Originally Posted by
AluminumFalcon
As a Navy pilot with close to 2000 hours and about 1000 of that multiengine time (I was a P-3 guy and currently am a T-6 instructor), I thought I was positioning myself for a decent transition to an airline job with a legacy carrier. But after reading through these forums, I'm starting to get a bit worried.
Several posts (mostly by non-military guys with more hours than I have) make it sound like I'll need to spend half a decade at a regional carrier before I am competitive at the legacy carriers. I always expected a couple years to get back up to my current active duty pay, but I don't know if I could absorb that huge a pay cut for that long.
Now I'm starting to worry that the airline biz might not be an option for me with kids to feed. How tough is it for military guys getting out to get hired?
I'm still trying to feel out all my career options. I still need to get my ATP knocked out and was considering Higher Power for the type rating, but that seems like it might be a waste of money if I have no chance of getting hired. Thoughts?
I would look into acquiring a T-6 Reserve job or another Reserve/ANG flying job before separating. Additionally, I would get that ATP and hold off on the Higher Power Type. I just had a bud get called by Southwest without the type, and they asked him if hired would he obtain it. Good Luck