I will try my best to keep this post short, however I am going to try and include the entire situation I am facing so that you can get a "feel" for the position I am in.

The problem: I cannot figure out what I should do career wise, though I feel "passionate" about aviation, there are a few concerns that I have.

1. I went for my 3rd class medical this past April and failed my color vision test (though I previously was able to obtain a 1st class, no restrictions) and had the "no night flying" restriction placed on my medical. So, I went with a my dad and his friend from the FAA and practiced for the light signal test, and I don't see any issues with passing this in the future, however this is still a factor that may come back to haunt me in my career. I have actually temporarily solved this problem as I called Oklahoma and told them that I wanted to upgrade to a 1st class and went back to my previous AME and passed with no restrictions, again.

2. I have always run into financial issues as far as the feasibility of completing my flight training has been concerned. Therefore, I do not have my ratings yet and I am 26 years old. I have simply been working on completing my degree, with very little since of direction as far as what to study. However, I am now in a position to borrow the money but I am having a hard time committing to this as I hate the idea of so much debt with the possibility of my color vision "biting" me in the future.

4. Again, I am very very passionate about aviation, helicopters specifically. Honestly, airplanes seem like a way to get a foot in the door as far as flying is concerned and it is better than nothing, but my actually passion is in helicopters, everything about them. I understand the competition as well as the supply and demand issues with this, but I cannot help that I love helicopters. I am not very thrilled with the idea of flying as an airline pilot (nor most other fixed wing jobs with the exception of bush flying), as I am very hands on and like "low and slow" flying. Problem is, with helicopters I am looking at considerably more debt, with considerably fewer jobs at the entry level.

5. I have some interest in business, finance, entrepreneurship, economics, and positive psychology (random, I know, but I read a lot on these topics and enjoy them.) Problem is, I feel lost as far as "real world" application goes with these topics as well as how to plan a career progression in these areas. All of my "mentors" are developers and entrepreneurs that I met while working at an FBO. I was actually very good at networking with the people getting off the back of the jets rather than the front. The passengers always seemed a lot happier than the pilots (no offense haha), and every time we talk (on the phone or in person) I get a lot of encouragement to pursue wealth, blah blah blah, but my problem is there is no guarantee of a "career path" in those types of things nor of any type of success.

So I know there may not appear to be a question here, but the question would be, given these things how would you respond in my shoes? I am certainly looking for any wisdom and advice available. I want to do everything I can to ensure a successful future, and would really like to hear some new perspectives. What decision do I make, and how do I get started today?

Thank you guys so much!!

 

Persue wealth! Money can buy happiness...

 

Above you said: " I get a lot of encouragement to pursue wealth, blah blah blah, but my problem is there is no guarantee of a "career path" in those types of things nor of any type of success. "

No matter what you decide to do in life, there are no guarantees of a "career path", ask any of the thousands of furloughed pilots right here.

You said you are interested in flying helicopters, have you talked to any Coast Guard/Army/Navy/AF helo pilots? Join the Military, you'll get excellent, free training there, with as much of a guaranteed career path as you'll get anywhere else.

 

It can also buy speling classes. Wouldn't that be monee well spent

 

Finish your degree and then go fly helicopters for the military. By the time you're in your late 30s and done with your commitment, you'll have well over 1500 hours (depending on your specific career path) and a wealth of knowledge and experience. Full disclosure: Navy helo pilot with friends in every branch of the service.

Or you could go deep into debt and follow a more convoluted path to gaining helicopter experience, while increasing your total time significantly faster. You'll also have FAR more freedom to explore the jobs you really want.

Whatever you do, fly anything you can. Don't limit yourself to helicopters. Aviation experience is like cross-training for a marathon; nothing is a substitute for your core training, but every branch and off-ramp will give you valuable tools that will help you in your career.

 

Yes, the military is in a general draw down. That said the best way to get things jump started would be acceptance into a flight program via uncle Sam. I realize a ticket to Ft Rucker ins't all that easy to get, but I'd try.

One needs to be so incline, some college may be needed. You never know until you try. If you do ask, be sure & ask the right people. You will need to impress them with your credentials.

 

I want to thank everyone for the suggestions so far!

One thing I forgot to disclaim is that I actually have already tried to fly for the Army National Guard. My dad was a pilot for my unit and I was on track for flight school. I started talking with the warrant officer recruiter for my state while in high school and began putting my packet together for Army flight school. I had everything required and it was a certain thing, but at MEPS is where I found out about my color vision issues as well as that you cannot go to flight school with the issue.

I still ended up joining as an enlisted in an aviation role with hopes of being able to find a way to go to flight school. I went to several Army flight physicals to try again and again, but failed the color vision portion each time.

The funny thing was, when I got to Ft. Rucker for AIT I had to do another physical and failed the color test there as well. Upon figuring this out, the commander of the school was trying to figure out how I had even been sent there with this issue being known.

Prior to them letting me start school, they required me to go to the schoolhouse and had an instructor test me using aeronautical charts where I had to name the different colors on the chart for the instructor. I passed, no problems at all.

So, while I could try for flight school again with the military, it is very unlikely that I will get selected as the military does not have the equivalent of the FAA's S.O.D.A. for this issue. I guess this is where my headache is right now. Do I borrow the money for civilian flight school, obtain my ratings, and build a career with the risk of losing it all one day to a failed color vision test? I know that I can test with the FAA and if I pass I will never have to worry about this issue again, however, if I fail I am done forever.

So after mentioning that I have already been in the military, one benefit available to me from that is the post 9/11 GI bill. However, because I was not on active duty I only have 60% of the benefit (I did a one year tour in Iraq which gave me the 60%, so my GI bill will pay for 60% of my training).

One question I would also have for any of the airline pilots reading this as well as any helicopter pilots reading this... Where do you draw the line with pursuing your passion? Now that you are many years into your chosen career, would you change anything or would you have done anything different? I do not mean what specific field would you have chosen, rather would you have chosen to do something different and were you "blinded" by your passion at the time of entry into this career? I am really looking for any wisdom and perspective on my issue that I can find.

I apologize for the extremely long post, this issue has just given me a lot of stress lately.

And thank you guys so much for the help!

 

You need to visit the 'Leaving the Career' subforum and take a look at the user SkyHigh's post.
He'll answer that question for you.

Edit - As far as color vision troubles - search for 'color' in the title using the searc hfunction.
There are some really good posts/threads with a wealth of advice and information.
Personally - it sound like you need to take the OCVT and be done with it if you've been passing the AME's tests for the most part and have no trouble with chart reading.

 

O.K. didn't see that. It sounds like you should forget about any military flight program. You could still progress in the civilian aviation world. I don't know to what extent possible color blindness issues would hinder you. That may be a question for an AME, a FSDO, or google.

 

How about becoming a mechanic? You could work on and be around helicopters and pursue flying as a secondary course of action. Then eventually buy a helicopter to start your own business (pursuing your entrepreneurial desires). Just one thought, but the real point is, yes, you should be concerned about trying to enter a field you could be intelligible for. Don't put all your eggs in one basket even if you didn't have an issue already.