Originally Posted by
187Breezy
On the plus side of getting out and going for it now- while you will be physically away from home for longer stretches of time (trips are often 4 days with 3 days off in between, at least at the regionals) you will be mentally and emotionally present for your family so much more when you are home. Law enforcement corrodes your soul in ways that you certainly understand, and seeing things every day that no human should have to see will have an impact on your family life. I don't come home crabby, tired and emotionally exhausted from a trip like I did daily at the PD. And unlike in LE where many jobs are on call 24/7/365, when you are on your days off, you are completely off the clock with no obligations to the company, unless you choose to pick up some overtime flying, which is completely optional. Good luck with this decision.
This times 1000. I went from airlines to LE and back to the airlines. I wouldn't change those decisions but my family all encouraged me to go back to flying. Even though I was technically home more during my LE career compared to commuting to a regional airline, I was more present when at home. Now, I'm actually off more than I was at the PD so I win on the physcial presence test as well as the mental/emotional one.
To continue your cuff analogy: IMO the handcuffs are a lot looser at the airlines and you're cuffed in front. I guarantee you won't even realize how raw your wrists have gotten until you've been out of LE for a while.
Personally I wouldn't wait 10 years. Seniority is everything and the hiring wave is now. You'll be in worse shape quality of life wise if you wait 10 years and start at the bottom at 43. There will be thousands of guys/gals senior to you who are significantly younger than you if you wait that long. With today's pay at the airlines, I doubt you'll come out ahead financially if you wait either.