Pilot Compensation Up To $590,000 Per Year

^^^^

I hate news articles about pilot pay.
$590,000 story attracts the wrong type of people into industry wanting to make crazy money but don’t realize the very slow career progression.

I watch a YouTube channel of retired 777 captain that was a USAF test pilot at Edwards AFB.
He talks about the low pay when he started and decades climbing the seniority list.
 
How many hours a week?

I do 84hr weeks, maybe I need to drive a plane instead of a forklift and truck 🤣
Define hours.

I leave home on Monday, spend the night in a hotel in Newark, fly to Europe on Tuesday. Get in on Wednesday. Spend the night. Fly back to Newark Thursday. Catch a flight home that night.

Time away from home: 100+ hours.
Time away from base: 70 hours.
Time at airports, flight planning, talking to passengers, flying the airplane, combined: 20 hours.
Pay: 15 hours.

Again, all you need to do, is start learning to fly now, and in 30 years, perhaps less, you can make what I do.

What are you waiting for?

https://atpflightschool.com/airline-career-pilot-program/
 
Around 40 years old I was considering becoming a pilot and flying for a regional airline but decided against it.
I had the money for schooling but it wasn’t in the cards.

I was too old and no airline would want such an old person….
🧓
 
Around 40 years old I was considering becoming a pilot and flying for a regional airline but decided against it.
I had the money for schooling but it wasn’t in the cards.

I was too old and no airline would want such an old person….
🧓
I was trying to get out of flying at one period because things were that bad in aviation.

Believe it or not, as much as I loved flying ( line pilot ), I was trying to get on with Transport Canada as an airline inspector.

I was offered a job as a “ flight inspection pilot “ ( CRJ…..fly across Canada flight checking the ILS approaches at every airport to ensure they are accurate ) just as I was offered my current job. I took this job obviously.

I was tired of the instability, low pay and bankruptcies.

It was a very tough career and you had to be either nuts ( obsessed with planes and flying them ) or have no other choices once a pilot. Lots of people I know quit back then.
 
Define hours.

I leave home on Monday, spend the night in a hotel in Newark, fly to Europe on Tuesday. Get in on Wednesday. Spend the night. Fly back to Newark Thursday. Catch a flight home that night.

Time away from home: 100+ hours.
Time away from base: 70 hours.
Time at airports, flight planning, talking to passengers, flying the airplane, combined: 20 hours.
Pay: 15 hours.

Again, all you need to do, is start learning to fly now, and in 30 years, perhaps less, you can make what I do.

What are you waiting for?

https://atpflightschool.com/airline-career-pilot-program/
I'm away from home 4 weeks. 84hr weeks. Then home for 2 weeks where I work another job plus my part time business.

In a year I work about 3700hrs between the 3 jobs.

Definitely not making 600k. Maybe 120ish.
 
I'm away from home 4 weeks. 84hr weeks. Then home for 2 weeks where I work another job plus my part time business.

In a year I work about 3700hrs between the 3 jobs.

Definitely not making 600k. Maybe 120ish.
So, looks like you’re ready to be a pilot, then.

Just make sure you have your degree, borrow $120,000 for your flight training, hope you are successful, and then wait 30 years.

That’s it. Piece of cake.

What are you waiting for?

Everybody wants the salary, but are you willing to make the sacrifice and then wait decades for it?
 
So, looks like you’re ready to be a pilot, then.

Just make sure you have your degree, borrow $120,000 for your flight training, hope you are successful, and then wait 30 years.

That’s it. Piece of cake.

What are you waiting for?

Everybody wants the salary, but are you willing to make the sacrifice and then wait decades for it?
I work in a hangar, that count?🤣
 
Define hours.

I leave home on Monday, spend the night in a hotel in Newark, fly to Europe on Tuesday. Get in on Wednesday. Spend the night. Fly back to Newark Thursday. Catch a flight home that night.

Time away from home: 100+ hours.
Time away from base: 70 hours.
Time at airports, flight planning, talking to passengers, flying the airplane, combined: 20 hours.
Pay: 15 hours.

Again, all you need to do, is start learning to fly now, and in 30 years, perhaps less, you can make what I do.

What are you waiting for?

https://atpflightschool.com/airline-career-pilot-program/
As I have mentioned before I have a friend that is a typical pilot 'gots to fly the plane' love aviation etc was a major airline pilot and he would, leave for work looking pretty good and several days later arrive home looking beat to carp. he would say to me I love flying the planes and hate the airport. Again as I Have said before being an air line pilot is much more that steering the plane. Being an airline pilot is quite a brutal job and the skill level and responsibility deserves the pay. I am sure the big bucks come from a Captain doing over seas flights.
 
I was tired of the instability, low pay and bankruptcies.

It was a very tough career and you had to be either nuts ( obsessed with planes and flying them ) or have no other choices once a pilot. Lots of people I know quit back then.

Some pilots have said you have to spouse making good money because starting out you will be struggling especially if you have big student loans.
 
Same discussion I’ve had with young engineers over and over. If you are seeking high wages here - need to groom yourself for a management position - not just a single contributor …
 
In my opinion an airline pilot is a super high skilled occupation, there is so much involved besides steering the plane ! I call it being in the big league. I have mentioned before one on my dear friends was a Naval Aviator and retired as an airline pilot and the training ,medical checkups ,more training , check flights and more that I can comprehend. He is my age 70 years old and and last Christmas called to wish me a Merry Christmas and the first words from his mouth was Steve,, guess what I am still flying the Citation jet, pilots have to fly .
As a professor in college told me who was a furloughed United Airlines Pilot "Flying isn't the hard part as alot is automated, it's keeping calm during an emergency. " Apparently some airlines have opted for the auto land and auto taxi software and hardware. Ten years ago 6 airports had the ability for an airline aircraft to auto land and taxi to the gate when set, without pilot intervention.
 
As a professor in college told me who was a furloughed United Airlines Pilot "Flying isn't the hard part as alot is automated, it's keeping calm during an emergency. " Apparently some airlines have opted for the auto land and auto taxi software and hardware. Ten years ago 6 airports had the ability for an airline aircraft to auto land and taxi to the gate when set, without pilot intervention.
No special airport requirements for autoland except the runway has to be served by an ILS approach. There have always been lots of those airports around.

Even though we have auto land, nobody ( not my airline anyways ) uses it unless they have to when the weather is bad enough to require an auto land.

No aircraft can auto taxi to the gate, or even taxi on its own ( I think Airbus is testing it ).
 
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I love listening to Ron’s stories about his career at United and the interesting stories he tells.
His son is a 777 pilot.


 
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