Which Are You?

When I'm on the road, I find that I have some time on my hands...shocking I know. I can find ways to get into trouble just like the best of them, but reading is always a viable option.
Not too long ago I found myself at an Urban Outfitters looking at the off-the-wall titles of their books. One in particular got my attention: "How To Win a Fight With a Liberal.". I normally am not drawn to politics, unless it deals with something pretty outlandish, but this was just too great not to share.

So, which one are you?

"You believe in an honest day's work, family values, free enterprise, keeping what you earn and killing them before they kill us.
You believe in NASCAR, neighborhood barbecues, Sunday sermons, the Ten Commandments, fair and balanced news, faithfully interpreting the Constitution, and that America would be a safer place if Clinton had spent his eight years in office protecting America rather than fiddling with cigars and porking chubby girls.
You believe in a shining city on a hill, and in protecting that shining city from terrorists, illegal aliens, and social welfare parasites.
You believe that there ought to be a constitutional amendment requiring that every US citizen who threatens to move to Canada actually has to move to Canada.
You believe if there is such a thing as global warming and if rising oceans flood the planet, you're going to need a bad-ass SUV to get around.
You believe that any short list for Secretary of Defense should include Jack Bauer, Chuck Norris and Arnold Schwarzenegger.
You believe in moments of silence, border security, terrorist surveillance, preemptive war, the power of the markets, states' rights, the right to life, liberating people so they may live in freedom, and that listening to Hollywood losers talk about values is like listening to the French talk about military deterrence.
And above all, you have unwavering faith in the strength of the American people and every confidence that our great nation will triumph in the struggle over the twin evils of our time-terrorism and liberalism.".

Or, this could be you:
"You believe that singing songs, holding hands, waving candles and holding up a sign saying "Think Peace" can solve all the world's problems.
You believe in endless tax hikes, cradle-to-grave welfare, drive-through abortions, and that playing the victim, flip-flopping and cutting-and-running ought to be Olympic Demonstration sports.
You believe in Brokeback Mountain majesties, fruited planes of exposed nipples and amber waves of girls-gone-wild.
You believe in the governments right to take away your money, your guns, your crucifix and your non-vegetable oil-fueled car.
You believe in blaming America first, burning the flag, demoralizing our troops and that there's nothing the U.S. Military does that a U.N.-sponsored delegation of lawyers, therapists and naked hippie demonstrators can't do better.
You believe in candidates who like to feel your pain, grope your daughter, drop their trousers and drive their dates off a bridge.
You believe that if people want to marry their same-sex partner, their pet, their blow-up doll or their cardboard cutout of Ryan Seacrest, that's their right as an American.
You believe in lecturing others about the many ways in which they are oppressing you through their racism, heterosexism, classism, ageism, ableism, lookism, sizeism, heightism, and hygieneism.
You believe the polar ice caps are going to melt any day now and turn the Rocky Mountains into oceanfront property.
And above all, you believe that others' failure to share your belief in all the above makes them a politically incorrect, intolerant, bigoted, uninformed, evil, stupid, fascist moron from 'fly-over country.'"

If your the latter of the two, Barak Obama might be your man.
The alternative, John McCain, served honorably in the miltary and knows what it takes to maintain a strong national security. At the end of the day, the strength of America, will be determined by how well we maintain our national defense and prevent another terrorist attack.

The choice is NOT that hard.
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If I Had Eyes (CO Snowboarding Trip Pt 2)

Part 2 from our snowboarding trip to CO. Two of the three days was snowing, but the one day we had sun was full of incredible boarding. If we look cold in this video, it's pretty much because we were. Can't wait for spring break boarding!!!

Snow Day

As we were walking through the security checkpoint to kick off the first flight of the day this morning, a gate agent for Big Brother made the anouncement in the already overflowing passenger terminal that all flights for the day were cancelled. The reason for the cancellations: snow accumulating so quickly that the plows couldn't keep up to clear the runway. Big Brother requires a 100-foot wide clearing on the runway from all snow. But, not us. Our flight was still a go....that is, until we turned the power button on....and no juice. Dead batteries. Not going anywhere today. Replacement batteries will need to be flown in and installed.
Great crews in situations like this make all the difference. Fortunate for us, there's a good gym at the hotel for PT and a warm pub within walking distance...a great forum for "and there I was" stories. The Captain (an airforce C130 guy) and I have already traded war stories from our military days, but you can be sure there's more on the way on this snow day.
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Playin in the Rain...

So here we sit about 2 hours behind schedule, rain's falling and lightning's crashing....it means less time for rest at our final destination....so goes life, just living the dream!!

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Protecting the Industry: Pay Matters (Pt 2)

I want to focus on why pilot pay is a critical element in keeping the industry the best and the safest it can possibly be and some of the reasons why we have seen a large drop in pilot pay scales industry-wide. Keep in mind these are observations from a 30 year-old first-year First Officer for a regional airline.

The first reason why pilot pay has diminished is because struggling airlines have forced pilots to take huge pay cuts and lose their pensions in the wake of 9/11 and the massive downturn of air travel that followed. The only two major airlines which did not file Chapter 11 bankruptcy after 9/11 were American and Southwest. Pilots from most, if not all (Southwest might be the exception), of the other major airlines also took huge pay-cuts, but this did not prevent them from filing Chapter 11 bankruptcy. This is not the fault of the pilot groups in any way. They all did what they had to in order to keep their jobs and respective airlines running.

The second reason is that pilots with less and less experience are accepting jobs at regional airlines flying bigger, faster airplanes for less pay. There's an over-used analogy that permeates the airline pilot group, but has some truth to it. It is this: If you were going to have brain surgery, who would you rather operate-the young doctor who just graduated from medical school and working on his residency, or a doctor who has a lot of experience performing these kinds of operations? The answer is obvious. Hiring a 250 hour pilot seems like a great deal for the airline whose main focus is "cutting costs" and for the pilot whose first real airline job is flying a jet. But, the truth is that it hurts the pilot and the airline, cumulatively hurting the industry as a whole.

Why?

First, the young aviator who thinks that he has just landed his/her dream job: flying a jet. From the time I was learning to fly to the time I got hired with my current employer, I was instructing and ferrying airplanes to their new owners. During this time, among other things, I was perfecting the fundamentals of how to fly an airplane in straight & level flight, climbing & descending and turning. Although the difference in hours that was required when I got hired (1000 Total Time and 100 Multi) seems nominal to the minimum requirements today, it was an important time in my development as a safe, efficient and knowledgeable pilot. As I said before, anyone can learn to fly a jet on autopilot but the experience is where all the difference is made. Pilots who are getting hired on with as little as 250 hours are similar to a kindergartner who skips 1^st through 9^th grades and go straight to high school: they miss a lot in their development, both socially and academically. This can come back to hurt the pilot when that airline who hired them at 250 hours either goes bankrupt or furloughs them and they are forced to look for another job flying airplanes that don't have autopilots (yes, they still exist).

Second, the airline who is ecstatic that they can continue hiring pilots, in the midst of a pilot shortage, to fly their jets at a pay scale that keeps the first and second-year FO's on food stamps all in the name of "cost-cutting." Sounds like a great deal for the airline on paper, but the overall cumulative effect is that safety is jeopardized. Line Captains are involuntarily thrust into the role of IOE instructors, teaching young aviators not just how to operate the aircraft, but also airline and airport operation-specific procedures in addition to ensuring the young pilot is flying the airplane in a straight and level attitude (something that should have been honed during his/her instructor days that was skipped in order to get this dream job flying passenger jets). Throw into the mix a busy airport like O'Hare or LaGuardia or Kennedy and the chances of an accident dramatically increase. The liability associated with an accident involving a relatively inexperienced pilot could be enough to throw a lot of the regional airlines into serious financial trouble.

The skills, training and experience associated with being an airline pilot continues to be de-valued by airline management. The laws of supply and demand seem to not apply to airlines and the hiring of pilots. With the cost of training skyrocketing, would-be pilots can't financially afford to make their dream come true. The inevitable school loan is initiated and flight training is completed on credit. When that pilot gets his or her first real job offer from a regional airline, he or she jumps at it. Only problem is, the first, second and third-year pilot pay at that airline is not commensurate with the monthly payments the pilot has to make for that loan that got him or her there in the first place. The result: fewer pilots applying to airlines. In any other industry, this anomaly would create initiatives designed to increase pay for their skilled professionals in order to attract the best, brightest and sharpest candidates. However, the opposite is currently happening which is why we are seeing our profession being de-valued by management who's only focus in a time of skyrocketing fuel prices is cost-cutting through pilot pay, even if it means sacrificing overall safety.

In no way am I diminishing the abilities of the 250 hour pilot who gets hired with a regional airline. In fact, if I was offered an airline job at 250 hours, I would have jumped at it without a second thought. But the reality is that hiring pilots with low time is not helping anybody. It's a band-aid fix to a deeper problem, and will only get worse until airlines make this a more attractive industry through better pay.

Better pay = more qualified pilots and no pilot shortage.

In the next post I will focus on quality of life issues-what a first-year FO can expect and what it means being on reserve, as well as my experience of being on reserve. I will also touch on travel privileges and how they are slowly being taken away from us.

Go On (Snowboarding Trip to CO Part 1)

I couldnt resist posting this video from our snowboarding trip to Colorado last week. My singing isnt the greatest, but I think my dancing definitely makes up for it. This is Part 1...Part 2 will be out shortly and will have some good snowboarding clips.

Protecting the Industry (Pt 1)

With the onset of spring and some great flying weather, I want to share my thoughts, insights and opinions (for whatever it's worth) on flying, and the business of transporting people from point A to point B.
I would be remiss if I didn't share my knowledge and insight to those who are either trying to decide if becoming a pilot is for them or not. I don't think anyone would disagree that being a pilot and the freedom that comes with it, is one of the best gifts that God has given man.
Someone asked me just yesterday what I do for a living, and I told him that I don't work. The truth is, I rarely feel like I'm working. Being a pilot is a great way to earn a living, without a doubt. However, in the last year I have learned a lot about how an airline operates, seeing firsthand that the glamour and prestige of being a pilot is not what it used to be. In fact, it saddens me to see the current state of the airline industry. Pilots have been forced to give up, among other things, pensions and pay, quality of life and career progression.
I used to think that being a pilot was just about the flying. That may have been true when I was an instructor and earning my ratings, but being a pilot is not just about flying. "Protecting the industry" is as much an obligation of every pilot as operating each and every flight safely. If we fail to protect our industry, safety may be sacrificed in one form or another.
For example, currently regional airlines are hiring pilots that have as low as 200 hours total flight time. You can be a skilled 200 hour pilot, but experience is where it really counts when you lose an engine after you rotate off the runway. Good judgment and decision-making comes only through experience.
So, in what ways have we failed as a pilot group in protecting our industry and our way of life?
The next few posts will highlight the root causes, in my opinion, of why and how we have allowed our profession and way of life to diminish to the point that we can no longer attract pilots into our industry like was once the case.

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