AirportRail

Wow, 15 percent for sales tax. And I thought our 8 percent here in Southern California was high. But I guess it makes up for it with the health care. I'm constantly worried about my health insurance. Anyway, your signature is now showing up. Very cool.

Thanks ALF for that bit of detail on living expenses and the charter carrier. I thought taxes here in the US were bad but 52% is astronomical. BTW, you do know that your signature image is coming up with a message stating 403 Forbidden: This file removed due to violation of ImageShack Terms of Service or by user request.

Alf18, I assume your figures are in Canadian dollars and not US dollars? Not that it really matters, because right now there's less than a one-cent different in the exchange rate.

Thanks to those who've added specific information about salaries. And I'm sorry to hear about the problems you'll be experiencing because of the bankruptcy at AA.

Thanks for those great resources. The video was especially useful. I always thought those were steel wheels on rail -- it turns out to be rubber just like DFW and ATL. The Bombardier cars on the manufacturers website are beautiful. Yes, model railroad layouts are typically moving models, so this one will be a moving one. There's a manufacturer in Europe that produces similar cars to the Bombardier: http://www.halling.at/railwaymodel/index.php?g=Krakau They could be used as a basis for an airport transit system, but I'd need to remove the pantograph, which is not a big deal, and shorten

Thanks for adding those details Aaronw. As with the other pilot info, the data comes from the U.S. Department of Labor and are averages. I checked with the national Air Traffic Controllers Association for more specific salary information. Unfortunately, it only gives the barest of information on the career. Any controllers out there who can shed more light on the subject?

I'm sure those of use with large diecast airliner collections have imagined ourselves as air traffic controllers, especially if we're lucky enough to have a model airport. In that spirit, here's an article on what air traffic controllers earn, with data from the U.S. Department of Labor. Air Space Order: Air Traffic Controller Salary and Employment It would be great to hear from actual controllers to see how accurate these are.

It is actually a model railroad with an airport. Also has cruise ships, cities, towns, Las Vegas and highways with moving cars, all in 1/87 scale.

Thanks for the suggestions everyone. Air2k7, most likely something like at SeaTac, which I believe uses a rail-type system. I'll browse through the database of photos to see all the different options.

Unfortunately, the U.S. economy still isn't great. The mean wages for airline pilots showed a drop of about two percent from the previous year. Such drops have been common for other jobs in other industries as well.

I'm a model railroader who is interested in modeling passenger transit systems within an airport (and NOT going to and form the airport). I mostly do HO scale (1/87) but can go smaller such as N (1/160) or Z (1/220). I don't think there are any model resources for such things. But does anyone know of any good descriptions of airport transit systems, preferably showing maps of the rail lines within an airport, operations procedures and equipment information?

Well, these are based on Labor Department figures, so it depends on whether you consider them to be accurate or not. I think ALG18 hit the nail on the head. When you're dealing with such large populations, there is a fair amount of averaging going on. And in fact, it does state "mean" or "average." This will mean significant differences compare to earning at one company, airport or city. I appreciate the specific real-life examples, bus3144. Maybe others can chime in with their own salary experiences.

If you've ever thought about flying for real with an airline, here's the scoop on what they earn. Information comes from the Department of Labor: Flight Dreams: Airline Jobs and Salaries