First of all,

Hi everyone, first post here! And mods, if this is in the wrong section, move it to wherever it should be.

Okay, so I am considering the airlines as a career, I think it would be great to be able to fly planes for a living. I have been interested in flying for a long time, even though I am a teenager, and have been using Microsoft Flight Simulator for the past 2 years.

I have a serious question for all of you pilots out there: Do you actually like what you are doing as a career?

Many people, including family, think that flying wouldn't be a good job. They say the jetlag is bad, layovers are awful, you're always rushed, and you basically just push a button and the plane flies itself. Also, they say that pilots are overworked and underpayed.

I don't know if these stereotypes apply to just some airlines, if any, but I really would like to know: What is the real deal with flying in the airlines as a living?

I am also planning to go to college and get a degree in Marine Biology, I don't know if that means anything.

Thanks for your help everyone! I really appreciate it!

Greg

 

It depends on you man. I've always wanted to fly. Always. I grew up farming and ranching. I went to college and had office jobs. Nothing beats a sunrise at 35,000ft+. There are downsides and sooner or later you'll learn to complain but I still feel the worst day of flying is better than the best day of work. Just don't make too many quick decisions. Plan and prepare. You'll find a lot of people that go to one airline then move to another because they weren't happy there. So take your time and make sure you do things right.

As far as the overworked and underpayed goes, that's life. Pilots are union which has big upsides and a few downsides. The upsides being is there's protection and someone to look after you. The downside being that in order to progress the industry has to do it as a whole for the most part. You get your seniority, you sit at the bottom, you work until your seniority increases. I wouldn't really call it "working your way up from the bottom" because so long as you just keep your job your seniority will increase.

As stated it does take time to progress. Some lawyers come right out of school and make big bucks while others run around starving for work. Here EVERYONE starves at the beginning and after that you'll make a decent living so long as you play the game and stick with it. Just like being a doctor we are underpayed and overworked.

As far as the layovers go I rather enjoy most of them. The jetlag isn't an issue. I live in Texas and do all my flying in either the central or eastern time zone so one hour is easy to deal with. You'll quickly adapt to the system.

The main killer with avaition that I've seen is people not sticking with it or assuming time is on their side. From day one it's a race against the clock. When my classmates and I started we all knew it was going to be a long road to cover over the next 4-5yrs. Most of them took the summers off and took all the breaks from school and it wasn't till the end of that 3rd yr they started to realize they were behind the curve. Many of them, about 80+% didn't finish because their school loans dried up and they weren't far enough along to get a job as a CFI(flight instructor). So if you do decide to do this don't look back. Hit the ground running. Once able try for three lessons a week if you can. You'll see yourself growing quickly.

My last advice is to get your degree but do it in another field. I made the mistake of getting mine in Aviation and it has been nothing but a sore spot for me. Not because I didn't learn anything valuable but because it hasn't helped me obtain any of the jobs I had. There are people I've flown with who are accountants, lawyers, and civil/electrical engineers even. Should another 9/11 happen those guys/gals have something to fall back on. My degree is rather limited since I'm already in this field.

These are my takes on things. I don't know your financial situatino but if you're also looking for a means to fund your way through you might want to take a look at ROTC. I have friends that did it. A military commitment is required but they do count your last two years in college as credit. You'll make a decent living, have a good time, build some serious experience, and line yourself up nicely for a job in the future when you leave. It's important to stay focused on what you want for your end game but don't forget to live life along the way. Just because you want to be an airline pilot NOW doesn't mean you won't enjoy flying for the military or as a cfi or freight along the way. Don't worry too much about getting there just focus on the first steps. If you do that and don't stop you'll be there before you know it

Duck

 

I have a serious question for all of you pilots out there: Do you actually like what you are doing as a career?

It doesn't matter as long as you have a passion for flying just go for it. For me its a childhood dream, and all the ups and downs would never dissuade me from staying away from it. Like Toiletduck said get at least a bachelor's degree (preferably something you can fall back on)

 

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I guess I'll add my 2 cents worth. Any time you do something you have passion for for money, it takes some of the passion out of it, but thats not to say I still dont love flying airplanes. Outside factors such as dispach and management issues tend to take away from the reason why most of us got into this profession in the first place. I dont have a whole lot of experience in the commercial area since Ive only been flying on line for 4 years, but back from flight instructing, thats when I first noticed it. I tried relating it to one of my hobbies (fly fishing) if I had to do that for a living it wouldnt be as "fun" as just going out and doing it on my own. Good luck in your career path.

 

So, in your opinions, what are some of the ups and downs of flying for an airline (be it regional or a major airline)?