Question for experienced pilots in the airlines......

Meyers,

Don't get discouraged by some of the comments here. If you have a passion for "flying" or a passion for wanting to become a commercial pilot, then pursue what you feel is right in your heart.

When I was 5 years old, I thought commercial jets were the coolest thing in the world, I'm 24 now and I still feel that way. Throughout high school, I was the only one among my friends who could confidently say that I knew what I wanted to be when I "grew up". I love flying, but I've had my eye set on flying commercial jets for as long as I knew what it meant to have a "dream". My life took some twists and turns in high school, I got mixed up in the wrong crowd and did some stupid things. I almost gave up on being a pilot. I worked in the Automotive industry for 2 years, obtained my ASE certification and was making decent money. Then one day at work a commercial jet flew over and I asked myself "what the hell am I doing here". I joined the military, did 4 years and now I'm training at ATP flight school. There isn't anything else I'd be happy doing in life. I've worked in many fields, computers, automotive, carpentry, wood floor installation, janitorial, U.S. Coast Guard etc. Nothing made me happy. Sure I was home every night, and when I was doing wood floors I was making a lot more then a first year F/O. But I was not happy. Everytime a jet flew over I gazed upward and wished I was that pilot.

The point I'm getting at is everyone has their reasons for doing what they do. I respect every man or women who wears the pilot uniform and flies those jets. Its a very respectable profession. I could have stayed in the military, climbed through the ranks and retired, but I would not have been truely happy in my heart. I know the airline industry isn't that great, but tell me what industry is? I don't want to be a commercial pilot to make lots of money, I didn't know what money was when I decided I wanted to be a pilot. I want to be a commercial pilot because in my heart, thats the only thing I have ever wanted to do. I've had people tell me the industry sucks, don't do it. I had an FAA guy who is a friend of the family tell me its not worth it. Maybe to him its not worth it, but I said what else am I going to do? I'm sure there will be bad days as a pilot, I'm sure the money isn't the best, getting stuck on layovers isn't great. And if I find out later on that I want to do something else, at least when I'm bouncing my grand kids on my lap I can tell them that I followed my dream, as opposed to grandpop wanted to be a commercial pilot, but instead he worked on cars. I was making less than 20k my first two years in the military, and I liked what I did in the Coast Guard, it was a great job. But it didn't satisfy me.

I can't comment on DCA or any other those other schools, I can only comment on ATP flight school, which I am currently training with. So far I think it is a great school. Some say the training is too fast paced, but I like it, and its easy to see your progress here. My instructors have been terrific and ATP's airline oriented training is excellent, their maintenance program is second to none. I don't have a degree yet, but I have $50k from the Coast Guard I'm going to use after my training.

I know the industry and its future isn't bright, but if something doesn't go right, I know I'll be able to sleep easy at night knowing that I gave it everything I had and followed my dream. I hope you do the same.
 
Well, I guess I'll be the naive voice of optimism here.

I've been flying RJ's with Expressjet for about a year now and I still enjoy the job. Sure, I now look forward to my days off quite a bit more than I did when I first started, but the same thing was true after a year of instructing, or after an extended period of time at any other job I've ever held. I don't claim to be a veteran by any stretch of the word, but there's no doubt that the novelty begins to wear off after a while. The question is: can you still enjoy your job after that inital giddiness begins to fade? I think most of the airline pilots you talk to can still say yes, they enjoy their job on some level. There are some discouraging trends however; salaries are going down, almost everyone is in bankruptcy, fuel prices keep rising, hubs are becoming more overcrowded, etc etc.

On the whole college issue; I elected to leave the University of Texas after my junior year because I was offered a job at Expressjet during that summer. I'm now in the process of completing my degree through Riddle's distance learning program, and so far I'm quite satisfied with the way it's been working out. I'm taking about 15 credit hours per year and should be able to finish my degree by mid 2007, which is about the earliest that I can hope an upgrade to captain might be possible. Sure I feel a bit like "Tommy Boy" with my 7-year bachelor's, but I never claimed to be an over-achiever.

So right now I'm 22, have a year under my belt at a large regional, and am pretty satisfied with the way things are going. On the other hand, I've accepted the fact that it could all be over tomorrow if something happens to the economy or my particular airline. That's fine; if it happens, I'll go back to school full time, finish up, and explore the rest of the job market. When/if I finish my degree from Riddle, it won't be of much help to me outside of flying. Then again, I could never figure out what my Bachelor of Arts in Geography from the University of Texas would've been good for either.

There comes a point where most professional pilots "fly to live" rather than "live to fly". That's not a bad thing....you can still enjoy your job without being obsessed with it. On this issue of pay, it's going to be crap when you start out, no matter which area of civil aviation you get into. As airline pilots we are constantly fighting the battle to bring our wages up to a fair level, and hopefully we can continue to make progress toward this goal in the future. The level of pilot compensation at most airlines today leaves a lot to be desired, and is probably the single biggest point of frustration for most airline pilots today. Hope this helps.
 
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I know the industry and its future isn't bright, but if something doesn't go right, I know I'll be able to sleep easy at night knowing that I gave it everything I had and followed my dream.

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Well said.
 
I think those are all good points. I would agree with the part of following your dream. I mean for me I know that when I am at a point in my life where I am asked about, "Did you accomplish your goals in life?" If I follow my dream of flying I will be able to answer yes to this. Maybe some people take me wrong with saying I dream for this but truth be told I realize that pay isnt well and that the industry is unstable but truth be told I come from a family of 7 where my dad worked in a factory all his life and mom was a stay at home and took care of the 5 kids. Oh by the way he did not make over $30,000 until recently and that's after myself and my twin brother and older sister are already out of the house. With saying that I know what is to not have a lot of money or even no money at times. Therefore when people try to use, "You dont make enough" I think hmmm. "Did my dad ever complain about not making enough and having 5 kids earning under 30,000 for 20 years of his life?" No he did not. Rather he enjoyed what he did, he did it to provide and did a heck of a job at it. Only thing he encouraged was to do what I want and not worry about what others think. That's why now I know I want to be a pilot and having lived in the family with them only living off of $30,000 for a family of 7 I know first hand what a low family income is. I mean even if i only make $20,000 in a regional I will have a wife making money else where to bring us over $30,000. Point being I realize the pay stinks, but can anyone out there say they would be happy today if they didnt pursue their dream of flying? Maybe its a dream, but lifes too short to not live it to the fullest and pursue what ever the heck makes you happy, but dont knock someone because of their dreams in life. Would you like it if someone had done that to you and you never got the chance to obtain yours? Just curious.....
 
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Maybe its a dream, but lifes too short to not live it to the fullest and pursue what ever the heck makes you happy, but dont knock someone because of their dreams in life. Would you like it if someone had done that to you and you never got the chance to obtain yours? Just curious.....

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I don't think anyone is trying to knock you. The title of this thread is "Question For EXPERIENCED Pilots In The Airlines." You asked for our opinions ... we're giving them to you.

Great point about your dad. My paternal grandfather worked in the Boston shipyards for his entire life, not making much money at all. He raised 6 kids on his salary. Unlike myself and every other professional pilot on this board, though, he was home every night. He also didn't need to get a flight physical 1-2 times each year. He never had to pay for parking at he shipyard. He never paid for crashpads or hotels when he was unable to commute home. Keep in mind that you'll have to "dock" your pay by those amounts, too. Also, there's a personal cost that goes along with this job. You cannot put a $$ on that, so you'll have to decide what it's worth to you.

In 1999, when I was condsidering aviation as a career, I spoke with many college friends (including Doug) to find out the realities of the job. I'm very thankful that none of my buddies blew smoke about the job; all were quite factual and honest. Based on that info, I made a decision. So, when you ask for our opinions, we're just trying to tell you the way it is. You can decide for yourself, but as you can see, many of us would highly recommend that you try something else for awhile to see what the industry does. It's just not the way it used to be, and this hiccup is far from the usual historical cycles in aviation.

To put it simply: buyer beware. Hope this helps.
 
For some reason I thought it was earlier, but maybe it wasn't.

I have this memory of having coming into my rent-controlled govn't-subsidized apartment with a can of pinto beans and a six pack of Milwaukee's Best for dinner when I was replying to the email about how you were looking for a glamorous career in aviation!
smile.gif


I can't remember if I included in the email how that month all of the overnight trips went senior because they paid you $20 extra per day for meal expenses if you filled out the paperwork properly and turned it into the chief pilot's office!

I'm almost 35, I have selective memory!
 
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I have this memory of having coming into my rent-controlled govn't-subsidized apartment with a can of pinto beans and a six pack of Milwaukee's Best for dinner when I was replying to the email about how you were looking for a glamorous career in aviation!
smile.gif


I can't remember if I included in the email how that month all of the overnight trips went senior because they paid you $20 extra per day for meal expenses if you filled out the paperwork properly and turned it into the chief pilot's office!

I'm almost 35, I have selective memory!

[/ QUOTE ]

Don't forget, that was an apartment you shared with Joe also, having alternating schedules to save on rent since neither of you were home at the same time!
 
[ QUOTE ]
I can't remember if I included in the email how that month all of the overnight trips went senior because they paid you $20 extra per day for meal expenses if you filled out the paperwork properly and turned it into the chief pilot's office!

[/ QUOTE ]

Yeah, I seem to remember that. Barely making rent ... good times. I don't miss them.
 
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