Future of this Career
 

Hey guys, I'm new this thread and yes I know no one has a crystal ball, but I'm 17 years old and a senior in hs and want to become a UPS pilot or legacy. I'm going to bowling green university for their flight program. By the time I'll be done will cargo be single pilot or something? Thx. I'm looking forward to pursuing a pilot career.

Welcome to the forum! As you pointed out, there's no crystal ball, but by the time you're out of college and beginning to gain experience (all within 10 years) its likely that the industry will remain with the standard of 2 pilot crews. It would take several years of testing, regulation and standardization to get down to a 1 or zero pilot cockpit. My advice is to get flying, logging hour, enjoy and take advantage of your college program and network network network! Best of luck!

My recommendation is to look into getting a pilot slot at a air national guard unit and if not a guard unit an Air Force reserve unit. It might not be for you but if it is it gives you options in case you graduate during or just before a recession. And give you a another source of income if something happens like single pilot ops affects you. Also, currently airlines really like military pilots. I ended up getting an active duty USAF OTS pilot slot after graduating college but I wasn’t really aware of the differences between the guard, reserve and active duty. I’ve enjoyed the financial stability of Active Duty. Me and my family really enjoy moving around and checking out new places. But going active duty isn’t without risks like you can’t say no to a deployment, who knows where you’ll live, etc so thats why most people recommend the guard as it’s the best of both worlds for the most part. With that said I’ve had a great active duty career so far but others I know haven’t enjoyed it as much as I have. Also by going active duty Ive missed the “lost decade” after 9/11 and the raise in the retirement age from 60 to 65 which screwed a bunch of people over. This career is a lot about luck and timing and that’s why I say strongly consider air national guard or Air Force reserve as it gives you another career to fall back on and another feather in your cap to separate you from the others applying to the legacies.

Thank you!

Thx man but I'm not really interested in the air force, I prefer to fly for a large cargo company one day like Fedex, Ups for instance.

you realize you can do both right? Grow up kid

You don't want to join the Air Force to be a pilot. Join the Air Force to be in the Air Force.

Your goals are much too narrow. Very few people who have their sights set on a particular airline actually end up working there (unless they have a close relative in senior management). I for example work for the last airline I ever thought I would end up at.

Your goal should be "top tier" majors, passenger or cargo (DL, UA, AA, SWA, FDX, UPS).

Your fallback should be "second tier" passenger majors. And maybe some contract cargo companies or fractionals, although their long-term viability is hard to predict.

Plan C could be regional airlines.

As to how you you get there, also keep an open mind. Military has historically been the most economical to the pilot but you do need to have an interest and enthusiasm for service. I will caution you... young people who are not "military material" typically won't get very far in civilian aviation. There's a lot of overlap on those two Venn diagrams.

you can do both, serve, separate into the Reserves, have a civilian career. Or, join the reserves, go to UPT, then do both. Don’t foreclose options without full knowledge. But,yes, join to serve, not to be a pilot, but it’s easily the best path and best experience in life. I know nobody from the airline, but 45 years stay in touch with AF squadron mates.

I recommend having an open mind to all your options and check them out. As you get older you I’d reassess the options that you thought weren’t for you. When I was 17 I wanted to be a photojournalist and while getting my ratings in college I wasn’t interested in joining the military but as time progressed I changed my mind.

In this career you may never get a call from UPS or FedEx. There are a ton of people who want that job both civilian and military. If you want a job at a legacy if you go the civilian route you really need to set yourself apart... by becoming a check airmen, Chief pilot, getting a safety position, volunteer, etc.

Also, it’s a lot about who you know that got hired before you.

Big picture keep an open mind. Read some of these forums but realize some people on here complain. And realize that a bunch of people want a legacy job and usually the advice is take the first legacy that calls and if you get multiple offers then you have a decision to make.