I worked out my hourly pay rate can you guess what it is?
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I worked out my hourly pay rate can you guess what it is?
I fly 120-180 seat twin jets for a major UK airline, just worked out my hourly rate (BEFORE tax) for the time I spent at work last year. I've been doing this for somewhere between 4 and 10 years (so as not to narrow myself down too much!)
Anyone fancy a guess at what it is?
Remember this is BEFORE tax and EXCLUDING commuting time too.
It worked out at £16.69/hour. Good huh?????
Thinking of getting a job in McD's, £5.05/hour starting, low tax rate, near to my home (walk to work), FLEXIBLE hours, good promotion prospects based on merit rather than seniority.
Makes me angry when people think all airline pilots on over £100k!
Anyone fancy a guess at what it is?
Remember this is BEFORE tax and EXCLUDING commuting time too.
It worked out at £16.69/hour. Good huh?????
Thinking of getting a job in McD's, £5.05/hour starting, low tax rate, near to my home (walk to work), FLEXIBLE hours, good promotion prospects based on merit rather than seniority.
Makes me angry when people think all airline pilots on over £100k!
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hourly rate
Well, not only is this over 3 times the UK national minumum wage, but you get a vocation which will give you a professional qualification for as long as you can operate in IMC under IFR and hold a medical.
What would you like? Wafers with it?
What would you like? Wafers with it?
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What the hell is someone going to spend £16.69 per hour on and one might guess that there are per-diems, including an OTT X factor, on top to cover any spendings whilst revenuing that £16.69per hour.
Ever thought of applying to an Irish LCC? They operate twin jets and approve of people that count the pennies
Ever thought of applying to an Irish LCC? They operate twin jets and approve of people that count the pennies
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How The Hell Do I Cope!!!!
On £8.40 p/h driving up and down the motorway network of our green and pleasent land.....takin care of my mrs, my 4 kids, and my lovely new gaff.........maybe puttin in 80 hrs a week helps...i wouldnt change it for the world....count yourself lucky you have a job that the majority of people can only dream about...dont frown too much on your hourly earnings...just be happy .....Adios!!!!!!!!!!
But surely pilots are paid for their skill and expertise rather than the hours they work?
Reminds me of the allegedly true story of the US company which pioneered the air freight principal of flying the freight into a central hub, sorting same and then flying the freight out again to different destinations (sorry cannot remember the name of the company). There were severe penalties if things ran late in the night and there was a huge "hangar" with lots of conveyor belts etc to sort the freight. One night the whole system stopped and they were running round like headless chickens trying to work out what had gone wrong. They called the engineer in who reckoned he would have it fixed within a few minutes. He went to a junction box, opened same, took out his screwdriver and turned one screw, upon which all the conveyor belts etc started to work again. The company owner, somewhat relieved that all was well again asked the engineer how much he owed him. "$10,000 dollars" he replied. "$10,000 dollars - isnt that a lot ?" the owner asked. "Well", said the engineer "it would have cost you a lot more if I had not fixed the problem". The owner agreed and went off to get the money from the safe but before doing so he said "When I get back with the money I want an itemised receipt!". As he handed over the money the engineer gave him receipt with read: -
Turning screw...............................$10
Knowing which screw to turn..... .$9,990
I would suggest that being a pilot is very similar in the sense that most of the time it is, as they say, money for old rope BUT what you are really paid for is knowing what to do when things do not go accordingly to plan!
Reminds me of the allegedly true story of the US company which pioneered the air freight principal of flying the freight into a central hub, sorting same and then flying the freight out again to different destinations (sorry cannot remember the name of the company). There were severe penalties if things ran late in the night and there was a huge "hangar" with lots of conveyor belts etc to sort the freight. One night the whole system stopped and they were running round like headless chickens trying to work out what had gone wrong. They called the engineer in who reckoned he would have it fixed within a few minutes. He went to a junction box, opened same, took out his screwdriver and turned one screw, upon which all the conveyor belts etc started to work again. The company owner, somewhat relieved that all was well again asked the engineer how much he owed him. "$10,000 dollars" he replied. "$10,000 dollars - isnt that a lot ?" the owner asked. "Well", said the engineer "it would have cost you a lot more if I had not fixed the problem". The owner agreed and went off to get the money from the safe but before doing so he said "When I get back with the money I want an itemised receipt!". As he handed over the money the engineer gave him receipt with read: -
Turning screw...............................$10
Knowing which screw to turn..... .$9,990
I would suggest that being a pilot is very similar in the sense that most of the time it is, as they say, money for old rope BUT what you are really paid for is knowing what to do when things do not go accordingly to plan!
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Hello,
Was your choice man.....
You see that only after 10 years..or so...
Want more bucks?
Go work offshore (12Hours/day)..nothing to walk ...you jump from your bed to the work place... and they paid well qualified ppls..
Seem's you miss a carrer to MCD....
Regards.
Was your choice man.....
You see that only after 10 years..or so...
Want more bucks?
Go work offshore (12Hours/day)..nothing to walk ...you jump from your bed to the work place...
and they paid well qualified ppls..Seem's you miss a carrer to MCD....
Regards.
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Sorry Dave, it does not add up. 16.69 an hour? So assuming you are doing 900 hours a year that gives you an earning potential of under 16K? Before Tax!!?? A quick look at http://www.britishpilots.co.uk/Airlinerecruitment.html will show you that even the lowest salaried 120-180 seat twin jet FOs are on about 40K.
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Calculator
Yes , come on Dave , your calculator must be u/s or else you signed the worst contract ever known . I earned £14500 as the lowest of the low in 85 for Dan Air , which was not that bad -kept a family of 5 alive.
Please check your figures and let us know the outcome...........
Please check your figures and let us know the outcome...........
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Well Dave, you don't have to do it do you?
Do those figures include "allowances" I wonder? I had a neigbour once who flew for a major airline. He told me that they lived entirely off his allowances and stashed his salary every month.
Do those figures include "allowances" I wonder? I had a neigbour once who flew for a major airline. He told me that they lived entirely off his allowances and stashed his salary every month.
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Hours worked is Duty hours, you get paid for the hours at work not the hours in the air. i.e. pre flight prep. - post flight duties etc.
Most pilots where I work (large U.K. airline) are doing around 1800 duty hours a year, some close to 2000.
Some F/O's on 'a jet' are getting £24000 per year......£13.33 per hour.
The cost of their licence now is around £70000 + and a lot of hard work.
Yes it's their choice and most go on to bigger and better things but it's not all a bed of roses at first.
Most pilots where I work (large U.K. airline) are doing around 1800 duty hours a year, some close to 2000.
Some F/O's on 'a jet' are getting £24000 per year......£13.33 per hour.
The cost of their licence now is around £70000 + and a lot of hard work.
Yes it's their choice and most go on to bigger and better things but it's not all a bed of roses at first.
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Yeh you're right I did work it out with DUTY hours not flying hours, but thats fair really isn't it? I mean when I'm on duty I am working, doing flight preparations etc.
And yes my salary is over 40,000. And I have actually included allowances, so thats using the total figure. It still works out to be £16.69.
Yes I know no one asked me to do it and yes I know there are other much lower paid jobs around. But like some people have said, I have responsibility for up to 180 people up to 4 times a day, plus countless thousands of people on the ground. I trained for 2 years costing £70,000. I work unsociable hours and MOST weekends. (I got 2 weekends off in my first two years.... FACT!).
I'm just saying it don't sound a lot. I have mates on over £50/hour doing contracting (office work).
And yes my salary is over 40,000. And I have actually included allowances, so thats using the total figure. It still works out to be £16.69.
Yes I know no one asked me to do it and yes I know there are other much lower paid jobs around. But like some people have said, I have responsibility for up to 180 people up to 4 times a day, plus countless thousands of people on the ground. I trained for 2 years costing £70,000. I work unsociable hours and MOST weekends. (I got 2 weekends off in my first two years.... FACT!).
I'm just saying it don't sound a lot. I have mates on over £50/hour doing contracting (office work).
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well, sleeping in a 5 star hotel is also work...
If you count it this way, a responsible manager, politician, teacher, salesman, project manager, PR expert, journalist, artist works 24 hrs a day, and therefore comes to much lower wages - and has much less off time.
Believe it or not: Pilot is one of the easiest of the responsible jobs. You set your parking brake and go home. Everyone else can't do that.
I myself had some other jobs before and know what I'm talking about!
Dani
If you count it this way, a responsible manager, politician, teacher, salesman, project manager, PR expert, journalist, artist works 24 hrs a day, and therefore comes to much lower wages - and has much less off time.
Believe it or not: Pilot is one of the easiest of the responsible jobs. You set your parking brake and go home. Everyone else can't do that.
I myself had some other jobs before and know what I'm talking about!
Dani
Controversial, moi?
I am still trying to work out the point of your post.
The fact you get paid as you do is because you are willing to be paid that amount. If you weren't, and nobody else was either, the employer would have to pay more.
If you find it so burdensome then go and do something else which pays more.
The fact you get paid as you do is because you are willing to be paid that amount. If you weren't, and nobody else was either, the employer would have to pay more.
If you find it so burdensome then go and do something else which pays more.
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Hey Dave
I agree with you. It isn't the career we thought we were going to have when we were younger and looking at it from the wannabee perspective...
I wonder if you have thought of keeping track of how many passengers you fly in, say, a year... how much would you make per passenger? When I worked for a carrier in North America, I did this for a year and as an FO on an A319/320/321 I was making about $3.15 USD per pax per hour of stick time... it's not much when you consider our qualifications, dedication, lifestyle hardships, scrutiny, experience, safe practice, and specialized field of endeavour.
Compare what we do to what a specialist surgeon would do in a year... if they &$%# up, they will only kill one person, and lots of them don't see as many in a year as we might see in one day. As a group pilots are undervalued (globally) and culturally. It is a strange phenomenon. There is a lot of envy out there, especially from management boffins who were failures at their attempts to become pilots. What we do looks easy to the untrained eye... As a pro on the flight deck I resent the public's view of our profession as a bunch of overpaid primadonnas. I had a long and dangerous apprenticeship in the military (two different Commonwealth countries) to get where I am. I know there are thousands out there who had it harder than I did, and when some slacker or techie want to fly from LGW to ROP for 49 Sterling because they think it's their "right" it pisses me off.
Don't Let The Bastards Get You Down
Happy Contrails
k-o-t-s
I agree with you. It isn't the career we thought we were going to have when we were younger and looking at it from the wannabee perspective...
I wonder if you have thought of keeping track of how many passengers you fly in, say, a year... how much would you make per passenger? When I worked for a carrier in North America, I did this for a year and as an FO on an A319/320/321 I was making about $3.15 USD per pax per hour of stick time... it's not much when you consider our qualifications, dedication, lifestyle hardships, scrutiny, experience, safe practice, and specialized field of endeavour.
Compare what we do to what a specialist surgeon would do in a year... if they &$%# up, they will only kill one person, and lots of them don't see as many in a year as we might see in one day. As a group pilots are undervalued (globally) and culturally. It is a strange phenomenon. There is a lot of envy out there, especially from management boffins who were failures at their attempts to become pilots. What we do looks easy to the untrained eye... As a pro on the flight deck I resent the public's view of our profession as a bunch of overpaid primadonnas. I had a long and dangerous apprenticeship in the military (two different Commonwealth countries) to get where I am. I know there are thousands out there who had it harder than I did, and when some slacker or techie want to fly from LGW to ROP for 49 Sterling because they think it's their "right" it pisses me off.
Don't Let The Bastards Get You Down
Happy Contrails
k-o-t-s