Flying is not a career, or even a paying job. If that's what you want to do, drive to a local airport, join a club or rent a Cessna. Problem solved.
The career thing... well, depending on what you believe it utopia, and I assume some big airplane, left seat.... even in the best of times, that's probably decades off. In the current climate, probably never.
So, what's in between a private pilot and making just a livable wage? A whole lot of your money. And that living wage is likely not to be were you want to live, with a schedule you would choose, or even in a plane you may like.
The generic question comes up a lot. I started for a regional airline at 44. I probably will fly something big before 65, but not in the USA.
I'm 35 and working on it...but that's probably too old
I'm guessing you're an FA for Deltoid. That would be a great way for EMC2 to get a feel for the airline biz. Do that for a year, and see if she still thinks it's fun to fly around professionally.
Flying is not a career, or even a paying job. If that's what you want to do, drive to a local airport, join a club or rent a Cessna. Problem solved.
The career thing... well, depending on what you believe it utopia, and I assume some big airplane, left seat.... even in the best of times, that's probably decades off. In the current climate, probably never.
So, what's in between a private pilot and making just a livable wage? A whole lot of your money. And that living wage is likely not to be were you want to live, with a schedule you would choose, or even in a plane you may like.
The generic question comes up a lot. I started for a regional airline at 44. I probably will fly something big before 65, but not in the USA.
Well, I personally don't believe in a "utopia" as far as any job is concerned. I don't sit and daydream about how great it would be to fly around and how perfect it would be. I know you have little choice in your schedule, crappy starting salaries, and all that.
I'm guessing you're an FA for Deltoid. That would be a great way for EMC2 to get a feel for the airline biz. Do that for a year, and see if she still thinks it's fun to fly around professionally.
Gee, it's hard to tell sometimes in written form whether someone is being a smart@$$. I think I'll stick to my current career field. No offense to any FA's, though.
Gee, it's hard to tell sometimes in written form whether someone is being a smart@$$. I think I'll stick to my current career field. No offense to any FA's, though.
Tony was probably being halfway serious...not really a bad suggestion now that I think about it. You could get in easily and get the full lifestyle experience without committing a bunch of time and money up front. It would strip away all the fantasy notions about the airlines, and you could then make an less-biased decision on the career.
Also note that actual piloting will be very monotonous for someone with your work background...you would probably want to stay involved in your old field in some capacity for entertainment purposes, in addition to having a fallback job.
Actually I was in your shoes ten years ago. I did a very careful analysis and despite all the potential industry setbacks it still looked like a reasonable bet (pre-9/11). The only thing I couldn't reasonably quantify was peak oil...estimates ranged from next month to 2150. I guessed and assumed near or after my retirement...looks like I may have been off on that, we'll find out for sure as the economy picks up.
I had a couple things going for me...military reserves for steady income and a few friends at major airlines for networking.
But there's no way I could justify the decision today.
How old is too old to be considering a career as a professional pilot?
I'm 47 and looks like I'll be 48, (Dec '09), when I finally get medically certified. It's been a long haul. Quite a few times I wanted to give up and throw the towel in, but I perservered. I started the process 2 years ago and have had to jump through some hoops...alotta hoops, however I believe in the long run it'll be worth it.
I plan to pursue either Part 91 or 135 flying after instructing for about 3 years. During those 3 years, I also plan to pursue the Diaconate (in the Episcopal Church) SE Florida. After ordination, I hope to be picked up by one of the larger charter companies out of SE Florida or wherever a job becomes available.
As a matter of fact, I met someone about 3-4 years ago who had just finished up IOE at Comair. He said that there was one guy who was 52 years old when they went to the line. He was constantly told that he only had eight years to fly, but his response was that it would be the best eight years of his life. I guess it's all relative.
Best of luck to you.
atp
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Last edited by atpwannabe : 10-30-2009 at 05:43 PM.
As a matter of fact, I met someone about 3-4 years ago who had just finished up IOE at Comair. He said that there was one guy who was 52 years old when they went to the line. He was constantly told that he only had eight years to fly, but his response was that it would be the best eight years of his life. I guess it's all relative.
Best of luck to you.
atp
That was very encouraging! Good luck to you as well!
Tony was probably being halfway serious...not really a bad suggestion now that I think about it. You could get in easily and get the full lifestyle experience without committing a bunch of time and money up front. It would strip away all the fantasy notions about the airlines, and you could then make an less-biased decision on the career.
Also note that actual piloting will be very monotonous for someone with your work background...you would probably want to stay involved in your old field in some capacity for entertainment purposes, in addition to having a fallback job.
Actually I was in your shoes ten years ago. I did a very careful analysis and despite all the potential industry setbacks it still looked like a reasonable bet (pre-9/11). The only thing I couldn't reasonably quantify was peak oil...estimates ranged from next month to 2150. I guessed and assumed near or after my retirement...looks like I may have been off on that, we'll find out for sure as the economy picks up.
I had a couple things going for me...military reserves for steady income and a few friends at major airlines for networking.
But there's no way I could justify the decision today.
Just out of curiosity, did anyone suggest that you should be a FA when you were wanting to fly?
Actually, it was suggested to me once. I've flown with three different FAs who had become captains at regional airlines by the time I met them. Two of them were male, so it's got nothing to do with gender.
It's a more common path than you may think. A classmate of mine from my new hire class at Airline #2 was a former FA for the company. When they laid all of us off, she became the only member of the class who got to keep working for them (as an FA). Several of the FAs I've known were successful professionals in other fields. After they retired, got laid off, developed a case of wanderlust, etc., they felt that the FA job would be a window into a more exciting career. Generally speaking, FAs get treated like crap by their employers, so few of them hung around. On the other hand, some developed a taste for the lifestyle. One or two of them even started flight training.
While I couldn't recommend that path to somebody like you who already has an established career, I personally wouldn't view Tony's suggestion as inherently demeaning. He may well have been acting an ass, but the idea is not without merit.
To answer your original question: No, mid-30s is not too old by any stretch of the imagination to begin pursuing an airline pilot career. You'll have to clear many hurdles, but your age is not one of them. The wisdom of following said path is more than a bit questionable these days, but you'll get more than enough feedback to that effect from other posters here.
Last edited by thepotato232 : 10-31-2009 at 01:37 AM.
I personally wouldn't view Tony's suggestion as inherently demeaning. He may well have been acting an ass, but the idea is not without merit.
Thanks for the benefit of the doubt !!! Ya, I also know several who were FA's, and became airline pilots. It's a great foot in the door, and relatively easy to do.
It seems demeaning to me to think being an FA is beneath somebody. Heck, I'd do it (I'm an ATP with 4000 hours) if I thought there was some advantage to get flying at a particular company (or to just see if I liked it).
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