Why I Left an Airline Pilot Career

[JustinS]

This career just isn’t for everyone.... It’s become glaringly obvious as I get further into this business, and I see friends, colleagues, and former coworkers drop like flies. Flight training. Loved it. CFI. Loved it. CRJ FO living in base 10 minutes from the airport. Loved it. CRJ CA commuting for a year and a half. mostly loved it minus being gone a lot. CRJ CA driving 1 hour to work in an amazing base with awesome trips. loved it. A320 commuting to reserve for 2 months. Loved it. A320 FO driving an hour to work and flying typically 2 leg days. love it. Furlough staring me in the face..... Ehhh it will pass with time, but man I love this career. I wouldn’t change it for a thing. @Autothrust Blue always tells me I work too much, but the reality of it is I just love what I do. It’s everything I’ve ever dreamed of both the good and the bad. I wouldn’t change a thing about my career, and I won’t be quitting this career until I’m forced to.

All of my jobs have worn me down one way or another, but everyday I go to work I just can’t shake how much I love it. Probably also helps that I’m just such a big airplane nerd. Most pilots aren’t really airplane nerds.

If you want to do something you’ll find any excuse to do it. If you don’t want to do something you’ll find any excuse not to. It’s really that simple.

 

[Autothrust Blue]

@Autothrust Blue always tells me I work too much, but the reality of it is I just love what I do.

Because until recently you did!

 

[ASpilot2be]

Because until recently you did!

You work harder than him. It's tough work being vague.

 

[Autothrust Blue]

You work harder than him. It's tough work being vague.

Not unlike pimping, it’s not easy, but it’s necessary.

 

[JordanD]

This career just isn’t for everyone.... It’s become glaringly obvious as I get further into this business, and I see friends, colleagues, and former coworkers drop like flies. Flight training. Loved it. CFI. Loved it. CRJ FO living in base 10 minutes from the airport. Loved it. CRJ CA commuting for a year and a half. mostly loved it minus being gone a lot. CRJ CA driving 1 hour to work in an amazing base with awesome trips. loved it. A320 commuting to reserve for 2 months. Loved it. A320 FO driving an hour to work and flying typically 2 leg days. love it. Furlough staring me in the face..... Ehhh it will pass with time, but man I love this career. I wouldn’t change it for a thing. @Autothrust Blue always tells me I work too much, but the reality of it is I just love what I do. It’s everything I’ve ever dreamed of both the good and the bad. I wouldn’t change a thing about my career, and I won’t be quitting this career until I’m forced to.

All of my jobs have worn me down one way or another, but everyday I go to work I just can’t shake how much I love it. Probably also helps that I’m just such a big airplane nerd. Most pilots aren’t really airplane nerds.

If you want to do something you’ll find any excuse to do it. If you don’t want to do something you’ll find any excuse not to. It’s really that simple.

Yep. Having the discussion about furlough vs making less money on a leave vs getting displaced and having to move/commute to god knows where. Both parents are extremely high risk, so it's not like moving into Mom's basement and commuting is even an option right now. No way around it, it sucks and there isn't really a great outcome either way you slice it.

 

[Screaming_Emu]

Not unlike pimping, it’s not easy, but it’s necessary.

“you see, a pimps love...”

 

[Autothrust Blue]

Yep. Having the discussion about furlough vs making less money on a leave vs getting displaced and having to move/commute to god knows where. Both parents are extremely high risk, so it's not like moving into Mom's basement and commuting is even an option right now. No way around it, it sucks and there isn't really a great outcome either way you slice it.

Poop sandwiches should be frankly described as such.

 

[Bamaaviator]

This career just isn’t for everyone.... It’s become glaringly obvious as I get further into this business, and I see friends, colleagues, and former coworkers drop like flies. Flight training. Loved it. CFI. Loved it. CRJ FO living in base 10 minutes from the airport. Loved it. CRJ CA commuting for a year and a half. mostly loved it minus being gone a lot. CRJ CA driving 1 hour to work in an amazing base with awesome trips. loved it. A320 commuting to reserve for 2 months. Loved it. A320 FO driving an hour to work and flying typically 2 leg days. love it. Furlough staring me in the face..... Ehhh it will pass with time, but man I love this career. I wouldn’t change it for a thing. @Autothrust Blue always tells me I work too much, but the reality of it is I just love what I do. It’s everything I’ve ever dreamed of both the good and the bad. I wouldn’t change a thing about my career, and I won’t be quitting this career until I’m forced to.

All of my jobs have worn me down one way or another, but everyday I go to work I just can’t shake how much I love it. Probably also helps that I’m just such a big airplane nerd. Most pilots aren’t really airplane nerds.

If you want to do something you’ll find any excuse to do it. If you don’t want to do something you’ll find any excuse not to. It’s really that simple.

I’m not an airline pilot, (yet), so I don’t have any experience in that realm of aviation, but I saw, and continue to see this all the time at the flight training/CFI level. I can tell very quickly if someone starting training from zero hours has what it takes to continue. I’m not talking about the ones who just wanna be weekend warrior private pilots and buy their own fancy airplanes to go chase 100 dollar hamburgers eventually, but the ones who wanna go from zero to hero, and do this for a career.

The ones who stuck it out, as you described, really were kind of the ‘nerdy’ types, and still are nerdy airplane people, myself included lol. The ones who will do ANYTHING to make it happen. The ones who couldn’t imagine doing anything else. Even after listening to the naysayers over the years, we took what they said and internalized it, took their advice for what it was worth instead of blowing them off, and pressed on anyway. We accept that if we fail at it, at least we tried our absolute best. I just couldn’t continue through life without at least giving aviation a try. The absolute worst in the world to me is lying on your deathbed WISHING you had done something or pursued something, but didn’t.

I definitely see this a lot with a lot of people who pushed onto the CFI level and beyond. It’s a never ending desire to keep pushing through it, no matter what, no matter the sacrifice. Knowing that QOL/pay/schedule will eventually improve is what keeps me going. And I see it in other ‘airplane nerds’ too lol.

 

[derg]

I tell my 7th graders, "Don't worry about studying during high school, the NBA draft awaits you. It's a certainty."

If you've made it, congrats and good luck! We're all counting on you. If you haven't made it yet, don't clench your sphincter.

”Work hard NOW, kids. Else, spend the rest of your life working harder and harder”

 

[derg]

Not unlike pimping, it’s not easy, but it’s necessary.

Booyyeeeeeeee whatchoo know ‘bout pimping? Game don’t recognize game!

 

[Cherokee_Cruiser]

Is pimping easy?



Professor from Fordham University: "Big Daddy Kane would say, it ain't easy"

[*Ding* that is correct!]




Barber from Brooklyn: "Hell yeah"

[*Ding* somehow that is correct....]

 

[BobDDuck]

Is pimping easy?



Professor from Fordham University: "Big Daddy Kane would say, it ain't easy"

[*Ding* that is correct!]




Barber from Brooklyn: "Hell yeah"

[*Ding* somehow that is correct....]

 

[BEEF SUPREME]

42% of the pilots at Alaska just put in a bid to leave up to 24 months. This job isn't all it's cracked up to be.

That being said my other 2 jobs coaching mountain biking and working at the bike shop are not easy either. I make more coaching mountain biking than I did as a 2nd year FO at SkyWest. The bike shop job pay is bad but the discount on bike parts is good. I wish that the industry would poop or get off the pot when it came to my furlough. I'd have a lot more free time.

I think I'm just one of those people that would live happily and very interestingly with a trust fund. Sail all over the Pacific, surf trips to remote locations, hit the local bike parks I could do that stuff for the rest of my life and happily never work another day.

Sadly I am not independently wealthy.

 

[bimmerphile]

I wish that the industry would poop or get off the pot when it came to my furlough. I'd have a lot more free time.

Didn't you get a paid leave approved? How much more time off do you need?

 

[BEEF SUPREME]

Didn't you get a paid leave approved? How much more time off do you need?

Wasn't senior enough to hold leave. A lot of us think that AS was far too conservative when they left 12% of the leaves on the table, right before the recovery stalled out.

Pretty sure furloughs will still be a thing. Just at a later date.

 

[Ayork62493]

42% of the pilots at Alaska just put in a bid to leave up to 24 months. This job isn't all it's cracked up to be.

That being said my other 2 jobs coaching mountain biking and working at the bike shop are not easy either. I make more coaching mountain biking than I did as a 2nd year FO at SkyWest. The bike shop job pay is bad but the discount on bike parts is good. I wish that the industry would poop or get off the pot when it came to my furlough. I'd have a lot more free time.

I think I'm just one of those people that would live happily and very interestingly with a trust fund. Sail all over the Pacific, surf trips to remote locations, hit the local bike parks I could do that stuff for the rest of my life and happily never work another day.

Sadly I am not independently wealthy.

What other job will pay you part of your salary to leave and go do anything else? It’s incredible they are offering this, my company is as well and being that I don’t need all of the income, someone who may need it can have it.You’re complaining about an effort to keep you employed.

 

[Autothrust Blue]

It is a little like the slow removal of the bandaid as opposed to simply ripping it off.

 

[BEEF SUPREME]

What other job will pay you part of your salary to leave and go do anything else? It’s incredible they are offering this, my company is as well and being that I don’t need all of the income, someone who may need it can have it.You’re complaining about an effort to keep you employed.

Sigh. You're saying I'm complaining about a program I volunteered to be a part of? The stupid is off the charts today.

To clarify. I am not complaining about anything. I am extremely concerned that the program will not be enough. I've sorted 2 other jobs in the meantime, planning on an involuntary furlough. Now its getting rough to hold onto those jobs as lines theoretically go back to work full time.

In the meantime the industry is still melting down. I'd rather leave AS now and sit out the turmoil. Then come back when things have settled down.

 

[BEEF SUPREME]

It is a little like the slow removal of the bandaid as opposed to simply ripping it off.

It's absolutely like that.

 

[Autothrust Blue]

It's absolutely like that.

I am so looking forward to my EIL, if I am awarded one. Considering a complete un-plug.