Thanks for all the responses....the more I think about things the closer I get to taking the airlines seriously, at least the better paying ones.

As far as I can tell Southwest, Delta, and United are the only ones that will get you into the 6 digits by year 2 or 3, or am I missing a couple?

I can't fly for the cheep air guys.....I'd be better off taking a questionable corporate gig for $70-$80K than committing to a pony plane operator at my age.

I've thought about part 135 but it just never seemed to be the right thing for me. Where I've been flying out of for most of my time all the 135 operators are kinda flaky. There are always rumors about the quality of their maintenance and all the manipulation and games they play with the pilots.....lowballing them on salary and stuff. Not to mention the stories we know to be true...those are worst than the rumors.