Originally Posted by
rickair7777
The zero-to-hero thing goes back about ten years. Ever heard of ATA? You might not have if you're young.
There certainly were examples before the last couple years, but I wouldn't have called them commonplace or an epidemic like some of the places out there now. I remember when "quick upgrade" meant you only had to fly sideways for a couple years.
Originally Posted by
rickdb
My ultimate goal, if I do decide to become a commercial pilot, would be to fly cargo (i.e. Fed-X or UPS). I know those places have alot of competition for pilot slots, but I am thinking 10 yrs down the road. To be honest, the reason I believe that the industry has a positive outlook (barring a major catastrophe) is because I think that major carriers are going to keep moving many flights to the regional airlines and focus more on long leg trips and international travel. Also, I believe that technology is going to allow scientists to create an alternate type of fuel that is going to cut airline costs. Do I think the industry is ever going to get back to paying their pilots a king's ransom, absolutely not, but I do think that hourly pay will increase somewhat. I mean to be frankly honest with you, I would be happy making anywhere from 80k-150k working only 15 days a month. With that time off, you can open up a business on the side, or do a side job.
Let me know what you think.
Well, do it because you love to fly. Don't do it for any specific working conditions. IF the airline industry is anything, it's volatile, and I'm not sure I would have gone in for any specific reason other than loving to fly. The way I would look at it would always be worst case scenario. "Would I continue flying if, for the rest of my from, say on, flying because similar to a normal job, where you show up to work, put in your 10 hours a day, and do that 5-6 days a week? And got paid a reasonable salary of, say, $75k for the rest of my life?" If you're ok with that, then you know you love flying for flying, and are at least happy with an office with a way better view. Is it going to get that bad? Not foreseeably, and it would mean a huge step down from the current situation, but that's not an unbearable situation, and if you love to fly, then it'll probably be worth it.
Just so you know, that was a pretty extreme example, so please nobody jump down my throat for it!