I would love to pursue a UPT position in the Air Force Reserve or Air National Guard, but I am concerned about losing the opportunity to potentially secure a seniority number with a major carrier during the uptick of hiring in the next few years if I take a 'detour' with military training.

I recently left the U.S. Army just shy of 8 years of active duty service as a UH-60 instructor pilot in pursuit of an airline career. I am closing in on 30 years of age and, with the current policy change allowing UPT up to age 33, this would likely be my only opportunity to potentially 'go blue.' I am loving the airline gig and am excited about career opportunities available at the majors in the coming years, but part of me knows I'll be miss the camaraderie and the mission-oriented flying with the military. I've considered continued flying in the ARNG/USAR, but I am ready for a change of pace and want to stay fixed-wing centric for the remainder of my career.

Would it ultimately hurt the expediency of getting hired a major airline if I went through Air Force training at this point in my career? In a perfect world, I'd love to get to a major and then secure an AFR/ANG flying gig, but I'd likely be too old and miss the window of opportunity to go to UPT. In the same breath, over a 30-35 year career at the airlines, I'd kick myself at the tail end of my career if I lost thousands of seniority numbers because I didn't stay the course and grind out my 121 time to be competitive for a major/legacy. In the short term, I doubt I'd accumulate enough Air Force flying time to make myself competitive at a major whereas the time spent in UPT and aircraft qualification I could have upgraded at an airline and closed in on 1,000 airplane TPIC.

I know the answer is likely not black and white, but I am curious to hear other perspectives and insights on the pros and cons of each path at this point.