DO NOT GO INTO DEBT TO START THIS CAREER!!!!!!!!!!

A $45,000 loan over 10 years at 6% means a payment of $500 per month.

There is a joke:
What is the difference between a large pizza and a regional pilot?
The pizza can feed a family of four.


Now, IF you are still interested in professional flying...

If you are using the GI Bill money, in my day it:
had to be a part 141 school
would cover 50% of the cost (but 141 schools charge more than 61 schools)
only started after you have a private ticket
If that is still the case, where you go to get your private is entirely up to you.

Go to a bunch of nearby airports, there are bunches more than you probably know about (use this site to find some AirNav: Airport Information). Talk to the folks at the FBOs, compare prices, check out the airplanes, ask for references, and maybe even haggle a little. Schools are pretty hungry for students, so you might make a good deal if, for example, you agreed to pay in advance.

AFTER you have your private, you can start thinking about 141 schools. If you have a little luck, the FBO you chose for the private HAS a 141 curriculum. Back in the day, 141 cost 10-20% more per ticket, but you got to use the GI Bill to cover 50%. Again, schools are hungry, you might be able to cut another deal with a local.

You mentioned ATP. I have no experience with them. I have worked at another "name brand" school and attended one myself (I didn't know any better and google didn't exist). All that advertising, fancy buildings, and huge staffs cost money; so, just like canned corn, the name brand is more expensive for what is often the same as the no-name.

No one really knows when the turn around will come. In the past year or so, maybe 10,000 pilots lost their job last year. American still has 2000 on furlough. To put that into perspective, Delta, the largest US airline, employs 12,000 pilots. Let's be really optimistic and say the majors start hiring tomorrow, it could still take years to deplete the glut of unemployed pilots. If one were lucky enough to get a regional job today, it would be several years before $30,000.

One final thing to consider: how will the Mrs. feel about you making less than half what you are earning now, spend 20 days a month away from home, and have added $500 per month of debt?

Whatever you decide, good luck.

And for all of us who sleep better at night knowing you and your brethren are on the job, Thank You!

JSH