Southwest Airlines Pilot: 'I Used To Be Liberal, Then I Left Home And Got A Job'

Last year pilots were making announcements “Let’s Go Brandon” and that made it into air traffic control chatter too. I thought this had died out, and was now being crowded out by the counter Dark Brandon meme but pilots are still bringing their politics on board with them.

There is a Southwest Airlines pilot with a "I used to be liberal" sticker on his bag.

.@SouthwestAir is this really the type of garbage you allow your pilots to have on their work bags? As a liberal woman (with a job, thanks very much) who flies your airline often with my kids (who are of reading age), this is downright offensive. pic.twitter.com/H8ODcXoSit

— Theresa (@theresalenz) August 25, 2022

After Donald Trump was elected President, a United Airlines captain asked passengers not to get political on the plane, even if they were on either side. Everyone stood up and applauded.

There are stickers on the outside of luggage that speak to airline standards, but they are more likely to be used against cabin crew than pilots. Flight attendants have less power than pilots.

The politics of airlines are very political. They try to get taxpayer pickets for the rescues. They want to keep their competitors out of the U.S. and they want domestic airlines to be able to access space in their airlines. They would like the government to subsidize alternative fuels. They want to limit regulation at the federal level. We won't keep politics out of airlines, but time inside of airports and inside of metal tubes at 35,000 would be nice. There are puppies and kittens on the plane.

Do you think pilots should be allowed to express their political views on the job?

Five years ago, a United Airlines pilot told everyone not to talk politics on the plane. The passengers applauded. There are some places where we should be left alone, no matter what you think about the President of the United States. You can't be stuck in a tube.

In airlines.

The problem with Let's Go Brandon is that it has become more of a political show than a real thing. The year is 2021. I'm 8 months behind the meme if I wear a Let's Go Brandon pin.

In airlines.

The mess can be fixed with money. If American doesn't fix it it is a huge failure of management. It's a test of the new management team's ability to not spend more money than they need.

In airlines.