I am a 32 y/o firefighter/paramedic currently with 18 years before retirement is an option (private pension years prior to current department didn't count) and I am looking at a new career as a commercial pilot due to earning potential and boredom after 14 years fighting fire. Question I have is related to pay and job opportunities as well as training leading up to getting a ticket for a regional. Is starting pay really in the 60k range or is that just including bonuses as a marketing gimmick? What is the time line from start to finish of required training. Is a bachelors degree required for the flow to a legacy? Thanks in advance.

 

AA flow does not require a degree.

 

Search for threads I have started because I am in a similar position. 32 y/o FF/PM looking for a second career for similar reasons. I have my PPL checkride in a few weeks, then start instruement

Starting pay at regionals is around 60k is what I have found, and that includes the bonus. I plan on working both jobs at the same time as much as I can so I do not have to take the paycut. No way I could do it otherwise without having to seriously re-do our finances to get through the regional time.


Training- You can do it as fast as you want. Fastest I have seen is 9 months to CFI. with about 250 hours. Once there you need to get to 1500 for ATP, or 1000 for R-ATP in Bachelors program. The certs are PPL, Instrument, Commercial, CFI. Then you will need a muti-engine endorsement, but you can do that when you get to CFI.

You need the CFI to build hours, unless you are made of money and can afford your own plane and at least 1000 hours to get to your time requirements.

The major airline pilots almost all have a bachelors degree from what I have found. The ones that do not have military time. I am sure there are some exceptions, but getting a bachelors is almost a must. If you get into a program like liberty you do your bachelors in aviation while getting a R-ATP so that is one thing to consider.

My department does tuition re-imbursement for certain degrees and airlines could care less what your bachelors is in. So that is how I am doing it.

To make it work you will need to stay at the fire department for the time it will take you to get your certs and hours built up to get the ATP. Working full time and school full time you should be able to get it done in about 2-3 years. To get from nothing to your CFI it is probably going to cost around 70-100k depending on where you go.

I got hired at the FD when I was 27, and I am 32 now. I will promote to engineer this year. My PERS allows me to retire at with 20 years at 50. I can buy up to 5 years of credit so the soonest I can go is age 42 with 15 on plus 5 purchased. I still cannot collect until I am 50, so I might just stay until 50 to continue getting PERS credit and work as a pilot and as a firefighter. It would be a tough schedule especially at first, but with trades and vacation time I think I will be able to swing it until I get get a major and can afford to quit the fire department all together. Many of our guys that max out are dying of cancer or cardiac issues within 5 years of retiring so I would like to change careers sooner rather than later.

 

You got bored as a firefighter?.... If so, your mind is going to melt as a professional airline pilot. What exactly do you think we do all day? We literally stare out the window for hours doing close to nothing. Then you sit in hotel rooms in austere locations doing next to nothing. The training is intense and exciting, and the road to becoming an airline pilot will provide you an escape from boredom, but once you're there... get a good book and your free USA Today.

In regards to pay, most starting salaries are around $36,000 - $40,000. Anything else is a bonus and marketing. MANY airlines are including ancillary benefits as compensation, including per diem, hotels, uniforms, and health insurance... in other words, clever lying. Compensation that will not pay the mortgage or put food on the table.

Start to finish is really up to you and how much $$ and time you have. If you have $70,000 in the bank and a year and half to do do nothing, you could go from zero to Certified Flight Instructor in 14-18 months. Here is a briefly what you need to accomplish: Private Pilot (can be done in as little as three months, takes the average weekend warrior one year), Instrument Rating, Commercial Pilot's License, Multi-Engine Rating, Certified Flight Instructor, Certified Flight Instructor-Instrument. Those cover what most people do. You could also get a Multi-Engine Instructor certificate.

After all of this, you will likely have 225-300 hours total time. You'll need to somehow get 1200 more hours (roughly 1.5-2 years worth) doing something like flight instructing, pipeline patrol, banner towing, etc. This will not pay very well, though instructor pay has gone up and you may see $40,000+ potentially.

Then, about 3 years later after you began, a regional airline, which quite frankly may look a lot different than they do today. From there, everyone's career is vastly different and unpredictable.

Best of luck.

 

I thought the boredom comment was funny too... Flying, like sailing, involve hours of boredom, punctuated by moments of sheer terror...

 

With your background why don't you aim for an aerial bomber career-

DynCorp ? Fire Aviation
CAL FIRE - Forestry Fire Pilot
Fire Aviation ? News & commentary about aerial firefighting, air tankers, and helicopters

Seems more your speed, if you will.

 

I agree with geosync, particularly if you have contacts in fire aviation.

 

With your paramedic history, think about air ambulance. Sort of the same, sit around waiting for the phone to ring. Some air ambulance companies hire right seaters at around 600 to 700 hours.

Pay starts low, but jumps up each year and even more when you get to the left seat, and is basically a recession proof job unlike most other jobs in aviation.

And I agree with others. Aviation is boring 99% of the time. it is the 1% that makes a pilot worth his money.

 

Firefighting is never about the money, and as I'm sure you're aware it doesn't pay well in most places. But dat schedule tho! Just kidding. I was a medic for 6 years in the Army and when I left Active Duty I spent a few years as a FF in the Southeast US. The pay was garbage, but the job was an amazing adventure. That being said, it was not challenging to my skillset and capabilities and I didn't feel like dealing with GSWs to the head on a monthly basis was my thing. I've always been flying since I was a kid.

If you're considering flying as a career, do more research and make sure your heart is into it... figuratively and literally (make sure you can get a 1st Class FAA Medical). Whatever you do, make sure you're fully aware of the good and bad of the career field. It can be incredibly challenging to make it to a Major and the industry can go to crap overnight with the economy...etc. If there is nothing else you want to do, then do it and do it 100%. Also, I would HIGHLY recommend a degree in a non-aviation field. But, you can work on a degree slowly and over time. Although with most places it's not "required" it can give you an edge. Kinda like it's not "required" to have a new haircut and shine your shoes when you interview, but when you're dealing with people who are evaluating you and rating everything they see and know about you.. it can put you ahead of the other guy.