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Old 11-04-2006 | 06:14 AM
  #62  
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sargeanb
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Joined: Aug 2006
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From: E170 CA
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I think this is a topic we all have thought about, or will have to, in this career. I'm just a CFI, so I work about 12-13 hours a day, then I'm home each night. I'm 25, and already married...I found the perfect woman and decided to go for it, after dating and living together for about a year. I couldn't be happier with that decision. My wife used to be a flight attendant, so she is sort of familiar with the life, and we both discussed what the airline life would entail many times before making the big decision. She's fine with that schedule, as she's not the "clingy" type anyway. That is the way to go with it...like they said in previous posts, get everything out on the table before making any decisions on marriage. Let her know exactly what the schedule will be, let her know you'll probably have to move several times, etc.

I'll be moving on into the industry in about 6 months, and I explained to my wife I can either fly cargo at night and be home in the daytime every day (and asleep for half of that time) with weekends off, or be flying roughly 4 days on 3 days off with a regional, and I don't plan on commuting...I'd rather move to the domicile so I can spend more time with her. If you can find someone who has similar interests and can tolerate that kind of schedule, she's a keeper The only limiting factor as some have said before is that you may not be able to get that dream job immediately; you've got to factor your wife/family into every career decision you make. I'd rather go somewhere where I can stay for a long time, as opposed to somewhere where I can upgrade ASAP and move from base to base.

The main problem I'm seeing for myself in the future is that we want to have kids eventually, and she wants to work in the airport business as well...somebody's got to stay at home and take care of the kids. Now the good thing about the airline schedule is you know you'll be home for several days in a row in between trips, so you can take on the responsibilities when you're home. Again though, the key is to sort of plan these things out, and make sure you're very open about every career decision or disagreements on scheduling. That's just my example, but just to give you an idea of how it is being a married pilot. Five years down the road, hopefully my outlook on this will not change

-Brock
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