Best post I have seen in a while, Henry. Thanks for sharing.
I have been here a good 15 years, kids still running around barefoot ('cause I keep making them) and wife enjoys her life & work here so much she does not want to leave Dubai once I stop flying. And stop flying I will, at one point, especially with the insane rosters EK is giving us bi-motor chaps these days. Sooner rather than later. But, strangely enough, I still enjoy going to work, I fly with great FO's 95% of the time, enjoy the network and layovers.
Would I come to EK today?
Hell no.
Did I do the right thing back then, leaving my northern European flag carrier?
Hell yes.
Any regrets? None at all. Seriously. None. Best decision ever.
Looking at my fellow aviators back home today, hating going to work on a daily basis, all I envy them is the large pension they will earn once they stop flying.
Becoming a pilot these days is not something I will encourage friends or family. The glory days are well and truly gone.