Should I go for it? 21 years old
 

Yes, another one of these questions. :D

I am 21 years old, about 1.5 years away from a bachelors degree in Health information management. I currently have my private pilots license which I received after 41 hours of flight time. My dream is to fly and actually get paid descent for it lol. Hopefully a major in the future.

I should be able to pay for all flight training without accumulating any debt. I'm thinking about purchasing an airplane to help cut down on costs and then instruct out of it once I become a CFI. I also have minimal debt from college that should be easy to pay off.

I work as a janitor at the high school I graduated from lol but it works out good as all my classes are online so I can live at home and work and save money. My new fiance whom I proposed to in the plane and wrote marry me? in a field (so romantic I know :p) works as registered nurse and is fully supportive of me doing this and makes enough to support us both. My flight instructor is a first officer for American and should have some connections for me I hope.

So if you were in my situation, what would you do? I feel like I am in a good position, just hard work and a lot of flying ahead.

Thanks in advance for any advice.

(Railroad is another option which I have also been trying to get on to. My friend, same age as me, just finished engineer training and he showed me his two week pay stub of almost 4600 dollars. Kind of hard to say no to that amount of pay but then end up doing something I'm not too interested in.)

Should I go for it? 21 years old
 

The fact that you need us to tell you to go for it leads me to believe that it's not for you. This job is hard enough for those of us who could not imagine doing anything else. The sacrifices that you and your family will make will be enormous and many. If you are even a little bit unsure, then don't make a job out of it.

In all honesty, the reason I feel I need to ask this question is because of this forum. When I first started training I was so excited for what was ahead of me. Then I found this forum and there is so much negativity regarding this career so it is making me reconsider. Not saying your post is negative 8hour and don't get me wrong there is loads of excellent information as well.

I guess I mainly wrote in hopes of getting some encouraging and positive words regarding an airline pilot. Also to just let people know my situation and hope others could relate. And I am not going to make my decision solely from a forum where I know not a single person.

Thanks

There is no question the past 13 years have been the worst the industry has ever seen, however I think the future is looking pretty bright. The Airlines have finally figure out how to make money (even VA) and there has been very little hiring at airlines where the average age is like 45, lol. Lots of retirement. I think now is a great time to get in. I would rather regret doing something then regret not doing it, but that's just me. Good luck.

Also, take a look around I don't know many mid 20 something year olds making good money doing something else.

Choices
 

You could either make a poor living as a box-boy at Costco or spent the same as amount as it takes to buy a starter house to become trained and educated as a pilot to then make less than a box-boy at Costco.

Aviation is becoming more automated everyday. There will be pilots in 20 years but they will earn even less and be treated worse. Aviation is only going in one direction and it is not good. Invest in something real.

Don't be that guy who regrets blowing their best years and resources on a dead end. The debt that an aviation career causes does not go away. It will be there long after the career fantasy is gone.

Skyhigh

Skyhigh, you are actually one of the people that talk negatively about the airlines but I want to thank you for that. Seriously. Your posts have made me think long and hard about this decision.

I'm pretty sure you went to real estate. That is another interest of mine. My father is a real estate broker so I have learned some. Last year I flipped a house and sold it for double what I paid. I'm just not sure I could make a career out of real estate.

I'm young and just really not sure what route to take.

I want to thank everyone for their responses.

Chance and Luck
 

Recently Alaska Airlines had an application opening, over 4000 current and qualified applicants took the time to submit an application during the small window of time that it was open. Only 40 were hired.

4000 thousand applicants with college educations and over 1000 house of turbine PIC. Even after surviving all that their odds were still only one hundred to one of getting hired.

No matter how you slice it aviation is a long shot. Most of a pilots career outcome relies on luck and circumstance. In real estate or most other careers a person has the option of trying harder than the next guy and getting ahead. As pilots we have to make blind guesses and place our faith into the hands of faceless executives to make choices that are in our best interest. Not a good negotiating place to be in life.

In my case I earned more money and had a better life during times when I was laid off from flying than when I was gainfully "employed". Real estate is not easy but your odds of success improve over time.

Skyhigh

The job is not quite like the flight schools and pilot shortage articles say, but it is not all bad either. I don't automatically tell everyone to go for it on a career...nor do I say don't. Just really think and research.

What does your flight instructor tell you? Have you gone to The Truth About the Profession - Home Your fiance having a good job will be important. I joke/ point out that medical and dental programs of all levels have waiting lists, while flight schools are begging for students...there is a reason.

Fortunately, a really, REALLY bad decade for flying is coming to a close. Oh, also, choosing a piloting career is to choose a life on the road. I think most people have their mind made up by the time they post these questions, so you probably need to find out first hand if this career is for you. Keep us posted.

I personally think that if you can pursue a career in aviation, and not accumulate a huge debt you'll be paying off for years if it doesn't work out, why not try it and see what happens? Other than jobs where you need to have advanced education ie. medical, law, etc. You can pick up a job in let's say sales or management, and not be too far behind the eight ball 5-7 years down the road if you decide it is not worth the commitment and time to build hours and connections to land a top paying aviation job. I agree that I would rather be 28 and say " I tried and it didn't work out" than 55 and say " I wonder if I could have done it". It is obviously a big decision that nobody on here will be able to answer for you, but that is my two cents.

The losses
 

The airlines hopefully are going to enjoy a short break from the blood letting. Profits are up and the future looks much better, however that does not mean that pilots will benefit from the upswing. As the airlines continue to merge the better jobs will continue to go away and management will still strive to cut wages and benefits.

The airlines provide a fairly homogeneous product. The only way they can get ahead is through having lower costs than the competition. Every airline has thousands of applications on file for just a few jobs. Management knows that they still have a long way to go in cutting wages and benefits before the flood of application subsides. As a result you can count on continued downward pressure on pilot compensation.

Skyhigh