I sat in our Miami pilots’ lounge, looking at the faces scattered around the room. It was a typical scene. Some pilots were reclined in lounge chairs while others were seated at a desk, plugged in to their laptops. Some pilots were engrossed in a newspaper.
The TV at the front of the lounge flickered with images from Iraq. As the captions on the bottom of the screen flowed by, a CNN reporter spoke about the latest military operations in Baghdad. The pilots who appeared to be watching the TV returned only blank stares. There was little in the way of conversation until a 50-something captain marched through the door. He exchanged greetings with another 50-something captain, seated toward the back of the room. From my close proximity, I couldn’t help but overhear the conversation.
