block30

What are you getting at?

Embraego

I was refering to the non female, non minority pilots , upset that they never had and probably never will have an 'in'.

DILLA

Sorta Agree, however...I would say that "our" route the flight deck would be the same as any other demographic. Like everyone else, African-American airline pilots come from both civilian and/or military backgrounds.

Embraego

And we take check rides like everyone else, but don't fool yourself, finding a black american(not african american) female pilot is like finding a green zebra, why shouldn't they have a better chance?

Also Dilla, how many black pilots do you know of personally that have made it in this industry? Captains? Chief Pilots? DO's/VP's?
Lots of pilots play golf, have you ever hung around a golf course? DO you know the fine points of the game? Thats one less networking venue.
Have you ever had a neighbor that owned their own company but also owned a plane? An aunt/uncle? Grandparent? Parent? Probably not. Another lost chance.
How great was the high school you went to? Did it have more fights than it had classrooms? Was college pushed on the kids? Or did recruiters promoting a GI Bill paint the hallways with posters to enlist? Race has always been an issue, and it always will be.

N2Core

Dude.... Whoa. Nobody wants what you have. I find that people who work hard for what they have tend to appreciate it more. Regardless, despite what you may believe, the world is not filled with "player hating". Grow up, work hard, play hard, and enjoy the rewards. Nobody owes you anything.


P.S. - stop the "refering". That will only get you in trouble.

DILLA

Trust me, I agree on all points...I am fully aware of our situation in the industry...as it is with us in many other industries. I am an engineer by trade (for the past 8+ yrs) and a pilot by hobby...working on my advanced ratings and hoping to make flying a (primary) career soon...still gonna have a side hustle though.

I spend a lot of my time volunteering in schools and programs on the south side of Chicago promoting the STEM fields and showing kids that there are other options in life besides sports and entertainment.

I agree, race has always been and will always be a hotbutton issue, but I tell the kids that they can still achieve their goals and dreams in spite of it...its been proven time and again.

I did not grow up with any personal connections to aviation. I had a chance encounter with a Black captain on a flight who mentored and counseled me in what I needed to do in order to make a profession out of it. The plan was to go into the ANG or Reserve, but due to my age, those plans fell through. So I am working the civilian route...such is life. I have been fortunate enough to befriend a few current and retired 121 pilots (black and white, male and female) who are more than willing to put in a good word when the time comes.

Some have told me that with my educational background and the fact that I'm a Black male, I wont have a problem getting to the majors when I get the hours/experience. Perhaps, but none of that will matter to me if I can't fly the plane.

ShyGuy

Was that comment necessary? "When she retires, she'll be #3 at Delta!" This kinda thing is completely unnecessary. And who doesn't want to "work at a major airline as soon as possible."

If they're gonna tout her great status at Delta towards retirement, then lets also play fair and look the playing field when she was hired: 5 years ago, in 2007, Delta opened their window and hired several hundred pilots. It is a proven FACT that there were thousands of pilots at that time that had turbine PIC time and other qualifications above her, who were passed over to hire her with 0 TPIC time. Now I know TPIC is not a published requirement, but of the 3 people at Delta I heard about getting in the 2007 window and the 2010 window without ANY turbine PIC time, were all female. One was a prior Delta intern, and two from ASA.

And she must have hid that little gem about the Delta 737 training when shot took the job at Spirit. If I was a hiring manager at Spirit, I'd question her true want to be at my company when she has training scheduling conflicts or her mind on a B737 course with Delta.

Embraego

I wasnt offering anything, but some do want what I have-so that they can take it away in hopes of making their chances better.Thats the truth regardless of what you think.

I have no self -entitlement, I hold no grudges, as for no 'player hating' this industry is full of haters, people that love to blame the current state their on others- that is a hater my friend.

As far as making references, the most vulgar/rude/ignorant comment I have ever seen was posted in this thread.The comment was in regard to the above mentioned delta f\o,i believe it went something like, 'her experience didnt get her the job, her [DELETED BY MOD]did. But when the internet can mask your identity I guess anything goes.

DILLA

This article was aimed at a mainly non-pilot African-American audience to hi-light the accomplishments of an African-American airline pilot...that's all. Not everyone knows the in-and outs of the aviation industry, mainly that it's largely based on a non-transferrable senority system...so getting in ASAP is very important. Nothing offensive here...

skylover

Well, I can't say that this is what I thought this thread would turn into, but it is very interesting for a person like me to see how working airline pilots operate and think...