Several Questions

[joel_MQY]

Hello, I've been lurking on these boards off and on for years. I wanted to give my situation and open it up to any advice.

First off, I am 28, have a wife and two small kids. I have been around aviation for 10 years. I worked on the above-wing, below-wing, and corporate side of the business for a few years - loved it. I took a cushy government job when Frontier was laying off, but that job has now gone away due to stupid decisions on my part.

So, I finally finished my private in 2012 (after starting it in 2004), and I have 90 hours. I know that I enjoy flying, and I know that I have a love for aviation. Even when I had that cushy government job (one of the best in the world), I still yearned to be out at the airport.

I have enough money (and family support) to pay for the flight training, and probably support my family for the first 3 years or so while pay sucks. I tried to talk myself out of aviation, but as I was researching other career fields the theme is pretty much the same for a respectable career: Lots of money and education up front, potential for burn-out, and small pay and sacrifices to get to a healthy living. My thought is, if I am going to do all of those above: why not do something that my heart is in?

Now my questions:

Is this crazy?
I have worked out a peaceful resolution with my government job to where it shouldn't be a blemish on the resume, but will I still be hirable? I've got a completely clean background, with not so much as a traffic ticket.


I guess my main concern is spending money to obtain ratings, etc. and shrinking our family's cushion in doing so if things for some reason don't work out.

Any thoughts or advice? Thank you.

 

[Rudabega]

Honestly, I wouldn't. It is a great career and quite enjoyable at times. However you have two kids that need you. Aviation is not an overly family friendly industry. You will be gone for days at a time and it will take its toll. The pay is terrible until you get four plus years into it and just like your current job you never know when it will go belly up (furlough). A family will limit your ability to move and will keep you away from better jobs as well.

If you were a single guy I would say go for it but at this point you need to put yourself aside and concentrate on your kids needs. Find another family friendly job, buy a cub and save up for your kids college.

I would think hard about the schedule and discuss it with my wife. Also weigh in other aspects of aviation, dispatchers have pretty interesting jobs.

 

[ozziecat35]

Along with family issues, make sure you can get a first class medical...if you can't then it's a moot point. I'm actually very much in your shoes. I'm 30, 240 hours, CMEL/CSEL working on my CFI. I have a pretty cushy IT job at a National Laboratory, but still can't get flying 121 out of my mind. I have an almost 5 year old and a 4 month old...

Ultimately, if you decide to go that route, do not go into debt, get your CFI, get your time, and maybe instead of going to the airlines, with the right networking (which happens to be right here on JC), you could find yourself a nice private Pt 91 job? Who knows, maybe you'll love instructing and do that full time? Good luck!

 

[Murdoughnut]

I think you have to ask yourself whether it'd be worth the increased risk of divorce and only seeing your kids two weekends a month, as that seems to be a very real thing that happens to guys who go that direction. Seems like the lifestyle can destroy even a solid marriage - particularly when you go from being home every night.

What are your other jobs skills/experience? I work in airport management and feel like I get a lot of the benefits of being in and around aviation, with none of the sacrifices that come along with being a commercial pilot.

 

[jgheggie]

I think you have to ask yourself whether it'd be worth the increased risk of divorce and only seeing your kids two weekends a month, as that seems to be a very real thing that happens to guys who go that direction. Seems like the lifestyle can destroy even a solid marriage - particularly when you go from being home every night.

What are your other jobs skills/experience? I work in airport management and feel like I get a lot of the benefits of being in and around aviation, with none of the sacrifices that come along with being a commercial pilot.

Good point.

To the OP; how about ATC? They are gearing up for a ton of hiring.

 

[skypilot6]

ATC would be a great alternative, good pay, 40 hours a week, home every night, and when you retire you get a pension! If I were in your shoes thats what I would be looking at.

Yes flying is great, it takes a very passionate person to survive in this industry, lots of ups and down, and while there is little doubt you would be able to find a job after school, especially at 1500 hours. You do have to ask yourself "what about the family?" Even if you start now, its gonna probably going to be a decade before you can hold a good line with enough seniority to spend time with the family and get what you want. It could be even longer than that! But think long a hard about this one, having been in the industry for several years now, I have questioned myself if I should even have kids because I know I can't be that Father that I was to be because of my career choice.

 

[gliderboy]

Brah!

You're only 28, you've got all the time in the world. There are many people who didn't start on their ratings until they were in their late thirties or even late forties and still got well-paying flying jobs at airlines and elsewhere.

Take your time. Pass your writtens with home study, find an underemployed flight instructor to teach you. Get your own renter's insurance and it will be relatively easy to find someone who will rent you and your instructor their planes for cheap. In other words, there are times when you'll need a flight school, but you can get all your ratings on your own for way less money.

The reason for not blowing too much loot is because you may never get a decent job flying. Most would-be pilots don't. I know plenty of very experienced, talented pilots who never got beyond the $150-a-day, survival-wage flying job. Why not? Bad luck. Never met the right people. Skills weren't quite up to snuff. Or, maybe the HR people just didn't think they presented well enough to wear the company's uniform. The truth is, it's not only about skills and hours.

Being in a hurry is what gets young people into financial trouble.

Good luck!

 

[ItsAFunZone]

I took my discovery flight at age 29. Quit my career about two weeks later, cashed in my 401k, and went full steam ahead with my newfound love. Been broke but happy pretty much ever since. Not suggesting this as a path for anyone, but the point is- you have time. Thirty years is a long time in any industry, and you should have about 35 left by the time you finish ratings, etc...

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[jgheggie]

I took my discovery flight at age 29. Quit my career about two weeks later, cashed in my 401k, and went full steam ahead with my newfound love. Been broke but happy pretty much ever since. Not suggesting this as a path for anyone, but the point is- you have time. Thirty years is a long time in any industry, and you should have about 35 left by the time you finish ratings, etc...

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How much was in the 401k at age 29? Man...I'm 24 and don't even have one ha!

 

[ItsAFunZone]

In hindsight, not enough!
I had about 13k in it when I cashed out.

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[joel_MQY]

Thank you for the advice. Yes, I would love ATC and my wife is very interested in ATC. It's something we've considered.

121 isn't necessary for me. My main concern is flying and earning just enough to support the family. We can live anywhere, and I don't mind flying a C150 if it pays the bills. We lived off of a household income of $45k before and made it go VERY far. No debt, have savings, and only have $68k left on a mortgage with 14 years left on it. From being around the industry 10 years, I know $45k annual is a several year slog. It's good to have input from people on here who have been here, done that if it's a good idea or not. Sometimes it feels downright irresponsible to take this step with two small children.

ItsAFunZone, do you have a family? Sounds like you've gone down the road I'm looking towards.