Ah well, it was a nice dream

M

Mongoose

New Member
Well, this is the first new year resolution I have kept in many years I suspect, but I'm glad that I have.

Having said that this year I would finally decide whether or not to persue my dream of a career in the cockpit (this is my 4th look at the potential change for various reasons), I've finally made my decision... I'm almost out of the denial stage too, since it's a no go.

Ultimately, we wrote a number of criteria that had to be met before we could agree to do this, and 3 of those failed. They were personal and financial criteria more than wider industry criteria... ah well. I would urge anyone considering taking out a loan (even a small one) to look very closely at the loan programs available, they were surprisingly not as attractive as I first thought.

Anyway, the point of this rambling, introspective, through the looking glass note is to say thank you, many times over, to all the contributors here... you're input is and has been invaluable. If you don't mind Doug, even though I'm no longer a career changer, or heading for a prospective "jetcareer", I'll be hanging around the site and sticking my oar in from time to time, just because it's fun!

I'm sticking with flying, just in those smaller planes with the big fan on the front for the time being. I look forward to hearing you all on the radio as you climb past me
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Best of luck to you all. It's a fantastic dream, and I hope you all have better luck with it than I have!

M
 
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I'm sticking with flying, just in those smaller planes with the big fan on the front for the time being.
M

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You mean they still make those
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Sorry to hear that you will no longer have your dream, but atleast you still get to fly
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Hey, man, I don't know your full story but I can tell you that there's nothing wrong with deciding against an aviation career. In the past I have given STRONG thought to giving up on my piloting career and going back to school.

Even when I was flying freight, there were countless times when I wanted to get away from the commercial side of piloting and go buzz around in a Cub or a 172 just for fun (on my own terms, on my own schedule, being my own boss in the cockpit instead of the usual pressures of the company and the industry, etc).

Flying for fun is the best way to fly!
 
Any chance of doing a perspective article? Your kind of story is just as important to hear as those who do switch careers IMHO.

In any case, good luck!
 
Mr. M Goose,
You didn't say, but I just wonder what point you are at now.
Private/comm/inst?
The road to flight is not always along the path of big loans and huge flight schools. There are many jobs that will pay the bills other than flying a needle from point a to b and back on autopilot eight times a day.
There are real pilot :
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jobs around if you just look.
Don't think that just because the academy route is closed that you can't earn a living flying.
 
no offence bro thanks for telling us your story... but did you expect us to beg you into being a pilot for saying this.... lol or want sympathy? lol.....gl with your future...bye
 
Thanks for the support. The dream will continue to live, I just might not be able to achieve it.

Grumpy, I'm currently a procrastinating 180hr Private/Inst, so the academy route wasn't the only one I was looking at, although it was the most practical for me, and potentially the cheapest too, believe it or not!

I have a wife, a young daughter, a house and a decent job. The risks involved in moving that combination to what was already an uncertain future that could take years to show a return was just too much to bear. If any of those circumstances were different, we're certain that we would be looking at this in a different light.

Utimately the major risks for some routes was money, for others it was about the time to complete and become competitive.

The new plan is still to go on and do my Comm and perhaps CFI anyway, just to take a little... even a lot more time to do it. I'm doing this in the hope that a) I can earn something from the things I enjoy doing and b) I can help someone else achieve the dream
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I hear ya Mongoose. I'm in the same boat, kind of, my daughter is due March 13th.
I worked at an FBO, got some great contacts, and had tons of fun. But as they say good things must come to an end.
 
Well Mongoose,

It really depends on how bad you want "it", and how much you and your wife are willing to sacrifice to get "there". Anyway, good luck. Just don't have any regrets. Take care.
 
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It really depends on how bad you want "it", and how much you and your wife are willing to sacrifice to get "there".

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Wassup jonnyb,
(This is not meant in a harsh manner. I don't want to start any throwing of flames, etc.)
Lots of people say exactly that....."It really depends on how bad you want "it". Hopefully I'm speaking for mongoose as well in saying that we want it very badly, but as the man of the household I'm not going to make my family suffer for uncertainty, near poverty, etc. Especially when we already have a family lifestyle that would drastically change. But all in all, everyone feels differently because I had as many people saying what you're saying as people saying get back into I.T.

Hopefully that adds another dimension to why we can't "actively" pursue the dream.
 
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Hopefully I'm speaking for mongoose as well in saying that we want it very badly, but as the man of the household I'm not going to make my family suffer for uncertainty, near poverty, etc. Especially when we already have a family lifestyle that would drastically change.

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Yeah, like he said....it all depends on how bad you want it....
 
How "bad you want it" has nothing to do with a decision like that. I want alot of things really bad like a motorcycle, but circumstances/decisions won't allow for them.
 
Actually I take that back, yep I don't want the mtorcycle bad enough to ruin the trust/relationship between my wife and I. I don't want to pursue a piloting career bad enough to put my family in a situation where we could have no money, no job, out-of-state, etc. LOL
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So I guess I/we don't want it bad enough.
 
Actually, to answer an earlier question, the intent of posting this story was to spur on those who are thinking of "leaving this 'till later", into persuing a piloting career as early as possible. It's my personal circumstances that have made it unwise for me to proceed, but there's no doubt that had I followed this earlier (as I have looked at doing in the past), things would have been a lot easier, and less risky.

As for not wanting the job badly enough, I tend to disagree, (although that's a very personal emotion so who knows). I've not doubt that a pilot in IMC at DH on the last flight home of the day badly wants to see the lights, but that doesn't mean it's safe to continue. Someone has assessed the risks in advance, and pointed out to us that it is to risky to do so.

My intention wasn't to seek sympathy, or solict messages to beg me to continue. Just to tell a story that I hope someone will find useful or helpful one day. Apologies if it seemed otherwise.

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M
 
Mongoose and Gottaluvit,

I understand perfectly what you're saying. I am 26, married with two awesome children and have experienced what you're concerned about. It sucked! It was taxing on my relationships and I almost quit several times. However, there are may ways to do things. Many possible avenues available to "reach the goal."

Your biggest problem (for the lack of better words) is you should've started earlier. I've been working hard to get where I am and where WE (meaning my family) want to be since I was a teenager. Obviously, this helped me get to a better financial position in this business at a younger age.

BUT,,,,,,,,,,,,,Depending on your ages and abilities, you can do it! Much worse odds have been beaten. So, my point being, if you have chosen not to persue your "dream" further, that's cool. A choice is a choice. However, saying "I can't" is BS. Don't get me wrong guys, I'm not making a big deal out of this, just making a point. Don't mix I won't with I can't.

If you and your wife chose to stop pursuing this career change, I totally respect that. As long as you don't have any real regrets. Make sense? (honestly now
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However, saying "I can't" is BS. Don't get me wrong guys, I'm not making a big deal out of this, just making a point. Don't mix I won't with I can't.

If you and your wife chose to stop pursuing this career change, I totally respect that. As long as you don't have any real regrets. Make sense? (honestly now
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)

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Jonnyb, it absolutely makes sense. I was very careful not to say "can't" anywhere in any of my posts. It's a decision based on my personal circumstances. I've decided that it is too risky for us to proceed. I certainly didn't want to give the impression that it is impossible. Just that we set our own risk metrics, and didn't quite meet them.
 
I definitely hear ya jonnyb.
At this point I am going to buy a plane, get my additional ratings for the love and I am hoping I just might get a call to start groundschool with a regional, etc. by time I'm forty or so.

Sorry for any misunderstanding, in this case when I say or imply can't, I mean I'm not pursuing it full-time. Still pursuing, but at a very slooooooow pace.
 
Mongoose,

Good for you buddy! Believe me, I know life sometimes brings some difficult decisions. Your wife and family are the most important thing and I commend you for putting them first. Who knows, maybe sometime in the near future, the numbers will work. If not, who cares. It's just a job. Work to live, not live to work right? Take care man.
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