I really hate to admit it but that youthful glee that I had in the late 90's has been squelched by:
What I won't miss:
a. Constant labor/management disputes
b. The TSA and their complete mishandling of security at the airport.
c. Having my bags dug through constantly.
d. Politicians, and especially those like Trent Lott that think that six figure airline pilots are a complete "abhoration" (if I spelled that right).
e. Sleeping in hotel rooms.
f. That hotel room "itch"
g. Working at strange hours in all sorts of time zones.
h. The "post trip" stench of jet fuel, deicing fluid and stinky passenger. My uniform reeks after the first day.
i. Industry instability
j. Being away from home: I'm starting to get homesick more often and it helps by having a white noise device with a wind chime function that sounds like my wife's wind chimes.
k. Rude passengers, especially the ones that decide that they need to use expletives loudly to get their lousy point across.
l. Flippant comments from friends and family about how "little" we work even though I spent an average of 280 hours away from home monthly and paid for a whopping 70 to 75.
m. Shady flight schools like ATA
n. Commuting to work because there is no pilot base at my airline that I could tolerate living in (yeah, I know it's by choice)
o. The media who seems to buy into the failed mantra that if we just worked for less, everything would be rosy, although at my current rates, I'm less than $1/seat/hour which is a better bargain than you'd get if you went to the dentist, automobile mechanic, or the $4/minute that an attorney will charge you to talk on the telephone.
p. Jeppesen airway manual revisions.
q. Policy manual changes that contradict one another and so many flight bulletins that there are nine different ways of doing one thing, but each of the nine departments say that their method is correct and you must do it their way.
r. Missing most weekends, nearly all holidays and many social functions, even after 6 years of seniority.
What I will miss:
a. The friends I made at Delta
b. Being able to cut in line at security while in uniform
c. Flying jets
d. Taking my wife on the occasional long layover.
e. Money money money
f. The excitement of flying a new jet for the first time
But beyond that, if I won the lottery, I'd probably buy a ticket, fly home and leave my books and uniform in the hotel room.
What I won't miss:
a. Constant labor/management disputes
b. The TSA and their complete mishandling of security at the airport.
c. Having my bags dug through constantly.
d. Politicians, and especially those like Trent Lott that think that six figure airline pilots are a complete "abhoration" (if I spelled that right).
e. Sleeping in hotel rooms.
f. That hotel room "itch"
g. Working at strange hours in all sorts of time zones.
h. The "post trip" stench of jet fuel, deicing fluid and stinky passenger. My uniform reeks after the first day.
i. Industry instability
j. Being away from home: I'm starting to get homesick more often and it helps by having a white noise device with a wind chime function that sounds like my wife's wind chimes.
k. Rude passengers, especially the ones that decide that they need to use expletives loudly to get their lousy point across.
l. Flippant comments from friends and family about how "little" we work even though I spent an average of 280 hours away from home monthly and paid for a whopping 70 to 75.
m. Shady flight schools like ATA
n. Commuting to work because there is no pilot base at my airline that I could tolerate living in (yeah, I know it's by choice)
o. The media who seems to buy into the failed mantra that if we just worked for less, everything would be rosy, although at my current rates, I'm less than $1/seat/hour which is a better bargain than you'd get if you went to the dentist, automobile mechanic, or the $4/minute that an attorney will charge you to talk on the telephone.
p. Jeppesen airway manual revisions.
q. Policy manual changes that contradict one another and so many flight bulletins that there are nine different ways of doing one thing, but each of the nine departments say that their method is correct and you must do it their way.
r. Missing most weekends, nearly all holidays and many social functions, even after 6 years of seniority.
What I will miss:
a. The friends I made at Delta
b. Being able to cut in line at security while in uniform
c. Flying jets
d. Taking my wife on the occasional long layover.
e. Money money money
f. The excitement of flying a new jet for the first time
But beyond that, if I won the lottery, I'd probably buy a ticket, fly home and leave my books and uniform in the hotel room.
