AtlCSIP

I was an engineer. (Actually, still am as little as possible). I quit a six figure engineering gig for the right seat of a regional. Never been happier. However, I PAID for all of my ratings as I went and did not borrow ANY money to get in to it. The only regret i have is not starting sooner. Quality of life is incredible compared to my former life. Sometimes I miss the money, but then I think about 17 days off per month and I don't miss it any more.

rickair7777

But you know you could go back if you needed money. And I assume you have a bit squirreled away.

Also this sort of conversation really needs to be had in the context of a person's age. If you're 50-something (ie kids out of the house, divorced, retirement funded) that's way different than 20-something and still hoping to have spouse/kids/mortgage/retirement.

Melissa2832

Thank you very much for the great replies everyone! It sounds like if/when I go the regional and airline route, I be entering at a good time. Also, the one nice thing I have going for me is two of my family members are GA pilots, so they are in a partnership and own a plane, which will allow me to get the 1500hrs fairly quickly. I've been flying for about 3 years and have about 250hrs.

Southern Fried

At the point you are now, there are many questions that you will need to answer yourself, they won't come from any of us.

If you are married or engaged, does your husband have a career? Is he an independent person? Will he "pine for you" while you are on a 4 day trip? Will it bother him for you to be staying in a hotel with other crew members? Is he someone you can trust to be on his own while you are gone? Will he take good care of the house, children, and finances while you are gone? Will he be able to take care of your children while you are gone? How will your children feel about you being gone for 4 days in a row?

I know that you are still in college and aren't facing these issues yet. They are issues that you will face after you graduate, find your mate, and start having children. Consider these issues carefully before you actually have to live with your choices.

If you sincerely have a problem with being away from family, an airline career is probably not for you. However, if you decide to go for it anyway, you will always have those 4 day trips to get away from the nagging of your relatives to start a "real" career as a lawyer or engineer.

The pay is what it is. You won't get rich as a regional airline FO. As a senior line holding Captain you will make good money but not great money. I've been at my company for 10+ years and I made 110,000 last year. Being female, you have a few advantages getting an interview that I don't have. Being female won't make up for being impersonable or having a poor record (check ride failures, accidents) as a pilot. You just won't have to work as hard for it as the average white guy. The reality of the corporate world is that minorities have an advantage. Affirmative action is alive and well, but it's all up to you to be the pilot they are looking for.

While you are finishing college and contemplating your future, consider this; If you are passionate about what you do, you won't dread going to work. Flying really does seem to get in your blood, if it's your passion. I've seen too many pilots at my company who hate what they are doing. As best as I can tell from talking to them, they thought being an airline pilot would be cool and they would make lots of money. In other words, they got into flying for the wrong reasons. If it is your passion, if aviation and airplanes turn you on, then the day to day turmoil and other frustrating aspects of being an airline pilot won't keep you from coming back for more. The happy pilots are the ones who love aviation and flying.

I have two grown daughters. They are good people and I am very proud of them. I hope you take this advice as being from someone who cares and only wants the best for you. No, they are not pilots.

Find your passion and make it your life's work.

Flyhayes

My mother once offered me some very sage advice, which I follow to this day.

-When making a decision for yourself, make the best decision for where you are in life right now.

Now that doesn't entail that you should disregard how the decision may affect you in the future (quite the contrary). Regardless of which path one may take in life, no one knows what the future holds for us. Since you are currently unmarried without a family, that thinking should hold a relatively small part of your decision making process. Cross that bridge when and if you get there.

Melissa2832

Thank you very much for the excellent replies! I don't need to make a million dollars to be happy, if I had enough to have a house with a litle bit of land, some money to travel with my family and pay for my kid(s) college, I would be more than happy.

Is that possible on a pilot salary or is that unrealistic? If its possible, I'm going the pilot route and never looking back to make myself happy!

bigboeings

There are many good points made on this thread, and it seems as though you are asking the right questions.
That last question is a tough one which depends on how quickly you end up at a major airline or a good corporate job. Ive been flying for 25 yrs. and made enough to support my family as the sole earner. That being said I have been furloughed twice and had to start over, but I wouldn't change a thing if I were to do it again. No matter what I still enjoy the flying and the industry. It has not become "just a job" at all contrary to what some say. Yeah some days are not all roses but overall you cant beat it.

rickair7777

That's the real question, and the answer is it depends...

In non-airline aviation it's possible but will require hustle and likely regular changes of employer (or a big chunk of luck to land that dream six-figure G-V job that lasts for 30+ years, ie the unicorn job)

In airlines it's like a binary quantum state, either yes or no. You either get on with a major where you can enjoy career progression with no catastrophic disruptions, or you don't. If yes, then you can afford spouse/kids/mortgage/toys/vacation/college/retirement. If you no (stuck in regionals, LCC liquidates, etc) then you simply can't afford upper-middle class life. Don't be fooled by old-school regional CA's making six figures...they got in when the getting was good, but the way of the future is to constantly move flying around amongst regionals to prevent anyone from ever acquiring enough longevity to get to six figures. In fact they're currently rolling back pay scales at the regionals through a variety of techniques. The regional "career" of the future will likely involve starting over as a $20K FO somewhere in mid-life.

You have some control over the outcome...keep your record very very clean (that's more important these days than quality flight time), and network at every opportunity. Aggressively and pro-actively manage your career. I would almost suggest having a cutoff date...you're either at your career-destination job by age X or you quit and go get a real job. The value of X could be adjusted slightly if circumstances warrant (ie upgrade imminent).

If you're concerned about practical financial considerations (you should be, and it sounds like you are) then don't get stuck in an aviation dead-end...those often end very badly.

Also don't forget retirement...airline pilots have to retire earlier than other workers, and even if you get another job it probably won't be as good a deal (QOL or money-wise) as your final airline gig.

Southern Fried

Melissa,

Always keep in mind that if nothing else happens, you can count on one thing:

Change.

Nothing in life or in aviation remains constant. What is true today might not be 6 months from now.

Take rickair7777's point about 6 figure regional airline captains. Although I enjoy that kind of income now, I could be out of a job in 3 years. There are plenty of 60+ year old former Comair pilots who can tell you all about that. As long as you remember that your current circumstances can and probably will change and you plan accordingly, you can have an interesting and rewarding life and career as a pilot without ever flying a Boeing, Airbus, or Gulfstream. Many of the pilots who post on here are either at a major airline or are trying to get there. They all have their opinions, as do I. My opinion about a flying career is that you don't have to reach that level as a pilot in order to be happy. Yes, the financial rewards are there of course. As you pointed out, you don't need to make a million dollars to be happy. I believe that happiness is different for each of us and when you come to terms with that, you are more likely to be happy in life.

Good luck to you! You are about to have many fun and challenging experiences as a professional pilot. Always do your best and don't compromise on your integrity. When you are 60, you can look back on your life and career and feel good about what you did and how you did it.

AtlCSIP

Yes, I am older (not 50 yet!) and my youngest child is older than the op, and I do have some money squirreled away, and I could go back to the six figure engineering profession next week, so you are correct, I am in a different place. I spent many years, however, wishing I was anywhere but my engineering job, and I will never get those years back. As far as wealth building is concerned, for most people in the US, a lack of ability to build wealth is due to behavior, not earnings. Check out Dave Ramsey if you don't want to be broke forever.