ZOTAN

I am 16 right now, and am really thinking about pursuing a career in aviation. The dream goal would be becomming a pilot, but since I am so young things can change between now and when I am finally look for a job. I have been interested in aviation for as long a I can remember, and am training for my PPL right now. For the pilots on this forum, would you reccomend this career? If you had (or have) a kid who really wants to become a pilot, would you reccomend that they pursue a career in the industry?

Thanks for your input,

Matt

WhiskyPilot

Zotan,

You sound like me when I was 16. I did decide to go into flying as a career and am happy I did.
Flying is a great job, but it is a terrible career. What I mean by that is I truly enjoy the flying - the time I spend in the cockpit. However, I am WAY underpaid for what I do (I am a regional jet captain). I could make just as much money doing a lot of blue-collar jobs. You'll find very few companies who treat you like an actual human being in the airlines compared to how my college friends are treated by their non-aviation companies.
I have had my base changed several times in just 3 years, which would require me to either keep moving or commute. Commuting is very stressful, keeps you away from home a lot more, and gets expensive (hotels, airline passes, etc). I'll soon be displaced even further east, making my commute even harder, or requirng me to leave a place I enjoy living in.
All that being said, I am one of the lucky ones to just have to commute. Thousands of pilots have been furloughed (laid off) from their current jobs in the last few years.
As bad as things are right now, I still do not regret my decision on choosing this career. However a lot of my friends have regretted their career choice, and a lot have quit and gone into other lines of work.
Getting into the industry now it is possible you may never make it any further than being a regional jet captain no matter how hard you work, or how good you are at this job. RJ captains who have been at my company for 7 years only make about 68,000 per year, and we are one of the better paid regionals. We typically get 13 days off per month, which may seem like a lot but is not when you are away from home the other 17-18 days.

My advice to you would be to definitely get that PPL, and if flying is something you truly enjoy and want to do, consider it as a career. Go to college, get a degree in something practical (not aviation related) so you have something to fall back on if you change your mind or it doesn't work out. An aviation degree will not help you get a job at an airline and is almost totally worthless. Do not go into this profession if you want to get rich or have an easy job and a lot of days off - those days are unforunately over.

Let me know if you have any other questions!

ZOTAN

Is it any different overseas? Are there more job opportunities in say Europe or Asia?

WhiskyPilot

If you're American, about your only opportunities for overseas carriers are with Cathay Pacific and Emirates. You would most likely have to live in Hong Kong or Dubai. Pay is pretty good at Cathay, but it is a totally different culture than the US Airlines.

BayouPilot1975

[COLOR=Blue] Hmmm.....there are some things I agree w/ here and some things maybe not so much. First of all, I didn't get into aviation until I was in my mid 20's. I worked my way through college doing a MANUAL labor job in the oil field and then had several management jobs after graduation. None of that really did it for me, so I went back and did the aviation thing. I would definitely CONSIDER an aviation degree simply for the NETWORKING value of going through a school like that. I knew absolutely NO ONE in the aviation field until I got that aviation degree. Now, I chat regularly with FedEX and UPS captains that I met through the aviation dept. alumni program.

You ARE on the right track. I wish I had started flying when I was 16! If you want some ideas about where to get started, e-mail me @ josephwyatt@hotmail and we'll see if we can work something out!

PAPA FOX

I am very surprised to hear that! Surely an RJ Capt with 2000 hrs or more of turbine PIC, 121 experience (obviously), check airman status and 4 yr degree would be able to get on with SWA, JB, Airtran, UPS or Fedex with a bit of persistance. Pilots even without a degree or Check airman are routinely being interviewed at a few of these carriers one of them being SWA. An RJ Capt of 5 yrs would be very competitive with the above quals in my opinion. All he must do is continue to build PIC, stay out of trouble, be persistant and have a positive attitude in the interview. I'm not flying for a living yet so I can't say anything forsure but I base my statements on other pilots experiences on flightinfo.com and other forums.


Good luck to all persuing the dream!!

Iflyfr8

Yeah, I would recommend this career to anyone that loves flying!

But the earlier you educate yourself on this industry the better!

You are only 16, sh!t if only I got started at that age (I was 21), and have plenty of time to figure it out.

Start networking ASAP! That can make a world of difference! Talk to commuter pilots, freightdogs, corporate pilots and everything inbetween. Find out what is appealing to you.

Be carefull, there are a few jobs out there that can very easly break your spirt.

Good luck