(All pictures in this post were taken by Brandon on various cross country flights with his cheesy old 35mm camera)
This is a combination of a couple of documents I have had saved on my computer. Documents that I have shared with different people at a couple of different times. It seemed fitting to document them here. You will notice some redundancy but I am not merging them.
We were having a conversation tonight with a couple members of the Elder's Quorum Presidency about our future. I think a lot of people are surprised about the reality of being a pilot.
When you see a Pilot, they're not getting paid.
When you see a pilot going through the same security you go through, he's not being paid.
When you see a pilot walking in the terminal, he's not being paid.
When you see a pilot at the gate pulling up paper work, planning the flight, and conferring with the agent, he's not being paid.
When you see a pilot walking around the aircraft doing a preflight inspection, he's not being paid.
When you board the aircraft and look in the cockpit and see the pilots setting up the aircraft, they're not getting paid.
When you land safely at your destination and walk off the aircraft and see the pilots shutting down the aircraft, they're not being paid.
When you see a pilot waiting for a ride to a hotel for the night, he's not being paid.
The only time the pilot of your aircraft is getting paid is when you DON’T see him...when he's locked behind the cockpit door as you push back from the gate. Every thing else he does until this point is for free, for no wages. Nothing!
The average airline pilot is at work for 12- 14 hours per day, yet gets paid for less than 6 - 7 hours.
The average airline pilot is away from home, at work, for 70+ hours a week, yet gets paid for only 15 to 18 hours per weeks work.
Most pilots schedules have them working 15 days or more a month... that means they are not at home half the month.
Holidays, weekends, birthdays, anniversaries, summer vacations.... not at home.
A majority of pilots have 4-year college degrees, or more. Then they begin training as pilots.
A large majority of Pilots have spent 8 years or more flying in the military, risking their lives and protecting your freedom for wages most of you wouldn't accept in the civilian world.
Civilian trained pilots have spent $50, 000-$70,000 or more to acquire the training that qualifies them for a Regional Airline job, which pays a wage less than the poverty level in most western countries.
Most pilots do not attain the required experience level to be hired by a major airline until they are well passed the age of 30. The average age of a new hire airline pilot is 32. (We are obviously behind. Mostly due to Brandon's long illness)
The average first-year airline pilot makes less than $20, 000 a year.
Airline pilots are subject to random drug and alcohol testing, any time they are at work. Fail it and they lose their job.
Airline pilots are required to undergo rigorous re-training and certification every 6 to 9 months, at which time they could fail and lose their jobs, licenses and livelihood.
Airline pilots are required to submit to random government "Line checks" during which their license could be revoked and livelihood destroyed.
Airline pilots are exposed to radiation levels far exceeding the normal safe radiation limits mandated by the FDA.
Airline pilots are required to submit to a government medical examination every 6 months (Captains) and 12 months as First Officers. Year after year. Fail that, and their career is over.
How many of you go to work where people try to kill you? How many of you have had your office turned into a cruise missile? How many of you work behind a bullet proof door?
How many of you are responsible for the lives of 200- 300 people, with any small mistake in your performance resulting in the death of your customers (and yourselves), and the financial destruction of your company?
How many of your jobs require you to fight your way through thunderstorms, rain, snow, ice and turbulence, day and night, year after year? No mistakes allowed? The excuse " I had a bad day at work" never accepted?
Many pilots volunteer (on their own time and own dime) to be trained as Federal Flight Deck Officers, and carry weapons to defend their aircraft, crew and passengers. They maintain their proficiency and qualifications twice a year on their own time and money.
How many of you go to work where you are searched, patted down and your personal items scrutinized by strangers.
Airline pilot pay scales and hours worked are usually posted by absurdly overcompensated managers who are waging a PR campaign against their Pilot Unions and trying to justify their own greedy bonus's while asking for lower labor costs.
The Parish's time table:
Another year building flight time as a flight instructor at Utah State.
Another 2 to 4 years as First Officer making $20K if we are lucky.
Many of the regional start at less than $20K. We'll be lucky if Brandon can find a job when we are done with our little Cache Valley adventure due to the economy.
Another 2 to 3 years as captain at a regional making $50K to 65K
Finally get hired by a large airline and go back to $30K to 35K as an FO.
Finally make 80K+ after 3 or 4 years at the large airline.
Most pilots have been flying for 6-10 years before they get hired at a major airline and they still have to start over at $30K/year.
Plus we can count on having to move all over the place chasing employment, Brandon being on reserve and never knowing when he will work or when he'll be home (and I don't mean he'll be late for dinner, I mean he's 1000 miles away and can't get back for 4 days).
Starting out in this career flying for a regional new hire pilots often qualify for food stamps.
Seriously.
Only after a few years in the business does the income move into the high $20K range. In the civilian career path progression, a pilot will usually work at a regional carrier before moving on to a major airline. While some regionals pay close to $30K after 3 years or so, it takes several years at others to make that much.
Starting out in this career one must expect to make some very low wages until they begin to build seniority with their airline and move up the pay scale.
Largest connection carrier, "Express" or regional affiliate airlines starting gross
monthly pay:
American Eagle $1,725
Comair - $1,720
Chautauqua - $1,650
Mesa - $1,596
Mesaba - $1,800
Pinnacle $1,575
Skywest $1,425
Trans States $1,628
Pilot pay is something the general public often has a lot of misconceptions about.
The general 'glamorization' of the career leads many people to think that airline pilots make $250-300K+ a year and that they work two weeks or less a month. While there are a select few captains at the major carriers that do, they are by far the minority.
According to the Air Line Pilots Association, their average major airline member Captain is 50 years old, with 18 years seniority and makes $182,000 a year. A non-major airline Captain is 41 years old with 10 years of seniority and makes $70,000 a year.
The average ALPA First Officer member at a major airline is 43 years old with 10 years of seniority and makes $121,000 per year, while an ALPA non major First Officer is age 35 with 3 years of service and makes $33,000.
A major airline is a carrier with more than a billion in sales annually. American, Delta, Northwest, United, Continental, US Airways, Southwest, Alaska (and even several 'regional' carriers) are considered majors by that definition.
However, not all major carriers pilots are members of the ALPA union, notably AA & SWA who have their own in house unions.
Factors affecting pilot pay:
Time with the company (seniority)
Aircraft flown
Whether they are a Captain or First Officer (seat)
The hours in their monthly schedule
The pay scale at their specific airline
A pilots pay is figured upon the hourly rate for their seat and their equipment based upon the pay grade for their seniority. Each company also has a set 'minimum guarantee' flight hour pay in their pilot contract. This is generally about 75 hours per month but varies slightly by airline. (A few majors guarantee is only 65!) However, in no case will the pilot earn less than the 'minimum guarantee'. They may fly less than 75 actual flight hours, but they will still be paid for the 75 per their guarantee. If they get a flight schedule that is blocked for more flight hours than the minimum guarantee, they will then get paid for the greater amount of time flown instead, plus per diem.
Flight crew make about $1-3 per hour in 'per diem' for every hour they are away from their domicile on a trip to cover expenses. This generally adds a few hundred dollars to their pay check. A general comparison of starting
monthly First Officer pay by airline:
AMERICAN - $2,240
CONTINENTAL - $2,500
DELTA - $3,640
FED EX - $3,700
NORTHWEST - $2,570
SOUTHWEST - $3,744
UNITED - $1,950
US AIRWAYS - $1,875
UPS - $2,185
All without per diem, based on minimum monthly guarantee, first year pay in smallest fleet type.
Here is a Captain pay comparison at 12 years of seniority, by the largest type in fleet (best paying). This is the gross top pay scale for each fleet type:
American 777 - $12,352
Continental 777 - $14,688
Delta 777 - $14,040
Fed EX widebody $14,874
Northwest 747 - $14,586
Southwest 737 - $14,196
United 747 - $11,570
US Airways A330 $11,520
UPS (all a/c) $15,390
All without per diem, based on minimum monthly guarantee.
As for the job outlook, the industry is constantly changing. The airline business goes in cycles and is very affected by the economy. A few years ago there was a huge hiring boom and now the airlines were still reeling from the post 9/11 fallout when the economy tanked. Thousands of airline pilots are still laid off from their jobs.
(Unfinished makings for PB&J sandwiches)
