What would you do?

T

Tiger815

Well-Known Member
Given the opportunity to work in aviation in a non-flying job that would pay about what you would make as a 4-5 year FO, included full benefits, vacation and holidays off would you give up climbing the ratings ladder towards a flying job?

What if you already owned your own plane and the extra time off vs. CFI'ing would allow you to fly your own plane on your own schedule, far more often?

What if you still needed a multi rating and enough multi time to get looked at for the next rung above CFI? (ie: a big chunk of the meager income you earn will have to be given back to the industry to continue your advancement)

Now what if the above were the case and you came to aviation very late in the game (ie 40+)?

Would you forgo your other life goals (retirement, vacation home, possibly food )to continue flying for pay, or take the money and do your flying for recreation, with perhaps some BFR's and IPC's on the side?

Just a hypothetical question really!
wink.gif
 
Well, since this is the career changer forum on jetcareers it probably has a bigger percentage of those of us that have given up the "good life" for the desire to fly planes for a living. If I stayed doing what I am now, I could by a used Mooney, a new BMW and another income property or two while climbing up the corporate ladder. Because of these motivations, I have delayed my flight career longer than I wish I had. No matter how successful I am, I now realize I won't be completely fulfilled if I don't follow my dream.

I'm now even tempted to stay in light aviation, perhaps flying seaplanes up in the Northwest, as long as I am flying for a living. It is a simpler life without much money, but that kind of life would make me happy. Of course, I will probably need to support a family someday and I love the smell of jet fuel too... so we'll see what happens.

Just ask yourself if you will be satisfied with your career or not. At least it is around aviation, unlike my corporate job. If money was the only thing that mattered, this site would be pretty dead of course!
 
[ QUOTE ]
Would you forgo your other life goals (retirement, vacation home, possibly food )to continue flying for pay, or take the money and do your flying for recreation, with perhaps some BFR's and IPC's on the side?

[/ QUOTE ]

Absolutely NO.

I've been on both sides of the fence and I'll take the nonflying, more money/freedom scenerio anyday.

YMV
 
I plan to fly, the question is will it be flying my own plane to our beach house for vacation (that we'll be able to buy with the extra money vs. still trying to fly for cash), or flying around at someone elses direction.
 
[ QUOTE ]
I plan to fly, the question is will it be flying my own plane to our beach house for vacation (that we'll be able to buy with the extra money vs. still trying to fly for cash), or flying around at someone elses direction.

[/ QUOTE ]

Well, seems like you've already decided which one is right for you!

Personally, I'd rather fly for a living....bu that's a very personal choice!
 
[ QUOTE ]
Can't we have both?

[/ QUOTE ]

Yes, I think it's possible to have both, so long as you start early enough.

Starting at 44, I have norealistic hope of reaching a high paying job as Captain for a major, so I'm considering taking a higher paying, non flying, aviation related job at least for a while. Even then I'm not so sure it would take me off the flying job path for more than a year. With the extra money and time off I could concentrate on buliding multi, cross county and instrument time which is all I really need since I have >850 TT. I'm not sure I'd be any worse off than staying at my current CFI job.

Getting a decent flying job that works for me is highly dependent on a bunch of factors all coming together the right way and I'm still considering all the options.
 
Bill, I would lean toward the non-flying gig myself. While it may be considered cowardly, I've always envisioned a certain QOL once I had a family.

With the military flying falling through because of the "lazy eye," I've decided not to persue commercial flying as a career because I don't want the burden of loans, initial low-paying gigs, and uncertainty (not that any career is a guarantee) while raising a child.

I love flying and will most certainly continue flying as a hobby and persuing further ratings. I've often considered getting my CFI ratings and doing that on the side until retirement, and instruct more often after retirement ... but it's a bit early to plan my retirement when I'm still looking to secure a career.

I've thought about ATC, but wonder if I'd want to fly for pleasure when I deal with aircraft and airspace in a stressful environment for work as well.

So for me, aviation is an escape ... an adventure to depart on fun excursions and something to look forward to while at work.

I support those that do press on with aviation, and admire their desire ... but again a lot of these decisions come down to personal desires and circumstances.

Let me know how things work out for you!
 
I think I'll share my experience since it is relevant to this discussion.
I have always wanted to fly since I was a little kid and started working on my private and the experience is intoxicating!!!
I have a choice to make to continue with my rating and get burdened with the loans of aviation schools while making little to no money or go to med school. ( I am already accepted into one of the best in the US)

after a lot and I mean a lot of thinking and talking with professional pilots and reading the many great posts on this website, I realized that after the hell of med school and residency,( and of course pay vack the estimated 200K$ of loans I will accumulate in the next 4 years) I may very well be able to buy my own small single or even a multi and do it for fun. And If get the fever to fly commercially later in life I'd have money saved to support me as I struggle... I also don't want a job that depends on a physical every 6 months or so

I suppose what I am saying is that I salute all of you who decided to take the jump into the world of aviation!!! I just don't think it is the right thing for me since I would like to be able to spend time with my lovely wife and the fact that I am very involved with community. or I just don't have the balls for it.

Peace Y'all

PS why are the majority of pilots very much republicans? ( another reason to go to med school
nana2.gif
 
[ QUOTE ]
PS why are the majority of pilots very much republicans? ( another reason to go to med school

[/ QUOTE ]

First, welcome to the site. Second, keep reading. You'll find plenty of us damn libruls here.
smile.gif
 
[ QUOTE ]

PS why are the majority of pilots very much republicans? ( another reason to go to med school
nana2.gif


[/ QUOTE ]


I'm no Republican! And there's NO WAY I'd want to be fighting under this administration.

Our so-called leader
 
If you already have a plane and enjoy what you are doing I wouldn't change a thing. I can relate. I have a good job, household income is well above average. Lakehouse, boat, my wife and I drive new vehicles, etc. All that is OK and maybe I should be happy with that but I spend 8+ hours a day at a job that I can't wait to get away from. Plus since I was a kid, I've always loved aviation. If it flew, I liked it. I wanted to fly helicopters in the army. Bad eyesite, no flightschool. So I became a turbine engine mech instead. Got some stick time in the AH-1 and OH-58(unofficially of course). So now I'm doing an HVAC inspection gig and dealing with ATL traffic. I swear one day i'm gonna explode!! So it comes down to this. Boats gone, House on the market, Tahoe probably gone, etc. All to chase a boys dream of flying. However with the wife making 6 figs, it makes my decision a little easier. I love ya honey!

P.S. I'm Republican and there are quite a few libs here.
 
I've been flying "professionally" for almost 6 years. I'd love to get out of aviation and find a normal job that pays enough for me to be a part-owner of a nice single-engine aircraft. It'd be much more rewarding than flying the general public around.
 
Bog said:
I've been flying "professionally" for almost 6 years. I'd love to get out of aviation and find a normal job that pays enough for me to be a part-owner of a nice single-engine aircraft. It'd be much more rewarding than flying the general public around.
Click to expand...

I'm curious Bog... what jobs did you have before this 6 year aviation career? Are you a career changer and you're thinking about going back?
 
BrettInLJ said:
I'm curious Bog... what jobs did you have before this 6 year aviation career? Are you a career changer and you're thinking about going back?
Click to expand...

When I got outta high school, I was determined to be an aerospace engineer. But, being a major procrastinator, not learning Calc I and II bit my butt when I started my junior year, so Aviation Business Admin was my ticket to graduating for the least amount of money.

After graduation, I was able to sneak into a part-time supervisor job on the UPS ramp in PHX. It was a great job, though VERY stressful and my boss was ... well, he had his way, mine was nothing like his. Met some great people, had some great times. I actually miss that line of work. I'd love to be a station manager for an airline.

I quit UPS and went full-time at my other part-time job that I'd picked up. There, I was a dispatcher for a contracter of BAX Global. Again, I loved the stress and the fact that everyday was different (while the same), but working under people who really didn't know how to manage didn't do it for me. I could have become a station manager for that company in another city, but left before that became a reality.

Next I was a ramp supervisor, then operations manager, for a ground service company at Sky Harbor. I was responsible for our contracts with UPS, ABX, DHL, BAX, Emery, Emery Postal, and Evergreen Postal. Again, I loved being in charge of the operational side of the show, but was working for people who had no idea how to run a company long-term. Once again, I had to deal with promises made that could not be kept. Very frustrating. It paid well, but my constant bad mood off the clock wasn't worth it. After some prodding from a few friends, I went to ATP, then got hired at MAG.

I'd love to go back to operations management. It's something at which I excelled (bragging a lil bit), and I had no problem getting the job done while keeping my employees happy. If I can find something like that, even in a non-aviation environment, I'll seriously consider leaving the pilot gig. The ability to plan out my life more than 4 weeks at a time ... what a thought! Sleeping in my own bed every night? Awesome. Getting to coach a little league baseball team? Would be priceless.

Two years ago, I talked to a limo driver who was taking us from the COS airport to our hotel at 3am. He was a happy man. He drove the limo, er, private car, in the a.m., making 2 trips at the most. Then, he taught English to high school kids. To me ... that's very appealing. It would be enough income to raise a hypothetical family and still allow me to fly GA once or twice each month.

Realistically, though, I'd rather have my own aquarium store. But, I have expensive hobbies, and the money just isn't in that business. Why couldn't I just love to collect rocks!
 
Did you ever apply for the major airline? I am thinking...since you have a degree and probably still in your 30's, you shouldn't have a problem, right?? One last thing, I notice you said you are in your 6th year at this profession, are you currently making over 60 a year?
 
minority_pilot said:
Did you ever apply for the major airline? I am thinking...since you have a degree and probably still in your 30's, you shouldn't have a problem, right?? One last thing, I notice you said you are in your 6th year at this profession, are you currently making over 60 a year?
Click to expand...

I haven't applied for the majors yet because I've only recently hit my 1000 PIC. Delta, Northwest, American, US Airways, and United ... no need to apply. I could have gone to America West at the time I upgraded, but didn't want to limit myself only to them in the event that things went sour. Continental doesn't appeal to me, Alaska isn't hiring right now, and I'm not going to spend $7k to have Southwest tell me to "come back in a year."

FedEx and UPS: no real connections at either, and not competitive enough, either. jetBlue: don't want to commute to JFK. AirTran: I'd love to go there, but I don't want the PHX-ATL commute that Doug already endures. Don't want to have him bump me out of a seat, either. :) Frontier: don't know anyone who can walk my stuff in.

Right now, I'm very seriously leaning towards a fractional. They're all in the business of high levels of customer service, something the passenger airline industry has forgotten. The fractionals also know that they have to maintain that level of service, lest the customer go away. Again, something the passenger lines have confused and lost sight of. I'm also not thrilled with the ever-growing size of regional fleets. When mainline jobs go away, so do the benefits, QOL, and compensation one expects from the job. You just don't see that at the regional level.

As for your last question, yes. Since I'm at 6th year pay, I should make 60 something this year. I'm trying to save all that I can, because if the new job comes soon, I'll be looking at a 55% paycut (or more). But, for peace of mind and better treatment from an employer, I'll gladly take it.
 
Bog said:
Right now, I'm very seriously leaning towards a fractional. They're all in the business of high levels of customer service, something the passenger airline industry has forgotten. The fractionals also know that they have to maintain that level of service, lest the customer go away. Again, something the passenger lines have confused and lost sight of.
Click to expand...

That's a good point I haven't thought of. A little bit closer to the glory days of being an airline pilot, but on a smaller scale.
 
I'd love to be a station manager for an airline. </QUOTE>

Bog,
Im sure you've checked the company website, but they are looking for station managers in ASE and EGE. Not that you want to stay at MAG (i dont think any of us do)
Click to expand...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top