UConnQB14

been thinking a lot lately, looking at the finances and such involved, and there is some serious doubt going through my head right now as to pursue this career or not... my heart says yes, because this is what i have wanted to do for my entire life, but the smarts tell me not to... too much turbulence, no pun intended, awful family life, and poor finances for the first few years.. however, all of that i am willing to go through, it happens at every job... the other day, i was given a job guarunteeing me 50K a year working 8-4 monday thru friday.. no OT expected from any of the employees and the work is fairly easy... for a 21 year old, 50K is a lot of money... but the passion for flying is still intense and i fly 4-5 times a week as a result... from playing football here, everyone wants to say that UConn's QB flew their plane or whatever, so I log tons and tons of free hours, lots of complex too by the way... however, i am faced with dropping the idea entirely and taking my 50K, or keep going...
secondly, as another resort, thanks to overly wealthy business people i know on the jersey shore, i could start a commuter line, similar to Cape Air, which would fly exclusively from KBLM to Nantucket and the islands up there, and down towards Ocean City, MD and Outer Banks, NC... bunch of guys with too much money want to do this, because they are actually hot destinations from NJ...

really confused right now... advice is welcome

RedOverWhite

UConn,

It is a pickle, no doubt about it. But you don't necessarily have to give up your dream. If you are passionate about flying, then keep flying. You never know what kind of doors will open up. Whether or not you should put all your eggs in one basket today is up to you, but the bottom line is that in order to get paid to fly you need experience, and to gain experience you need to fly. Two or three years from now there is no telling where the industry will be and wouldn't it be nice to have a bunch of time logged if things do turn around. But as many have said before, have a backup plan. At your age you have some time .

That's my approach. IT pays the bills, puts food on the table, and pays for flying. I'd love to get paid to fly, no doubt about it. My wife is very supportive of my aspirations (and she makes good money . So for now I can afford to fly, build time, get that CFI, and see what happens. Maybe I'll fly for an airline. Maybe I'll fly corporate, or maybe I'll stay in IT and instruct on the weekends and do Angel Flights or something. Who knows. But if I stop flying now I'll never find out.

If you are passionate about something by all means do it. It is quite a gift to have a passion. I know people that don't have any hobbies because they have spent so much time working that they don't even know what they're interested in (my wife is one of these people). Consider yourself lucky. Stay immersed in your passion and doors will open. It may not be the cockpit door of a 777, but maybe it's not supposed to be.

Clear skies.

FlyingGorilla

Uconn,
I'm not a professional pilot, yet. But I do know exactly where you will be if you give up the dream. Like you, I've always had the dream of flying for a living. After I graduated college, I didn't think that becomming a pilot was a realistic idea. So, I gave up on the dream. Here I am at the age of 29, giving up my successfull corporate job to follow my dream that I should have done 8 years ago.

I thought that becoming a corporate executive was the way to go....makes lots of money.....comfortable lifestyle....lots of time for family....stable employment....all of those things that people say is opposite to a career in flying. I've worked hard for the past 8 years, got my MBA, and I've moved right up the corporate ladder. After that time, I've realized that I don't like working in corportate America. Maybe it's just my job, or my boss, or my company. But one thing has always come back around, and that's my passion for flying.

I may be a little behind some people, but I'm going to do it. I've been successful in everything I've ever done, and I'll be successful at flying.

It's true that you need to have a back-up plan. You're still very young, and if you're getting the kind of flight time that you mentioned, you won't have any problem getting a good job. But, DON'T give up on the dream. You'll regret it for as long as you live. Trust me. It's tough to turn down that 50k a year job, and make much less starting out. But, if you don't have passion for what your doing you won't like it.

I'm sure you've heard the saying but it's worth repeating. 'If your job is something that you love, you'll never work a day in your life.'

nw320driver

UConn,

Your are a smart guy, taking the 50k job does not mean giving up flying. You have read about how the airline industry sucks, unless you are lucky to be at SWA, UPS or FedEX. The industry, has always had it its ups and downs. Now is not a great time to be starting out, or even a senior pilot at any of the Majors, but that will change. It may not ever be the great job that it was, in the late 60s or even the 70s, but it will be a honest living. Just keep flying and be ready, if things look better in the next 5 years then go for it. Also, the Angle Flight Idea above is great, I was a Medevac Pilot in the Army, and it was the best job. You get a great feeling by helping someone in there time of need. Good Luck in all that you do.

LAfrequentflyer

UConn,

I've said it before and I'll say it again - consider the military. With your background and leadership experience gained at such an early age you'll be ready for anything the AF, Navy, Army, or Marines want to throw at you in OTS / UPT...You'll never be ready for the leadership challenges active duty will throw your way- but you'll be developing everyday as a leader...That experience is worth more than you can realize - companies the world over want military officers / NCOs to fill management positions. You're by default a leader of men. No wiggle room there...

I know you mentioned family reasons for not going with the military and I respect that. IMHO, someone with your desire / energy will be wasted in a office...You're a natural leader - you could make a difference in the lives of people young / old by being a military officer...

I just wanted to put my thoughts on the table...

Sincerely,
LA

loudgarrettdriver

Take the 50k job. As you work-budget for flight time and additional ratings.
Get a CFI- teach part time. All the time you'll have steady income while staying in aviation. If the industry changes- get back into it.

For now you'd be better off the a stable job and family life. Always remember-whats important. This industry is in the crapper right now. If you do decide to stick it out- its a gamble.

Pilotpip

I was at the same point recently. I was offered a management position with the company I currently work for. I would have stayed in the industry and had a nice salary. It came down to two things:

1) I'd be looking at that aircraft sitting on the ramp every day for the rest of my life wishing I was one of the guys in the front.

2) Living simply now, along with hard work, and a little luck will result in better pay, and conversely a better lifestyle than that job could afford in a few years.

What it comes down to is this: Do a lot of soul searching. Do what's right for you. If you can't imagine doing anything else, suck it up and go for it. You're a football player if I recall so you know about toughness. You have a degree that you can always fall back on if in a couple years you decide you want out. If you don't have the responsiblities of a wife and kids, do it now because once your family is established it's going to be even harder to leave them, subject them to the huge lifestyle change that comes with going from a 50k per year management job to a 20k per year regional FO, or uproot them becuase you're junior and on reserve making commuting basically impossible.

Rightseat Ballast

Take the 50k paycheck...CFI on your days off and at night to build time and pad your finances even more. After 2 years, which is not that long, you hopefully will have been smart enough to save a good amount of money. Now you have the cushion you need to endure a few years of F/O pay and even a furlough. if you have the chance to get ahead, do! It is easy to fall beind the financial curve early on. Also, two years of corporate experience could become very valuable one day if you do get furloughed, or lose your medical. Real world experience on your resume will make you far more marketable in the job hunt than just a degree. In two years, the industry should hopefully being nearing the end of the shakedowns...how much more can we endure? yes, you will be farther down the seniority list wherever you end up, but you should be able to find some airline with quick upgrade somewhere (colgan will forever be hiring), and in short order you can be right back up with your current peers who went to a company with longer upgrade time. I fell two years behind myself, and am now positioned to reach a major earlier than my friends at Eagle and Comair. And my friends who went for Colgan after me may get there even earlier than me. You can make the situation work out in your favor. Also, many regionals are flirting with furloughs right now. Major airlines are forcing the regionals to compete against each other for flying, and the "solid" contract someone like Chautauqua has with USAir could evaporate overnight and all the flying could end up at Mesa. I say sit this mess out for two years in a job that offers you financial security, a chance to build your "plan B" career, and gives you enough free time to fly on the side and build your flight experience (get that MEI and use it!). i don't think you will be sorry

UConnQB14

that was the best advice i have heard in a while.. the job i can take now is working a warehouse and doing some shipping for a budweiser distributor outside of hartford, ct... its about 48K a year and allows me to live near my girlfriend and friends, while staying close to my alma mater... the job is good because my name is familiar with this section of CT, so i want to stay close to people who know me... i still do want to fly though, thats the problem im faced with... my only fear is that i will get so in depth in this budweiser thing, i wont have time to fly or get more ratings, or lose all currency and forget how to fly all together... ive worked hard to fly until this point, just dont want to see it go down the tubes...

ps. does working at a place like TACair as a financial type person qualify as something other than flying?

Pilotpip

The best of both worlds. Staying in the industry, at a corporate position like that may give you an edge in terms of networking. If TACair has a flight department it could pay dividends as well once you get your 135 minimums