regular basis, what professional pilots have to do? Very few I suspect. I'm not trying to knock other professions - just to highlight how difficult a pilot's life/career can be. I started in this profession back in the 70s, when even then, things were quite good. They have certainly gone way downhill since then, no question.
As for me, who knows? I took a chance 3 years ago after resigning from a VG job as a senior FO for what has become the leading low-cost carrier in Europe to return home to the US (commuting from London every 4-5 months for 2.5 years takes its own toll) to start with a "new" U.S. start-up, flying B757s. I stayed with this company (@ less than 1/2 my previous salary - hey, money is not everything) working my way up to number 1 FO on the seniority list, stayed with them through 2+ years of bankruptcy, involuntarily gave up 15% of my gross salary to "save" the airline, started my Capt upgrade, almost finishing line training/IOE, and then the whole thing went down the toilet! Not only did I lose the job, but the company ran a scam by not paying employees' legitimate medical bills and I'm still paying off these almost a year later just to keep my credit OK. Been unemployed & looking ever since & not a single interview, despite countless cv/resumes & even getting a govt. grant to get another type rating (737NG) which I successfully completed in FEb - but still nothing.
I'm trying to change my way of thinking but again, what does someone my age do? How can I get another (decent?) job for which I neither have experience nor qualifications, if I cannot even get an interview for something I am extremely well qualified & experienced for?
So.....life is not always rosy, Norman, for some of us. Be VERY thankful for what little (or lot) you have & hope luck stays with you for the whole of your career... remember, there's always someone worse off than you & probably through no fault of their own. Aviation is more prevalent to this kind of thing than almost any other career field. When it's good it's great but when it's down, it's the absolute pits.
Yes, I would dearly love to drag myself out of bed @ 0400 and park 2 miles from the terminal and go through that wonderful security and then be dealyed for an hour because we lost our slot. I used to do exactly that & was as enthusiastic as you. Some of us do not have even that luxury now!!!!
P. S. By the way, can anyone make use of THREE ATPLs, five type ratings etc. ?...I can't use them ....going cheap on eBay!!
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Pie in the Sky......It's Nice To Be Important, but It's More Important to Be Nice!!
