Best route to becoming a pilot
05-10-2012 | 03:52 PM
#21
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From: CRJ FO
That may be but those who will benefit the most from this are the pilots that are qualified to fill those jobs now. There will be a hiring wave, but you (likely) won't be there to take full advantage of it.
Getting in on the front end of a wave is great, back side, not so much. Reference .com bubble, real estate bubble etc.
Lets assume you get on at a regional at 23 and stay for 5 years to build time before hired by a major at 28. So in 11 years, after the bulk of the retirements there will be thousands of pilots 5-10 years older than you ahead of you on the seniority list. You'll be inching up the seniority ladder for 20-30 years very slowly.
Getting in on the front end of a wave is great, back side, not so much. Reference .com bubble, real estate bubble etc.
Lets assume you get on at a regional at 23 and stay for 5 years to build time before hired by a major at 28. So in 11 years, after the bulk of the retirements there will be thousands of pilots 5-10 years older than you ahead of you on the seniority list. You'll be inching up the seniority ladder for 20-30 years very slowly.
Unless of course they change the game on us somehow... single-pilot 121 ops (which many companies are actively working towards with the help of major airlines) would be one way. Imagine most major airlines being able to offer safe and affordable flights because of innovation in automation and safety features on big airliners. With rising gas prices forever in our future, and people on average having less money in their pockets, let alone to travel... I imagine something like this will be coming down the pipe at some point as airlines and consumers seek out ways to save money. I hope it never happens... but it certainly could.
05-10-2012 | 04:52 PM
#22
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When you described yourself, you described me. I wanted an airline pilot job when I was five years old, and soloed at 16, private at 17, then instrument, commercial, CFI, double I, MEI, ATP, type ratings, etc. I have made as much as $250,000 a year and as little as $50 per flight. I've been piloting airplanes for almost 40 years.
You can spend as much money preparing for a professional pilot career as any other professional career: medical doctor, orthodontist, etc. I really love flying. But as I got older and married and had a family, I found that flying took me away from my family way too much. I have operated in 6 continents, but I never had my family with me.
If I could do it over again, I would have gotten a degree in medicine and earned consistent money. That way I could have afforded my own airplane to satisfy my flying bug.
But if you are set on flying, the above posts offer some good advice. I especially think you should consider the military. Great training while you serve your country.
You can spend as much money preparing for a professional pilot career as any other professional career: medical doctor, orthodontist, etc. I really love flying. But as I got older and married and had a family, I found that flying took me away from my family way too much. I have operated in 6 continents, but I never had my family with me.
If I could do it over again, I would have gotten a degree in medicine and earned consistent money. That way I could have afforded my own airplane to satisfy my flying bug.
But if you are set on flying, the above posts offer some good advice. I especially think you should consider the military. Great training while you serve your country.
05-10-2012 | 04:55 PM
#23
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Actually I know for a fact that I will not end up like him, im not stupid when it comes to the logistics of this profession. Yes he does work in Boston.
05-11-2012 | 03:28 AM
#25
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There are UPS airplanes that fly into Boston. He/She may live there and maybe for now the A300 flies into Boston nightly. This trip would be bid like all others on a seniority basis and most likely not just Boston. i.e. one week of Boston layovers in the day, followed by a week of Atlanta or Chicago etc.
Good deal if it is all Boston layovers, he lives in Boston and he is lucky enough to hold it.
05-11-2012 | 04:53 AM
#27
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Nope he doesn't or at least he is not based there. Pilot domiciles are SDF, MIA, ONT, ANC
There are UPS airplanes that fly into Boston. He/She may live there and maybe for now the A300 flies into Boston nightly. This trip would be bid like all others on a seniority basis and most likely not just Boston. i.e. one week of Boston layovers in the day, followed by a week of Atlanta or Chicago etc.
Good deal if it is all Boston layovers, he lives in Boston and he is lucky enough to hold it.
There are UPS airplanes that fly into Boston. He/She may live there and maybe for now the A300 flies into Boston nightly. This trip would be bid like all others on a seniority basis and most likely not just Boston. i.e. one week of Boston layovers in the day, followed by a week of Atlanta or Chicago etc.
Good deal if it is all Boston layovers, he lives in Boston and he is lucky enough to hold it.
05-11-2012 | 05:39 AM
#28
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From: PPL, Engineer
Well you know you need a college degree to have solid prospects in a career in flying. Our standard advice here is not to get it in aviation. Instead, do something that broadens your horizons and makes you a more rounded person. Do flight training as an adjunct to your college career. You won't lose much ground over someone who goes to an aviation academy, as long as you have the money to continue and keep working at it. The person with the aviation degree will realize its uselessness at some point when they get furloughed, while you will havwe the option of falling back to a decent paying job for a while. Get a degree in engineering, for example.
05-25-2012 | 03:52 PM
#29
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if im hijacking this thread then please move it and i apologize, but everyone seems to be talking about colleges and degrees and which routes to take
so i suppose im gonna throw this out there, *disclaimer i dont have any flight time yet besides sitting in cockpits with skydive pilots and constantly harrassing them about how everything works..........*
my discovery flight is in two weeks and im probably going to book ground school and start getting a few hours out of pocket while im still active duty.............
with the post 911 gi bill i will have my college tuition and flight costs paid for COMPLETELY. and im real happy about that. To be honest i have never really wanted to be an airline pilot, i think my dream job would be to fly in a corporate enviornment, or even better than that EMS. i will chase after any and evrery oppotunity that i can carve out for myself, including flight instruction, chartering, dumping skydivers, agriculture, regionals, whatever, but i really dont ever picture myself working for a major airline..............
that being said, ive been looking at the UND, ASU, and USU flight programs, which seem to be aimed at getting people geared towards major airline employment in the long term. Being that these schools would be free, and i (think) i would like to aim towards EMS or corporate, would any of you who are already well established suggest that i utilize my gi bill for the previously mentioned schools? yes, they all are paired with bachelors degrees in aviation, but as far as money goes i can pack parachutes and i am getting close to getting my skydive tandem instructors rating, so i can ALWAYS keep a roof over my head when i need to...................i also have a degree in culinary arts and a long background cooking, so i will never be totally without work
thoughts on either UND, ASU, or USU in my current situation..........
i have no kids and am not married
so i suppose im gonna throw this out there, *disclaimer i dont have any flight time yet besides sitting in cockpits with skydive pilots and constantly harrassing them about how everything works..........*
my discovery flight is in two weeks and im probably going to book ground school and start getting a few hours out of pocket while im still active duty.............
with the post 911 gi bill i will have my college tuition and flight costs paid for COMPLETELY. and im real happy about that. To be honest i have never really wanted to be an airline pilot, i think my dream job would be to fly in a corporate enviornment, or even better than that EMS. i will chase after any and evrery oppotunity that i can carve out for myself, including flight instruction, chartering, dumping skydivers, agriculture, regionals, whatever, but i really dont ever picture myself working for a major airline..............
that being said, ive been looking at the UND, ASU, and USU flight programs, which seem to be aimed at getting people geared towards major airline employment in the long term. Being that these schools would be free, and i (think) i would like to aim towards EMS or corporate, would any of you who are already well established suggest that i utilize my gi bill for the previously mentioned schools? yes, they all are paired with bachelors degrees in aviation, but as far as money goes i can pack parachutes and i am getting close to getting my skydive tandem instructors rating, so i can ALWAYS keep a roof over my head when i need to...................i also have a degree in culinary arts and a long background cooking, so i will never be totally without work
thoughts on either UND, ASU, or USU in my current situation..........
i have no kids and am not married
05-25-2012 | 04:46 PM
#30
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Joined: Nov 2011
Posts: 4,150
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From: Volleyball Player
if im hijacking this thread then please move it and i apologize, but everyone seems to be talking about colleges and degrees and which routes to take
so i suppose im gonna throw this out there, *disclaimer i dont have any flight time yet besides sitting in cockpits with skydive pilots and constantly harrassing them about how everything works..........*
my discovery flight is in two weeks and im probably going to book ground school and start getting a few hours out of pocket while im still active duty.............
with the post 911 gi bill i will have my college tuition and flight costs paid for COMPLETELY. and im real happy about that. To be honest i have never really wanted to be an airline pilot, i think my dream job would be to fly in a corporate enviornment, or even better than that EMS. i will chase after any and evrery oppotunity that i can carve out for myself, including flight instruction, chartering, dumping skydivers, agriculture, regionals, whatever, but i really dont ever picture myself working for a major airline..............
that being said, ive been looking at the UND, ASU, and USU flight programs, which seem to be aimed at getting people geared towards major airline employment in the long term. Being that these schools would be free, and i (think) i would like to aim towards EMS or corporate, would any of you who are already well established suggest that i utilize my gi bill for the previously mentioned schools? yes, they all are paired with bachelors degrees in aviation, but as far as money goes i can pack parachutes and i am getting close to getting my skydive tandem instructors rating, so i can ALWAYS keep a roof over my head when i need to...................i also have a degree in culinary arts and a long background cooking, so i will never be totally without work
thoughts on either UND, ASU, or USU in my current situation..........
i have no kids and am not married
so i suppose im gonna throw this out there, *disclaimer i dont have any flight time yet besides sitting in cockpits with skydive pilots and constantly harrassing them about how everything works..........*
my discovery flight is in two weeks and im probably going to book ground school and start getting a few hours out of pocket while im still active duty.............
with the post 911 gi bill i will have my college tuition and flight costs paid for COMPLETELY. and im real happy about that. To be honest i have never really wanted to be an airline pilot, i think my dream job would be to fly in a corporate enviornment, or even better than that EMS. i will chase after any and evrery oppotunity that i can carve out for myself, including flight instruction, chartering, dumping skydivers, agriculture, regionals, whatever, but i really dont ever picture myself working for a major airline..............
that being said, ive been looking at the UND, ASU, and USU flight programs, which seem to be aimed at getting people geared towards major airline employment in the long term. Being that these schools would be free, and i (think) i would like to aim towards EMS or corporate, would any of you who are already well established suggest that i utilize my gi bill for the previously mentioned schools? yes, they all are paired with bachelors degrees in aviation, but as far as money goes i can pack parachutes and i am getting close to getting my skydive tandem instructors rating, so i can ALWAYS keep a roof over my head when i need to...................i also have a degree in culinary arts and a long background cooking, so i will never be totally without work
thoughts on either UND, ASU, or USU in my current situation..........
i have no kids and am not married
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