tjsojka

I'm a new member of the forum but I've been reading posts for months. I'm 33 years old and have decided I want to make my dream of becoming an airline pilot a reality. The ink is still wet on my PPL and I've only got 57 hours so far. Right now I'm weighing my options for the next step. Should I go the route of ATP and get a crash course or stick to the FBO and slowly get my ratings while I hold my job. I have a good job, but burnout is becoming a problem and I'm weighing money and happiness.

It seems to me that the majority of people in this forum are negative about the whole industry, especially when it comes to the regionals! I know the pay sucks and from the sounds of it so does job security, but I keep hearing about how there is a looming pilot shortage. Does anyone have any advice or is anyone really happy in this career choice? I love flying and hope to do it as a career, a senior captain at a major sounds pretty nice compard to the first year FO at a regional.

H60 guy

33 and...single, married, kids, etc! There is a lot more to the decision than "I love to fly" Bottom line up front: Do not make a selfish decision! Take this constructively, you have 57-hours and flying is very new to you, of course you love it. It provides a new dimension to life few will ever experience from the controls. Remember when you turned 16 and got your license...pretty amazing a cool! Now it is a hassle to drive to work or the local store.

Experience wise, no issues. If I woke up in your shoes, I would drive hard for my Commercial SEL and then start flying skydivers or some other means of hour building that is not going to hurt the pocket book. Inevitably you are going to have to pay many thousands for the required MEL hours, but you can definitely get in one of the regional’s.

Think before you jump.....in the end it becomes just flying!!

chritz1179

well all i can tell you is that it will take time and patients. i have heard all the negative stuff too. before i started my training all i heard was the pay sucks, if you want to make money dont be a pilot ect ect. well to all those people i say forget them. if it is something you want to do and it doesnt put too much of a burden on your family and living condition then go for it. im single with no children so i the luxury of doing whatever to the extent that my mind and body will allow, but you have other considerations. i love flying and wouldnt give it up because it was hard or because some bitter regional pilot who was too impatient to wait for the right job said it sucked. if you get my drift. anyway discuss it with the fam and then decide.

USMCFLYR

I've heard of this looming pilot shortage too. One article stated that based on the new aircraft orders and increase in business projected - balanced with the numbers of flight students enrolling for training - that there is NOT going to be nearly enough pilots in the near future. PLus - regionals and others are reaching ever deeper into the flight schools and pullling young, fresh faced instructors out of the schools for jobs sooner than normal, thus leaving a gap in available instructors required to teach all those pilots that the industry needs. I know the military tried to manage this in giving the training commands and fleet training schools a higher priority for people and resources.

In the end - I say after weighing ALL angles - you will make the decision that is best for you. It is a long road IMO - civilian or military - and there are hurtles along each path; but job satisfaction means a lot to me too and I'd rather be flying than sitting behind a desk any day (and having done some of both I can say that with a straight face).

USMCFLYR

de727ups

"stick to the FBO and slowly get my ratings while I hold my job."

I think that would be your best bet. You could get your CFI and instruct on the side a little, build time and experience, and see where the industry is at in a couple years. I hear guys say "I'm burned out with my job", but I hear pilots say that, too. Be wary of the grass is greener syndrome.

__________________
Go here to see how I became a UPS pilot:

www.jetcareers.com/content/view/65/132/

LineTroll

Nice job on your PPL in 57 hours! There are a lot more pilots than on this site btw, and I have come across very few in real life that do not seem happy with their jobs.

milky

It takes a long time to make enough money to even keep the lights on in this industry going the route that you are going. That is not to say you shouldn't do it, but I would not go deeply in debt to get there. You might be able to get a job after you get up to your commercial, but it will likely pay barely enough to eat and rent a cheap place to live. You will probably be doing that for a number of years before you get a job that even pays something you will be happy to live on. If you have a wife or kids, you will not be able to support them for quite a while.

Keep flying, but don't do anything rash because it is a long, bumpy road.

jpoindex

I have gotten a few negative responses when I toss my situation out there.

This forum is good because It has align my thinking with reality. You can kind of gauge yourself and make adjustments. This is a good way to feel what is on the other side before jumping or transitioning.

sloflier

Congrats on your new ticket. Food for thought -- it took me 6 years in the biz to make what I was making right out of college, not that I am complaining because it could be worse! If you have a good job stick with it even if you are burning out a bit. You can work through your ratings and CFI. You will be a much better pilot and after work you can always look forward to someone trying to kill you in an airplane. In short don't go into debt to work for some crappy regional making $20/block hour and hope to live above the proverty line. If the s*#t hits the fan I wonder how these 300-500 hr pilots are going to fare with little to no PIC time, no CFI, and no type ratings. It is a long road with consquences but for me so far it has been good -- at least on those days sippin' a beer on the beach and not in a stuffy office!