Originally Posted by
chrisreedrules
Go be an air traffic controller. You'll make more money up front in your career (which the dirty little secret to gaining wealth and saving for retirement is starting early). Hard to do much financial planning on atrocious FO pay. Go be an air traffic controller and fly for fun in your free time. You'll still enjoy your time in the air and it won't become "just a job" like it does for so many. My .02
If you have an offer from the FAA it should be a no brainer. I spent 25 years as a center controller and now fly for a regional. Our son is a controller and after 3 years makes $140K/yr. I have a six figure pension for the rest of my life and I'm still young enough to enjoy things. I retired at 49. If you think you can spend a couple years at a regional and be a prime candidate for a major airline then I can only say you and 15,000 other pilots have that idea.