I'm absolutely stunned by some of the posts on here, I truly am. Yes for the most part flying nowadays is not as challenging as in the past. However, when the going gets tough it can be bloody tough.
To compare it to driving an HGV is displaying stunning ignorance of the highest degree. In really
weather in a lorry you can step on the brake and pull over. In an aircraft you are committed to seeing it through to the bitter end (in an environment that is far more complex and changeable than the M4) at the same time as ensuring the safety of hundreds of souls on board with extremely litigious families. Burning human flesh leaves a slightly larger imprint on the mind and the conscience than a supply of IKEA furniture.
I flew an approach just a couple of days ago with a last minute runway change, high, fast, heavy and thirty knots up the chuff. Walk in the park some might say, but I would love to see the outcome with just one person in the flight deck rather than two. Well actually I don't think I would.
I can't believe the attitudes of so called pilots on here that take no pride in their profession and are happy to denigrate it at every opportunity. There are obviously tendencies to self loathing that are running deep on a subconscious level here and I do not know the cause but it's disturbing to see the trend and how common it is. Grow up and have some professional pride. Yes we deserve our money, every penny. Truly baffling to hear any kind of argument otherwise.
This reduction of T's & C's is not something that is particular to pilots. This disturbing trend is happening in just about EVERY profession right now. Take a while to ponder that. Whilst you try to sit and pick holes in your career to find justification in why salaries should decrease just remember that there are a whole group of professionals in fields outside aviation who could conceivably be doing the exact same thing. Don't entertain it, fight against it.