Originally Posted by
Pilatus801
I'm one of those blokes trying to calculate my ROI. I am 45, sitting at 220 hours and about to do my IFR checkride. I want to knock out my Commercial license in the next 30 days. But i look at how slowly my pilot hours are accruing and recognize that i am looking at years of low income work just to get to 1,500 hours. Presently, i work for a size able corporation, doing work I am tired of and earning a $72k annual salary. I may have a management option in a few years, but do not see myself staying at this company.
But to consider going to work as a CFI for a couple of years just to build time is demoralizing. Then to go make $45k-$60k for a few years as a Regional FO is also hard to imagine. I suppose by years 3-4 i may be back up to my present salary. So easily 4-5 years of going backwards financially from my present income level.
I would hope from there the wages increase significantly. I'd like to make it my career path but with my age, and comfortable living situation i have acquired, its a bit risky. I want to make a smart move and don't want to be a glutton for punishment. Yet, it seems that is somehow built into the industry for new pilots. You have to suffer and get kicked in the balls for a few years before things start to payoff.
I also worry about flying reserve and commuting to base. I'm pretty stuck to where i live in Salt lake due to custody of my kids and the old ex wife.
On the upside, i see wages and bonuses are increasing and i hope that trend continues. I also hope the entire pipeline of pilot opportunities will keep moving so that older guys in my shoes can move up in seniority a little quicker.
Thanks to all of you that provide positive and realistic feedback on these forums!!!
You can easily commute out of SLC, it's near the big west coast bases, DEN, DFW, IAH, and not that far from ORD/MDW.
$72K is trivial in this conversation. If you have a degree (preferably with a good GPA), are healthy, and personable, there is a clear potential ROI for you due to timing in history... the escalator is running, and running fast (which is not always the case). With all bonuses, retirement factors, you'd make $150-$200K second-year at a mid/upper-tier major.
The caveat of course is risk... health problems, catastrophic economic issues, unknowns. Or maybe the recruiters just don't like the way you part your hair... but I think most majors no longer have enough candidates where they can exclude people for trivial reasons, assuming you've punched all the big tickets they want. Risk is always present, and always a consideration for those pursuing aviation. What's different right now is that there's not much risk of stagnation.
Now for a guy making $200K+ in the white-collar world, it's a much harder decision... aviation would require a significant cut in lifestyle, without any absolute certainty of ever getting it back. If spouse/family is involved, they'd need to be VERY supportive. IMO you'd really have to hate what you're doing now (which could be understandable if you're doing 80 hour weeks on wall street or the like).