Hacker15e

What kind of currency/recency do you have?

2loud

I'm pretty confident that my reserve retirement is pretty safe as we speak. At the same time, no one knows the future; I'm not a tea party nut job (though very conservative) but our government is, well.... let's just say it's not looking too bright by my outlook. I don't use my reserve retirement towards my retirement calculations, so if it's still there when I turn 60, then it'll be icing on the cake.
As I've said, I planned out my exit strategy to the "t" even before my AF career began, with some modifications in the interim. We can plan all we want but if it wasn't meant to be, it just won't. Through the grace of God, mine worked out. It wasn't a easy path and I was no slacker either. Nevertheless, someone upstairs was looking out for me all along!
To answer your question, I didn't have a desk job waiting for an airline job and I made sure that I had a AFRes/guard flying job lined up before I left active duty. I was also very fortunate to land a job with a major airline before I separated. I was sitting in my new hire class with 3 months of terminal leave, to boot!
Where there's a will, there's a way. As everyone will tell you, networking and being prepared will make the transition much easier and smoother. One can never to be too prepared, right? As for putting in 20+ with AD then going to the airlines, that's purely your choice. In your case, it sounds like you will be a fully retired. Congrats!
We all flew jets and/or high performance aircraft in the world's greatest military and you all are stellar individuals. We also knew what we were getting into and what the consequences are for each and every action. We make our beds and have to lay in it. Take it for what it's worth. And you are right; it is tough to feed a family working for the regionals. The question is, how bad do you want a second career in flying? This is one of the major obstacles for those looking for an airline job after retiring from AD vs. someone who got out, had a young family, had the ability to reserve bum if the need arose (also while maintaining currency), etc.

MikeF16

58 year old Endeavor captain in my class. Not only was he old as hell, he was running 4 x 8 minute miles every day after class.