Well, this is the reverse I guess... Want to see and know what people think.

Got my PPL/IFR in 2007-8. Was working on CMEL/CSEL 09 when I decided at the end (my dumbass should have finished. I was 5 lessons away in my 141) to quit and join the army...

Joined the National Guard in 2009 and was gone un bootcamp, then police academy. I stopped flying between 09 and 2012.

I got hired with a police department and had given up on the dream, but I had a friend CFI take me up and get me current. I put about another 100 hours into flying and got to 350TT by 2014. I didn't renew and haven't flown since.

fast forward from being at the PD from 12' to '23. I've gone up the ranks and made it to sergeant. Almost made it to lieutenant, but work politics and drama, I believe it is going to another sergeant.

Working in this job has been rewarding. I'm a very hard worker and for the most part it has been recognized. I've gotten many awards, got many admin roles because I'm good with back end of things and day to day operations of the agency.

But I've kinda had it. the high school drama, the politics, people trying to throw you under the bus so they can get the positions and get ahead of you... It sucks.

Let's not mention I can get shot, do a mistake and be civilly liable, constant people up in my face with their cameras and many other things.

I make little over a 100. Workig up the ranks will get me maybe another 10k and chiefs top out around 150k here. I don't see myself getting there

Have a buddy who had a similar path as me, but he stuck through with piedmont in around 2011. He was getting horrible pay and quit. joined a police force. around 2014, he had enough of it too and went back into flying. got with planesense, then I think skywest or something similar and now he's at frontier loving it. let's not mention our other buddy who has been with Jet blue for 7 years, making way more than what I'll ever make

He has been begging me to get back into aviation knowing what it's like being a cop. I told him it's not possible for me because I am lacking the hours and I honestly thought the market was like what it was when I was going through in 2010 times...

Well I guess it has changed alot.

I'm highly considering putting the badge away, selling few assets, finishing up my commercial stuff and getting into a low paying 135 to build hours and go regional/major while teaching part time at the academy making about 45-50 an hour

Wife and I agreed this might work for us and she's ready to rock the boat with me as our kids hang on lol.

Has anyone done a similar journey like me?

I am an 11 year cop who’s currently applying to the regionals. I know of quite a few cops who’s done the same

Im a 10 year firefighter/paramedic with 5 years past time LEO as well. I looked heavily pre Covid about jumping ship then Covid happened and that didn’t seem viable. Now we’ve taking a complete 180 and the airline industry seems strong as ever. I was at a real toxic department prior to Covid and left and went to a way better department at the end of Covid. It’s great and I’m in a stable position, but I love flying and will NEVER make the money doing emergency work as I could being a pilot. It’s a tough decision and one I still think about.

Go for it. You could have not picked a better time to make the leap .

I moved this to the appropriate forum.

For the OP, while someone starting from scratch today would miss the majority of the legacy retirement wave, you OTH are pretty far downrange already.

Some 135, maybe some turbine time, and you'd be competitive for LCC's... a LCC type rating and some 121 time would put in the ballpark for a legacy with plenty of retirements still to go.

Even a LCC career would be quite lucrative and provide much better QOL than almost anything LE.

What LE has going for it is career stability, but even that's a bit questionable these days as any activist might set you up to provoke an interaction that could get you fired and sued. On every other count airlines win hands-down... if you can stomach the risk of black swan events (such as covid) or grounding medical issues. But the later isn't as big of a deal as you might think... once you have a a few years at one of the better airlines, if you go out on LTD you'll get paid at least your cop salary for many years to come. Some airlines would pay LTD to age 65 (67).

So really the most significant risk is confined to a narrow window until you get enough seniority to be fairly furlough-proof, and enough years to qualify for decent LTD. I think you get LTD after one year, and after 2-3 years the payout would be a living wage for many people.

In this climate you can always get another cop job somewhere if need be.

Presumably you've considered LE air ops? You may already have enough qualifications to get into that.

I was further along in my aviation career than you are now, but yes. I did. I was at the airlines and left for LE during the recession. Did it for five years between two different PDs and came back to flying. Now I’m at a legacy.

I certainly don’t regret my time as a police officer, but coming back to flying was the best thing I ever did. Especially now that things have gotten even worse from a political/social/anti-police standpoint than it was back when I left.

An old coworker of mine just ate two rounds (still alive thankfully. One to the vest and one to the shoulder fragmenting up his neck) during a foot chase gone bad a couple of months ago and very recently they dealt with a quadruple homicide (Husband, wife, two young kids AND their dogs all shot to death in their own home). Very glad I don’t have to deal with that anymore.

In my time I’ve seen homicides, suicides, drug overdoses, had someone commit suicide right in front of me, saw dead kids, dead baby, people burn up in post car accident fire, a decapitation, someone completely severed in two at the waste, plenty of very dead and decomposed bodies. Had people pull guns and knives, been in plenty of physical altercations, delivered death notifications, I could go on and on. Worst thing I deal with now is the horror of getting randomed by the TSA while going through KCM.

My physical and mental health, as well as my marriage, are way better now than it was when it was on the job.

If I were in your shoes leave and don’t look back. Especially since it sounds like being a pilot has always been the primary dream. After 11 years you should also qualify for a partial pension which will be nice when you’re forced out of the cockpit at 65/67/insert any other future age increases here.

Your timing is impeccable.
The industry was in the toilet ‘09-‘16.

If you’re gonna go for it, now is the time.

Go for it! Don’t look back. You add decades to your life expectancy. The only hazard you may be exposed to are the crew meals and airplane coffee. By the way… thank you for your service.

I’ve had just a brush with policing years back, not as a criminal but the job side. Yes, I’d go 110% into making the jump. I’d have to think a career at an LCC would be more rewarding than continuing law enforcement. I just skimmed, didn’t see age & years to retirement mentioned.

Yeah, that's what I'm hearing. I'm at the peak/back end of it, so time is of the essence for me. I already got my flight review done and starting to build hours. I'll go as far as my money can take me. I should get to at least 750/850ish before I run out of funds (including getting CPL/MEL). Might use little extra cash to try to get to 1000, which will allow me to hopefully fly hawker jets a friend can set me up with.