Airline Pilot Forums

Hey guys, I'm 18 years old and really confused on whether or not I should continue to pursue a career as a pilot. I keep looking back at an article from june of 2011 stating the next 10-20 years are going to be explosive in regard to pilot hiring, but then again the industry is very cyclical.

some background info.

- attended ERAU for ONE semester before realizing that I didn't want to be 200K in debt

-currently working a part time job and going to school ( IN VIRGINIA, yes i transferred)

- Only have 12 hours logged, but have my written taken care of

Im pretty much at the very beginning. I come on this forum a lot for advice but most of the time I just get discouraged by all of the threads I read.
I know flight training is expensive ( from private to CFII it would be around 50-60 K where i live) and regional pay is beyond horrible (at least starting out) so I'm really confused as to what I should do....


Option 1) should I take out the loans to continue my flight training, get it done within a couple of years, CFI and work my way up like everyone else ( I would still be pursuing my degree)

OR

Option 2) just focus on my degree in comp. engineering, get a desk job out of college, make money and forget about flying......


Just like all other pilots out there, I want to be seated at the left seat of a 737 or some other big jet, but I know the path to get there is very expensive and seldom direct.

Please respond and help me out guys, I don't want to sit around for months just pondering my life. Thanks:confused::confused::confused:

Hey guys, I'm 18 years old and really confused on whether or not I should continue to pursue a career as a pilot. I keep looking back at an article from june of 2011 stating the next 10-20 years are going to be explosive in regard to pilot hiring, but then again the industry is very cyclical.

some background info.

- attended ERAU for ONE semester before realizing that I didn't want to be 200K in debt

-currently working a part time job and going to school ( IN VIRGINIA, yes i transferred)

- Only have 12 hours logged, but have my written taken care of

Im pretty much at the very beginning. I come on this forum a lot for advice but most of the time I just get discouraged by all of the threads I read.
I know flight training is expensive ( from private to CFII it would be around 50-60 K where i live) and regional pay is beyond horrible (at least starting out) so I'm really confused as to what I should do....


Option 1) should I take out the loans to continue my flight training, get it done within a couple of years, CFI and work my way up like everyone else ( I would still be pursuing my degree)

OR

Option 2) just focus on my degree in comp. engineering, get a desk job out of college, make money and forget about flying......


Just like all other pilots out there, I want to be seated at the left seat of a 737 or some other big jet, but I know the path to get there is very expensive and seldom direct.

Please respond and help me out guys, I don't want to sit around for months just pondering my life. Thanks:confused::confused::confused:


There's a flaw in your option 2.
Replace "forget about flying" with "fly for fun"

Not only expensive and seldom direct, the path often dead ends without an airline seat. Thousands, for no fault of their own, don't get hired. It has always been a gamble. Get a degree in something that will provide a chance at a good career, then figure out flyin.

GF

Just like all other pilots out there, I want to be seated at the left seat of a 737 or some other big jet, but I know the path to get there is very expensive and seldom direct.

You have what is referred to as Shiney Jet Syndrome (SJS).
When you learn that isn't WHAT you fly ("some other big jet), but where you fly, how much you fly, how much you get paid to fly, how many days you have off, how much you commute, and a variety of other considerations that fall into the ever grey area of QOL - you'll find what you really want to do in my opinion.

Believe me - NOT every pilot wants to be "seated in the left seat of a 737 or some other big jet" ;)

USMCFLYR

Thanks for the quick replies

USMCFLYR i guess that was a bit ignorant :p

anywhooo, I don't know what this says about me, but I really want to just fly as a career....flying for fun doesn't come across my mind often
anyone care to pick at my mind :confused::confused:

Thanks for the quick replies

USMCFLYR i guess that was a bit ignorant :p

anywhooo, I don't know what this says about me, but I really want to just fly as a career....flying for fun doesn't come across my mind often
anyone care to pick at my mind :confused::confused:

Building on what USMC laid out for you, why don't you take 'Option 2' and use the funds from your "desk job" to finance your flight training?

Once you get to the COMM/CFI crossroad, you'll be at a much better place in your life in which to make some very important decisions.
Maybe you'll have decided that flying for fun is more for you, maybe the military, maybe corporate, and so on.

You made a smart move not investing $200K or so at this stage in your life. It could've worked out or it could've devastated you financially. Too rich of a gamble for my blood.

Seriously consider getting an engineering degree and position and do the flight training part-time and without significant loans.

I suggest you get the engineering degree first. By that time, you will be less young and less confused. Then, if you still want a flying career, apply to the military. If they say no, be an engineer and make enough money for more flight training. That way, you will always be "free to choose". Good Luck! :)

USMCFLYER is 100% correct ( and thats hard for me to admit....;) ), it is not about what you fly. QOL is everything. The two best jobs, (and incidentally the best paying) I have had in aviation were flying a piston twin and a medium sized turboprop as a contract pilot in the 135 world. If you can realize like I finally did (five years too late) that flying a jet isnt necessary to the goal, you can and likely will have a very rewarding career. Good luck and always remember 98% of this aviation thing, is pure luck, timing and contacts.

You have been lucky enough to get some Grade A, gold standard advice from guys (gals?) from every corner of the biz. You have the controls now.

GF

I am of the opinion that to be a great aviator (career or otherwise) flying has to have a primal appeal to you. If you don't see yourself flying for the simple pleasure flying brings, then I don't see how you could be happy years into your career as a professional pilot.
But that's just my personal opinion.

My advice is this; (almost) anyone, even with a slight interest, should fly for fun. To fly professionally, a person can't be motivated by money, glamor, chicks, "Top Gun," etc.

You have to love the challenge of flying. For most flying jobs you have to love the challenge of flying in bad weather to short runways, in congested airspace, and so on.

If you do pursue flying, I would recommend getting in a partnership or buying a cheap Cessna 150. Having cheap and easy access to an airplane is crucial. The kids I have met who have airplanes in the family seem to be light years ahead of everyone else, because they fly so much. We do well what we do often.

I congratulate you for standing up to the big dollar institutions! Spread the word! There are still tons of people trying to go that route. If flying paid more, that might make sense, but flying almost always does not.

These forums are filled with very helpful people. I have been helped directly and indirectly on the forums a ton! Pilots helping pilots. It's great! Keep my user name in mind, PM me now and in the future. I would be happy to help as much as I can.

Agree with everyone kid and have you thought about the military as a start and then transitioning or do you not want to fly a fast and agile fighter jet or a big C-120? Could be an option for you and the military colleges are 'free' if you can get in and handle them... Take time, don't rush it and you'll end up where you are suppose to be.

Thanks again to all of you for the replies..
I've really taken a lot from the responses
I feel like I just need get through my degree at this point and once I'm settled and established I'll get back into my flying dream...


As for the military, I have given it some thought. I just have no idea how to go about getting from point A to point B
I have looked on several of the branches sites but still don't get the answers I want

Do I get my degree then enlist?

How do I get to OCS?

How long till I get in a plane?

what are the chances??

Thanks again to all of you for the replies..
I've really taken a lot from the responses
I feel like I just need get through my degree at this point and once I'm settled and established I'll get back into my flying dream...


As for the military, I have given it some thought. I just have no idea how to go about getting from point A to point B
I have looked on several of the branches sites but still don't get the answers I want

Do I get my degree then enlist?

How do I get to OCS?

How long till I get in a plane?

what are the chances??
All of those questions have been asked and answered many times over.
I know for a fact that the Marine Officer website will lead you in a detailed manner to each of the steps required.
One thing they will do though is make you work for it.
If you aren't interestsed enough to dig deep yourself and do the legwork, then they don't think that you want it bad enough.
Somehow - those of us in the long ago past ;) without access to the internet at every computer, forums full of advice like this one and other military based forums, and with each service having dedicated websites were able to make it through the process - - - you can too! :D

USMCFLYR

As for the military, I have given it some thought. I just have no idea how to go about getting from point A to point B
I have looked on several of the branches sites but still don't get the answers I want

Have a look at this website. It appears to contain a lot of useful information and links. You might ask for confirmation of its accuracy from recent UPT graduates in the "Military" section of the forum.

Get an Undergraduate Pilot Training (UPT) Slot from Air Force OTS (http://www.wantscheck.com/PilotSlotResources/OTSPilotSlot/tabid/62/portalid/0/Default.aspx)

Hopeful,

If you can spare a few hundred dollars, get a first class medical with an EKG just to make sure you can fly professionally. Additionally, you will need a degree to the job I think you're aiming for.

To some of the posters who responded to the OP about flying for fun, I think youre missing the difference. There is having fun while you're flying and flying for fun. The OP said he never thought about the latter. Who cares? I have fun when I fly but I don't fly for fun. I spend enough time in an airplane away from my family that I don't want to fly when I'm off.

Then again, I'm going around the world in 7 days in another 2 hours.

Gotta love the Marine 'tude! :D.

Just to give my hobby horse a few whacks, try the Guard or Reserves for a UPT slot. My old unit has better than a third of the pilots "home grown". With the current OPSTEMPO, guys 4 years out of UPT have 1,500 to 2,000 hours of heavy jet time and have, or soon will have, some jet PIC time.

GF

As another alternative, you could consider becoming an Army Helicopter Pilot via their WOFT Program. Of course, since flying helicopters is first and foremost WAY more fun than most F/W flying - though sans most of the "glamour" that goes with SJS flying - it might not be for you.

But I will second those that have said it is a good idea to finish your degree first, whatever you ultimately decide to do. One the most important things for anyone considering a pilot career is to have another skill or career to "fall back on" .... be it, butcher, baker, or candlestick-maker..... or Computer Engineer. Good Luck!

(You can always continue your flight training at a slower pace, take flying lessons as you have money available while going to school and working at your part-time job - you do have a part-time job while going to school, right?)