Originally Posted by
Scraggly Heron
I'd advise going the civilian route. Try to get hired by a regional with a follow through to a legacy; even with a military background there's a chance you'll end up taking that route anyway.
Having a military background means a lot less than people think it does.
This couldn't be more wrong.
The military background helps you get hired by a Legacy with a lot less hours than straight civilian.
The quickest and more importantly the cheaper way to the airlines is to go to UPT with the guard/reserves which gets you all of your ratings free of charge. Hit 750 hours and get your restricted ATP, also courtesy of having a military background, and then immediately go fly for the regionals. Continue to fly at the regionals and in the Guard until a Legacy calls.
Or you could spend a lot more money getting your ratings, slug it out as a CFI until 1500hrs, go to a regional, and slug it out there even longer because your hour requirement will be higher than a military guy.
IMO this is a no brainer.