Do You Actually Fly the Plane? →

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And a copilot becomes a captain not by virtue of skill or experience, but rather when his or her seniority standing allows it. And not every copilot wants to become a captain right away. Airline seniority bidding is a complicated thing, and a pilot can often have a more comfortable quality of life — salary, aircraft assignment, schedule and choice of destinations — as a senior copilot than as a junior captain. Thus, at a given airline, there are plenty of copilots who are older and more experienced than many captains.

One of the best paragraphs that sums up who the "co-pilot" of an airliner really is or can be. I had no choice whatsoever in my progression. It took me seven years to the day to where I was able to hold a Captain seat at my previous airline and now that I've moved on, I'm back to being a First Officer / Co-Pilot / Co-Captain / Right Seat by virtue of my hire date. It will take pilots above me leaving or retiring and / or the airline expanding with more aircraft and routes before I can hold the title of Captain again. Even at that point, it'll also depends on where I am in my life in terms of having to be away more since I'll be on reserve. More on that later.

Back to the topic, I've known Captains downgrade to First Officer due to a lifestyle change where they wanted more time at home. Some are able to afford to take the 35% pay cut but in all circumstances, their skills did NOT degrade just by switching seats or epaulets. The media needs to get this right and do a better story overall on a pilot's life. I'm starting to get rather annoying. Just my Tuesday rant.

Make sure to read the entire post via Patrick Smith's AskThePilot

Brenthaven Collins Tech Pack 60% off!

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For a cool $19.95 (down from $49.95) go grab a stylistic pack / satchel / murse or man bag to hold all your goods whilst traveling to the local coffee shop for a flat white. Brenthaven just slashed the price of their Collins Tech Pack by 60% and that makes it a wonderful steal!

The construction is beautiful and is sure to hold your Moleskine, pens and protect your iPad using their "High Density Foam Protection System"! Oh yeah, did I forget about Brenthaven's lifetime guarantee too! If this sale doesn't suit you, there are a few iPad cases and iPhone cases as well marked down by over 75%!

Mint Yourself and Lay Flat!

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I can't wait to welcome you aboard!  

Flying Mint felt like being courted. Virgin’s Main Cabin Select felt like a waning long-term relationship — the attendants on my flight (as we know it’s luck of the draw) didn’t try as hard. That said, Mint is a newer contender. Let’s hope the romance lasts.

via NYTimes or for more info, head directly to JetBlue's Mint Page!

My Life at Work... in HD

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The way it works here in the US is that rules disallow crewmembers from using an electronic device that is non-essential for duty while on the flight deck. Good thing another guy filmed it for me at his seat on his plane or his airline or made a compilation (read: it's not me) but a job has to be cool enough in order to be away from family right?

This is my life. (the music helps a lot too)

I still miss my family everyday I'm gone.

How much would you pay for a day pass to swim at Piscine Molitor?

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I don't think I can justify the price. Wait, hold. I can't justify the price especially when hot-spring day spas are cheaper for single day access. They have to have more to offer than just swimming, right? Maybe I'm thinking of this the wrong way. Why don't we build one right here in San Diego? Any investors? Looks like this one was refurbished for a mere $118 million.

But some politicians have raised concerns over the pool's pricey entrance fees, which they fear will create a more stilted, exclusive atmosphere. Molitor was never free to the public, and its renovation was financed entirely with private funds, but entry fees were never as high as they are now. Just one day of swimming there now costs up to €180 (about $245), with annual membership fees of €3,300 ($4,500).

Piscine Molitor

Okay fine, I might go for a two for one special or something. When in Paris right?

via The Verge

Review: Brenthaven's Broadmore Backpack Optimized for Travel

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Brenthaven Backpack

The Brenthaven company was first introduced to me by the online Apple Store back in October 2001. I purchased my first Apple notebook, the Powerbook G4 667MHz Gigabit and chose a messenger style case. Brenthaven offered a special foam sleeve which perfectly cradled my prized titanium possession. Brenthaven knocked it out of the park providing plenty of other pockets that would fit my college notebooks and other accessories. Thirteen years later, you wouldn't be able to tell it's age.1 It stayed with me when I upgraded to the MacBook Pro and also snuggled my wife's MacBook Air comfortably. But, back to why we're here; the TSA Friendly and amazingly spacious Broadmore Backpack.

If you don't already know, my career as an airline pilot requires me to travel quite a bit. In and out of various hotels, hotel shuttles, airplanes and airports, durability is of the utmost importance. TSA friendly bags offer a welcomed bonus but that never proved to be a deciding factor. Since I upgraded to Captain, I've found that sitting on reserve in base for days at a local hotel can be quite mundane. This made it urgent that my next bag needed not only fit my laptop but accommodate a Sony Playstation 3 which I know would provide me hours of entertainment.

Brenthaven TSA Laptop Pocket

I received a Brenthaven Broadmore BackPack last week to review for elijahnicolas.com and it has easily become my primary bag. Packed to the brim, it's proving every bit a worthy successor to my original Brenthaven Messenger. I was impressed by the generous padding not only on the back but on the shoulder straps which are also spliced with Napa leather. The zippers are high quality and the two soft lined pockets serve for quick storage or immediate access to your iPhone / Android and sunglasses. There are also two side pockets that can easily hold a water bottle or tumbler or whatever else you'd like.

Brenthaven frontal Brenthaven straps up close

One of the defining qualities of Brenthaven's Broadmore line is the "quilted and fully padded CORE™ Protection laptop compartment."

A Protection System that wraps your laptop in high-density protective foam. Flexible bow shaped forms at either end of the laptop compartment automatically adjust to allow a snug fit for any size laptop. Patent ID #7,549,535.

I was under the impression that I would end up using a companion sleeve for my laptop but I'm surprisingly comfortable sliding my MacBook Air 13" or MacBook Pro Retina Display 15" naked into the pocket. It hugs the laptop like a glove and so far, after a couple of unintended drops, the backpack has done it's job well. And yes, even my PS3 has survived.

Brenthaven Broadmore Left Side Brenthaven Broadmore CORE

I mentioned that I planned on carrying my laptop and Playstation 3 but I was able to pack in even more goodies into the Broadmore Backpack. Unknown to me prior to receiving the bag, it included an awesome iPad compartment in the inner pocket. A keyring and serial number can be found inside the outer most pocket and holds just about everything else with slots for pens, pencils, USB drives and wires a plenty. You could even throw in a few Field Notes notebooks too. Don't forget the zippered pockets within the backpack than will also keep those loose trinkets from getting lost in the bottom.

Overall, I'm very happy with the bag. It holds exactly what I need and more. It's stylish, well-built and I can see it being my last.

whats in my bag

From left to right: Contigo Autoseal Stainless Steel Travel Mug 20oz, Sony Playstation 3, MacBook Air 13", PS3 power cable, HDMI cable, Thunderbolt to HDMI cable, Sony Playstation Wireless Headset, MacBook Air Powercord, Google Nexus 7" (2012), Hidden Radio Generation 1, PS3 Controller, followed by wallet, watch, keys, bracelet and my iPhone which I used to take this photo. An impressive feat and it even fit underneath my seat on an American Airlines MD80! I like the travel somewhat light. This bag weighs 3.1 pounds while measuring 14.5" W x 18" H x 6.5" D.

This beautiful bag is available from Brenthaven at $249 and comes with a 100% Lifetime Guarantee! If you find yourself traveling as much as I do or appreciate great craftsmanship and attention to detail, make this backpack your last.

Fits: MB Air 13.3", MB Pro 13.3", 14", MB Pro 15.4"

this post was written while listening to Noon Pacific.

  1. I have since lost the actual Brenthaven messenger strap when the bag was checked on as a valet bag on a flight years ago. ↩

Major Airlines Creating Their Own Pilot Shortages

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This is one of the most comprehensive views on the current state of the airlines in the United States. Read the article in its entirety. I'm living it along with some of my best friends and it's getting rather ugly.

The nation's big airlines want you to know that there's a dreadful pilot shortage and they apologize profusely if their commuter-carrier partners cancel flights to your hometown airport due to the debilitating shortfall.

The nation's big airlines don't want you to know that their commuter carriers, which operate half of all the nation's commercial flights, often pay pilots so little that it's often financially wiser to drive a truck or flip fast-food burgers than fly a plane.

A first-year co-pilot at a commuter airline may earn as little as $19 per flying hour. After five years with a commuter airline, the average salary is just $40 an hour. For the lowest-paid pilots at a carrier such as Mesa Air Group, which operates flights for both United and US Airways, a 60-hour work week means an effective pay rate of just $8.50 an hour. That's barely above the national minimum wage of $7.25 an hour and below the more than 10 bucks President Barack Obama is making federal contractors pay their workers.

american eagle e170

At American Airlines, senior management that came from US Airways to run AA netted $79 million in stock sales during the last month. At the same time, however, American pressed for another concessionary contract at American Eagle, its wholly owned commuter airline.

Need New Tunes? Discover Some Every Monday at Noon Pacific

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A great new music site that I just discovered released a new iOS app for only $1.99. If you're like me and love discovering new music and tunes to listen to, check it out! You can always subscribe via e-mail to Noon Pacific and have that awesome playlist sent to you every week. Either way, since I travel quite a bit, bringing them with me on my iPhone is the way to go. It's more of a chill vibe that's totally reinvigorating me in writing more!

Noon Pacific is a great way to find new music to listen to, and while the playlists are hosted on 8Tracks (and you can always use their app and follow them), the Noon Pacific app packages them up nicely, lets you play each weekly playlist one right after the other, shows you which songs are playing, and lets you scroll back through all of the past playlists easily. It's a universal app as well, and the iPad version looks good on its large screen.

Built and curated by Clark Dinnison every week for your listening enjoyment. Better than Beats Music in my mind.

Noon Pacific iOS

via LifeHacker