While I was in the field, I averaged just over 300 hours a year so, indeed not a “time building” job.

Every career has its pros and cons. Airlines will have far better pay and benefits, in the long run. Overall CBP not bad, stay out of the politics and negativity and you’ll fare well. I retired as a SES and with annual bonuses, was making $220k a year. Top SES pay is $225,700 in 2025 so with bonus pay, earning potential is $250k if you work your way up into leadership. Makes for a nice retirement. I just bought a Harley to ride to my boat this summer.

QUOTE=mimark;3893485]1. "anywhere from 50 to 100 hours a month"- Not likely- I averaged 227 a year over a 25 year career

2. You won't have a choice when you get hired, you will be going to the southern border

3. "FLETC is a pretty rigorous training environment but also well-organized"- not difficult compared to all your avaition training.

4. "The culture can vary a lot by location"- mostly true but your first few years you aren't going to have a choice. Also, a branch that is bad can turn good quickly with a new Director. But the more likely is a good Branch can turn bad with a new Director (this is usually the case, poor quality in management these days).

5. Don't know that I can recommend it as a career anymore. It was good for the the first 15-20 years I was there and then started getting progressively worse due to being part of DHS and crappy management. The spiral continues. Maybe a possibility for improvement with the new administration (at least they can do their jobs) but unlikely because of poor management.

6. Real aircraft (especially helos) won't go away but drones are also there to stay. If you get stuck as a drone pilot, good luck getting out of drones.[/QUOTE]