Commuter pilots

It's a sad fact that the pilot of a small commuter plane makes the money as a shift manager at McDonalds. In my time working at airports I came to know several of these "puddle jumpers" <-- a term they used. Low pay, fatigue, sickness and bad training all contributed to the recent crash in Buffalo. This article about the crash is worth reading. A first officer making less than $20,000 and flying a plane after traveling for 36 hours?

These pilots work for years hoping for gold: a position at major airline. For us it seems like one company, but a pilot for United makes 4-6x what a pilot for United Express makes.

The most underpaid of all? The poor sap who sprays the glycol gel on the planes in winter to prevent icing. They work in a tiny basket perch in high winds in freezing weather(obviously). Invariably they get covered in the jelly like substance.

Ten years ago they did this for a glorious $6.50/hour. Passengers in Dubuque would stand in the terminal and watch their plane get sprayed down. I joked that if they only knew how much the person keeping them safe was being paid they'd happily pass the hat and the worker would make hundreds.