Howdy from Texas. A little background --- just turned 23. I was hired with a FD right out of high school where I've been working for the last 5 years. I'm looking to make the switch to become an airline pilot.

I'm in DFW where Envoy/American are at. I've been reading up on Envoy's Cadet Program and it sounds great (namely the flow to American). I've got zero flight time...these are some of the options I've thought about:

#1 - ATP Flight School - I've got about $60k in savings right now I could use towards the program. I'd still have to get a small loan (about $20k) to pay for the rest. I'd also have to quit my fire job. I like this idea because it's so fast and they have a 'guaranteed' CFI job and an agreement with Envoy for their Cadet Program. The thing that scares me about this route is the fact I'll be quitting my career job. I also worry about the quality of the instruction with it being so fast paced.

#2 - Work/School - Continue to work as a firefighter. I only work 10 days a month (24 on, 48 off) which leaves 20 completely free days I could use to get my PPL/instrument/multi-engine/commercial/CFIs. I like this because I'll still have money coming in (I make about $80k/yr now) that I can use to help pay for the expensive cost of flight training. I can pay as I go for these certs and finish with no debt. The downsides I see are it taking longer than going through ATP which leads me to some questions:

With 20 completely free days a month where I could be completely devoted to flying, how long would it realistically take to get all the above certs? Is it possible to pretty much go to flight school "full-time" on my off days and finish in about the same time as ATP Flight School's program?

How important is going to a flight school that has a relationship with a regional? There's two flight schools here that have agreements with Envoy for their Cadet Program which I'm highly interested in. But if I go to a flight school that doesn't have an agreement, is it still likely to get hired by Envoy as long as you have 1500hrs or do you have to be a more "competitive" applicant?

Being 23, should I lean towards ATP because it's so fast? I feel like I'm "behind" compared to people who are 22 and graduating with their bachelor's and licenses. I've got an associate's degree and plan on starting an online BA program immediately which I should have before I even have 1500 hours (not that Envoy requires it).

How hard is it to get accepted into Envoy's Cadet Program? Their website says to expect to upgrade to a Captain in 2 yrs and flow to American in about 6. Are these realistic numbers?

Any thoughts/advice appreciated. Thanks ladies and gents.