Originally Posted by
JohnBurke
The hardest part of flying is paying for it.
There's no reason to take a year off work to do pilot certification and ratings. You can do that easily enough while working full time. Evenings and weekends can make it work out.
The income at the entry level stages is difficult, especially with a family. Many of us have done it, worked through low income while dealing with all the rest, and for a lot of us, it's a challenge. It's easier, financially, if your wife works. Mine didn't. There's no simple solution to your question. Everyone's situation is different.
My concern with doing it part time is how long it would take - if I don't go all-in and get to 1500 hours in 2-ish years, but instead work full time pursuing it, how long would I realistically expect it to take? I'm guessing at least 5-6 years if not more, which puts me in my 50's before I would get on with an airline, changing my career from 18-ish years to less than 15. I know that I could still get a good senior captainship at a regional in that time, but while I'm not wanting to do this to chase after the money it does reduce the ROI potential significantly.