Quitting gracefully?

[legacy2000]

I am in training at a regional and already wanting to get out. Ground school was alright but tough due to making a big move from flight instructing all the way straight to a jet. Simulator training has just started and I am catching on to flying the plane. However I am experiencing very high stress thinking ahead to the actual job also due to the general day to day things like being away from home extended periods, messed-up travel, peoples attitudes, etc. i know it's like "didn't you know what you were getting into?" Yes I heard all these negative things but I wanted to get my own first hand look. Now I believe I made a mistake in heading down this path. I want to walk away especially since there is another career option for me. Problem is, I am afraid that leaving now would be some kind of career suicide. The airline puts so much money toward your training. I have the chance to become an ATP here. Now I worry even more if I end up getting the ATP then quitting right afterwards due to not being able to handle the stress of this job. This is the first time I have felt like I need to quit a job to save my health. I know that a side job or even just a hobby in GA is the best thing for me. My question for you all is, how best to handle a situation like this? Thank you for your suggestions in advance.

 

[smack300]

Not sure what the others will say, and also I will add I have not been through ground schooling.

Butttttt, this sounds like a knee-jerk reaction. Sensory overload and you just want to turn it off. I can understand that feeling completely. But I think it is best to stick it out, even for a little bit. You don't have to do this forever. See what happens in a few months, who knows. It could be setting you up to move on to something much much better in the future.

Sit back, grab a beer, or two. I guarantee many had quite the overwhelming experience when they first went to ground school.

 

[jynxyjoe]

Give two weeks notice. It's not career suicide. Though I'd get a little turbine time (250 hours) or so before quitting.

Honestly regionals are messed up right now and most new hires won't see the end of reserve for years because the fleets are shrinking and there will be little movement. You're only hope is that people leave your airline in equal or greater numbers than the aircraft being parked. My airline (Endeavor) will be accelerating parking after March, at least that's what guys are being told up in Minne-no-place, because we are so screwed. Most regionals can't get a class with double digits to show up so the new hires on the bottom will be the bottom 40-80 of the seniority list for the next 12 months, if your planned pilot group is 80 pilots that's ok, if it's 1.8 - 3.6k you're effed.

Wow, that was bitter. It's official, when it comes to the job I'm no longer a realist, I'm now a pessimist.

 

[Der_Meister]

I say get through training and done with IOE before you make the call.

 

[bkey79]

Get the ATP and type ride, spend a few months on the line then re-evaluate. And btw, not all regionals will have you stuck on reserve for years. I've been at mine for 5 months and a line holder next month. This month (Jan) I'm on reserve, and as of today I'm at 96hr credit with a 4 day left.

 

[eightballfreight]

I know the feeling.
It is not suicide. I'd go along, study, but don't go crazy about it, if you study and they send you home it will be the same as quitting. Many people have dings in their pasts.

I'd never eaten tums in my life until a certain new hire class and my hair receded in one place and hasn't grown back..

 

[USMCmech]

Now I believe I made a mistake in heading down this path. I want to walk away especially since there is another career option for me....

My question for you all is, how best to handle a situation like this? Thank you for your suggestions in advance.

Stick it out for a year.

12 months will not kill you, and you will likely find that your fears were vastly overblown. Worst case, you get an ATP and bout 500 hours of jet time under your belt before you move on to whatever else you choose to do.

 

[DE727UPS]

Training is incredibly stressful and not indicative of life on the line.

 

[legacy2000]

Thanks all. Good thoughts. It helps to try and look at things a different way. I owe it to myself, and everyone else involved, to keep going. It has helped just in the past day to think about the positive side of things and try to realize that the next couple of weeks in sim training are not the same thing as being out in the real world. It also helps to talk about it. This is a huge decision that deserves more experience and information to go upon.

 

[GypsyPilot]

Stick it out for a year.

12 months will not kill you, and you will likely find that your fears were vastly overblown. Worst case, you get an ATP and bout 500 hours of jet time under your belt before you move on to whatever else you choose to do.

This. I would absolutely stick it out for a year. Less than a year will make it look like you have issues, which will get your resume trash canned before you have a chance to explain your reasons.

 

[tiredcfi]

Study hard. Pass your ride. Most of us drink a lot during training anyways... (but not while on duty!)

 

[Boskru]

I can understand where you are coming from. The first big jump in airframe size, training, etc can be HUGELY stressful. I did it a few years ago and I remember feeling so incredibly lost for the first few weeks of training.

My advice, as people said above, give it some time. I would almost promise that after a few weeks/month you'll realize that you can handle everything that gets thrown at you and you might not hate all of it.

 

[CaptBill]

Now I believe I made a mistake in heading down this path. I want to walk away especially since there is another career option for me. Problem is, I am afraid that leaving now would be some kind of career suicide.

You are sending mixed signals. You want to walk away but you are concerned about career suicide? I've always tried to be frank and honest in offering advice and I will try to do the same to you. Firstly, I don't think everyone is cut out to be a professional pilot. The flying itself is only a small part of what we do. In many respects, the challenges and sacrifices are brutal on many levels. There are things that you will be forced to give up that you can't even imagine today. You will miss important dates and holidays and your relationships will be put to the test a thousand times. To be happy and content In this business you have to learn to accept what it offers in it's totality. Some of it is really good and some of it is utterly miserable.

Pick a quiet moment and honestly ask yourself if this is the life you want? Do not ask your wife, your friend or your mom. You can ask your dog, but none other.

I'm reading your words and between the lines I'm hearing that your heart is not in this. It's not worth prolonging your training to obtain an ATP if your heart and head are elsewhere.

I'm all about the rah-rah-rah of getting over a hurdle or a bumpy ride through training; however, I would never ever encourage anyone to go down a path that they shouldn't be going down.

If you still have doubts about becoming a professional pilot, I would stop by your Training Department and be truthful with them about your change of heart. Being honest with ourselves always trumps trying to convince ourselves of something that's not real.

That being said, if you are just concerned about getting through trainings and really want to do this, then get to work and get it done. We all struggled during phases of our training and lived through it. You can do it. The biggest question should be: Do you want to do it?

Good Luck

 

[ComplexHiAv8r]

Pick a quiet moment and honestly ask yourself if this is the life you want? Do not ask your wife, your friend or your mom. You can ask your dog,

Damn. I don't have a dog. For the OP, try and take a day to get away from It all and relax. Then come back with a fresh set of eyes. We rented a car to escape for a day and it was well worth it.

 

[Screaming_Emu]

I say stick it through training for a bunch of reasons.

First, like others have mentioned, what its like in the sim isn't at all indicative of what this job is like. I'm in my 7th year at my current airline and have been flying the same airplane the whole time. I still find my yearly recurrent training to be incredibly stressful.

I agree with Captbill that if your heart isn't in this, you shouldn't do it. That being said, you haven't really experienced what "this" truly is yet. Thanks to Jetcareers, I thought I had a pretty good grasp on what this lifestyle was like, but I really didn't appreciate it until I was out on the line. There were both good and bad things that took getting used to, my point is its really something you won't understand until you appreciate it.

The other thing I might be concerned about is leaving training before you complete it. I know at my company, those who struggle in training and have a bad attitude are usually asked to resign instead of being fired. If you do get back into professional aviation down the road, time at an airline without a type on the aircraft they operate might be a yellow flag. One that is easily explained face to face, but in some cases you might not get that opportunity.

I vote for stick it out, then make a decision.

 

[slough]

Thanks all. Good thoughts. It helps to try and look at things a different way. I owe it to myself, and everyone else involved, to keep going. It has helped just in the past day to think about the positive side of things and try to realize that the next couple of weeks in sim training are not the same thing as being out in the real world. It also helps to talk about it. This is a huge decision that deserves more experience and information to go upon.

Give it six months at least. During training and then I.O.E I think everyone questions whether this is right for them.

Once your comfortable with the plane and operation it starts to get fun again. If you live in base it actually turns into an awesome job.

I.O.E was the most stressful part of training for me, but everyone told me just give it six months and it gets better. They were right. I think you will really regret leaving now without actually getting out on the line and seeing what the jobs really about.

 

[DE727UPS]

"During training and then I.O.E I think everyone questions whether this is right for them."

I went to the left seat in 06 and remember several times during training when I seriously considered being a career F/O.

 

[Itchy]

Use TWO HANDS on that fire hose!

 

[JustinS]

I have yet to experience a firehose as big as the Part 121 schoolhouse, but from my previous experiences getting all the certs that I have, I am with others in saying I think it's best to stick it out. I had times where I was unsure of myself asking myself if I could do this. My quote that's in my signature is really something that I hold myself true to all the time.

"Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up."

If you give up now, how will you ever know how far you will succeed??

 

[squeezemylemon]

In Europe pilots would kill each over to get your job. Stick on it!