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And not exactly a job one can step into right out of school. First officer on a 737 for an airline is not by any definition an entry-level position. It is a career highlight, not a footstep.

How many hours a month do they work!

Exactly. This is after a minimum of a decade of training a shit paying jobs, on average it's probably closer to 15 to 20 years I would guess. And they're paid for time in the air. And have to be away from home. And have inconsistent schedules and frequently work in the middle of the night.

They also only get paid for when the door is closed to open, I think. There are a bunch of weird labor rules in the airline industry.

Is that flight hour or working hour. Or travel hour... Certainly not hours away from home.

How is that pay calculated?

You're not including all the hours that you spend waiting without getting paid for it. For every hour you are flying, you'll spend another waiting at the airport.

Other airlines pay for this time, Alaska does not. Which is why they can't find pilots. Their overall pay is crap.