My two cents!!

3green said:
Not to sound like a jerk, but you'll have longer days than that flying and to boot you'll end up at a hotel not at home at the end of that 14-16hr duty day. If you turned down that job for that reason, it is alot worse at the airlines.

And stay in an office? how about sitting at the hotel or airport waiting for a call from crew scheduling. Then again I did get to walk around the airport and get intimate knowledge of each and every store :rolleyes:

For everyone considering the career change go for it, I know we all problably dreamed of flying since they were a little kid(I know I did). But, In the end you just have to do it and see for yourself what its really like. All the guys/gals aren't posting in these forums the negative aspects because we were "spoiled" and have never worked a real job. Nothing like "blinders-on" to get you to justify why others are complaining. I just laugh when I see post from people who haven't worked the job diss the comments from people that have.
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I appreciate your insight, however, I am not completely blind to what I am getting into. I grew up in the industry. My father was an airline pilot, a military pilot and a flight instructor (through ATP and aerobatics). I know what the days and night can be like.

I never said anything about wanting to go to the airlines. When someone brings up wanting to be a pilot, the assumption is the airlines. Perhaps I want nothing to do with the airlines. Perhaps I want to be in either a 91 or 135 job. May be I just want to be an instructor because I could earn a decent living with a decend QOL and I enjoy teaching.

It is much easier to take a longer day when one is doing something that they enjoy. Whether it is aviation or being an electrician, I am not stuck inside, behind a desk, on the phone, etc. Personally, I enjoy being outside in all elements, I enjoy interacting with different people. As I stated in another thread; there are careers out there for everyone. Just because aviation is not for a half dozen other people, does not mean it is not for you.
 
I too work for those kiddy wages at the same airport, and I earn some extra flying money on the side washing planes. One thing about this job, or any job for that matter, when you have a passion for it, it makes the negatives much easier to bear.

It takes a lot of determination, focus, and sacrifice in order to get anywhere in this industry. Everyone, and I mean EVERYONE, gripes about their job...How they want more pay, how they want to be home more, how long their days are. The key to it is asking yourself whether you could see yourself being happy doing anything else.

When we decide to change careers, we leave behind one career to pursue another one. That means leaving the good things behind as well as the bad. There are plenty of things I miss about my disaster work with FEMA. Every time there's a hurricane or a flood, I get those pangs of thinking I should be there. The pay was three times what I'm making in line service right now. But I found my passion and true calling in life in flying, and I'm determined to follow that and see it through.

What keeps me going more than anything else? Every pilot I've talked to has told me that they don't regret for one moment picking the career they have. Even in my quest for my ratings, I have yet to regret any moment I've spent up in the air.
 
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