AOPA: Flight Training Magazine printed an article a couple of years ago about airline pilot pay scales.
I assume the story was meant to provide inspiration to young students to continue their training, however... the problem is that the article provided no facts other than the pay scales.
Yes... the article did state that American Airlines senior pilots can make over $100,000 a year.
No... the article does not mention that the airline has not hired a single new pilot in a decade. (nor had 90% of the other airlines mentioned in the article)
Yes... it did mention that there were a number of employment opportunities for young pilots out there citing these massive airlines as examples.
No... it did not mention that these airlines are not and have not been hiring for some time and that the "employment opportunities" were sub-poverty line entry level positions with fly by night cargo companies based in the booming metropolis of Statan's Anus, Alabama.
information that would be good to know for people who wander blindly into a career field.
I cannot count the number of e mails i received from prospective students who thought they would get a license and head straight to Delta or United who had no understanding of the process.
The school i attended in the late 90's was even guilty of providing tons of propaganda to encourage people to attend the school - of course they are going to do this - but where is the accountability?
If my school had told students that 98% of our pilots were employed within a year of graduation - but failed to mention that those pilots were employed by WalMart, Taco Bell, and McDonalds in entry level positions... should my flight school be accountable for that misleading statement?
i say YES, of course it should be.
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