difference in cargo and passenger flying...

after flying passengers for more than 5 years i changed to cargo flying and today i want to point out the differences in the two jobs.
first - there is no need to be at the aircraft before the cargo arrives like on a pax plane you usually have to be on the aircraft before the passengers are allowed to board
second - there is no need to wait for passengers to leave the aircraft, land, park, paperwork leave for good and let the technicians and loadmasters take care of everything else.
third - there is no special need to check seatbelts or the galleys if times get rough and we are hit by turbulence with one exemption - if there are large animals on board like horses we want to be extra smooth, even smoother than the pax boys.
fourth - while on bigger long haul aircrafts there is always a lot of cabin crew on pax flights, we operate 80 % with only two pilots and layovers can get a bit lonely. while on occasions i had more fun and great adventures with colleges during the cargo flying over all the dining, shopping and life with 8 to 10 crewmembers abroad was in average more pleasing on the passenger operation.
it is also a lot easier to take family members and friends along without the probems of boarding through the back of warehouses and backdoors of the airports alway screating special procedures for passengers on cargo flights, that can be pretty anoying.
fifth - while pax planes tend to operate on a fixed schedule as proper as possible, especially my company celebrates flexibility and i never know exactly the time of the next flight, more or less just the off-days and vacation follows a plan.

over all i found my niche in the cargo business and love it very much, always with room for improvement. i love the time alone when i can contemplate about the meaning of life and the fun of crazy operation into airports like Latacunga or N'djamena.

the pictures today i shot on a 4 day layover in Beijing and they reflect the lonely mood of an evening where the copiloy just went to sleep and i was too lazy to go out but stayed at the lobby bar oft the Kempinsky hotel for a caipirinha and listened to the pianomusic thinking about my life again...

one of the best parts of the job is always coming home again!
cu, brgds - nuck

next time: the fun of changing wheels on a 747....