Originally Posted by
Scottman
Excellent thread! I am 33, have recently earned a multi-Engine commercial/inst. certificate. Up until about a year ago I had never really entertained the thought of an airline career. Sure, I've always had respect for pilots when I traveled and momentarily thought about how cool it would be to work in the cockpit. The smells of Airplanes and Jet exhaust sparked my imagination of a challenging and rewarding work envirionment. After earning an instrument certificate two years ago I began to think about how much I would like to learn to be a professional and work in the NAS everyday. I've been plugging away at it ever since. I know that it will be a challenging journey with no guarantees, but I'm old enough to know that there are NO guarantees in this life. Right now I have a decent job, and many of the folks in this forum would recommend staying where you have security. The truth is I am no less vulnerable than the guys hired at American Eagle last month. My plan is to learn as much as I can about this profession and give it everything I've got.
I literally just got done talking to a police officer from po dunk USA (not far from where I grew up) who will beat my SECOND year pay in his FIRST year by at least 14,000. He laughed when I told him my pay. This job is just that, a job. Not a career. Why is anyone clamoring this? I am at a run of the mill regional. Not Great Lakes, not Gulfstream, and things are this sad. I can't imagine what some of my Eagle friends think right now after yeras of 'paying dues' to maybe getting furloughed?