When a high executive hires a decision maker for his company, does he select a junior graduate just out of school? He will only hire such a profile in order to train him under supervision and to promote him to the position he was originally hired for.\rSo, why would a young pilot think he could join the same corporation in order to build up his experience and leave to join an airline afterwards?\rWhere is the logic? Is the pilot's profile different from any other decision maker's profile such as surgeons who hold lives within their hands and have a limited time to take a decision. Training is costly and lengthy - for a pilot it takes about 10 years from scratch to reach the left seat position, with all the responsibilities it implies.\rWhy would a pilot want to join an airline when he already has a valuable corporate pilot's position which he likes? Some airline pilots - after 10 years in their business - would love to become corporate pilots. For them it is too late: the job is too different.\rOnce upon a time the sky was filled with national airline aircraft only. Few people were flying and crossing the Atlantic in the fifties. The commercial jets arrived in the late fifties and the world began to shrink: the business began to spread out and grow further from national to continental and today, global territories.\rBusiness aviation, which was at one time reserved for a selected category of wealthy companies or individuals, did develop and became an unavoidable business tool. Meanwhile pushed by potential customers, manufacturers developed high quality business jets to satisfy the demand.\rIn 1963, when sent by Pan Am to Le Bourget, Charles Lindberg placed an order for 40 Falcon 20s, all Dassault Aviation's resources were coming from military fighters. Who would have taken the bet - at that time - that by year 2000, civilian business aircraft revenue would surpass military ones.\rNo doubt, today more than ever, business aircraft is a tool, a very valuable tool such as a computer. It takes time, effort and money to select the right computer and the right person to run it. It does take the same time, effort and money to select the right aircraft and the right crews to fly them.\rJust as specialised computer analysts can ruin a company, a crew is responsible for the lives of the high level decision-makers they fly.\rVery often executives become friends with company pilots. Through a certain relationship, confidence builds up between them.\rComputer analysts require high salaries - the same applies to pilots. They have a sizeable share of responsibility for the success of a company. When both have obtained confidence, they will be highly rewarded. Keep in mind that people cross the oceans to be operated on by renowned surgeons.\rBusiness pilots have a different job than airline pilots.\r* an airline pilot flies an aircraft from point A to B to C...always assisted by strong logistics.\r* a corporate pilot's assignment is to take passengers in charge from a car (departure) to a car (arrival) at destination. They will fly company aircraft according to flight and operation manuals, with little outside help. However, this loneliness is disappearing with the explosive means of communication. Nevertheless the challenge will always be there. The business aircraft passengers will require pampering by being taken from the 'car office' to the 'aircraft office' to the 'car office'.\rKeeping their mind on the business they are working on, passengers do not want to be bothered by travel problem headaches. They are keen on travel freedom, availability and trade security.\rRemember! Following recent EC positions, many points are equivalent:\r* licences are the same\r* salaries can be matched\r* aircraft flow - by all means - have the same sophisticated cockpit, reliable power plants, latest required equipment, comfortable cabins ...\r* globalisation will require more and more staff to fly around the world.\rNow, some people could say, stepping down from a Jumbo is more impressive. I don't know about you, I am not more impressed by a driver stepping out of a big truck than from any other means of ground transportation. A pilot is a pilot. The size has no added value, the challenge remains. Military pilots know that after graduation, the top of the class generally don't choose transport category.\rColleagues, be proud of your job. If you like your job, you are in the right seat. The grass is not greener next door. The man who wrote this article did graduate first of military flying school class, got involved with airlines, but spent more than 33 years of his life flying for a corporation. At 67, he is still happy with the choice he made.\rThe environment today is even more favourable for business aviation.\rHappy landings!\r- François Chavatte President, EBAA France