66.49 years average, at my shop.
14 more A350s for SouthernJets
- Thread starter bike21
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Cherokee_Cruiser
Bronteroc
As in the age a pilot pops? Damn. What is going on?
Stone Cold
Well-Known Member
Airline life. If you think anything we do is healthy, I have a surprise for you. From the radiation, to irregular sleep schedules (I honestly haven't had a normal sleep schedule in over 15 years) and unhealthy eating, we all croak early. It's probably the same at your airline.
BobDDuck
Island Bus Driver
None of the major LCC carriers in the US are any better. Some are worse. JetBlue has a suicide problem going on now, let alone a short lifespan issue.
I'd guess as rest rules continue to get better and aircraft cabin altitude continue to get lower the lifespan will go up... but not in either of our careers.
The average age for the final exit, Alaska has those statistics too and they’re probably not much better even without the long hall flying.
theres a guy I see that’s carrying around a gauge and you basically ridiculously increase your radiation exposure about 290-ish. It’s worse polar, but even in the lower domestic latitudes, it’s shocking. I’ll try to steal some photos.
Stone Cold
Well-Known Member
No offense, and with all due respect, I really don't want to know. I already know it's bad. I'm good without knowing the details.
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ClarkGriswold
Non Nutritive Cereal Varnish Engineer
Or you can have long international layovers and bring your family along.I guess to each their own. I just travel to Europe on vacation when I wanna see stuff. At $300 grand, I don’t care if I overnight in Paris, TX or Paris, France.
It’s nice to have the option of international. But TAFB matters too. We just got 5 day trips and I did one, it sucked when you’re used to 1-4 day trips. With young kids at home, it’s nice to be around frequently.
I would bid back to back 6 day CDG trips and it was. ”Cheap Pilot” 10-ish day vacation. All the credit for taking the bride to Paris, but far lower hotel expenses.
No offense, and with all due respect, I really don't want to know. I already know it's bad. I'm good without knowing the details.
Oh man, I know I’m screwed. My doctor basically found that my “oxidative stress” jumped like a champ after coming back domestic. I take anti-inflammatories and NRF2 suipplements like they’re Tic Tacs.
Autothrust Blue
Welcome aboard the Washington State Ferries
Autothrust Blue
Welcome aboard the Washington State Ferries
I'm more making a commentary about the lack of science that was done to establish 60, and the lack of science done for moving the lack of science mandate to 65. Namely, there was no science either way.
With guys corking it at 66, one wonders if 65 is really a good idea at all.
bike21
9-5 Ruins Lives
Wake up dead
Cherokee_Cruiser
Bronteroc
Moving Age 60 to 65 in the United States has to do with the science of lack of pensions after 9/11 to allow the seniors to work longer to make up money.
bike21
9-5 Ruins Lives
Thus I don’t buy the, “wait until I retire to travel bit”. • that. Montenegro bound in 3 weeks.
A
Adler
Guest
Nick
Well-Known Member
Like @Adler has mentioned above, I think the best part of seeing a place is off the beaten path. That’s not to say it isn’t worth seeing the Louvre or the Vatican but the good stuff is out in the country side.
Of course, that doesn’t matter much because the comparison isn’t against a personal vacation, it’s against laying over in Fargo or Winnipeg as an alternative. But that makes it sound bad...a junior person might find themselves in YWG or FAR in the winter but AMS is fairly lousy weather that time of the year, too. Sure there are dozens of museums and cultural sights to see on rainy days in any European city, but on the flip side, I really enjoy my coast bike ride routine in SAN, SFO...urban hikes up in the hills of LA, 24 hours on Mexican beaches in the winter, etc. And all of that without ever waking up to an alarm clock, nor flying a redeye, ever.
I’m looking forward to sampling international flying someday because it’d be silly to no try it if one works for an airline that has it. I guess you’d never know if you are one of those people that goes to it and never goes back to domestic. It’d be a nice change of pace from domestic flying.
Having said that, my personal plan is to not bid it until I have a viable “escape route” to a left seat in the event that I happen to really not enjoy it. Sure, two years seat lock goes fast but it’d likely be not much fun to take a pay cut and go back to narrow body right seat, even if very senior. I can hold two international categories now but I see what reserves get and honestly, I find most of it ugly.
I don’t know how I’d approach a trip that departs at 23:00, gets you to a hotel at 08:00 home time, and then you’re waking up at midnight home time that same night to go back to the states.
I’d wager it would be healthier to smoke a pack of cigarettes a day than to fly five of those 3-day trips per month. Yes, it signs in at 9PM, and yes, it’s done at noon, but at what cost? Two consecutive nights of horrendous sleep schedule, so ten for the month, or over 100 nights of almost completely missed sleep over the year.
That’s a recipe for not only sleep apnea, but also a host of systems in the body that are being mistreated and will eventually develop problems without proper sleep, no ifs ands or buts about it. There is a chemical rinsing effect in the brain that clears the plaque that causes Alzheimer’s disease...skip REM sleep, skip that nightly process. Cravings for “bad” food (devilish how the body works!) when short on sleep. Blood pressure, cardiac issues, the list never ends.
Of course, the above is a worst case scenario...I see international trips in the bid package that head out at 16:00, get you to the hotel in Europe at 01:00 home time (I’d still be awake anyway), and have a wake up time the next day of something like 08:00 back home. Less commutable, yes — but much more restful. I think I’d manage much better with such a trip.
Bottom line seems to be, a junior domestic schedule can be pretty bad and the whacky hours of international flying might not be much worse at all, in fact even better.
But being more senior and flying domestic trips that never have anything before 11AM eastern time and never have a redeye, well, junior international will be lost sleep in comparison.
Widebody domestic is pretty damn good. I still like the occasional international trip. It helps me get out of my comfort zone. You can definitely tell when you fly with someone that only flies domestic. I never want to be that guy. As far as the radiation and hazards go, it is what it is. If I had a office job I would probably get expired in a road rage incident by 40.
My biggest concern is getting replaced and some "disrupter" taking away my livelihood.
My biggest concern is getting replaced and some "disrupter" taking away my livelihood.