Originally Posted by
CFI Guy
As you stated, no one can predict the future. And there's always that disclaimer on my investment portfolio funds that state "past performance does not necessarily predict future results". As you saw with Covid, things can change rapidly in this industry- one minute it's the apocalypse and the next minute airlines are scrambling to buy planes / hire pilots.
What I really like about your plan is you are not going into debt (or very minimal) for this career- that is my two cents of advice I give to everyone. You will also have an education and hopefully some experience in whatever field you are entering (outside of aviation) before you take the plunge into aviation full-time. Maybe you'll have a great job, a family, and will weigh the benefits of entering the industry depending on how it looks at that time. Perhaps instructing on the side and buying your own plane will be enough for you. Either way, you'll have options and the ability to fall back on your education/skills if the time isn't right in ten years.
Your plan sound solid and the rest will work itself out.
Best of luck to you.
Thanks for this. I didn't know if there were any additional resources regarding pilot retirements besides what I see from these zero-to-hero programs that the airlines are offering (which you should avoid at all costs from what I know) that maybe I was missing/couldn't find. I've been pretty dead set on being a pilot, doing it day in and day out until I hit retirement. Can't see myself spending almost every day on the ground doing a normal programming job until I retire but who knows, maybe I'll be content with being a CFI and flying on the side if something changes in the future. Never one to deny a possibility.