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A Day in the Life of an Airline Pilot: Video
Posted By: CapnGriff [Send E-Mail]
Date: Friday, 7-Feb-2014 09:13:16
Some of you may realize I was an airline pilot in a previous life for 31 years. There is a common but snide comment that pilots share between themselves as they greet each other in the terminals between flights. Pilot #1, Hey Griff, howzit goin?
Griff: Livin' the dream.
And that's where the following video gets its name. What you will see in this video is a great description of a pilot's life with some notable exceptions. Variations between airlines are small, but it must be noted that 35 to 50% of all pilots commute from outside their bases. The reasons for this can be numerous, but one good and normal reason is as you climb the ladder into larger better paying aircraft may require that you leave from a base other than your hometown. To make that higher pay and fly that larger aircraft you may have to travel before your flight and after your flights to return home. Thus, adding miles and years to your body.
My commute for 21 of my years was from Denver to Minneapolis or Detroit. Mostly that required an extra day away from home. I missed half of my kids important days as they grew up. A large trade off for airline pilots regardless if they live within a base city or not. And that does not take into consideration the years of going without a Christmas at home for junior crewmembers.
The other thing missing from this video and CapnAuxier has done a marvelous job here, is that most days of domestic flights have 3 to 5 legs in a day. What ensues between legs is a sometimes mile walk between aircraft. Changing planes IS the bane of travelers and flight crews alike. So bear in mind after you watched this video, while accurate, you missed another 300 to 500% of the average airline crew day.
I liked this, it was an exact reminder of things I miss now and things I still hate, now. Hope you enjoy the video.
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