Why Passenger Is Only One Who Knows Pilot Stuns Internet: ‘Ultimate Flex’

A video of a passenger boasting the “coolest” connection with the pilot operating her flight has gone viral on TikTok.
The video was shared by TikTok user @mariev.tcl and has amassed 3.9 million views since it was posted on October 24.
The footage shows a woman enjoying a meal on a plane as a note across the clip reads “My biggest flex: no one knows who’s flying this Boeing, but I do cause…”
The video shows a pilot waving hello to the passenger before he walks past the aisle as another note across the screen says “…it’s my dad.”
A caption shared with the post simply says, “sorry, not sorry.”
Having a pilot as a dad can certainly be something to brag about as it comes with travel perks.
Tony Shen, a former pilot who is the president of the Wayman Aviation Academy, told Newsweek last January that the biggest perk of being a pilot is the flight benefits. “Most U.S. carriers offer free non-revenue flights to employees and their spouse/partner and children,” Shen said.
Former airline pilot Dan Bubb, who is a historian and professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, previously told Newsweek that pilots, flight attendants, their spouses and children only have to pay the taxes on tickets. The same applies to “buddy” passes, he noted.
“Spouses, children, and ‘buddies’ fly ‘standby’ while the pilots/flight attendants can ride in jump seats [seats for non-passengers who aren’t operating the aircraft] if those seats are unoccupied,” Bubb said.
The viral TikTok post comes as the pilot profession was ranked among the “100 Best Jobs” in the 2023 edition of the annual ranking by U.S. News, coming in at 48 this year.
The job ranked fourth among the listing’s “Best Social Service Jobs” and 10th among the “Best Paying Jobs.” According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), a pilot’s median salary in 2023 was reported to be $171,210 per year.
The BLS noted that on average, over the next decade or so, about 18,500 openings for airline and commercial pilots are projected each year. Many of these openings are expected to result from the need to replace workers who either transfer to different occupations or leave the workforce, such as to retire.
The viral post also comes amid an ongoing pilot shortage, as the industry struggles to keep up with the demand for air travel, which has returned to pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels.
Last year, Faye Malarkey Black, the president and CEO of the Regional Airline Association, warned a U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure subcommittee about “the coming tsunami of pilot retirements.”
She noted that over the next 15 years or so, “nearly 50 percent of the commercial airline workforce will be forced to retire because they will reach the age of 65.”
According to Boeing’s outlook report for 2024-2043, the industry will require 674,000 new pilots to maintain the global commercial fleet over the next 20 years.
TikTok users were impressed by the passenger’s connection to the pilot in the viral video.
Starla wrote, “That’s a real FLEX” and Younouss Nimaga said it’s the “Ultimate flex.”
Liberation Notes said he was the “Coolest dad ever” and Lilla said, “That is the coolest thing ever.”
TRAVEL DIVA said “Awww he’s so cute to come check on you” and Just trolling said “His wave was sooo cute.”
NADO wrote “Girl you is living the dream” and @deutschland6506 noted “This would be the safest flight ever…”
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