Originally Posted by LAfrequentflyer
CLRS,
Whats a good age to start up at the regionals? 135 Freight? I'm 34 now and not looking into aviation as a second career after I leave the military / government at 42. I'm I too far behind? I have a clean record - clean enough to have been nominated to work at the White House. I had to decline due to the hours I would have been away from my wife and family.
Thanks,
LA
No not at all. No question most regional pilots are younger, but we have a number of post 40 guys in the grew rooms. Regional airlines like them because they have a tendancy to stay. You may need to alter your expectations a little, but having a military retirement (I wish I did) and holding captain at a regional can make for a nice life with a little senority. I'd try very hard to choose a regional airline that you can make a career out of...and gain a quick upgrade (say, under 4 years). But note that in all of Air Inc's material they show a 15 year career, among other lengths. So it's very possible to still reach a major. SWA has hired at 55 and 56 before.
The route is still the same. PPL - Inst - Comm - Comm/ME - CFI - CFII - MEI - Instruct - 1000/100 ish - Regional FO - Regional Cpt - ??? Sure there are other ways, maybe better for some, and it all depends on hiring needs at the time you reach competitive min times. But there are a lot of second career guys in the field.