Airline pilots feel your pain

Pilots from American Airlines let their feelings be known about their employer's truly awful on-time record (26,000 canceled or delayed flights in 2007). Pickets happened nationwide. This one's at John Wayne Airport in the O.C.

-- Veronique de Turenne

Photo: Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times

Comments

[anonymous]

The airline pilots are the most overpaid workers I know. How about a six figure salary and only working 10-15 days a month, if that. You don't have to take your work home with you and you have long stretches of time off. All for being glorified bus drivers. why don't they do their part and give back some of their inflated salaries so the airline can invest in service.

[Andy Eppink]

Sounds like anonymous is jealous, though they are overpaid for the relatively little work they do, and, especially on the long oceanic flights, they're essentially watchstanders. Compare them to military helo pilots or guys flying off carriers.

[B]

You guys who think pilots are overpaid are NUTS! 1) It takes years of training to get there, much like a doctor. They do not come out of the military like they used to -- most come out of EXPENSIVE private flight schools. 2) They are not even close to being bus drivers. Try reading up on what it takes to do this job before you make such a STUPID comment! As a pilot you are not just a pilot, but a weather man and lawyer too. 3) The OVERPAID comment is perhaps the most inane one made here. Pilots, inflation adjusted, make HALF of what they did in 1970. So, yes, they have taken HUGE pay cuts, especially since 9/11. If you knew what it took to do this job, the education, time away from family, exposure to radiation, and never getting proper sleep due to scheduling and constant changing of time zones, then yes, high pay is justified. 4) Pilots monthly hours are mandated by federal law, they can not work more than 80 FLYING hours per month. Even with this, flight crews are still run ragged and frequently get 3-4 hours of sleep per night on a layover -- makes you feel safe, eh?

I can imagine your upset that it costs you $125 bucks to fly to Vegas vs. $80 a year ago. Well, if that's the case keep in mind a Boeing 737 costs about $40 million dollars, then you figure the costs to maintain the jets, fuel them, pay for gates, landing rights, staffing and facilities....well your getting off cheap at $125!

I think we should go back to re-regulating the airlines, shrink them and hike the fares. Maybe that way the airlines can make money again folks like you can put on your cut-off jeans, football jersey and flip-flops and GO GREYHOUND!

[delta1783]

I travel many thousands of international air miles a year I have total faith in the pilot who is flying the aircraft that I am travelling in at the time
The pilots of each airline only get what the going rate for the job is at the airline that they are working for few airlines have the same working conditions

Only a person who is jealous of the pilots rate of pay would make a comment by saying that they are over paid a plumber gets 75% of a airline pilots rate of pay so which one is overpaid and which one is underpaid I leave it for you to work out

[Kristina]

Hear hear! Pilots deserve every penny they make. I work hard and make less than 40K, but I do not begrudge pilots their salaries for an instant. They have worked incredibly hard and made huge sacrifices to get where they are, plus the fact that they are literally responsible for hundreds of lives every day. I'm willing to pay for their job satisfaction.

[Josh]

Bravo to the pilots for doing this!! It would be interesting to see how many of those 26,000 flight delays and cancellations were attributed to pilots booking off before and after their vacation. Wasn't it AA that had to cancel a bunch of flights a few months ago because a bunch of senior pilots gave the company essentially no notice that they were going to retire as it was tied to the stock price? Make no mistake folks...these guys can go in front of the media and look like they are genuinely concerned for the passenger but at the end of the day they are only concerned with one thing. Making more money than their counterparts. Unfortuneatley the AA pilots may drive this company into the ground with their salary expectations. Ten years ago they wanted the Delta contract rates but because Delta has taken similiar cuts, they are now focused on the UPS and FEDEX rates. Good luck guys and stay united!!