Hey blaquehawk,

There is some really good info from the experienced guys in this thread. I work for a major airline in Asia and absolutely love my job. I'm 30 and have had a relatively successful career and thus have enjoyed every part of it. I haven't worked in the USA so my advice is likely not valid.

I am, however, interested for my own curiosity, at this point in time, what are your biggest concerns/desires about a career in aviation? Eg enjoying your chosen career, making money, spending too long on my low income, not getting employed, spending too much money.

What would you say are the biggest ones?

Good luck to you.

 

OP,

If you have 12-18 months left, maybe try and knock out a few online classes.

As far as building time, look at this thread and maybe send them an email and start a dialogue for the future.

http://www.airlinepilotforums.com/pa...-position.html

I don't know what if any schools are around there that you could/would want to go to, but the job could get you some valuable time while going to school if they can work with your schedule.

 

The most important concern for me is that I enjoy what I am doing. I know that I will enjoy flying for a living, but not if it comes at the expense of QOL over the long term. I recognize there are dues to be paid at the beginning of a pilots career. Right now I’m trying to figure out what suites me best as a career: airline pilot, 135 cargo, law enforcement, fire fighting, etc. If you’ll pardon the Rumsfeldism, I’m trying to match knowns with the unknowns. For instance, I know how much airline pilots earn versus 135 cargo pilots or corporate pilots, but is there a trade off in QOL? Will I have a better QOL as a corporate pilot but at the sacrifice of pay and job stability, hell, how does one become a corporate pilot in the first place? I know (or believe) flying for LE would continue to fulfill my sense of duty, but can I compete against career Army helo pilots for those jobs? So with that said, I’m scouring the internet and forums in search of some personal experiences of pilots: what did they do to get to where there are now and what would they do differently.
As crazy as this may sound I don’t believe I will have a problem finding a job flying. However, finding the right job in the right place for the right money is what is important.
As far as spending too much on training, that’s where I’m counting my blessings: I can either pay for training at AllATP in cash or let my rich Uncle Sam pay my way through school. But as always there’s a choice and a trade off in time and money. Do I pay to go to AllATP and finish before I retire from the Army and basically begin flying right away, or do I use my GI bill to pay for training and wait to begin working for those two years of school and saving myself $70 grand? The answer may seem obvious at first, but remember I’m 37 years old. I’ll likely be 42 by the time I go to work as regional FO after going to college for two years and building time as a CFI. If I pay out of pocket then I could begin flying just before my 39th birthday. If I were 23 I’d probably try a few things out before settling on a career path, but I don’t have the luxury of time.
I have about 14 months until I absolutely must make a decision. Between now and then I’m just trying to gather as much information as I can so that I can make an informed decision.

 

I kinda run into a problem hitting classes while still on active duty. If I go to college I have to maintain a full time schedule in order to recieve full benefits. So taking classes early to get them out of the way hurts rather than helps.

 

Be careful here. If you are going to a Part 141 program that is not attached with a college degree, it is true, the Post 9/11 Bill will pay for 100% of the training costs. BUT, it is capped at about $19,000 per year. Meaning, you would have to spread your training over 3 years in order to have it all paid for.

The Montgomery GI Bill will pay for 60% of your training, no matter how long or quick it takes. This is the better option if you want to get your training completed in the shortest amount of time possible.

Flight Training - Education and Training

 

Knock out a degree in Liberal Arts or General Studies from an accredited school like TESC, COSC, or Excelsior that specializes in employed adult learners with life experience.

With your military training you have a lot of ACE evaluated credit that would transfer to one of their generic degree plans. You can knock out your gen-ed credits through CLEP and DSST which are offered at the education center on base.

I know it's hard for guy especially in a combat arms job + multiple deployments to sit down and take actual classes. It would take 10+ years to knock out a traditional degree plan that way. You're in a time crunch, so take a look at this option in order to quickly check this block, which is really the only thing that you're looking to do at this point. A mechanical engineering or chemistry degree probably isn't what you're looking for anyways.

I was able to transfer about 30 credits from military training, about 15 from my previous time at community college, and the rest from CLEP, DSST, etc. Took me about 6 months and about $3,000 in enrollment, transcription and graduation fees.

-Thomas Edison State College grad

Degree Forum Wiki