Jake Pavelka - The Bachelor 14

[yourefired]

My Mom used to work for Pan Am as a programmer in the 80's and 90's before the airline "folded". We used to fly standby all the time, and there were 7 of us in the family. She would check the flights and try to get us on ones that had a lot of available seats. Employees & family flew by a "Rapid Code" status--hers was S3 (S1 was highest, e.g. pilots; S7 was lowest, e.g. flight attendants) and that is how they handed out the "standby" seats. We were almost never bumped from flights or seated separately and flew First Class most of the time. We were also able to fly other airlines for a major discount; I flew to Ireland to see U2 in 1987 on Aer Lingus at 90% of regular Coach fare. It was great while it lasted...we went on some awesome trips and to this day I am sure that was her favorite job ever. I am not sure if things still work the same now with airlines but I would imagine they would do something similar.

The glory days are gone. Large planes have been replaced by regional jets. Elites get complimentary upgrades so employees hardly ever see first class, especially domestically. Every airline has cut capacity as well. So standby travel is 100x harder than it used to be.

For Delta (which is who Jake would have his benefits afforded), he would fly as an S3c. He flies below Delta and Northwest staff, below their companions, below Delta employees parents, below Delta retirees and equal to those who work for Delta's other regional carriers. The stand by list is dictated by date of hire and then class. He has a good date of hire, but he is only ahead of buddy list people and those who are standing by from other airlines. He flies behind a Delta employee hired last week. It used to just be about date of hire, but after the merger, regional employees took a major back seat to Delta and Northwest people. It is really sad when parents of other employees fly ahead of people who make their living with a Delta subsidiary.

They do have interline agreements with other airlines so they can fly free or discounted, but they fly at the back of their standby list. They are behind everyone else -- employees, companions/spouses, parents, subsidiary employees, and buddy list people. And their status among other airline employees who don't work for the airline they're trying to stand by on goes simply by when they listed themselves for standby.

It is not that easy and not a lot of fun. Air travel as we knew it pre-9/11 is gone. It is now a nickel and dime business where employees are underpaid and overworked. I am not sure your mom would love that job so much any more.

[yourefired]

ASA's home office and HUB is in Atlanta. Dallas no longer is a HUB and has not been for 5 years. Jake already has to commute to Atlanta to work.

Not necessarily true. Just because a city is a hub does not mean it's a flight base, and a city can be a flight base without being a hub. ASA's office has always been in Atlanta because Delta used to own it. They also do operate a flight crew base there. But it is not their only base.

Comair has bases in Cincinnati and JFK. They used to have them in Greensboro and Orlando. Only one of those 4 was a hub city. PSA Airlines has a base in Knoxville, TN which would never be a hub anywhere. Sky West has a base in San Diego which is also not a hub. I asked around, and I was told ASA does still operates a flight crew base in Dallas despite the fact that Delta de-hubbed DFW 5 years ago as you said.

[norealityhere]

I think the show has always been pretty staged.
However, I do happen to feel that Jake is one of the more earnest appearing bachelors.
And, I do agree with others that, so far, he has conducted himself well.

[yourefired]

Welcome. My husband is a private pilot and I would think flight instructors make quite a bit money if they have many students. After his Bachelor gig, Jake will have more students than he can shake a stick at.....all female. I know when my dh took lessons 30 years ago, I think he paid the instructor $40/hour. That was a fortune to us at the time. Jake probably supplements his pilot income with instructing.

By the way, pilots are always the nicest people or that's been my experience.

As we say a flyertalk, YMMV ........... your mileage may vary. A lot of pilots tend to be really cocky and think their crap don't stink. They cheat on wives and girlfriends and are real "hot dogs" too. I know girls who have dated them, and they compare them to professional athletes and musicians. But like I said, YMMV........

If Jake is a flight instructor, he will get paid for that when he does it. It is not like private instruction though. If you work in that capacity, you are called on to do the task and you are paid then. At other times you work your regular job. I know Jake is still flying because there was a lot of buzz in the Atlanta Airport around Christmas that the Bachelor guy had flown some people from Chattanooga to Atlanta. It was quite funny. Although I have to wonder if ASA might have temporarily taken him off the line because of that type of attention. It might be seen as disruptive to his coworkers. That would make sense.

[sanlee]

Ok, here is an avatar of Jake that i decided to make into an avatar. He is just too dang cute in this pic!!!

[Alleyroo]

I really like Jake ... In all his "golly gee" glory. The saddest thing about this season is that I truly believe that if the show weren't so rushed and the camera were not on them 24/7 ... but something like 16/6instead ... Jake might have actually found his true love. There were several seemingly great catches in this bunch, but he let a lot go right away. They just never get to know many girls ... by the time they get down to 8 or so ... which is pretty quick ... they are just plain 'stuck' with the ones left. Too bad.

I know it won't be finanicially worth it to the producers to spend more time allowing love to bloom. I also know that we the watching public have a short attention span and would get bored if it dragged on. Heck, I look for spoilers, like everyone else ... I'm just sayin' ... It's too bad - because of all the bachelors I think Jake really is or was ready to settle down ... not just looking for the next "hot" babe.

If he doesn't find love ... he's going to have an even harder time now that it's over. He will have so many wannabe groupies and gushing chickies that it will hard for him to figure out who to trust ... who really likes him for himself ... or who just wants to be known as the who nails/saves the broken hearted 'Bachelor'

Sigh :-(

[snickers]

i think its a good thing he eliminated some people quickly, if you know they are not going any further, why waste someone's time

but i do agree that they need to give it more than 6 weeks of dating multiple people for this formula to actually work, there's a reason there's only been 1 marriage produced

and i'm sure if other marriages happen divorces will be happening too

[NEPASue]

The glory days are gone. Large planes have been replaced by regional jets. Elites get complimentary upgrades so employees hardly ever see first class, especially domestically. Every airline has cut capacity as well. So standby travel is 100x harder than it used to be.

For Delta (which is who Jake would have his benefits afforded), he would fly as an S3c. He flies below Delta and Northwest staff, below their companions, below Delta employees parents, below Delta retirees and equal to those who work for Delta's other regional carriers. The stand by list is dictated by date of hire and then class. He has a good date of hire, but he is only ahead of buddy list people and those who are standing by from other airlines. He flies behind a Delta employee hired last week. It used to just be about date of hire, but after the merger, regional employees took a major back seat to Delta and Northwest people. It is really sad when parents of other employees fly ahead of people who make their living with a Delta subsidiary.

They do have interline agreements with other airlines so they can fly free or discounted, but they fly at the back of their standby list. They are behind everyone else -- employees, companions/spouses, parents, subsidiary employees, and buddy list people. And their status among other airline employees who don't work for the airline they're trying to stand by on goes simply by when they listed themselves for standby.

It is not that easy and not a lot of fun. Air travel as we knew it pre-9/11 is gone. It is now a nickel and dime business where employees are underpaid and overworked. I am not sure your mom would love that job so much any more.

Thanks for the information. Interesting how much it has all changed but sad as well. I guess I can consider myself lucky that my Mom was employed during the "Glory Days". She worked for British Airways for a while in the 90's and also got to fly the Concorde once! (at a discounted fare). But we were in college/working & not dependents anymore. She transferred to England for a year or two as well. My "glory days" of flying lasted until about 1992, then it was a trip or 2 here and there and nothing overseas. My last passport expired in 1998. I was going to get another one in 2003 but never did. I flew last year domestically (MCO-ATL-EWR) so that passport would have just sat gathering dust.

I am totally shocked that Jake as a pilot flies behind retirees, et al. That is just insane...what a wonderful world we live in now.

[hikari]

Why would anyone "talk" to Jake? He's the biggest tool to ever get on this show. He boarders on creepy. His actions last season with his tattle-tail behavior should have clued us in that he was stalkerish.

On paper this is a great guy. . .good looking, great job,. . .but he is a tool. IMO, he has no respect for any woman. . . he has a superiority complex that goes beyond being a narcissist. Any of these women who end up with him had better be scared. . . very scared. IMO, he doesn't like being told "no" . . or "you're wrong". . .and when they get to really know him, they will say "NO" and "YOU'RE WRONG" . . . repeatedly. . . ..and I fear for that women at that time.

Jake is human debris. . . he deserved Roz. . .

Wow. Them's some strong words, but I can't help liking you for saying what many must be thinking. I didn't see Jake when he was on the Bachelorette, and I have seen a grand total of two episodes of his star vehicle here. My initial impression was slightly more favorable than yours, but especially during the Hometown Dates segment, as I listened to him spout the same canned speech to all the parents, and during Ali's crisis, first in his hotel room and then prior to the rose ceremony, his true plasticness was revealed.

Human debris is perhaps a tad strong--I prefer to think of him as "Flight Instructor Ken", as in, Barbie's boyfriend. He seems about that genuine to me. The entire franchise really insults human dignity, whether the guys are choosing or the women are choosing. As a woman, I prefer the Bachelorette series, when the girl gets to pick. Not because our Bachelorettes are admirable all the time (they aren't), but because having a lone unattached man cavorting among 25 beautiful and desperate women just smacks of a harem to me. I prefer to think that women approach this decision thinking slightly deeper than on a gonadal level, but I could be wrong. The Bachelorette series boasts at least 2 marriages, which, while not great, is much better than zero. I think the Bachelor shows that when left to their own devices awash in a sea of nubile women, a man is constitutionally incapable of choosing wisely or well. In the primordial brain of males is a resistance to choosing at all; if allowed, I think our Bachelors would cavort forever in a hot tub full of gorgeous nearly naked women and never winnow the field at all.

Jake is in his 30s and well-established in his career. He is ideally poised in his life to choose a spouse. If his future wife wasn't among those 25 women, that's hardly a shock. But what would be shocking is if he winds up marrying one of the airheads he has left himself to choose from. So in that sense he is a tool, because he has gone for the lowest common denominator in all his choices. Tenley has the most potential as an actual wife rather than Playmate of the Month, but the ink is barely dry on her divorce decree. Oy.

Methinks that Flight Instructor Ken will fly off into the sunset having chosen nobody because there are so many untapped hot tubs to be had in Dallas. Just one viewer's opinion.

[NEPASue]

The Bachelorette series boasts at least 2 marriages

Who is the second one?
Trista - yes
Meredith - no
Jenn - no
Deanna - no
Jillian - not yet

I read that Jason & Molly will be getting hitched on TV & it will air after Jake's season ends (3/8). That would make two marriages out of the whole franchise (Bach & 'ette).