So a pilot walks into a Crescent St Bar.....

[Elliot Moose]

....wearing his white shirt, three gold bars on each shoulder, Jazz wings and airside pass. Then he gets himself a nice table on the terrace by the sidewalk. Nothing like downtown Montreal in the summer, watchin' the babes on the busiest street in town, and feeling pretty cool.

So then another pilot walks up to him (in t-shirt and shorts) and says:

"Hey, are you a pilot?

"Yeah"

"Do you work at Air Canada Jazz?"

"Yeah"

"Wow, that's cool. You really should read what your Ops manual says about hanging around in bars with your uniform on......"

Bwaaahhaaaahaaaaahaaaa!!!!

Can't believe this actually happened last week. Kudos to my buddy for taking him down a peg

[MacStork]

Am I missing something here ...... or is there more of this tale to come?
Was it a bar or a restaurant?
Was he on his way to the airport or just grabbing a meal before checking into the hotel ...??
Was he drinking alcoholic beverages ...???
Tell me there is more to this tale than just this .....or have I missed the punch line?

[Johnny#5]

Hahaaaa....

Hey everyone, I'm a PILOT!!!!!! (...and I'm on food stamps)

[spf1971]

Kudos for your "friend" for being a douchebag. He really burned that guy!

[Elliot Moose]

No, nothing further. He had sat there like that for about 30 min before being approached. By the time buddy had made a trip to the bathroom and back, he had stripped off his finery and was wearing the basic white shirt. He was still there when I showed up.

Crescent st is a LONG way from the airport, so not likely a quick "in transit" meal or anything like that. Sir Winston's is definitely a bar setting in the middle of downtown, so who would reasonably make it that far while still "accidentally" in uniform? This was totally some guy having a "hey look at me" trip downtown, and I for one can't believe somebody would do that.

[JungianJugular]

"Wow, that's cool. You really should read what your Ops manual says about hanging around in bars with your uniform on......"

Just a question about this - company pilots are prohibited from visiting any bar in uniform even if they are grabbing a bite to eat only?

[old_man]

I think the more professional method would have been to approach the guy, introduce yourself, and then politely point out what it says in the Ops manual and leave it at that. But maybe that's just me.


You never know who will be giving your next check ride or your next interview.

[GUMPS]

Sounds like buddies an asshole. Here's hoping he runs into him in the future when looking for a job

[Sulako]

Look, I get that maybe it's not okay to be in full uniform while at a club at 2am, getting bottle service, but Jebus...give the guy a break. Maybe he just wanted a sandwich, and maybe his quick shift turned into a long day due to mechanical failure etc. 99% of the time I carry a spare change of clothes, but I have still been caught a couple of times on short trips that suddenly turned longer, and I still gotta eat.

[ozone]

Sounds like he perfectly fits the question....how do you know when there is pilot in the bar? Don't worry, he will tell you. In this case show you.

[L1011]

I'm with Elliott Moose on this one...sometimes you can't help but be in uniform, but it takes 2 seconds to ditch the tie, bars and red pass. If you're at an airport restaurant or with the rest of the crew, sure, but this guy sounds like he just wanted attention.

[trey kule]

99% of the time I carry a spare change of clothes, but I have still been caught a couple of times on short trips that suddenly turned longer, and I still gotta eat

But 100% of the time you can take off the bars and put the airside pass in .your pocket.

OP. I took thought there might have been a better way to handle it but your "buddy" seems to have enjoyed putting the guy in his place, and I sense you did to.

[Sulako]

You are telling me that an F/o with Jazz wanted to call attention to that fact? Why? Was he gonna bum spare change from the other patrons? //Cheap shot

[oldtimer]

If the terrace restaraunt also served alcohol and was not close to the airport and some idiot looking for 15 seconds of fame complained to the media or Jazz about an "airline pilot getting drunk" and the shit hit the fan, that pilot could be fired.
Air Canada, Jazz, and every airline in the country have very strict rules about the deportment of aircrew in public. Being in an establishment where alcohol is available is an absolute no no. Even having a glass of Coke served in the same style of glass a cocktail is served in could be grounds for termination of employment. I would hope the union would go to bat for the poor schmuck if management got their knickers in a knot.

[fish4life]

I partially agree, were not talking about making a stop at Tim's on your way to or from work, take off the bars and ramp pass at least if your going to a sit down instead of looking like a tool.

[Siddley Hawker]

He should have gone to Place de Liesse. Nobody would have batted an eyelash.

[frozen solid]

These days if a guy isn't wearing a dayglo orange plastic bib, then he probably isn't on duty. The bar is the only place you can look cool in your pilot uniform anymore.

[av8ts]

If the terrace restaraunt also served alcohol and was not close to the airport and some idiot looking for 15 seconds of fame complained to the media or Jazz about an "airline pilot getting drunk" and the shit hit the fan, that pilot could be fired.
Air Canada, Jazz, and every airline in the country have very strict rules about the deportment of aircrew in public. Being in an establishment where alcohol is available is an absolute no no. Even having a glass of Coke served in the same style of glass a cocktail is served in could be grounds for termination of employment. I would hope the union would go to bat for the poor schmuck if management got their knickers in a knot.

Not True
Walk through any airport terminal anyday and you will see pilots in full uniform eating in restaurants while people at the table next to them drink alcohol and amazingly from the same type of glass as the pilots soda.

[trey kule]

Av8ts....read the post you commented on:

and was not close to the airport

And we wonder why some cant learn anything from reading!

['CauseTheCaravanCan]

no seriously, what does the Ops Manual say about this?

[culver10]

I was in Montreal for a meeting on Wednesday. We meet for dinner on Crescent Street. To get there from the airport you have to purchase a $8.00 bus pass for the 747 express bus and then it takes about 20-30mins to get to the Crescent Street area. It is NOT the same as grabbing a burger at the airport Chilies or Montanas. The "talent"on Crescent street is WELL worth the trip!!

[Gino Under]

In a court of law there is what is known as circumstantial evidence.

If no conversation took place other than to determine who this individual worked for, then you got squat on the dude and have nothing other than speculative or circumstantial appearances.

In Europe and other places around the globe, no one would bat an eye.
In the old days, F/As had the After Landing drinks ready by the time we walked out of the flight deck after shutdown.
But, in Canada....OMG!!! Violation of the ops manual! Say it isn't so!!

Next thing you know the cheeky bugger's growing a beard!

Where does it end?

Good grief.
If the guy's capable of taking on the roles and responsibility of an F/O then I'm sure he had a reason or rationale for his choices and decisions. Ego? Maybe. Maybe not. Bad choice? Poor decision?
Your story didn't address that line of questionning. I don't think anyone benefits from accusations based on circumstantial evidence.

For what he's probably gone through to get to Jazz, to get that first big break, and to put up with a shitty schedule AND get paid the wages he's paid...hell, I wouldn't blame him if he strolled rue St. Catherine the full length licking an ice cream cone with his Ray Bans just soaking up the rush while debunking the 'air pocket' myth for an adoring public.

Where in your ops manual does shopping at the IGA in your pilot uniform get covered, or is that ego deal different?

Now, tell us more about the "talent" on Crescent St. He was probably just trolling for some of that talent. (can't blame a guy for trying)

Gino Under

[PITA]

Well you would never get away with it at the Aero Club of East Africa - the bar stewart would ring the big brass bell and the culprit would stand a round for the patrons. Everybody being equal at the Aero Club - I surmise the intent.

I had a friend of mine who, when he saw a pilot type overdressed for he occasion would say " Did someone order a cab?"
Lighten up guys

[rigpiggy]

Having been on the carpet because an f/o in mufti mouthing offat a hotel bar I can tell u that when anybody asks what i do, it is sell onsurance. then they leave me alone.

[Bede]

Who care's what the ops manual says, it's just not classy. Doctor's don't go out in scrubs, lawyers don't go out in their barrister's gowns. Pilot's shouldn't go out with their bars and wings on. Besides, it won't work for picking up girls. Better off telling them you're an assistant manager at some restaurant or something.

I was at a pub once in Smith Falls (~1 hr from YOW) and some guy is in there in a pilot uniform nursing his beer talking with some girls he was clearly trying to pick up. Problem 1 was his wings weren't from any airline I know of. Problem 2 was that his wings were poked through his pockets and not through the holes in the shirt the wings are designed to go through. I asked him if he was on a long layover and he had no idea what I was talking about.