• Please take a moment and update your account profile. If you have an updated account profile with basic information on why you are on Air Warriors it will help other people respond to your posts. How do you update your profile you ask?

    Go here:

    Edit Account Details and Profile

Forbes: Airline Pilots #19 of 25 best paying jobs

A4sForever

BTDT OLD GUY
pilot
Contributor
A 747 Captain rolls in well above #1 + on this particular "scale" ... at least as of a couple of years past ... PLUS ... 'we' had a LOT more fun and time off ... :)

Hell, my retired pay puts me @ #10 .... check, check ... make that @ #12 ... NOT counting S/S ... and Navy retired pay ... and investments ... and 401-K ... and 1st (or was that 2nd?) crashed-and-burned-now extinct-airline annuity .... and savings ... you know; all the usual suspects.

There's gotta' be something 'missing' in their rankings ...
 

Flash

SEVAL/ECMO
None
Super Moderator
Contributor
I presume they are not including the ones who are furloughed? I keep running into reservists nowadays who seem to be in that boat.
 

bunk22

Super *********
pilot
Super Moderator
I think they include all pay, from 1st year guys to senior Captains. My old CO is a senior FO with Southwest and he too would be number one on that list...lots of overtime in his case as I hear it. Another good bud made around $160K his third year with Southwest...again, lots of overtime.
 

A4sForever

BTDT OLD GUY
pilot
Contributor
Check, check again ... the ratings say: Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers ('cause we KNOW F/O's and S/O's are not REALLY 'Airline Pilots' :sleep_125 :sleep_125 :sleep_125 :sleep_125 ) ... sooooooooooooooooooo ... that means the rankings are an 'average' of the pay across all three seats ...

Texas is probably 'highest' because a lot of guys live down there (lower cost of living overall AND no state income tax) AND ... SWA and AA are home-ported there, which 'skews' the ratings in favor of Texas.

Funny ... when we'd be butting heads w/ the company and the possibility of a STRIKE existed ... the company would only use the Captains' salaries (all airplanes - across the board) when going 'public' w/ pre-strike media advertisements ... ;)

747 Captain still seems to be the way to go ... :D

AND NO OVERTIME!!! Who needs that shit, anyway ... you know; if you wanna' be an airline pilot ??? :)
 

whitesoxnation

Well-Known Member
pilot
Contributor
note ATC is #25

I would have thought that investment banking would have been #1, despite the current state (Forbes shows and increase in salary), I recalled reading an article (from some financial journal) that cited avg. salary as $300,000+ :)
 

DangerousDan

I could tell you but I would have to kill you
note ATC is #25

I would have thought that investment banking would have been #1, despite the current state (Forbes shows and increase in salary), I recalled reading an article (from some financial journal) that cited avg. salary as $300,000+ :)

Not if you are a post Reagan Strike ATC. My brother in law is capped at half what those guys make.
 

zipmartin

Never been better
pilot
Contributor
I think they include all pay, from 1st year guys to senior Captains. My old CO is a senior FO with Southwest and he too would be number one on that list...lots of overtime in his case as I hear it. Another good bud made around $160K his third year with Southwest...again, lots of overtime.

Southwest makes it very easy for guys who want to, fly "overtime", or "extrafly". Or, if you are lazy like myself, you can just fly your line, and enjoy the "quality of life" and time at home that I missed out on in the Navy. If your old CO is a senior FO and would be no. 1 on the list and your other good bud made around $160K in his third year, they were flying their butts off, most likely because they chose to do so. Like A4s said, many down here are here because of locally-based AA and SWA and the cost-of-living and NO state income tax. I know a lot of guys who live here but commute to other bases for the seniority. I'm still living in the same house I was in when I was at NAS Dallas, out in the country on two acres, that I bought from the bank as a foreclosure for under $100K. Not bragging or anything, just making a point that it's all where your priorities are....everybody is different.
 

bunk22

Super *********
pilot
Super Moderator
Southwest makes it very easy for guys who want to, fly "overtime", or "extrafly". Or, if you are lazy like myself, you can just fly your line, and enjoy the "quality of life" and time at home that I missed out on in the Navy. If your old CO is a senior FO and would be no. 1 on the list and your other good bud made around $160K in his third year, they were flying their butts off, most likely because they chose to do so. Like A4s said, many down here are here because of locally-based AA and SWA and the cost-of-living and NO state income tax. I know a lot of guys who live here but commute to other bases for the seniority. I'm still living in the same house I was in when I was at NAS Dallas, out in the country on two acres, that I bought from the bank as a foreclosure for under $100K. Not bragging or anything, just making a point that it's all where your priorities are....everybody is different.

My old CO was and is still a work a holic, no kids, just likes to work. My other bud needs to work a lot to cover his bills :) It seemed he was never home the whole year, flying quite a bit. I have several other buds at SW but these two are the money makers with all their "work". Both have retirements too so that's even more money. I think HotRod made from Apr 08 to Apr 09, $201K with SW and his retirement. My old Skipper was closer to $300K or so I'm told (with his retirement).
 

HornyU2

Member
pilot
None
I wonder how the rankings would change if you figured in the "tail factor".

If you include the legacy carriers in this, HORRIBLE. Unless by "tail factor" you mean "tail-gunner", which we have plenty of those in the back. If you only include the regionals and Southwest - this factor is fairly high. Now, the foreign carriers (KLM, Luftansa, Quantas, Emirates, etc,)............................. well, let's just say they are in a different league all together.
 

Mumbles

Registered User
pilot
Contributor
Life of a Pilot....

22 years old: Graduated from college. Go to military flight school. Become hot shot fighter pilot. Get married.

25 years old: Have 1st kid. Now hotshot fighter jock getting shot at in war. Just want to get back to USA in one piece. Get back to USA as primary flight instructor pilot. Get bored. Volunteer f or war again.

29 years old: Get back from war all tuckered out. Wants out of military.

30 years old: Join airline. World is your oyster.

31 years old: Buy flashy car, house and lots of toys. Get over the military poverty feeling.

32 years old: Divorce boring 1st wife. Pay child support and maintenance. Drink lots of booze and screw around while looking for 2nd wife.

33 years old: Furloughed. Join military reserve unit and fly for fun. Repeat above for a few more years.

35 years old: Airline recall. More screwing around but looking forward to a good marriage and settling down.

36 years old: Marry young spunky 25 year old flight attendant.

37 years old: Buy another house. Gave first one to first wife.

38 years old: Give in to second wife to have more kids. Father again. Wife concerned about "risky" military Reserve flying so you resign commission.

39 years old: Now a captain. Hooray! Upgrade house, buy boat, small single engine airplane and even flashier cars.

42 years old: 2nd wife runs off with wealthy investment banker but still wants to share house (100%).

43 years old: Settle with wife # 2 and resolve to stay away from women forever. Seek a position as a check Captain for 10% pay override to pay mounting bills. Move into 1 bedroom apartment with window air conditioners.

44 years old: Company resizes and you're returned to copilot status. 25% pay cut. Become simulator instructor for 10 % override pay.

49 years old: Captain again. Move into 2-bedroom luxury apartment with central air conditioning.

50 years old: Meet sexy Danish model on International trip. She loves You and says you are very "beeeeg!"

51 years old: Marry sexy Danish model for wife #3. Buy big house, boat, twin engine airplane and upgrade cars.

52 years old: Sexy model wants kids (not again). Resolve to get vasectomy.

54 years old: Try to talk wife out of kids, but presto, she's pregnant. She says she got sick after taking the pill. Accident, sorry, won't happen again.

55 years old: Father of triplets.

56 years old: Wife #3 wants very big house, bigger boat and very flashy cars, "worried" about your private flying and wants you to sell twin engine airplane. You give in. You buy a motorcycle and join motorcycle club.

57 years old: Make rash investments to try and have enough money for retirement.

59 years old: Lose money on rash investment a nd get audited by the IRS. You have to fly 100% International night trips just to keep up with child support and alimony to wife #1 and #2.

60 years old: Wife #3 (sexy model) says you're too damned old and no fun. She leaves. She takes most of your assets. You're forced to retire due to Age 60 rule. No money left.

61 years old: Now Captain on a non-schedule South American 727 freight outfit and living in a non-air conditioned studio apartment directly underneath the final appro ach to runway 9 at Miami Int'l. You have "interesting" Hispanic neighbors who ask you if you've ever flown DC-3's.

65 years old: Lose FAA medical and get job as sim instructor. Don't look forward to years of getting up at 2 AM for 3 AM sim in every god-forsaken town you train in due to the fact your carrier can find cheap, off-hours sim time at various Brand X Airlines.

70 years old: Hotel alarm clock set by previous FedEx crewmember goes Off at 1:00 AM. Have heart attack and die with smile on face. Happy at last!
 

A4sForever

BTDT OLD GUY
pilot
Contributor
+1 and laughin' my ass off ... (I refuse to use the abbreviation :)) ... you made a few minor mistakes and a couple of things need to be rearranged .... but:

HEY!!! I think I've met that guy ... more than once, too. :D


'Cept I don't like that last one ... no, sir ... don't like that one at all ... not at all ... *wheeze*cough* ... not one little bit ... :)
 
Top