Flying Cheap (full documentary) | FRONTLINE
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 20 พ.ค. 2024
- After the deadly airline crash of Continental 3407 in Buffalo, New York, FRONTLINE investigated the accident and discovered a dramatically changed airline industry, where regional carriers accounted for half of the nation's daily departures and insiders worried about the aviation system being stretched beyond its capacity to deliver service that is both cheap and safe. (Aired 2010)
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The rise of the regionals and the arrival of low-cost carriers were seen as a boon to consumers, and the industry insisted that the skies remained safe. But decades after deregulation, many insiders worried that the airline system had been stretched beyond its capacity to deliver service that was both cheap and safe.
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FRONTLINE is produced at GBH in Boston and is broadcast nationwide on PBS. Funding for FRONTLINE is provided through the support of PBS viewers and by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Additional funding is provided by the Abrams Foundation; the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation; Park Foundation; the Heising-Simons Foundation; and the FRONTLINE Journalism Fund with major support from Jon and Jo Ann Hagler on behalf of the Jon L. Hagler Foundation, and additional support from Koo and Patricia Yuen.
CHAPTERS:
Prologue - 00:00
The Crash of Continental 3407 - 01:20
Growth of Regional Airlines - 10:41
The Life of a Regional Pilot - 18:29
Who’s Responsible for Airline Safety - 28:53
A Decade of Missed Warning Signs - 38:48
Raising Standards at Regional Airlines - 46:57
Credits - 52:42
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The fact that a president of an airline thinks $33,000 a year is a livable wage because “other people make less” tells me everything I need to know. He probably spends more than that per year on his fake tan.
kinda like movie stars and politicians say "you shouldn't complain about gas prices, some people have to walk. besides you save 15 cents on your barbecue last year"
Yes, his “humility” on behalf of others of lower privilege is egregious hypocrisy at best. I’ll bet his pilots work harder for their money than he does for his.
This is exactly what teachers and nurses have been saying for years about income and told they are just complaining.
You can tell the president is an asshole doesn’t care who he steps on, no empathy towards employees… Next number, keep it moving.
A simple solution is every flight be piloted by veteran pilots making $150k/yr (and having ample reserve crews to have all pilots well rested). Simple....just costs $....
The fact that we get free documentaries on TH-cam by FRONTLINE is truly a gift. 👍👍👍
But each time you watch one, you have agreed to give your soul away to Saran
It is 12 years old...
@@vinzclortho486 so what?
Except when their woke bias comes thru.
@@busterbeagle2167 buster. Be nice!!!
The guy saying how 18k is fine to live on and commute and everything else says it all.
A lot has changed since this show was broadcast. The minimum experience hours for a regional job back then was 250 hours-now it is 1000 hours to 1500 (depending on quality of training) before they can hire you. My son is a recent graduate from UND and has offers from many regional carriers starting at $100 per hour which equals $100,000 per year for a first officer. Captains at regional airlines are now making $148 per hour and going up from there. He has spent over $100,000 for his training so I’m glad the pay back is near. He is currently a flight instructor at the school until he reaches his 1000 hours.
@@Hedgeflexlfz Degree or not, all first year hire pilots at some regionals are getting $100 an hour based on the pilot contract
Yeah, well, the regional pilot that just flew my American flight (really American Eagle) from Philly to Rochester (next door to the Colgan crash site) flew it like he'd had about ten hours in the cockpit. He actually got on the com and said, in a surly voice, that he might have to land elsewhere and refuel (on a 300-mile flight) because the visibility was five miles and the runway was wet. WET. He was flying in to ROCHESTER, NY, home of 100 inches of SNOW a year. With virtually no further communication, he landed that thing hard as a bouncing rock. No monsoon, no wind, just an ordinary rainy night. Everyone on the flight gasped. At the very least, this jerk should be retrained in how to communicate! Probably how to land in pretty ordinary conditions, too--and get his eyes checked. My guess, also: last flight of the day (at night), probably had done half a dozen and was tired and wanted to go home so he just set it down whether he thought it was a good idea or not.
Thanks for the update!
@@JOHN----DOE In fact, friends and I were discussing recent flights we had, separately, not together. We realized we all had the same experience with the landings in those recent (late 2023) flights. They came down like rocks. We’re all experienced travel-by-plane people and agreed we had not experienced that before and thought it weird.
Congratulations to your son. I’m sure he’s prospering in his field day by day.
By the title I thought it was going to be tips for flying for cheap. Nope trying to talk me out of flying ever again.
Bwaha,& me here saving to watch later
12 year old episode
Same
That was hell of a twist
@@tristanlee6538 exactly. I didn’t expect that.
Click bait.. I thought the SAME thing!!
As a Truck driver I got to admit this actually mirrors our industry and many of the problems. Even the way our regulations put corporate interests before our safety and public safety IN THE DISGUISE OF SAFETY .
we need side guards for the big trucks to save lives but corporations do not want this due to the cost. i hear you.
Frontline did a documentary about the trucking industry too.
@@tonypleeeI'd hate for someone to go under my trailer, then I have to go back there and see that
100% issue is sociopaths at C suite and normative levels.
Don’t shoot the messenger BUT the Reagan era De-Regulations is where this all started. I don’t understand when a politician runs on deregulations because that means less and less SAFETY PROTOCOLS!!
Frontline is one of the few who provide us with such outstanding information.
Rookie pilots behind all of that hard and software!
I completely agree. They are very authentic and thorough in their presentations.
For example: $18K IS livable wage (roll my eyes)
We need more real journalism like this. Great job.
We did. Then social media showed up.
State run and public funded journalism is a particular niche of reporting. It’s self serving, particularly for the bureaucracy. Not that it has no value, but it needs to be seen in the context of the government’s interests.
@@jtwilliams8895 Bro watch out with all of that truth you can't do that around here.
But yeah, I concur with thread OP, I enjoy juicy corporate gossip like this
Frontline does an excellent job as long as they stay away from advocacy journalism . However, they are not as egregious as Vice !
now if only NPR could follow suit and become journalists instead of the propaganda arm for the left
I'd never have guessed there were pilots/airline officers that made $16,000 or less. That's absurd.
I make that in 2 months as a contractor, no lives in my hands 😱
Less than cabbies in YC make
In the early 2000s that was correct
In the 2010’s that wasn’t uncommon.
These days most of the regional FO’s are making $60K+.
That said, inflation has eaten away at a large chunk of those gains.
Nationwide high speed rail in the US now. Pass Build Back Better. Vote out obstructuonist Republicans this November. Invest in human needs.
Pilots always seemed like the friendliest people. Always greeted me with a big smile on their face. I had no idea what they go through. This is so sad! 😭
It is sad. A pilot has a tremendous responsibility with so many lives on the line. they should be paid no less than 100k/yr, but the airlines wouldn't make as much money, thus they would have to raise ticket prices, thus there would be less tickets sold...its all for corporate greed ///pilots deserve better training and supervision, and deserve much better pay. More trains....air travel is too inexpensive, too many people are flying. More trains is an answer, I think. I won't fly unless its a family emergency.
The fact that Miles O'Brian is also an avid pilot contributed to the authenticity of this documentary immensely. He asked the right questions and queried loopholes an ordinary journalist wouldn't understand, or know to ask. Thank you very much indeed for shining a light, and going above & beyond in a quest to make the average consumer understand; thereby allaying their fears on how the problems facing the airline industry affect them, especially. As we speak, Southwest Airlines made a mockery of those who invested their monies and welfare in the airline during the Christmas travel season of 2022.
I know of some of the safe houses all around Baltimore airport, and it is exceedingly disheartening to see how those responsible for the welfare and safety of so many lives are being subjected to such degrading and inhumane living arrangements. They might as well put them in coin-operated trailers outside the terminals where they can pay for what they need; toilet, mattress, washtub, basins, towels etcetera.
I don't understand why an advanced civilization like ours can not have high-speed trains between many of our cities negating the nuisance caused by this one industry.
It was a tragedy what happened to his arm. Had to be amputated.
Because Lobbyists pay politicians to vote no on funding for public transportation VIA OIL CORPORATIONS
The railroad industry is just as hot a mess as the airline industry. Derailments are at an all time high. No thank you. Railroad companies are slashing their safety/maintenance/staffing budgets as well. And 16 hour days for pilot's. Worse than the 14/11 for truckers. That's freakin ridiculous!
AMEN friend!! TRAINS....it is the answer. How many people...dozens, doing their job correctly, are we fliers dependent on? Amazing there aren't more accidents.
As a retired airline Captain, the airline constantly requested that we mentor the First Officers. The concern was that retirement of well experienced pilots were retiring at a rate of 350-500 a year. This could leave the airline with 2-3 year Captains that was unheard of during my tenure. Experience levels were leaving at phenomenal rate never seen before and that safety could be compromised because of inexperience. Here's another irony, I applied for grins to the FAA as a Air Carrier inspector after retirement and was told I didn't qualify. 30k plus hours in heavy jets and 40 years in the airline industry no violations or failed safety checks and I don't qualify.......go figure
Wow that is ridiculous, your more then qualified
They don't want people in those positions who will do their job responsibly and ethicslly, that's why.
One thing Frontline will do, is spill that tea. Thank you SO much for peeling back the curtain!
I was a flight attendant for Tower Airlines. An Israeli owned co. The 747s were always breaking down, loud pressure leaks at max altitudes, and exhausted pilots. We had some frightening scares mid flight. I didn't work long for them and became sick with crippling anxiety. Those planes were a mess.
an Israeli pilot friend of mine told me that without his Israeli, previously high rank, combat safety and trainning skills he acquired while in the Israeli airforce, he wouldn't had been telling me his in flight stories, some truly hero like saves!
@@beezb728 sorry, but what does that have to do with this video or my comment?
@@beezb728 Ignore dejaya's reply to you. Your comment is relevant and of interest.
@@pawshands9706 I think he's probably saying that his Israeli pilot friend also flew for Tower.
A lot of Pressure leaks. I was on a flight that was leaking fuel.
It's so consistent that ceos and corporate management will say "no everything is fine this is safe", and then the people actually working say "this is incredibly unsafe and illegal"
I remember watching this episode years ago and I never forgot it. A very powerful documentary that peels back all the layers of the airline industry and reveals how sinister those airlines really are.
It’s really not the airlines. The airlines just play the game. The game is enforced by the FAA. They are the ones that didn’t care.
i havent flown since 9/2001. if i cant drive to my destination then i dont travel. no more flights. thank God. my husband flew millions of miles over 40 years...had several near misses but was lucky to survive. he hated United Airlines which he flew most often. he flew first class as an executive for his company...they ran out of food or had no choices. made flights very uncomfortable.
They are out there, still, acting to use former military pilots!
I learned not to fly budget airlines and know what models I will be flying on. Everyone should know and whatever you do, avoid the 737 Max!!!
@@srs3572 No "budget" airlines fly the Max lol
just flew on a Max last week. It's fine.
My cousin was an airline pilot for a major airline. He was highly intelligent, graduated from the US Air Force Academy and flown many missions in Vietnam. He was in the Air Force for sixteen years before working in the private sector. He always talked poorly of small regional airlines. If he knew I am sure many people knew they were under trained.
I agree some idiots make it through. But the 1500 minimum is insanity and a knee-jerk reaction to someone that had clear indications he had no business in the cockpit.
Now back to the minimum hours rule insanity. A few years back when my wife was pregnant with our first kid I thought about leaving the Navy and going to an airline in order to be home more. But I soon realized that I didn't have enough hours😂. Now civil Aviation does log their hours a little different than the military and there's conversion factors etc. But that isn't the point because I was more qualified than pilots in the civilian sector with 3 times the hours. When I was in the Navy I was lucky to fly more than 125 hours per year but they were action packed compared to an hour on autopilot in a Boeing or Airbus.
To put it simply hours logged isn't the way to judge proficiency and the pilot had over 2200 hours so the knee-jerk reaction is pointless. Instead there needs to be skill based evaluations that are actually enforced unlike those he failed multiple times
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@@southjerseysound7340 Hours are a useless metric. Most hours are like freeway driving on cruise control. What you want is regular intensive trouble management in simulators and that's being done to onboard pilots faster today. Actually government licensing is useless as well. I call it the "trope of minimum competence". You want to fly with that guy? Or undergo surgery? No airline - or their underwriter - will put someone they don't trust in charge of an $30 million airplane. They don't need government licensing which sorts for the wrong criteria and is worse than no regulation at all.
Yes, but - just because someone has a few hundred hours, isn't proof that they have had intense experience like, say, in the military. I agree with your situation, and I think we are having growing pains changing over from primarily military pilot backgrounds to school only, as the Korea and Vietnam era pilots are retired now. I don't know what the optimum hours are and what the optimal military conversion rate is.
A friend put her son through flight school in the early 90s, and it was then I learned how little experience and hours were required for the regionals, where he got an entry level (but First Officer) job "to get his hours up". I have gone out of my way to avoid regionals ever since. Not interested in a training ground for baby airline pilots. Her son did not have an aviation or military background and school flying was the first he had done. Perhaps 1500 hrs is too high for the right seat, but in the complete noob case, a proper number seems sorely needed to be able to fully understand an aircraft, in any situation and weather. How can 2 pilots, with the the captain, being very experienced, albeit with a checked record, not have enough familiarity to at least react properly to a stick shaker? We've seen this over and over again, globally. Airlines aren't going to dedicate a fleet of large jets to training, but maybe they should. Or at least require more PPL hours for hopeful pilots completely new to aviation, just to get a second nature proficiency in how an aircraft handles, so that you have a basis for emergency situations? You know a simulator won't kill you (well, maybe your career), so it doesn't seem the same to me, as far as intensity or adrenaline.
I remember this doc, and it changed my view of airlines. Quoted it, and referenced it for years.
Great doc, and thank you for posting!
I was a flight attendant for nearly and I learned A lot! Airlines are always cutting corners!
Colgan was a joke in the early 2000s. The regional game has vastly improved the last ten years. I refused to go into the airlines when I got my commercial license. Been in 135 charter and freight ever since. What they put pilots through was disgusting, eating ramen everyday, sleeping on couches, companies removing couches from airport crew rooms because pilots could not afford a hotel room.
I used to take these small regional planes all the time when I travelled for business in 2009-2012, and the flights were always only like 35 minutes long. I had absolutely no clue they were so lightly regulated and that the crew wasn't even truly a part of the actual major airlines. Not that that's the main problem, as many things are contracted out and run well, but the lack of regulation is absolutely alarming, and I had no clue.
I never would've flown on these things had I known. I always remember, the flights seemed WAY rougher, but I just chalked it up to the planes being a lot smaller. I remember one time our pilot had immense trouble landing, and it felt like we jumped after touching down, and the pilot had to go back up and go around again. Weather was perfect at the time. The crew also always seemed to be VERY young.
Knowing what I know now, apparently those crews only make roughly minimum wage (including the pilots), which is absolutely horrifying, and they're worked to the bone and often live 3-4 crew members in a small apartment. VERY alarming, and something needs to change.
They announced it before every flight, “welcome aboard this regional flight operated by X”
Bottom Line, if the airlines are willing to share their name, then they must share the same training and safety standards.
@@lusher00, but if they had the name of the other, major, airline on the tickets and on the safety cards, and on the internet when a person books their ticket, then isn't that very much a mixed message? Even in the corporate world, "operated by" can mean a number of different things. Also, if one is able to grasp that "operated by" might mean different safety standards, so one decides to leave the airplane, it's doors would already be shut and the plane would be prepared to taxi.
Stand up under those circumstances, and you're going to be told to sit back down. Try to leave the plane, and the police are going to be called. The airline will see you in court and they will likely have vastly more financial resources than you.
So announcing that there is another airline involved, specifically without all of the pertinent details, and at the last minute, is hardly a level playing field for the passengers!
@@catherinenelson4162
WOW!!! Very well said!!! You should copy this text and paste it in the initial comments and not just as a reply. Just saying.
Sounds like a JSX flight into vegas lol 😂 hot weather makes it choppy
That mouthpiece with a perma-tan is a topshelf arch-bullshttr
He is a professional liar and gaslighter.
High quality journalism.
Thought I was going to learn how to use my credit card to get tons of air mileage for nothing.
Keep up the good work. So informative.
After 2 rocky flights 1600 miles apart in the late nineties I changed my flight purchasing decisions. I do not ever fly regional airlines, even in an Emmergency. Renting a car and driving has replaced flying into my destination. I was lucky to survive the regional airlines I did choose. Now, I read the small print on a potential itinerary. It surprises me that other people do not.
Not everyone can drive
I've flown and taken cabs to and from the airport.
Not everyone can just drive to their destination as you did.
We need nationwide high speed rail.
Why can't everyone drive?
I spent 13 years driving a semi over the road. I was about at the peak of the available quality of life and pay balance available in trucking. I always wanted to go to flight school and get into the airlines as the ultimate upgrade. Then I saw that the path to the airlines required 100k or more in training costs and then a 20k a year job with a worse quality of life than a first year truck driver. No thanks.
The trucking industry treats drivers in the first year as practical legal slave labor. The regionals looked worse than even that.
Just one example is rest breaks. When I took a rest break on a truck, that time started when I was parked and only inches from a safe place to sleep. The break ended with me still in the same place. Pilots have to Shuttle to and from the hotel, check in and out, arrange transportation for the morning, coordinate with other crew, search for food or make something like ramen from your bag.
And trucking pays better than the first several years of flying. The washout rate is very similar as well.
Yeah the best way to become a pilot is to get free training in the military.
Same reason why i didn't go to flight school when i got out of high school. Why in the world would anyone get into over 100k debt to make 20k to 30k a year for unspecified number of years. The system is a joke and the airlines are paying for it now with the pilot shortage.
@@danielpena-un8vl my best friends dad did it tbr smart way. He was a fighter pilot in the Navy for 10 years then he retired and got a job flying for FedEx. They make bank. He retired this year making like 300k a year.
Yeah that sucks brother. I think it's the perceived romance of flying that attracts people. As for truckers, y'all should either join the teamsters or form another not corrupt union. Sure teamsters have problems but at least they get paid well.
@@QueenCityHornets 300K - sweet!
Thanks to all involved in producing this program
Gotta love Frontline documentaries 💕💯
Similar thing is happening with Amazon and other mail carriers. They sell their routes and pass on the liabilities to the smaller carriers . . .
Profit …..and lack of accountability with Amazon ….what a business model !
@@MsStorm351 Literally nearly all transportation businesses do that, whether it's mail or people. The US is incredibly corrupt when it comes to corporate interests and it only gets more disgusting the more you find out and the more you understand just how widespread it really is.
I have a deep fear of flying now that I am older. Watching this confirms my fears. Corporate greed will do anything to make money regardless if it may endanger lives.
I cannot recommend the Mentour Pilot channel enough for in-depth, professional, well-researched, sensitive, and knowledgeable reviews of any of the notable flight incidents from the past, well, history of flight really.
an excellent public service presented with awesome professionalism - thamks so much
Similar scenario playing out in hospitals..overworked, fatigued and understaffed nurses taking care of sicker and sicker patients..mistakes are bound to happen
That doesn't kill multiple people.
And then they fired their best nurses, merely for their right to refuse the ControlYaVirus plan-demic experimental and unsafe "poison jab". And then surprise! surprise! Understaffed. Certain managers and CEOs is who needs to be fired. And the corrupt evil politicians.
I miss docs like this. Shot like this.
Getting out of aviation with over 6000 hours and 2 type ratings was one of the best decisions of my life. All my airline pilot friends are miserable, and that's as good as it gets.
Yes please leave if you all are miserable
I hope your life is going well. Not easy to give that up. I have a lot of respect for pilots. It requires great skill and dedication.
I flew a Continental flight back in the early 2000 s on one of those little jets from Philadelphia to Buffalo. When we landed the plane hit the ground so hard, that I injured my neck.. I looked out the window expecting to see a tire bouncing across the field.. now I know why….
Oh my gosh. I don’t suppose you got any kind of compensation from that. But given the track record from these regional carriers as this documentary points out, I wouldn’t hold my breath. Hopefully you’re doing well today.
It’s going to be a good day when you get the notification that Frontline posted a new documentary.
Thank u. I instantly remember this was a repost. When was the original? I guess the more important question is has anything changed?
By "new" I assume you mean one made this decade? This thing is 12 years old. Quite the backlog they have there at Frontline apparently.
Thank you PBS and Nova for making this documentary I really really like you guys
I've been a regional flight attendant for 19 years. My heart is beating so fast, and I haven't started watching this yet. I know it's going to be validating to have my experience acknowledged. But it also will probably bring up some uncomfortable feelings.
My airline has merged, is much more professional, but I'll tell you one thing... Mainline has a shortage (I'm sure why will be covered in this documentary) so they're funneling our pilots to mainline. When you have an extreme shortage and shareholders to please...I won't say that I've seen less professionalism, nothing is like my previous regional airline, but I did have a shocking experience and am worried for the future.
It will balance out. Pilots used to be a dime a dozen and that's why they got paid crap. Now there is a great need for them, which means they will pay them more, and more people will step up to the plate to become pilots since they're now paying living wages. It will get better, though I can't say there won't be a bit of growing pains.
This vid made me nervous too, because it was posted just a month ago, but then I realized that it was from 12yrs ago.
@@powerofknowledge7771 In the meantime they're being so overworked they are exhausted, and the airlines aren't reducing flights enough to match the staffing.
So be concerned for safety, and plan to be annoyed
You are so right .... My daughter WAS a flight attendant....it was too much. Irritable abusive passengers breaking up fights....ridiculous.
@@mariapierce2707 😔
@@sazonada I understand and agree.
Companies love it when they can point the finger of responsibility at another company.
It should be common sense - who did I give my money to? THAT is who is responsible for my safety through the entire trip. To have a contract that the passengers aren't aware of is just plain shady.
I think it needs to be more prominent that this documentary is over a decade old, and safety standards, pay, quality of life have improved dramatically since 2010.
Yup. Exactly.
HAVE they though. Covid destrabilized the airlines and we once again bailed out the CEOs instead of actual pilots, FAs, and crew, who lost work and, in the case of pilots, have lost hours needed to keep their skills up. Because we furloughed them instead of supporting them.
I think it's more important to point out that this documentary portrays how it was and how the current CEOs want to return to that. Just look at all the petitions to the FAA to lower the hours requirements
It's still decent quality information.
If it's age bothers you then don't watch it.
I know a retired aviator...he would never fly on a regional. And his daughter flew as a 1st and pilot for regionals for years. I asked him once what would happen if his daughter was flying us and there was a problem..."you're gonna die".
LOL no kidding, what a legend. Thanks for sharing.
As a recent retired flight attendant I was always put my trust into the pilot and first officer who flew the plane ✈️
I've got a cousin that retired from united after many years as a captain. She started flying Embraer commuters and paid her dues- loved to fly. From her experience she always told me to intentionally book away from these smaller planes. They're always going to be farm out shoestring operations and the smaller planes just aren't as durable or safe. The pilots and the ground crew are oppressed and underpaid.
We're told how safe flying is, but there are cases where it's revealed how an airline cut corners in some way.
thats routine in every business!!
All about money like everything else
Flying is the safest mode of transportation humans have ever developed, and the numbers aren't even close. Especially when compared to automobiles and trains.
Flying is safe. This was the last major accident in the US. Regional airlines still aren’t great, but this accident did make things safer for everyone.
@@jinxedpenguin : AIRLINE CORPORATE POLITICS VS. THE BLACK BOX
Deregulation opened up air travel to the masses but it also meant a race to the bottom as price cuts cut pay, maintenance, corners...
Thank you for this
Since this is twelve years old at this point, it deserves some follow-up.
This is the most recent airline crash in the US that has killed more than 10. In the 00s decade, there were 7, excluding 9/11.
Over the past ten years, the accident rate for scheduled airliners is about 0.00052/100,000 hours, about 1 in 192 million per hour in flight.
Whether it was due to industry or regulations, the changes appear to have worked.
However, the symbiotic relationship they refer to between the FAA and the airlines still exists. Witness the Boeing 737 Max debacle!
FOR THE PEOPLE COMPLAINING THIS DOC IS "OLD:" Covid destrabilized the airlines and we once again bailed out the CEOs instead of actual pilots, FAs, and crew, who lost work and, in the case of pilots, have lost hours needed to keep their skills up. Because we furloughed them instead of supporting them. THAT'S why we currently in 2022 have a pilot shortage: because we didn't give these essential workers CONTINUOUS income. Crew not getting paid for their time until the doors close is very much a 2022 issue. All the airlines are anti-Union. Delta JUST started paying for more time (like, when people are actually present at work). Delta is still anti-Union. SO this film is super relevant today in 2022.
ALSO, we need cross-airline no fly lists. Misconduct in the air is unacceptable. BE NICE to your flight attendants.
Makes sense then. Airlines being anti-union. The employees have no rights or representation.
Yesterday I flew from a small regional airport into a large hub. It was branded as a major airline, being operated by a regional airline. The pilot was probably 22-25 years old, he greased the landing like a pro.
The industry has gone through significant changes since the time this was aired. All airline pilot are required to have 1500+ hours now. Regional pilots are paid more. Training for these pilots is stricter. Etc.
@@mburgnon They are actually trying to have the 1500 hour rule lowered.
Informative!
I used to work at an FBO so I got to talk to a lot of small plane pilots, like charters and other private planes. Sooo many of them said they were doing back to back to back 16 hour days and were absolutely exhausted. I worked the night shift so I would take them to the hotel and was stunned how ridiculous it was that they were flying the next day at 7 am while getting to the hotel at 12 am. So that’s time to eat, shower and finally fall asleep so maybe 4 hours ago sleep because you gotta get up and poop.
I can't believe that you're talking like that in front of the profits.
Are you Mad? Have you no decency to consider that corporate executives may have to own fewer homes?
Why didn’t you do anything to stop this? By standing by and doing nothing, you’re just as guilty and will be judged by god
@@deoglemnaco7025 Thanks Deog, thats great advice that I'm sure you're working on yourself. Let us know how your stop to Capitalism is going before it destroys God's greatest gift to Man; Planet Earth.
@@bravocharlie639 sir, I am a CHRISTIAN and I know what is right and what is wrong. You need to repent.
@@deoglemnaco7025 "This people honors me with their lips but their heart is far from me." - Matthew 15:8
But surely you KNEW that one already Deog? Sure.
This pops up just as I’m about fly next week on a regional flight out of Evansville Indiana. I flew on Delta’s regional flight out of Evansville just a couple weeks back. Those little planes are BOUNCY. I was struck by how young the pilots were.
Pray for me you all, got a regional flight from Evansville to Dallas for the first leg of a trip to San Francisco this weekend.
You'll be fine.
Prayers🤲🤲🤲👌👌🤞🤞👍👍
You'll have a safe flight ✈️
You’ll be fine, sweety.
Can't you change your flight, citing this new information from Frontline?
When it comes to poor quality business, we have the ability to "vote with our feet".
Fatigue is and always has been a major issue particularly in the regional airlines. The NTSB does a poor job of investigating and automatically defaults to pilot error. Put that NTSB guy in a sim and in the same circumstances and same fatigue level and almost guaranteed he also will not be able to recover the airplane and crash. @26 minutes, that guy is not telling the truth at all, they will never admit that money comes before safety. It's always been that way, but it's particularly dangerous in the airline industy
Nationwide high speed rail in the US now. Pass Build Back Better. Vote out obstructuonist Republicans this November. Invest in human needs.
Why didn’t I know about this before? Why don’t more people know about it? Thank you FROTLINE, I hope yours and other channels are able to share more about this topic.
Thank you for the good reporting.
I just scheduled a flight for me and my wife from New Orleans to Denver....yes, I could've paid for both of our flights for 250-300 using regional but I instead paid over 800 for us for the safety factor. I refuse to vote for these regional airlines. As long as people are willing to pay cheap prices, these things will keep happening. It's a race to the bottom once economics get involved. That slimeball talking about 50/night hotels should be made to stay in one for a week.
There are no more $50 night motels. Not anywhere in the USA. This is a great doc, but it is a reposting from more than a dozen years ago.
@@eddenoy321 I pay $10 hour at my local hotel
@@bincockwell2610 What's that, The No-Tell, Motel.
@@bartbutkis That's what a roach motel costs now at the supermarket.
Exactly most commenters like to blame the airlines for being profit hungry but it’s the passengers that decides things in a very low profit industry
21:27 Looks like the CEO had to interrupt his vacation to talk to you guys. What an absolute inconvenience!
Deregulation leads to shoddy safety standards on regional airlines. The fiction the 'free market' will straightened it out hasn't worked. It's the case in many other industries too, not usually with such disastrous results.
Deregulation has led to shoddy EVERYTHING!
"Deregulation" in this instance referred to the 1978 act that removed the CAB, which literally told airlines which routes they could fly, and what price they could charge. Meanwhile, you're watching a report from 12 years ago; in the years since then, there has been quite a bit of regulation brought about by this crash, including one that requires 1,500 hours of flying for pilots before they can get hired. It's one of the major reasons for pilot shortages right now. So, what exactly is your point?
Nationwide high speed rail in the US now. Pass Build Back Better. Vote out obstructuonist Republicans this November. Invest in human needs.
Covid destrabilized the airlines and we once again bailed out the CEOs instead of actual pilots, FAs, and crew, who lost work and, in the case of pilots, have lost hours needed to keep their skills up. Because we furloughed them instead of supporting them. THAT'S why we currently in 2022 have a pilot shortage: because we didn't give these essential workers CONTINUOUS income. Crew not getting paid for their time until the doors close is very much a 2022 issue. All the airlines are anti-Union. Delta JUST started paying for more time (like, when people are actually present at work). Delta is still anti-Union. SO this film is super relevant today in 2022.
@@kitcoffey7194 No, we have a pilot shortage because of the 1,500 hour rule. None of what you spewed about has to do with deregulation. You are deranged and just like to hear yourself type your favorite talking points.
thank you frontline
Wow, becoming a pilot is almost treated the same as becoming a OTR-Driver, insane to treat people who must follow much stricter regulations in the same light especially in pay 😔...
Move that rig is exactly the kind of thing they'd be telling truckers.
We get paid more being truck drivers I make 135,000 a year lol 😂
Exactly, fucking scary. Don't forgot about surgeons being up for 24hrs working on yourself or a loved one.
But you are essential workers, so you'd better show up. We'll say thank you again when we think of it -- that's enough, right? 😒
The air line industry is no different from any other. All companies want to offer you a service at the highest amount you will pay, but at the lowest cost to them as possible. Pilots, flight attendants, gate agents, mechanics, ground crews, dispatchers, etc they all make very little. That high cost goes into the pocket of the executives and board members. It’s the same old story, different company. No one cares about the little guy, yet your life is in their hands.
I have seen server rooms that are literally keeping boilers from exploding and the power flowing to homes. These systems were being kept cool by an a/c system running on windows 95 (this was in 2018). Because the company didnt want to shell out the money to pay for a new system. However, the executive team had brand new unmarked company cars every 3 years.
Nationwide high speed rail in the US now. Pass Build Back Better. Vote out obstructuonist Republicans this November. Invest in human needs.
USA! USA! Lol, this is not a country never was never will be we worship the almighty dollar.
How have I never heard of this before? Has the whole public been unaware of this until this documentary?
I am never flying again. Especially since there is such a debate about who is responsible in case of an incident. No thank you.
Everyone needs to be mindful that this is 10+ years old. A lot has changed including the experience minimums.
Didn't they go by in a blink.
Nothing has changed but the safety label.
@@corysturgis6660 Well obviously you don't know anything about aviation. Minimum hours to even be a FO at any part 121 operation is 1500 hrs or 1000 hrs if you graduate from a Part 141 college program. And that's only for SIC privileges.
FOR THE PEOPLE COMPLAINING THIS DOC IS "OLD:" Covid destrabilized the airlines and we once again bailed out the CEOs instead of actual pilots, FAs, and crew, who lost work and, in the case of pilots, have lost hours needed to keep their skills up. Because we furloughed them instead of supporting them. THAT'S why we currently in 2022 have a pilot shortage: because we didn't give these essential workers CONTINUOUS income. Crew not getting paid for their time until the doors close is very much a 2022 issue. All the airlines are anti-Union. Delta JUST started paying for more time (like, when people are actually present at work). Delta is still anti-Union. SO this film is super relevant today in 2022.
ALSO, we need cross-airline no fly lists. Misconduct in the air is unacceptable. BE NICE to your flight attendants.
For those who don't know, ValuJet became JETBLUE.
This is shocking? It’s worked this way as long as I can remember. I used to fly US Air weekly and the announcement before every flight was “welcome aboard this regional US Airways flight operated by Mesa Air.”
Airline lobbyist?
Yeah, this report made it sound like regionals came into existence in the 1990s, but they have always been around. The issue was their explosive growth. That Continental flight between EWR and BUF, for example, used to be flown on mainline jets by the major itself when I was taking it in the late 1980s. Clearly by the time of this crash 20 years later it was being flown by a regional on a turbo.
FOR THE PEOPLE COMPLAINING THIS DOC IS "OLD:" Covid destrabilized the airlines and we once again bailed out the CEOs instead of actual pilots, FAs, and crew, who lost work and, in the case of pilots, have lost hours needed to keep their skills up. Because we furloughed them instead of supporting them. THAT'S why we currently in 2022 have a pilot shortage: because we didn't give these essential workers CONTINUOUS income. Crew not getting paid for their time until the doors close is very much a 2022 issue. All the airlines are anti-Union. Delta JUST started paying for more time (like, when people are actually present at work). Delta is still anti-Union. SO this film is super relevant today in 2022.
ALSO, we need cross-airline no fly lists. Misconduct in the air is unacceptable. BE NICE to your flight attendants.
I think i have seen this one before because I remember thinking that the regional airline association president was very light on his feet as he danced around all those direct questions.
This was such an eye opener.
FOR ANYONE THAT HAS SKIPPED OVER THE DESCRIPTION. THIS DOC AIRED IN 2010. A LOT HAS CHANGED SINCE THEN. LIKE CREW REST, PAY, HOTEL BENEFITS FOR COMMUTING CREW, MIN FLIGHT EXPERIENCE OF 1500 (1000-1250 restricted, if pilot went through an accredited/FAA approved aviation degree.
THE AIR DATE SHOULD BE IN THE TITLE. THIS VIDEO COULD EASILY AND UNNECESSARILY SCARE A LOT OF PEOPLE!
The air date was shown at the start of the video in the upper right hand corner. They would see that.
This is ultimately why I walked away from airline transport aviation. It’s too bad because I loved being a pilot.
When you discovered that your professional passion/devotion can/does become weaponized. Challenging safety defects/shortcomings in any manner gets people labeled as troublemakers, not team players...
@@ltmundy1164 so true. Still breaks my heart. My story would likely have been much different had I got in 15 years earlier. Spent an ungodly amount of money on my training. I know people who have suffered worse I suppose
From education to healthcare, pollution to climate change, transportation to politics: is there any aspect of the US void of problems?
Every PBS Frontline episode can be titled "GREED". Pure and simple. Company owners want to be uber-rich and enrich their shareholders...
There isn't, but you see them because the US is an open and free society, unlike places like China.
Thank you sharing this video.
I still love this mews special.
Sure is impressive how much pain and suffering is needlessly created, just so executives and shareholders can make a little bit more money.
I think the problem is that it’s a ton of these opportunities constantly in all different directions. And they get away with a lot of it without a problem. So then these events are just an inevitable part of that
Nationwide high speed rail in the US now. Pass Build Back Better. Vote out obstructuonist Republicans this November. Invest in human needs.
Now 12 years after this documentary was aired, have any regulations been instituted to reform this industry? Over-the-road truckers have strict regulations for their driving and mandatory rests, and they only haul cargo, not human beings.
Yes they have
I think the correct term is outsourcing.
It’s effected every business and industry including transportation.
At one time it was good business but now it’s sometimes dubious in the execution of the task or product.
Backed up with a façade of reassurance from smiley faces and cheery confident voices on unsuspecting customers.
The day that ValueJet crashed in FL, I took my first flight on ValueJet from Columbus, OH to Washington Dulles (DC.) I heard about the crash, but figured accidents happen. It did not deter me from taking my flight back to Columbus a few days later. As a matter of fact, I had the whole row to myself, and was absolutely tickled at how fast the trip was! I think about it every so often, and realize how fortunate I am to have had no issues.
Powerhouse director Stanley Kubrick was notorious for not flying. Many called him paranoid. In fact, he was a pilot. In an interview, he basically said the industry is not as tight you think.
I actually checked that - you're right.
Its always about maximizing profits.Always. 😔
Hospital management does the same thing with its employees.
This is so much heartbreaking...
It’s fascinating to see what the U.S. used to be like just 12 years ago. Back then, the people interviewed were shocked that anyone might put profits over safety. Now, after the fallout from the 2008 mortgage crisis, we are far more cynical as a nation. Few people have done more harm to the country than the Assistant Attorney General (Breuer) who oversaw the prosecution of not even 5 bankers from the mortgage crisis. In the 1980s S&L crisis, by contrast, DOJ prosecuted more than 1,000 bankers. 1,000! Now, most people aren’t surprised when executives put profits over people. What a shame.
Thank you for saving me from saying it...Greed is destroying America and we are not getting any better only worse.
Covid destrabilized the airlines and we once again bailed out the CEOs instead of actual pilots, FAs, and crew, who lost work and, in the case of pilots, have lost hours needed to keep their skills up. Because we furloughed them instead of supporting them. THAT'S why we currently in 2022 have a pilot shortage: because we didn't give these essential workers CONTINUOUS income. Crew not getting paid for their time until the doors close is very much a 2022 issue. All the airlines are anti-Union. Delta JUST started paying for more time (like, when people are actually present at work). Delta is still anti-Union. SO this film is super relevant today in 2022.
There's a lot to learn how these companies work. Ultimately the decisions they make concern what profits they make.
True, but if the FAA was doing it's job properly, acting as a regulatory agency instead of as a "buddy" to the airlines, these problems wouldn't exist.
Some problems will always exist, but the FAA's culture needs to change.
Anyone who thinks it's about anything but profit is naive.
@@nohandle62 , The quest for profits need to be balanced with the quest for safety. Case in point:. The Boeing Max.
How much money did Boeing ultimately lose because they lost the vision for the quest for safety?
They put profits first and lost big time, as did nearly 400 people who lost their lives.
Then their management is deluded, hoping that the corners they cut will never come back to haunt them. Any reasonable person in the industry knows that crashes and being forced out of business because of them never pay off in the long run, but humans like to delude themselves.
@@catherinenelson4162 you must be new to America
As I hurtled through space, one thought kept crossing my mind, every piece of this rocket was supplied by the lowest bidder.- John Glenn
That's not true that every piece of the rocket was supplied by the lowest bidder. John Glenn never wrote down that quote. I've worked as an IT consultant to governments for about 30 years and they never ever pick a supplier on the basis of "lowest bidder"
@@billolsen4360 I don't think anyone would take that literal, it's humorous. The quote is attributed to him online and quotes don't necessarily need to be written down by a person to be a quote. As to if he actually said it, believe half of what you see and none of what you hear. I see your analytical skills are still on point.
@@billolsen4360 : The Right Stuff Is Not Cheap!
@@jrstsb1353 Got ya!
@@geraldboykin6159 😁
Pilot shortage has to stop this abuse, but where are you going to acquire experience?
Finally something other than Covid or politics. Maybe I’ll start watching Frontline again. Though this is 10 years old. Frontline needs to get back to their roots with programming like this.
My family laughs at me that I willing drive 6 hours to dfw just to avoid taking a 45 minute regional flight to dfw out of our local airport. I'm a nervous flyer and no offense to the rookie pilots just making a living...but I just feel better flying with pilots with more experience and union safety nets in place.
I'm with you girl! I live just outside of Chicago. My then manager and I had to go to a manufacturing plant in Southern Illinois. He took a regional flight. I drove for 3 hours. There was no way I was going to get on, what we called back then, a 'puddle jumper'.
I am a field service guy. After 10 years of traveling by plane I started to opt out and drive 6 to 8 and now 10 hours of driving. Sure I got to see a few motel 6’s but I it still do the drives .
Excellent reporting!
Stay safe everybody thanks for your work flying is so fun!
Good bot.
In 1995 I worked as a reservation agent at TWA. At some point we were told we had to disclose to the person buying the ticket that it was run by a regional (or commuter) airline called “….” After I stated this to the person, I sometimes asked them “Do you understand what I just said”. To which they usually said “no”. I would then explain that this is a separate company and airline that has an agreement with TWA. I don’t think this mattered but that’s because they didn’t understand what that really meant. I think we had to start saying this because someone had complained when they realized they were not on an actual TWA flight and there had been a complaint so they went to TWA to complain and got no resolution.
I was also in pilot training while at that job and eventually became a commuter (regional) airline pilot myself. I thought I received good training but was aware that it wasn’t to the same standards as major airline pilots. I also only made $16,000 a year in 1999 flying a regional jet. I commuted and had a crash pad in Boston, but I was lucky because my commute was short and my crash pad was rarely full. I also had a better schedule on the jet than those who flew turbo props.
This accident was tragic and shouldn’t have occurred. I’m glad there have been many changes since then to improve pilot training and records.
IRONIC that the pressured, hustling pilots call their improvised apartments "CRASH pads."
Because all they do is sleep (crash) & go to work.
I flew a lot in the 70's through the 90's and won't anymore, the industry has become such a big fustercluck.😢
Agree. I won't either.
Reaching pilot level in less than a year isn't almost scary. It's frightening.
You mean flying as Captain in less than 3 years is scary…which is very true.
Nationwide high speed rail in the US now. Pass Build Back Better. Vote out obstructuonist Republicans this November. Invest in human needs.
@@kitcoffey7194 Gosh, I haven't heard anything more about infrastructure.
I think all the $$$ is earmarked for military expenses. We still don't have enough guns, tanks, nuclear missile offense and defense inventry as well as other incidentals.
Basically, there's little to no money left...
So, no need wasting time on petitions. Have a nice life 😅😂🤣
Well you can look at it like this if you ride in a cab they are in control and have far less training heck most can be barely speak English I'd worry about cab ride way more than flying
Europe has successfully implemented the regional hub and spoke model for years. It’s professional and efficient. There isn’t a lapse in training or standards.
I just traveled to Portugal through TAP AIR PORTUGAL. Landing in Oporto was the best ever, meantime, landing in Newark, NJ l thought we were going to crash and the airplane wasn't going to stop...it was very scary. Though, it's a great airline you can TRUST!! Too much rushing people in their careers and not enough rest.
I recall landing at Newark one time and thinking the plane could have landed in the water. Landing at LaGuardia, on the other hand, is a different story. Some airports are weird and they all have their quirks.
@@aycc-nbh7289 they have the newest aircrafts!!! Technology 💯.
Newark airport is one busy airport. The problem is the city grew and now no land for more runways . Oh yes they sure did add more gates.
Last I checked there is not a gate 13 in terminal A.
Brighter world w frontline… good job!
Very very good show open my eyes to planes industry
The US military is no longer turning out loads of pilots that head to the airlines. Pilots todays pay their own way through aviation colleges which are hugely expensive. The airlines ought to be training their own pilots.
Yeah my BF was looking into flight training and I think the cost to get like 40 hours of flight time, (which will get you your private Piot license) was somewhere around $2000. That included a flight instructor, plane rental, gas, etc. They said in order to get a Commercial Pilot License you need around 250 hours of flight time, then to fly for major airlines most require around 1500-2500 hours of flight time. Before you can get hired on at a carrier that will let you fly their planes, you're looking at renting planes at somewhere around $2000/month, which is crazy if you have other expenses already like housing, car insurance, a family, etc. And if you have a full time job to pay for that flight training, you're going to be stretching yourself thin just trying to get all that flight time in. It's insane.
Emirates has their own flight school for their pilots.
@@jamiecloud1897 Well not too many Americans are gonna qualify for an airline in the Middle East.
@@VLove-CFII Actually, Emirates hires from all over the world and currently has over 52 nationalities working for them, including Americans as pilots. One of their most famous ones is Captain Ashley Klinger, who flies a Boeing 777 for Emirates and is from the US.
It's weird hearing my city's name be mentioned this much. I remember this crash I was talking to a friend who was working at a group home not far. This country makes every attempt to cut corners at the cost of livable wages. 50 dollars to someone making less than 20k is a ton of money. What a trash human for suggesting otherwise
Thank you for making this documentary! That CEO and someone in FAA should go to prison.
Thank u. I instantly remember this was a repost. When was the original? I guess the more important question is has anything changed?
I myself have been a passenger in MANY planes that were experiencing trouble and landed them safely (all of them) with no loss of life. It is important to keep calm like I do and be able to take control. Just a few weeks ago, both the pilots were sick from the in-flight meal and were unable to continue. I took the controls and managed to land the plane on time.
What a hero you are very commendable.
@@antonywambugu9905 thanks! I do what is necessary. Someday you can meet me perhaps if you’re lucky!
Deog Lemnaco? You mean the one who says "I am the internet's 19th greatest troll"? You took the controls and managed to land the plane on time? So, what airline was that? What was the flight number? From where to where? Where did you take your flight training? Shouldn't take you long to answer those questions, you old troll. 😉
Oh, I forgot one of the most important things -- what kind of aircraft was it where you took the controls?
@@4thamendment237 where do you see that? Maybe I was hacked. I don’t have to prove myself to you, mister
I remember flying with Delta to basic training. Both Delta and American Airlines contract with Piedmont Airlines to do their regionals. Tell me why the hell, Piedmont put us on a plane with boarded up windows and they couldn’t fly it over 10,000ft. The windows were missing and anything over 10,000ft would’ve been deadly due to lack of oxygen. This was back in 2006 when I flew with them. I couldn’t change my flight because the military paid for that ticket. I didn’t know what to do in that situation and who to call about that. Fast forward 10 years later, I book a flight to North Carolina and one of the connecting flights was through Piedmont. I actually avoided taking that route. I’m not flying on no boarded up plane, lol! I didn’t know that one phone call to the military liaison office would’ve changed it. They gave me their phone number with the shipping packet I got from MEPS, but at that time, the only way they were willing to help was if you missed your flight for incidents like if you accidentally overslept or your flight was delayed and you couldn’t make your connections. The way it was explained to me was that you couldn’t call them if it was a maintenance issue. I didn’t want to get into any kind of trouble, so I got on with a lot of prayers.
You know who owns Piedmont...Some scumbag that is probably See Eye A...No lower scum then them...Always a day late with their intelligence and they know who did it and don't anyone question them, just keep the unlimited budget coming or we will fix the home election like all others around the world...Oh wait...They do it here all the time. Tired of them and their anonymity along with all the subversion, cointelpro, and crime they run thru assets. Needs to be dismantled.
😳 I wonder if the pilots were sitting on orange crates! I'd love to have heard the radio communication between ATC and the pilots!
ATC: Piedmont 1385... Climb to 32,000.
Pilot: Well.... We'd like to, but you see.... we have wooden windows!
ATC:🤔
Makes sense that the government would pay for the shottiest plane. Military rarely gets the best, or even decent... they always get "it works enough." That sounds outrageous to endure. Glad you managed.
Thats incorrect delta has never contracted with piedmont a wholly subsidary of AAG and before that US airways
I flew Ozark to basic training. 😊