Originally Posted by
NatGeo
I think DontLookDown has it figured out. I think your assumption that you will make 2-3 million more if you go the pilot route is ludicrous. What are the odds at 36 that things work out and you make it to a major in 5-10 years. I would give that 5% odds. Never forget the opportunity cost of wasted time. If you spend 5 years figuring out that professional aviation is not right for you, what happens to your daughters education funds?
Keep aviation fun and keep doing GA. Almost all the guys who do it for a living do 0 GA stuff. Think about why an airline pilot would have no interest in flying a general aviation airplane again?
Making $110k + overtime in a cheap city like Vegas as a "Fireman," is a no brainer. I'm not trying to insult your career at all, I would have become a fireman if I had a crystal ball. It is a government job with very minimal BS. You already stated all the benefits that come with your job. The medical side of your job will quickly get better as Covid ends here in a year or two.
Here is a good question to ask yourself. How stable is the airline industry? How stable is the firefighter industry? Whose to say that there is not another virus 5 years down the road? Or the EU imposes huge carbon tariffs on international flights? Automation takes it down to 1 pilot cockpits. There will always be fires and accidents.
btw: You have such a "gravy" schedule right now. You do understand that if you go the pilot route you will have 10 years of a BS schedule and miss out on your kids growing up?
The 2-3 million more in lifetime earnings is the difference of working from age 50-65 as a pilot making about 250k a year. The fire career is over at age 52 for me (that gives me 25 years credit in the pension system- should give me about 70k a year in pension without touching my other investments)
I guess it comes down to a few questions:
1. Do I want to work as a pilot for longer than I would if I continue the fire career? (firefighter lifespan is significantly less due to cancer and heart problems caused by lack of sleep- most of our guys are dying early into retirement)
2. Can I deal with the salary hit for the first few years along with the work/schedule conditions that are bad early in the airline career? (getting thru training, probation, and rookie time at the fire dept sucked too)
3. Do I want to risk the stability of local government job where I have awesome conditions right now for the unstable yet cyclical conditions of the airlines?
4. Finally what can I do to mitigate not losing my current career to try out the new one‐ The answer to this is burn my vacation and sick time, and possibly get an unpaid leave and burn through some retirement (or home equity) to make it work.
I committed to doing the regionals for at least a year when I borrowed money (student loan) for the 141 instrument training. I have 50k in student loans left‐ which is conviently one year salary at the regionals.
I should be able to make it a year with vacation/sick/trading shifts to do both jobs for a year. It won't be ideal, but I think its worth it to figure out if I really want to leave what I already have.
I guess worst case is do it, hate it, get 121 SIC multi turbine time and type rating. Remove the restriction on the atp cert, retire from fire dept around age 50 and fly 91 or 135 at that time