loudgarrettdriver

I read posts on here all the time about who's furloughed, and what lousy airline you can jump on board with. If you haven't noticed this industry as a whole is terrible. You can jump from crumby job to crumbier job all you want, but nothings gonna change.

The bottom line is you can't rely on this industry to do normal things like support family, pay bills etc... The truth is no operation is immune these days or ever has been in history.

If you are lucky enough to get hired at and airline now, you might want to keep in mind the current state of affairs. One sinking ship to the next.

The glory days are over fellas. As tough as it may be- you might want to consider more alternative and innovative careers.

Good Luck.

Copperhed51

Agreed. If there's somebody out there considering this as a career, that's fine. Get your degree in something else and do the flying on the side. If something in this industry materializes, great. I'd place my focus on a different line of work though. I wish I had. On the other hand, if this is your dream, then realize what you're getting into, plan accordingly, and go for it. I'd still recommend a degree in something else useful though.

cappelation

the whole industry is a joke.
my .02
only stable aviation career anymore is for some type of service e.g. Air Force, Coast Gaurd, Border Patrol, FAA

mach946

Sad to say this industry is pretty bad and has been accelerating in a graveyard spiral.
As a result of the current state of affairs I do see a shortage of pilots in the future, and it wont be readily offset by new recruits. # 1 Who has the money, and more importantly who would want to invest in a career where the ROI is practically nil? When the economy turns around the majors will pull from the regionals especially when the age 65 crew leave. This will however lead to further chaos because the regionals wont have the pool it once could look to to fill the void. This in turn will affect not only the regionals but the majors as well.
Then there is the fuel card that has to be factored into the equation. If OPEC decides to bend the United States over and give it to us again, any gains the aviation industry makes will be short.

Anyway I hope a there is another event than can suplant all the negativity that has impacted us all, and more importanly may it be long lasting.

Fly IFR

I have heard this rumor several times. I'm not sure you mean the same thing, but I just don't know about majors pulling regional FO's and putting them in the right seat of a mainline aircraft. But if its gonna be that bad, I'll stick around for another 3 years

flynavyj

Not like it hasn't happened before. If things get bad enough, the majors would surely do everything they can to put butts in the seat. You entice people with dangling carrots in front of them before you start dangling money, in other words, expect a "job @ mainline" add, before you're able to see someone convince the mainline that better pay, and better work rules will attract pilots in droves.

Truth is, you could go to mainline, have a great JOB for about a year or two, maybe even three....And then find yourself working at Macy's when the downturn comes again, all waiting for your call back to the glamorous lifestyle.

Fly IFR

Yep, the saying "If something is too good to be true it usually is" comes to mind here. Nothing is secure in this industry and that has been proven time and time again sadly to say...

mcartier713

I hope everyone throws in the towel.. just gives me better odds

I would do the whole "get a degree in something other than aviation" and fly on the weekends.. but flying is the only thing I can see myself doing for any extended period of time without wanting to play in traffic.

Boomer

How true...

"I'll stick it out for another six years at the regionals so maybe someday I can be a furloughed mainline pilot..."

The Juice

Wow, another thread about how bad the industry is...WE ALL KNOW!!

I do not need your advice on what I need to do with my career, thanks anyways.

Not to be mean, but a worthless thread.