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I'm thinking of ejecting. Any last hail Marys out there?

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I'm thinking of ejecting. Any last hail Marys out there?

Old 2nd Mar 2015, 06:03
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I'm thinking of ejecting. Any last hail Marys out there?

I have my hands on the ejection handles from this industry. Now, simple question. Is there a company out there that you would actually recommend? I can relocate but I want some kind of dignity. Management that keeps a promise, a salary that arrives on time, a roster that doesn't cause chronic fatigue and a sense om team work. Perhaps a flight deck where the discussion from briefing to shut down is not about worry over getting fired or rumours that the next salary will be cut in half. If all I get at the new job is a sweaty wad of currency then I'll take my chances as a stripper.

I'm current, over 7000hrs with 2500 Pic on medium jets.

Like I said, I could just as happily set the parking brake and walk away. It will have to be a career position or a new career. Many thanks.
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Old 2nd Mar 2015, 06:19
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Pull the handle.
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Old 2nd Mar 2015, 06:22
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I feel your pain. I pulled the handle at New Year. There is life after and you'll realise only then how wound up and fatigued you actually were. Have you presumably something to go to or something to pay the bills?

I miss the flying but not as much as I thought. I really miss my colleagues. However I have reprised family life and there's no substitute for that.

Best of luck to you.
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Old 2nd Mar 2015, 07:07
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I'am also considering it BUT i am afraid i will miss it. Also the money issue is a factor i am afraid of. For those who did, my deepest respect for you.
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Old 2nd Mar 2015, 07:08
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If you pull the ejection handle, you may end up like Goose....
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Old 2nd Mar 2015, 07:14
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Not necessarily , somethingclever has plenty of time to stabilize the ship, find the center of the envelope, choose a suitable location for landing then BOOM.....job done.
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Old 2nd Mar 2015, 07:29
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Electrician / Plumber / Ventilation technician. At least in Scandiland there is a shortage of skilled labour in these areas.
If I felt the need to jump ship, I would go for electrician or ventilation technician because in my line of work I have already been exposed to enough ****...
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Old 2nd Mar 2015, 08:46
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Been there but saw the light.

I was also very close to quitting this industry after just a year of landing my first paid job in 2012. I learnt to fly in my teens at the turn of the century and despite plans to go commercial in the early 2000s, I ended up in the technology industry as a contractor. I still take up the odd contract in between flying jobs till this day so never quite left the industry. In fact, I’m writing from the office PC right now. New flying position starts in a few months.

I also have a love/hate relationship with the tech industry. I love working with tech, I enjoy the diversity and the money is…(well, let’s just say it’s more than what a mid-level BA captain would clear at the end of the month), but honestly speaking, the industry is full of cowboys and wingers, particularly in management (and it's getting worse). If it’s one thing I can’t stand, it’s phonies and they are everywhere in IT (not just aviation ). The IT environments’ of big companies are becoming hybrid pieces of junk that are incredibly difficult to support and develop as management continue to reduce cost by outsourcing to India where a monkey say, monkey-do attitude prevails and common sense is severely lacking. Added to that: The view is crap; I have to commute by train/tube daily and constantly have to take my work/thoughts home with me in preparation for the next day. That is no great life either I can assure you. As a result of the love/hate relationship, half the time the money is simply not worth the aggravation and I’ve frequently walked away from contracts before they expired just to get my sanity back.

When I landed my first commercial flying job, I was at the top of my game in my old industry and thus had to start off at the bottom of the pit. I was subjected to stupidity and inefficiencies the likes of which I didn’t think existed anywhere. How could the airline industry prosper with so much nonsense was my first thought. Everything from hiring practices through to training, the mind numbingly duplicative SOPs and receiving a pay check was a complete disaster. Where I flew, the skippers were mostly pyschos with zero personality and inability to comprehend that a 30 year old might actually know a thing or two about life despite being new to flying. I ran away from the place with no firm job offer from anyone else! It was at this point, I questioned all and found myself at a very low point in life. Luck changed, I then found a seasonal position which allowed me to fly in the summer and earn decent money doing what I used to do in the winter but there was never any guarantees of getting the right base. As such whenever I was away from home, I would be £1k out of pocket just to live in two places (family at home).

This year I believe I have finally found what appears to be the perfect job. It’s local, pay is above average for new FOs, perks are average to decent and it’s a perm contract from day one but with option to go part season. From what I’ve heard, I can expect around 650-700 hours per year and almost everyone is very happy to be there. Oh and working for a unionised company, never have done that! I am honestly looking forward to it all after all the hardship I’ve endured just to get a job in the land I call home! Sure, it has it’s down sides but everything in life does. You have to experience both sides to make the best decision. Of course, I cannot continue to be the same high rolling tech specialist I am when I’m not flying. However, I’ve just launched a new business idea that will enable me to keep a finger in the tech world pie, whilst making that little bit extra on the side of my permanent salary.
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Old 2nd Mar 2015, 09:11
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Sorry for my caustic comment earlier.

I'm a regional jet pilot, put up with all the and trauma that you describe, and put up with it for years. My ex colleagues are still putting up with it. I feel their pain.

But now, eesa happy time for me! And maybe it could be for you too.

Answer, simples. Leave the UK.

I now get paid 7500/ month. No tax.
I do the same work, but less of it. I'm treated like a minor celeb. Have a lovely young GF, and have never been happier. I dread my visits to the UK.

If you are unhappy with your lot, do something about it.

You can't always have what you want. But sometimes, you get what you need.
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Old 2nd Mar 2015, 09:29
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I had a neighbor who was a cargo capt.

One day he pulled it, and bought a tip-top little flat in an old watermill transformed in 6 flats.

He lives in a wonderful valley, surrounded by a gentle river, in a touristic little town in the center of Europe, the owner pays him the basic salary of the country (1500€) and he is the manager of the lot.

Takes care of the bills, optimizes the oil consumption in winter in Excel, has a great family life.

Nobody (nearly) to report to.

What else should anyone need?

I didn't really understand him at that time. This was before I started my career in south east Asia.
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Old 2nd Mar 2015, 11:52
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Hear the Bang!
See em Fly.
Martin Baker rules the Sky......
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Old 2nd Mar 2015, 13:43
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I might know of a decent company or two, but they're not hiring and might not do so for a while. How about instruction?

Have you considered any academic courses? You might find some possibilities in Scandinavia, if that's your turf.

I've heard stories of sick-of-the-job captains who got somewhat revitalised by some good old hands-on general aviation. I can really recommend gliders.

Best of luck.
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Old 2nd Mar 2015, 17:45
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as I come to the end of 2 weeks leave, I truly wish I could pull the handle as I know by the end of next week I'll be as knackered as I was 2 weeks ago!
Sadly too old, too unskilled for another job, mouths to feed and bills to pay, so I'll dream on and quietly envy those that have the balls and skills to enable them out of what has become a 2nd rate job. Oh, and I'm one of the lucky ones as far as employer is concerned.
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Old 3rd Mar 2015, 08:51
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If I could turn back time...

I gave up airline flying as a Captain in my thirties about fifteen years ago and I can honestly say that it was the best decision I ever made.

For the previous decade I was almost permanently tired, hassled and underpaid.

If I had my time again I certainly would not have put myself through all the stress and financial hardship that I suffered to gain my ATPL.

Initially I did miss the flying, however, that soon passed and now I would not return to professional flying under any circumstances.

Having followed the industry since I returned to my previous profession, I do feel sympathy for today's flightcrews.
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Old 3rd Mar 2015, 09:10
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Let me know if you find that new great job in the sky!!it ain't the sand pit for sure..Asia is trashed..and assuming you can breath without life support, you'll need a lung pump after 2 years..can I suggest Twin Otters in Vanuatu?..Atr in Tonga...Fly Africa?..corporate in Japan...may take your hand off that handle for a taste longer...
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Old 3rd Mar 2015, 13:02
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Slight thread creep here but, the worryingly frequent comment throughout this thread is that most who are still flying commercially are all "tired" and "knackered"! Not good is it.
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Old 3rd Mar 2015, 13:17
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I am in the same situation as macdo, I wish there was a way out but am too old and unskilled to find a job paying anything over minimum wage.

Good luck for the future I hope it all works out for you.
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Old 3rd Mar 2015, 13:27
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One RAF Tristar captain retiring at 55 decided he couldn't be bothered to learn about why exhaust valves are filled with sodium and other such non-essential rubbish, so he became a bus driver for the local Oxford bus company.

He was very happy with his new career, and as he pointed out, it wasn't much different. Just a lot less miles and a lot less fatigue.
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Old 3rd Mar 2015, 13:56
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I'd negotiate a part-time roster, or seasonal one. See how you feel then, both mentally & physically. 50% or 75% should be possible for any company. Indeed, is it not they case they have to show why they say No? Seasonal, with 75% in summer & 50% in winter might also work for you. It's not so all or nothing.
I empathise and spent my last 12 years at 50% the normal rate, but also I wasn't an employee. For those years it was very tolerable. The thought of full-time as an employee is not an option. That is both the disruptive working life-style and the common degrading work environment created by those at the top. Considering how far the technology has advanced and modernised it's a great mystery why the management style has reversed and now resembles that of middle ages 'Lord of the manor' with the forelock saluting peasants, or the mill owning robber barons of the 19th century. But we are not alone in this puddle of poo. Many industries now use 'zero hour contractors', much to the distaste of some UK MP's who spoke out about the practice. I note they didn't offer any solution or legislation, just condemnation. No doubt the share holding lobby would urge them to back off. All the EU labour employment legislation has not protected against such an explosion of abuse. One wonders just what they do all day long in the ivory towers of Brussels.
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Old 3rd Mar 2015, 14:47
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I can only empathise

I wish you well in your endeavours. Being an airline pilot was all I ever wanted to do from the age of 5, ended up in a well paid IT career and then decided to follow the dream in my early thirties. I was well paid and well rested in my old IT career and crucially I was off at the same time as my wife and child. I enjoyed my leisure time because I wasn't feeling completely exhausted after work and at weekends.

Eight years of regional/low cost aviation has been a variety of highs and lows - on a good day with an amiable colleague it's more enjoyable than my old IT life for sure, but the rosters are unbelievably fatiguing and it's my belief that the workload is detrimental to health, wellbeing, a family life and safety. I still don't earn what I earned as a lower level IT manager in 2002!!

Like many of you I'm tired of feeling knackered and feeling 'owned' by my employer, I am trying to go part time while also exploring quitting the rat race and starting a business - maybe a B&B or some kind of property investment/rental thing that means I can work at home, determine my own hours, be with my family e.g. when Daughter comes home from school, have time to exercise, read, relax - basically something that gives me a high quality of life in return for a modest income. As I work for a regional airline the money's not too hard to beat!!

If I knew then what I know now I'd have skipped the expenditure at Oxford and gone straight for the property investment and then taken a share in a Europa or something to toodle around in. Quite frankly I wouldn't miss the flying at all, the work life balance is appalling and the profession has gone down the tubes financially unlike IT, Consulting, medicine, law, accounting where you can still enjoy a very comfortable upper middle class lifestyle and stay in a country you want to live in.
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