Daily life as an airline pilot

I was just wondering about that. I don't understand...if you love flying, wouldn't you try to bid max days flying and minimum days off? Does airline flying suck that bad?
For example, I love doing airframe work. Freaking love it and am very passionate about it! Fabricating parts, completing complicated repairs that nobody thinks is possible, and just fixing aircraft in general, and keeping them available so they can go on a safe, successful mission is very cool. I currently commute over 2 hours each way, often voluntarily turning a 9-hr shift into a 13-hr shift, and often spend many nights here in our RON room. Sometimes working two or three weeks straight without a single day off.
The only thing I am more passionate about is flying. I guess I don't get it. There's gotta be something I'm missing since I'm not in the inner circle of professional flying yet.

I love flying.

I love being at home with my wife and kids more.
 
There is more to life than flying. I do love what I do, I genuinely enjoy my job for the most part. That said, it is only a part of my life. I enjoy other things like being home with my wife and baby boy. I enjoy surfing, golfing, hiking, spending time with family, reading, etc.

The key is balance. Flying for a living is a great job but too much of anything will get old. I'd much rather have more time off to do with what I wish.
Maybe I need a hobby then. I pretty much just love flying and sheetmetal work. Kids are all growed up. Hmmm...I guess I like to go shooting every once in a while, but I just do that in my backyard. Besides it's not really a hobby, just keeping skills sharp. I've been trying to get into doing aviation artwork, but I keep spending LOTS of time studying for my CFI and looking at floatplanes instead. It's too cold up here in Michigan to work on my Hot Rod right now, besides, I'm going to be selling it this spring, as is, to buy a floatplane to build SES time so I can find a job flying floats and taildraggers. Probably start building my Bearhawk airframe this year too.
Wow, I guess I'm pretty boring. I need to diversify. Haha!
 
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I was just wondering about that. I don't understand...if you love flying, wouldn't you try to bid max days flying and minimum days off? Does airline flying suck that bad?
For example, I love doing airframe work. Freaking love it and am very passionate about it! Fabricating parts, completing complicated repairs that nobody thinks is possible, and just fixing aircraft in general, and keeping them available so they can go on a safe, successful mission is very cool. I currently commute over 2 hours each way, often voluntarily turning a 9-hr shift into a 13-hr shift, and often spend many nights here in our RON room. Sometimes working two or three weeks straight without a single day off.
The only thing I am more passionate about is flying. I guess I don't get it. There's gotta be something I'm missing since I'm not in the inner circle of professional flying yet.

Personally, I'm still pretty happy to fly for a living, but I prefer my family, hobbies and interests, friends, and prefer spending time with them more than flying.
 
Well, our kids are all grown up and rarely ever talk to us except when they need something. Wife knows I've wanted to fly my whole life and is being super-amazing and patient by letting me spend time away while I try to get my flight career started.
After spending nearly a half-century with my eyes looking up at aircraft and dreaming of flying, with my feet planted on terra firma, I'm very eager to spend as much time in the air as I can. I haven't ever had a good opportunity to pursue that dream until now.
So, basically, no family, no hobbies, no friends, and my interests are flying and building/repairing aircraft. Well, I am who I am. Gotta own it.
I still think I'd be bidding max flight time if I had the option, but I don't fly for a living, so what do I know? Maybe that's why I don't get it.
 
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Maybe I need a hobby then. I pretty much just love flying and sheetmetal work. Kids are all growed up. Hmmm...I guess I like to go shooting every once in a while, but I just do that in my backyard. Besides it's not really a hobby, just keeping skills sharp. I've been trying to get into doing aviation artwork, but I keep spending LOTS of time studying for my CFI and looking at floatplanes instead. It's too cold up here in Michigan to work on my Hot Rod right now, besides, I'm going to be selling it this spring, as is, to buy a floatplane. Probably start building my Bearhawk airframe this year too.
Wow, I guess I'm pretty boring. I need to diversify. Haha!
Nothing wrong with any of that. Like that toward which my somewhat verbose and ineloquent post eluded, different strokes for different folks. For the most part flying is only part of who we are and what we do.

Another factor to consider is that airline flying is far less dynamic than GA flying in many respects. Part 121 flying both by design and because of the nature of the beast can become somewhat monotonous. If you're having an 'exciting' day as an airline pilot the odds are it isn't the good kind of exciting.

But it still beats a real job ;)
 
I'll give you an idea of what life is like for an LCC guy. This particular LCC doesn't offer commutable pairings. They have either "AM" pairings or "PM" pairings. Which means that with very few exceptions, you would most likely commute to your domicile the day before your trip begins, or commute home the day after your trip ends. Either way you'll be giving up part of a day off to get into position or to get home. I have to emphasize that every other airline in my experience will build some percentage of commutable trips - i/e trips that allow pilots to commute in the morning of day 1 and commute home on the afternoon/evening of day 3 or 4. I am incredulous as to why this particular airline doesn't have that as an option for its commuters.

90% of our trips are 3 days. I always felt less stressed commuting in on the day prior. Since I was commuting off-line (on another airline) I was required to give myself at least two flights to get into position. That meant that I could usually pick my child up from school, drive him home, then put on a uniform and head to the airport. Most of the time I was fortunate to get on the first flight, but occasionally ended up spending half a day getting into base -- often utilizing imaginative routings on various planes, trains, and automobiles. In Chicago, for example, I might commute into one airport and then take the train to the other.

When I started i would stay in hotels during my commutes. That gets pretty expensive though, especially when you are on reserve and aren't used for a few days. Futhermore if there is a winter storm, hotel rooms can be few and far between. It isn't unusual to see pilots sleeping in the crew lounge. After a while I moved into a "crash pad". This was a 3 bedroom house near the airport. It had two girls bedrooms, one boys bedroom, and two bathrooms. Our boys bedroom had 4 bunkbeds for a theoretical maximum occupancy of 8. It had a tv and a small fridge. I kept linens, a small lamp, and a fan clipped onto my bunk. Bottom bunks are better. The main floor had a big screen tv, some furniture, ironing boards, and kitchen. I always showered at night because forget about getting near the bathroom in the morning with up to 16 women fighting over it.

We are required to get to the airport an hour prior to departure, but I would always shoot for an extra half hour to make sure that I didn't hit any speed bumps going through security or getting to the crew lounge. The extra time is nice in the morning. Not to be crass, but at an airline known for quick turns and long days, a little time for a morning visit to a full sized bathroom is time well spent. Your day is just better when you start out with a good #2. :)

I check in on the computer and print out a trip sheet, check my mailbox. That used to be a bigger deal before the iPad EFB. It wasn't unusual to have stacks of manual revisions. Now though the mailbox is almost always empty. I log on to the wifi with my EFB and tap "update" and it brings all of my charts and manuals into compliance in a matter of seconds. I might take a glance around to see if I recognize the captain i'm flying with. But if there are more than a handful of 4 stripers down there, forget it. I go upstairs to the gate where I wait for a gate agent to let me down to the airplane. Meanwhile, non-english speaking wheelchair pushers are free to go down any jetway in the airport without chaperone. I guess they're more highly vetted than we are.

The gate agent checks to see that my ID matches the release and lets me down to the airplane. I usually run the power on flow first, and then "build my nest" while the IRSs are aligning. I attach my EFB to the mount and position it the way I like it. Then I hook up my headsets. I grab a trash-bag for the cockpit and a few cans of water. Yes. Cans. (sigh) If I don't know the jetway door code I either ask the agent or look it up, then head outside with my flashlight to do the walkaround. 90% of the time i'm able to check all of the lights with the exception of the nav lights from the cockpit. That saves me from having to blind half the ramp with strobes and landing lights while I preflight the airplane. By the time I get back up top usually the flight attendants are there already complaining that it is either too hot, too cold, or that the lav needs to be dumped. I introduce myself and then cater to their every other whim. That ensures that when we need to go potty later they will respond expeditiously.

Then I sit down and run through my portion of the cockpit setup. This includes loading the FMS and performance calculator, setting up the radios, drawing single engine turn procedures, etc while the captain looks at new boats on eBay on his EFB. We make our introductions and the Captain gives me his briefing. If he is using a "call sign" instead of the name his Mom gave him, I mentally prepare myself for an exhausting trip. We usually exchange a few pleasantries. "Where do you live? Married? Kids? Where did you fly before this?" Topics to avoid in the cockpit unless you want to ratchet up the tension: Religion, politics. If this is your first airline, don't preach about airline history to the guy who is on his 6th or 7th airline. If you do, I reserve the right to ask you if the "Viper" is a turboprop freighter.

Meanwhile, the pax are all boarding up. Once we are set up and briefed for the first leg this is the chance to grab some coffee and use the lav one last time. We typically fly two to five legs each day with 30-45 minutes between legs. Rarely do we have more than an hour on the ground. After passing around 18,000 feet the pace slows way... WAAAAAY down. It is a lot like watching paint dry. Or watching the demo that you see on Pac Man all day long because you ran out of quarters. The airplane follows the magenta line. The 737 has a notoriously awful VNAV system, so descents require at least a little bit of attention. Approaches and landings are still fun.

Between flights the Captains disappear to what I can only presume is a secret underground Captain lair with gold plated toilets and free steak sandwiches. Many times they will return about 5 minutes prior to push. You will, naturally, have everything ready to go for the next leg so that he can sit down and say "before start checklist."

While you're on probation you will starve, eat peanuts, or scrounge for granola bars from your feed bag. After probation, depending on your temperament, you might say, "everything's ready to go. I'm gonna go hit the head and grab a bite to eat." He will either throw a temper tantrum or do nothing at all depending upon what kind of Captain he is.You won't care either way. Most of the time I don't need to eat, but if they don't even offer the opportunity to stretch than I'm going to take it. You can't allow yourself to be chained to the airplane all day. Its not healthy.

Our airline doesn't have long/short overnight language so at the end of the day we typically go to a hotel located immediately adjacent to the end of the runway. Sometimes it is near an office park or a landfill. It always has a restaurant and bar. The culture at this company is such that, much like ground-hogs the pilots may peek outside of the hotel door, but then they're likely to scurry back to the relative safety of the hotel restaurant with its nondescript club sandwich, quesadilla, and $1 Bud light. I tend to venture out if there is anything at all within walking distance. Usually there isn't. If I get into the hotel before 4pm, I might hit the gym or take a walk in the fresh air. After 4pm? Dinner, shower, bed.

Day 2-3 are like groundhog day. If its a 4 day trip you begin to wonder if your dog will remember you or if he will bark when you finally get home in what seems like a month. When I finally get back on the last day, the first order of business is to get the heck off of the airplane and run up the jetway and disappear into the crowd before scheduling can find you and junior-assign you into additional flying. Once I made my escape i'd hop the train back to my commuter airport and beg for a ride from another airline to get me back home anywhere from 3-8 hours later. I'd dump my suitcase into the laundry basket and begin crafting angry letters to my high school guidance counselor.

Bottom line. This job will take everything that you love about flying and grind it out of you over the course of several decades... but the pay is good and the scheduling flexibility isnt too bad once you have a little seniority.

Since our trips are so densely packed (they are rigged at 6.5 per day, so a 3 day trip pays 19.5) we are able to cram all of our flying into fewer days. That means that even our most junior reserve gets 14-15 days off per month. Lineholders get anywhere from 16-19 days off depending upon the month. At this airline a "day off" is defined as a day when you sit in front of your computer looking for additional flying at time and a half because pilots are powered by greed. I shoot for 100 credit per month. My best month was 156 credit.

Best of luck with your new career. :)
 
Geez, I thought everything was sunshine and peaches over there. Based on all our donut holers saying your contract was superior to ours in every way and we should just swap out the first page with the airline name on it and present it as our BLFO, I would have figured you guys were the apex destination!
 
I'll give you an idea of what life is like for an LCC guy. This particular LCC doesn't offer commutable pairings. They have either "AM" pairings or "PM" pairings. Which means that with very few exceptions, you would most likely commute to your domicile the day before your trip begins, or commute home the day after your trip ends. Either way you'll be giving up part of a day off to get into position or to get home. I have to emphasize that every other airline in my experience will build some percentage of commutable trips - i/e trips that allow pilots to commute in the morning of day 1 and commute home on the afternoon/evening of day 3 or 4. I am incredulous as to why this particular airline doesn't have that as an option for its commuters.

90% of our trips are 3 days. I always felt less stressed commuting in on the day prior. Since I was commuting off-line (on another airline) I was required to give myself at least two flights to get into position. That meant that I could usually pick my child up from school, drive him home, then put on a uniform and head to the airport. Most of the time I was fortunate to get on the first flight, but occasionally ended up spending half a day getting into base -- often utilizing imaginative routings on various planes, trains, and automobiles. In Chicago, for example, I might commute into one airport and then take the train to the other.

When I started i would stay in hotels during my commutes. That gets pretty expensive though, especially when you are on reserve and aren't used for a few days. Futhermore if there is a winter storm, hotel rooms can be few and far between. It isn't unusual to see pilots sleeping in the crew lounge. After a while I moved into a "crash pad". This was a 3 bedroom house near the airport. It had two girls bedrooms, one boys bedroom, and two bathrooms. Our boys bedroom had 4 bunkbeds for a theoretical maximum occupancy of 8. It had a tv and a small fridge. I kept linens, a small lamp, and a fan clipped onto my bunk. Bottom bunks are better. The main floor had a big screen tv, some furniture, ironing boards, and kitchen. I always showered at night because forget about getting near the bathroom in the morning with up to 16 women fighting over it.

We are required to get to the airport an hour prior to departure, but I would always shoot for an extra half hour to make sure that I didn't hit any speed bumps going through security or getting to the crew lounge. The extra time is nice in the morning. Not to be crass, but at an airline known for quick turns and long days, a little time for a morning visit to a full sized bathroom is time well spent. Your day is just better when you start out with a good #2. :)

I check in on the computer and print out a trip sheet, check my mailbox. That used to be a bigger deal before the iPad EFB. It wasn't unusual to have stacks of manual revisions. Now though the mailbox is almost always empty. I log on to the wifi with my EFB and tap "update" and it brings all of my charts and manuals into compliance in a matter of seconds. I might take a glance around to see if I recognize the captain i'm flying with. But if there are more than a handful of 4 stripers down there, forget it. I go upstairs to the gate where I wait for a gate agent to let me down to the airplane. Meanwhile, non-english speaking wheelchair pushers are free to go down any jetway in the airport without chaperone. I guess they're more highly vetted than we are.

The gate agent checks to see that my ID matches the release and lets me down to the airplane. I usually run the power on flow first, and then "build my nest" while the IRSs are aligning. I attach my EFB to the mount and position it the way I like it. Then I hook up my headsets. I grab a trash-bag for the cockpit and a few cans of water. Yes. Cans. (sigh) If I don't know the jetway door code I either ask the agent or look it up, then head outside with my flashlight to do the walkaround. 90% of the time i'm able to check all of the lights with the exception of the nav lights from the cockpit. That saves me from having to blind half the ramp with strobes and landing lights while I preflight the airplane. By the time I get back up top usually the flight attendants are there already complaining that it is either too hot, too cold, or that the lav needs to be dumped. I introduce myself and then cater to their every other whim. That ensures that when we need to go potty later they will respond expeditiously.

Then I sit down and run through my portion of the cockpit setup. This includes loading the FMS and performance calculator, setting up the radios, drawing single engine turn procedures, etc while the captain looks at new boats on eBay on his EFB. We make our introductions and the Captain gives me his briefing. If he is using a "call sign" instead of the name his Mom gave him, I mentally prepare myself for an exhausting trip. We usually exchange a few pleasantries. "Where do you live? Married? Kids? Where did you fly before this?" Topics to avoid in the cockpit unless you want to ratchet up the tension: Religion, politics. If this is your first airline, don't preach about airline history to the guy who is on his 6th or 7th airline. If you do, I reserve the right to ask you if the "Viper" is a turboprop freighter.

Meanwhile, the pax are all boarding up. Once we are set up and briefed for the first leg this is the chance to grab some coffee and use the lav one last time. We typically fly two to five legs each day with 30-45 minutes between legs. Rarely do we have more than an hour on the ground. After passing around 18,000 feet the pace slows way... WAAAAAY down. It is a lot like watching paint dry. Or watching the demo that you see on Pac Man all day long because you ran out of quarters. The airplane follows the magenta line. The 737 has a notoriously awful VNAV system, so descents require at least a little bit of attention. Approaches and landings are still fun.

Between flights the Captains disappear to what I can only presume is a secret underground Captain lair with gold plated toilets and free steak sandwiches. Many times they will return about 5 minutes prior to push. You will, naturally, have everything ready to go for the next leg so that he can sit down and say "before start checklist."

While you're on probation you will starve, eat peanuts, or scrounge for granola bars from your feed bag. After probation, depending on your temperament, you might say, "everything's ready to go. I'm gonna go hit the head and grab a bite to eat." He will either throw a temper tantrum or do nothing at all depending upon what kind of Captain he is.You won't care either way. Most of the time I don't need to eat, but if they don't even offer the opportunity to stretch than I'm going to take it. You can't allow yourself to be chained to the airplane all day. Its not healthy.

Our airline doesn't have long/short overnight language so at the end of the day we typically go to a hotel located immediately adjacent to the end of the runway. Sometimes it is near an office park or a landfill. It always has a restaurant and bar. The culture at this company is such that, much like ground-hogs the pilots may peek outside of the hotel door, but then they're likely to scurry back to the relative safety of the hotel restaurant with its nondescript club sandwich, quesadilla, and $1 Bud light. I tend to venture out if there is anything at all within walking distance. Usually there isn't. If I get into the hotel before 4pm, I might hit the gym or take a walk in the fresh air. After 4pm? Dinner, shower, bed.

Day 2-3 are like groundhog day. If its a 4 day trip you begin to wonder if your dog will remember you or if he will bark when you finally get home in what seems like a month. When I finally get back on the last day, the first order of business is to get the heck off of the airplane and run up the jetway and disappear into the crowd before scheduling can find you and junior-assign you into additional flying. Once I made my escape i'd hop the train back to my commuter airport and beg for a ride from another airline to get me back home anywhere from 3-8 hours later. I'd dump my suitcase into the laundry basket and begin crafting angry letters to my high school guidance counselor.

Bottom line. This job will take everything that you love about flying and grind it out of you over the course of several decades... but the pay is good and the scheduling flexibility isnt too bad once you have a little seniority.

Since our trips are so densely packed (they are rigged at 6.5 per day, so a 3 day trip pays 19.5) we are able to cram all of our flying into fewer days. That means that even our most junior reserve gets 14-15 days off per month. Lineholders get anywhere from 16-19 days off depending upon the month. At this airline a "day off" is defined as a day when you sit in front of your computer looking for additional flying at time and a half because pilots are powered by greed. I shoot for 100 credit per month. My best month was 156 credit.

Best of luck with your new career. :)
Great write up, thanks for taking the time!
 
I was just wondering about that. I don't understand...if you love flying, wouldn't you try to bid max days flying and minimum days off? Does airline flying suck that bad?
For example, I love doing airframe work. Freaking love it and am very passionate about it! Fabricating parts, completing complicated repairs that nobody thinks is possible, and just fixing aircraft in general, and keeping them available so they can go on a safe, successful mission is very cool. I currently commute over 2 hours each way, often voluntarily turning a 9-hr shift into a 13-hr shift, and often spend many nights here in our RON room. Sometimes working two or three weeks straight without a single day off.
The only thing I am more passionate about is flying. I guess I don't get it. There's gotta be something I'm missing since I'm not in the inner circle of professional flying yet.
I also love aviation. I fly at work and then wrench and fly my stuff when I get home.
But if there was a way to make really great money with great schedules in anything but a jet, I'd do it instead. Flying large jets around is just mind numbing.
 
I also love aviation. I fly at work and then wrench and fly my stuff when I get home.
But if there was a way to make really great money with great schedules in anything but a jet, I'd do it instead. Flying large jets around is just mind numbing.
Yeah, I kinda figured airline flying would be monotonous.
 
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@ZapBrannigan interesting the culture differences at your shop and mine (your previous place).

Captains disappearing until 5 minutes prior to push would be very unusual here.

I've also never had anyone introduce themselves using a call sign! :eek:
 
Thank you for all the detailed posts! Special thanks to those specifically answering each of my questions. I love hearing everyone's accounts of the airline pilot lifestyle. The information is fantastic. Please keep'em coming!
 
Living in base gets rid of the worst part of the job. I understand those who commute who have entrenched family or spouses who have careers in a certain city, but living In base is huge.
 
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