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VERY time I set foot in an airport, 99% of the pilots look like they'd rather shoot themselves in the face than be where they are. The ones that don't look like that look to be about 21, fresh out of EAU, and thanking God to have landed the job. You can put up with a lot at that age. I guess everything's relative. I'll no longer be living in the desert in a tent for a year at a time right..?
That's because most of them had. The career for me, was miserable. A lot of that had to do with the pay. A lot of that had to do with the time away from home and I was pretty senior in my position and base.
For me, it boiled down to looking at the options..
My "plan" was to leave the regionals and eventually go to FDX or SWA. FDX was the goal since my pops works there and it's a 2.5 hour drive from my house.
I refuse to commute. A personal limitation.
I refuse to move. Another personal limitation.
So I started looking at a career change. What could I do and expect a better QOL than I currently have.
When I was considering changing careers I asked every guy who stepped into our cockpit the same question - "If you knew then, what you know now, would you still do this job?" Not one time did I get a yes. Literally. In almost 2 years of asking, no one said yes. The only person I met who thought I was out of my gord for trying to get out was an FO who has AVGAS in his veins and refuses to believe that the airlines are headed in a downward spiral.
My father is a wide-body CA at FDX. He cannot wait to retire. I was recently at a fly-in put on by FDX pilots and one guy made a joke about how "I needed to be nice to him or they wouldn't recommend me for a job there.." and I told the guy I didn't want to work there. Instantly about 6 heads whipped around and looked at me...
"What?"
"I don't want to work there.. I'm getting out of the 121 spiral ASAP."
There was a bit of an awkward pause and this one guy looked at me, reached out his hand and shook mine and said "That is the best thing I've heard all week!" and then it began a moan fest about the airlines and how they all wish they were getting out..
Sure, there are guys who love the job, obviously I stepped on one such fellow's toes a few posts up. His opinion will be vastly different from mine, I'm sure.
I was fortunate enough to be blessed with the opportunity to change careers, gain an instant improvement in my QOL and have the opportunity to surpass my "potential" earnings in the airlines, so I left and I couldn't be happier.
The truth is however, had I not found a viable option to leave, I'd still be an airline pilot plodding through the airport wishing I was anywhere but there. Fortunately I had an option. My .02 from playing pretend airline pilot for the last decade.