34, Father of 2, I HAVE to fly!

[NitroRoo]

Hey everyone - I just stumbled upon this forum.

Like many of you would probably describe yourselves, I've had a lifelong love for aviation. My grandfather was a bush pilot in Australia and Papua New Guinea in the 40's and 50's, and hearing his stories from a very young age has left a burning desire to fly that just hasn't gone away.

I graduated high school in 1999 and went to LeTourneau University with the hopes of pursuing their aviation program. But I wasn't ready. Wasn't mature enough I suppose - and I ended up in love and married. I dropped out after only 1 semester. Plot twist: I don't regret it. I married my awesome college girlfriend Dec. 1999 and we've been together ever since. We have 2 kids - 6th and 7th graders as of this posting.

My wife is currently about halfway through nursing school. She'll be an RN summer of 2017. I am the sole provider for our family. We live in Charlotte, NC and own a home. I have a career in marketing and a background in photography. I do "okay" income wise (paying the bills, living life - not getting rich), and besides our home, we are debt free.

So... all that to say. I'm tired of the "someday" mentality I've had for most of my life. I'm ready to take real, actual steps towards my goal of flying for a living. I don't really know what that will look like. I know in the past when I've looked into it I've been put off by the high costs and low initial pay. I do have real constraints - I have to keep providing for my family. But there has to be something I can do TODAY to start chipping away at this goal.

So I guess I'm coming on here to ask for advice. About 5 years ago I put myself through ground school and did about 9-10 hours of flight instruction time in a 172. Then in the middle of that the house we were renting was foreclosed on and we were booted to the curb - never did make it back to the flight school. This was in Texas. Now we live in Charlotte. Here's what I have to work with:

I'm the sole provider for my family - I can't quit my job (yet).
My wife will begin working full time summer 2017. I could probably rearrange my work commitments at this stage if necessary.
We need to stay in Charlotte at least for the next 6-7 years (kids growing up and all).
I would REALLY prefer to stay out of debt.

So have at it. Sorry for the novel but hopefully that will give you guys some ammo. My wife thinks I should go for some online courses for an associates degree of some sort. I can probably get started after Christmas and it would likely cost me very little if anything out of pocket. Probably wouldn't hurt and maybe it would be something that could help me down the road.

I could also look into paying as I go for private flight instruction and at least get my private pilots license. I would LOVE to do this. Just have to figure out the costs and the timeline. Maybe it would be beneficial to be patient and roll this into flight training further down the road? It would certainly be more manageable once my wife starts working... so I don't know. Hope you guys can help with some ideas. Thanks in advance.

 

[Pietrantonio]

There's a few ways to possibly approach this situation. What is your goal with flying? Are you looking to fly for fun or as a career? Either option, flying is expensive and aside from quality training, you want to get the most out of your money. You'll do better and save more money if you can fly on a regular consistent basis. If you take a few lessons here and there, you're simply spending more time and money in the end. Based on what you said, I would pay as much as possible out of pocket for flight training to obtain you ratings/certs. If this is for a career move, get your flight instructor cert and start teaching. You'll have somewhat of an income, but now you can take an online course or two per semester to get a degree. Balancing both flight training and a degree is not impossible, but can be difficult. If it's just to fly for fun, I'd probably get your degree first and then fly on the side.
You'll have to determine what works best for you and your family. Where will you take flight lessons? We used to live in Concord, and are moving back this summer.

 

[derg]

Go fly.

 

[BarbieDreamPilot]

The jobs vary quite a bit - any specific career goals with flying? Amen to staying out of debt - it would be best to have the money to do at least a certificate or rating at a time, if not the whole thing. You don't want to start and stop with this. I can't speak to the corporate or charter side, but if you started training in a year, then spent a year training and 2 years building time, it would be airlines at 37 you'd probably end up retiring at a regional with some seniority.

 

[alaskadrifter]

I too dropped out of Letu, ended up going back almost 3 years later. I think Liberty is pretty popular these days for online degrees. You will definitely want to put together a budget for PPL through CMEL, and probably CFI as well.

 

[ppragman]

I like flying for a living - it's great, but with a family, I might consider something different if I were getting into it now. As it stands right now, I fly medevac, so I barely work. What do you do for a living now, what are your goals for life, what do you want to do?

 

[AA34]

if you started training in a year, then spent a year training and 2 years building time, it would be airlines at 37 you'd probably end up retiring at a regional with some seniority.

Even if he spent 8 years at a regional, making him 45, why wouldn't you assume he would move to Legacy/LCC? Everyone is obviously different, but hypothetically, seems like plenty of time for a career beyond the regionals.

 

[GypsyPilot]

The jobs vary quite a bit - any specific career goals with flying? Amen to staying out of debt - it would be best to have the money to do at least a certificate or rating at a time, if not the whole thing. You don't want to start and stop with this. I can't speak to the corporate or charter side, but if you started training in a year, then spent a year training and 2 years building time, it would be airlines at 37 you'd probably end up retiring at a regional with some seniority.

If he was at a regional by 37, I'd say it would be very possible to end up retiring at a major - with decent seniority. Needs that four year degree though.

 

[ahw01]

I did it with $50k and 100 training days, very part time over a few years, save up funds and leave etc. (this was excluding PPL, so commercial, CFI)

There are internships and scholarships though.

Alex.

 

[ASpilot2be]

I like flying for a living - it's great, but with a family, I might consider something different if I were getting into it now. As it stands right now, I fly medevac, so I barely work. What do you do for a living now, what are your goals for life, what do you want to do?

One nice thing about aviation is when you're home, you're home. I think airline life can be good for some families. Especially if they live in base. They may not always be home, but when they are they are able to dedicate all their time to the family.

Growing up my dad worked two weeks on, two weeks off. He wasn't home for every holiday, or birthday. That's ok, because when he was home he had all the time in the world to dedicate to us. If he had been doing a 9-5 job I feel we wouldn't have done as much fun stuff. And I noticed that when he was working 9 to 5. He would get home, eat dinner, hang out with us for a little while, then go to bed.

Obviously it's not for everyone, but I think it can provide some good opportunities.

 

[NitroRoo]

Thanks for the replies everyone. It's definitely helpful to hear everyone's perspective. I currently work in marketing. What I like about my work is it can be creative, I have flexibility over how I spend my time and my day. And the biggie: I am rewarded for my performance. I keep hearing about the seniority thing and it honestly bothers me a bit. It sounds like it doesn't really matter who is the better pilot/employee, the next person "in line" will get the promotion. Not sure if I'd like that arrangement. Thoughts?

I'm currently working towards getting my photography company up and running again for some part time income. This income will help pay for some flight training. I could potentially get into some aerial photography eventually too - but even that would be a ways off.

With my kids and wife in school I'd need to bring in a minimum of 70-80k/yr and I can't spend every penny on training. But I still have time. Sounds like I need to rethink a few things about how to incorporate flying into my life...

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[Hacker15e]

I am rewarded for my performance. I keep hearing about the seniority thing and it honestly bothers me a bit. It sounds like it doesn't really matter who is the better pilot/employee, the next person "in line" will get the promotion. Not sure if I'd like that arrangement. Thoughts?

I recently finished a 20-year career as a military officer. Although pay was the same for everyone (based on promotion and longevity) everything else -- promotions, jobs, opportunities -- were based on merit. It is a largely good system, one that pressures the best performers into doing good work and rising up the ladder. In general, performance was the basis of success. It was very cutthroat and high stress. I am a type-A personality and largely thrived in this environment, and I loved it.

I have only been a 121 pilot for about 9 months, and I can't tell you what a relief it is to be in an environment that is not merit-based. So long as I know the FAA and company rules and procedures, and perform them well, and add in a dash of good interpersonal relationships and customer service, I can accomplish the airline job well. It is pretty easy compared to what I have done for the last two decades...and I love it for that. The amount of stress in my life on a daily basis is an order of magnitude less than it has been for my entire adult life and professional career. It has amplified the enjoyment of my time with my family and my time off away from work.

What is different is that I no longer look to my job as the source of fulfillment in my life; I look to my family and what I do in my time off. It is a fantastic trade-off. It is one of the best life transitions I've ever made.

 

[Screaming_Emu]

I recently finished a 20-year career as a military officer. Although pay was the same for everyone (based on promotion and longevity) everything else -- promotions, jobs, opportunities -- were based on merit. It is a largely good system, one that pressures the best performers into doing good work and rising up the ladder. In general, performance was the basis of success. It was very cutthroat and high stress. I am a type-A personality and largely thrived in this environment, and I loved it.

I have only been a 121 pilot for about 9 months, and I can't tell you what a relief it is to be in an environment that is not merit-based. So long as I know the FAA and company rules and procedures, and perform them well, and add in a dash of good interpersonal relationships and customer service, I can accomplish the airline job well. It is pretty easy compared to what I have done for the last two decades...and I love it for that. The amount of stress in my life on a daily basis is an order of magnitude less than it has been for my entire adult life and professional career. It has amplified the enjoyment of my time with my family and my time off away from work.

What is different is that I no longer look to my job as the source of fulfillment in my life; I look to my family and what I do in my time off. It is a fantastic trade-off. It is one of the best life transitions I've ever made.

This, minus the military part for me.

I think that's a big take away too. Enjoy your job, look forward to it, be the best you can. But if it defines you, you're setting yourself up for a world of hurt because more than likely this industry will kick you square in the nads someday. If you don't have much else in your life to turn to, you're gonna have a bad time.

 

[Cptnchia]

Every situation is different, but why limit yourself to CLT because of kids? I hear people say this type of thing all the time. Speaking from personal experience, growing up, I never lived anywhere longer than 4 years. I've lived in Africa, Saudi Arabia, SE Asia, and the U.S. My sisters and I turned out well adjusted and had life experiences few others did. Kids are resilient. They adjust better than adults to moving.

 

[Screaming_Emu]

Every situation is different, but why limit yourself to CLT because of kids? I hear people say this type of thing all the time. Speaking from personal experience, growing up, I never lived anywhere longer than 4 years. I've lived in Africa, Saudi Arabia, SE Asia, and the U.S. My sisters and I turned out well adjusted and had life experiences few others did. Kids are resilient. They adjust better than adults to moving.

I also grew up that way and would highly recommend it. I got to experience some absolutely amazing things and developed an open mind and mental flexibility in the process.

I love where I live, but I could pack up my house tomorrow and move across the world with almost zero heartburn. Not a lot of people can say that.

 

[NitroRoo]

I am originally from Australia. My wife is from Venezuela. I have also lived in S. America and we have lived in 5 different states since we've been married. We want to travel with the kids for sure, this summer we did a cross country road trip. Next summer we are going up to a remote part of Canada. We aren't adverse to moving, but my wife needs to finish nursing school and we are working towards several other things - plus we have moved A LOT. Feeling like we have some roots put down for the first time ever. Once my wife is out of nursing school I'll be able to rearrange my commitments and income requirements somewhat. But I'm hoping there's some way I can at least work towards my PP in the next year.


Edited to add: our love for travel is one of the draws towards an aviation career. And once our kids are grown we've talked about the potential for my wife to be a travel nurse while I do some other work in the area (hopefully flying!)

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[Roger Roger]

One nice thing about aviation is when you're home, you're home.

Unless you're DM for a 135 op...

 

[ppragman]

Unless you're DM for a 135 op...

Or fly 135 for a company that wants you to do more than just fly, or work in the training department, or...

If anything in my experience this has not been a career you could leave at the office.

 

[dbrault17]

If anything in my experience this has not been a career you could leave at the office.

You've never worked at an airline Patrick. It really is that kind of job. You even leave the job at the airport when you go to the hotel at night.

The problem I sometimes struggle with is the countdown during my time home. It's always a countdown in days and hours to when I'm gone again because I know its several days before coming home. 5 day trip, 1 day off 5 day trip like last month can wear on some.

 

[drunkenbeagle]

Go fly.

What he said. Budget enough to fly once a month until your wife finishes school. Re-evaluate where you are and what your goals are after you've been flying for a while.

You may hear that you need to fly all of the time to make progress. Mostly from CFIs that get paid more when you fly more. I never flew more often than once or twice a month for any rating. For many/most people, it doesn't matter all that much. If you end up taking more time, it doesn't really matter in the grand scheme of things.