Why we are in this business.

[VOR]

With the New Year comes an opportune time for reflection and thought.

With reflection in mind, when one considers the nature of the airline business...huge swings in profitability, crappy duty shifts, poor pay, dismal working environment, unappreciative management, customers who seem to hate us, and all the other laments we've all read here and/or experienced first hand, I have one request:

Please share what you think makes the airline experience "worthwhile" enough to continue to work in this industry.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

 

[bookmdano]

With the New Year comes an opportune time for reflection and thought.

With reflection in mind, when one considers the nature of the airline business...huge swings in profitability, crappy duty shifts, poor pay, dismal working environment, unappreciative management, customers who seem to hate us, and all the other laments we've all read here and/or experienced first hand, I have one request:

Please share what you think makes the airline experience "worthwhile" enough to continue to work in this industry.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

It was worthwhile as long as we were paid a decent salary for the work that was done, a salary that as a sole "bread winner" of the family could put a roof over their heads and food on the table. It was worthwhile as long as our benefits fulfilled our family's needs (med/dental,etc). It was worthwhile when the flight benefits were a treat. It was worthwhile as long as seniority meant something.
It was worthwhile when we were considered assets and not liabilities.
It was worthwhile when we all shared in the profits. It stopped being worthwhile when all profits were shared by a very few.

 

[smmech]

Its the Airplanes ...
The have a magnetizm (SP?) Oh wait there made of aluminum thats impossible..?
It could be for most of us thats all we know.. Things could be better out there, and by the looks of the vehicals on the freeway by me on my way to work they must be..
I am just waiting out the cycle that the industry seems to go through and hope that it gets better.. Personally I would have not been able to go through what the East has..
Low pay with no raises is much better then no job or pay cuts..

 

[EricLv2Fish]

Its the Airplanes ...
The have a magnetizm (SP?) Oh wait there made of aluminum thats impossible..?
It could be for most of us thats all we know.. Things could be better out there, and by the looks of the vehicals on the freeway by me on my way to work they must be..
I am just waiting out the cycle that the industry seems to go through and hope that it gets better.. Personally I would have not been able to go through what the East has..
Low pay with no raises is much better then no job or pay cuts..

I agree with everything smmech says above.

I'm realitively new to the commericial avaiation side, but fixing fighters for 20 plus years ....well fixing airplanes...there just isn't anything like it. Currently I don't put my hands on the aircraft, but I feel as though I'm just as responsible for getting the aircraft fixed right the first time.

We all know that East has been thru very tough times and we have many here at West that have seen them too. The business is cyclic, but the "good ole" days of the past (of which many never knew including myself) have been forever altered. If you can't adapt to your current wages or work conditions then I strongly suggest you find other employment. I don't want to sound cold, but that is reality. For those of us who are going to stay we'll need to work together to build the best airline in the industry. I've always been associated with the "best" and I don't intend on settling for anything less. Time to roll up the sleeves and get busy!

 

[tahitigirl]

I'm a f/a and I still remember my interview:

I love people.
I love to travel.
And I'm willing to relocate.

Well two out of three isn't bad (I don't commute).

Truth be told I still enjoy my job.

Every once and a while passengers will shock you and behave like normal human beings and if not it's fun to watch the freaks. I still like to hang out with my crews, even though "debriefings" have become less frequent.

Yes the business has changed alot over the last few years, but I've always been a the glass is half full type girl. I truly believe in what goes up must come down and vise versa. I guess I'll hang around for the upswing, and if doesn't come I can always say I worked when.....

 

[UWCactus]

I got into this business when you "had to know someone"...yea, the good old days, when an airline job was truly special and unique and only "the best" were selected to work there.

The business is contantly changing and evolving. Thats probably what draws me to the business, each day can bring on different rumors, different realities, operational challenges and may a new destination here and there. It's that constant change that keeps people hooked, whether they know it or not. As much as we resist it, we simply thrive on it in this business.

I also agree that the "airplane" has a mystique of it's own and to be a part of that business is exhilarating. If you talk to people that have departed this business, very few of them "miss the work" but they most always "miss the people".

I've been hooked since I got on this rocky ride, I still love it, I still support it and I still make lousy wages, but I stay and do my best.

 

[nycbusdriver]

I WAS in this business because of the opportunity it presented and a love of flying.

I am NOW in this business to keep the bills paid while I train for a career OUT of this business. After 26 years at the airline, I've had it with working for "greedy morons"...a deadly combination in any business, but especially so in such a cyclical, fickle industry.

 

[lasttoboard]

We all know that East has been thru very tough times and we have many here at West that have seen them too. The business is cyclic, but the "good ole" days of the past (of which many never knew including myself) have been forever altered. If you can't adapt to your current wages or work conditions then I strongly suggest you find other employment. I don't want to sound cold, but that is reality. For those of us who are going to stay we'll need to work together to build the best airline in the industry. I've always been associated with the "best" and I don't intend on settling for anything less. Time to roll up the sleeves and get busy!

You my friend are the very reason many folks make it in this world! Your attitude is steallar and I love to surround myself with people of your mindset. Damn, it's good to hear something other than bitching for a change!

 

[robbedagain]

I enjoy being in the aviation world even though there have been rough times. my dad was at DELTA for nearly 33 yrs and he got me the job at US. I have always enjoyed flying and being around airplanes!

 

[NCYankee]

It's the people: my co-workers. I was hired by UR 6 months after I graduated from high school, so I literally grew up here. Three mergers and 21 years later, we've gone through marriages, divorces, births and deaths together. We've worked countless nights, weekends and holidays; we've moved all over the country (and back!) I think airline employees in general are a special breed, and US employees in particular (East and West)are, as a whole, outstanding.

 

[a320av8r]

"I've always been associated with the "best" and I don't intend on settling for anything less."-EricLv2Fish

That is the reason most of us are attracted to this industry and the reason slackers don't last. It is also the reason most of us abhor bad management. We have to get it right 100% of the time or else people get hurt. There truly is no room for second best. We, and rightfully so, demand it from our management and co-workers.

I agree with you too, I'm over the past and, for the first time in 17 years, am excited about our future!
We finally have a management team that seems to be worthy of the employees of the new US Airways.

To all of my new friends east and west- Happy 2006!!!

"If you can't help bail then get out of the boat."

 

[Dont call me Shirley]

Its the Airplanes ...

Low pay with no raises is much better then no job or pay cuts..

That about sums it up for me, too. And yes, it is also the people....the good the bad and the ugly.
I still get a rush out of out turning a bad situation around - having someone who was calling down the wrath of the gods upon the airline and me coming around to smile and thank me.

 

[jetman3133]

Why you ask?

I used to drive by the PIT airport each day on may way to work at the Golden Arches back in the 80's. Each day I said to myself as the A/C's landed...that is where I want to be..my true dream job. Yes...it was "had to know someone then", and where they were hiring. So when I got the chance, I jumped to LGA. "WOW" culture shock, but I adjusted.

Now 18 years in, with a possible furlough, I am riding this bus until it stops. Regrets?.....No. Great people, great crews, great customers, some real funny times, and who could ever forget the Blizzard of '93?

Could I go back to the food industry? Sure, but not quite yet.

I wish everyone a great New Year, and hope this bumpy ride smooths out. Best of luck to each and every employee of this new "US Airways"......jetman out. B)

 

[Fly]

I use this job as transportation from pub to pub.

 

[Barbell]

LMAO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My family lived on the other side of the country, and having grown up in PHX you sometimes felt a little stranded "way back when". My grandfather made piles of money, so I was very lucky to enjoy the industry back in the pre-deregulation hey-day when he would fly us all "home" back East for holidays and such. I still remember how sexy the f/a's looked in their tight skirts, women in pearls and gloves, every man on the plane in a suit, and my brother and I had special dress up clothes just for flying. So as I grew up I thought how exciting it would be to work in the industry. So after a few rough starts in other industries I finally made it here and haven't looked back. Oh, and the flight benefits don't hurt, either.

It boils down to the people I work with across all departments. They continue to make this industry fun, and this particular group is poised to kick some serious butt. There's nothing but a lot of class in this company, and that's what keeps our customers and colleagues coming back day after day. Happy New Year!