For what it’s worth, my answers for commercial/military pilots would have differed somewhat from those I gave (for general aviation pilots, more like weekend hobbyists). Also, in case it matters, without any formal training I have operated a Cessna in the air and at take-off (time at the controls = a grand total of about one hour).
ETA: Sorry, the formatting for #7 didn’t hold up in posting.
Are you a General Aviation pilot? That is, do you hold a pilot’s certificate, whether or not you currently exercise the privileges, or are you a student pilot or former student pilot? (If ‘Yes’, skip to Question 3.)
A. Yes. **Commercial, Instrument, Multiengine, CFI, CFII. I’ve owned two planes (thus far).
**
2. If you are not a pilot, as described in Question 1, do you aspire to be one?
**N/A **
3. When considering General Aviation pilots’ egos:
**A. They have over-developed egos, often to the point of arrogance.
**
See question 1. 
In terms of personal wealth and/or income:
** A. Pilots are wealthy.
B. Pilots have upper middle-class incomes.**
Every GA pilot I know has a above-average income (or generous relatives)
If you were hiring a person for a non-flying job, would you be more likely or less likely to hire a pilot to fill the position, or would it not be a factor?
C. Not a factor.
When considering General Aviation (GA) pilots in relation to the general population:
**C. GA pilots are ‘just people’ for which their avocation holds no bearing.
**
**I have no opinion, nor a right to one, on how they spend their resources.
**
Please rate the following statements on a scale of 1 to 5, with 1 being ‘strongly agree’, 2 being ‘somewhat agree’, 3 being ‘neither agree nor disagree’, 4 being ‘somewhat disagree’, and 5 being ‘strongly disagree’.
A. ‘General Aviation Pilots are too full of themselves.’ 3
B. ‘General Aviation Pilots are dedicated and professional.’ 2
C. ‘General Aviation Pilots are rich.’ 2 (by most definitions. it takes substantial disposable income to participate)
D. ‘General Aviation Pilots are adventurous.’ 2
E. ‘General Aviation Pilots are often sexually promiscuous.’ 2 IME, this is kinda true. (Honey? I’m talking about the other guys.)
F. ‘General Aviation Pilots intelligent.’ 2 Had a few students of below-average intelligence. It really is beyond them.
G. ‘General Aviation Pilots often drink too much.’ 3
H. ‘General Aviation Pilots are well-trained.’ 2
I. ‘I wish they would close the airport.’ 5
Reply With Quote
Yes
C (at the most - D and E are common as well)
D (they may be middle class, but having the disposable income to fly is often a challenge)
C
C
A. 3
B. 2
C. 4
D. 3
E. 3
F. 2
G. 3
H. 2
I. 4
a. 3
b. 2
c. 2
d. 3
e. 3
f. 2
g. 4
h. 2
i. 5
I know several GA pilots, but only through work, so we share a lot of similarities: upper-middle to high incomes, above average intelligence, fairly conservative lifestyles, etc. Obviously this is a biased sample.
Many people are down on the airports, and this translates to being down on the pilots. A local airport has a semi-organized opposition force. It’s a big deal to a lot of people.
Sorry, Johnny, recusing myself. I know enough pilots, and I think you do too, to find the full range of personality types, and almost the full range of income levels, in the air that I find on the ground. The common feature is merely a love of flying. You may find pilots being, well, more supportive of each other than of non-pilots, but that’s true of any affinity group.
Yep. That’s why I ask if the respondent is a pilot. I haven’t thought of how I’ll do the graphs yet, but I’m interested in seeing how pilots’ opinions differ from non-pilots’ opinions.