Originally Posted by
Tummy
The guy two seats to the right of me in Delta indoc was 26 years old. He went the regional route. It's impossible to get hired at 26 years old at Delta/United/American/FedEx/UPS via the military route. The people telling you that the military is the better career move for a professional pilot are misinformed at best.
From where I sit, military is still the faster and more reliable route, particularly the reserve + regional combo. 26 y/o legacy hires are pretty much going to have an ace of some sort up their sleeve (diversity, family, etc).
Most of my mid/late-20-ish FO's are contemplating going to LCC's just to get paid more (and an airbus type) while they wait for the bigs to call.
Originally Posted by
Tummy
Join the military if you really want to be in the military. I did. Parts of it were fun and rewarding. Parts of it sucked. I would have been hired at Delta earlier in life had I chosen a more traditional civilian route.
Don't join the military if you don't really want to do it. The flight training can be a factor to tip the scales but you will need an interest in the military or at least the service aspect.