Can this really be true?

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is in its second day of public hearings about the crash of Continental Connections Flight 3047 that killed 50 people near Buffalo on Feb. 12 this year. Colgan was operating the Buffalo flight as regional airline partner of Continental Airlines. You can read the related article at the Washington Post.

What struck me as completely odd and unbelievable is this: "Under questioning from the board, Mary Finnigan, Colgan's vice president for administration, reported that Rebecca Shaw, co-pilot of the crash plane, drew an annual salary of $16,200 a year. The board also said that Shaw once held a second job in coffee shop while working as a pilot for the airline in Norfolk, Va." Meanwhile, "Pilots who work for major carriers flying large jet planes typically earn about $125,000 per year, on average."

Colgan has about 430 pilots and experiences an annual attrition rate as high as 30 percent, according to the safety board. Captains at Colgan Air typically earn between $50,000 and $53,000 per year.

I certainly hope that the NTSB does a thorough investigation and the appropriate regulations will be put into place.