What have you been doing for the last ten years as far as a career then? If you have a good stable job, you like your job, have a future and are making decent money, then you should think about maybe just flying for fun........rent planes, join a flying club, join AOPA, and maybe at some point if you still love flying then you could look into buying a plane with one or two other pilots. Flying small planes to anywhere you choose and at any time is the real joy of flying, being free and independent. GA flying is great. It's what most commercial pilots want to do on their off hours or when they retire. There's a reason for that.......it's pure, it's fun and it's flying without a bunch of hassles and too many gadgets.
The thing about flying for a living is that it is a job. Period. There is a tremendous amount of work to be put in both on the ground and in the air. That never ends either. This is not to say that it isn't enjoyable, fun and at times, beautiful. But it's work. Real work. The work however does not really detract from the awesome moments and the views cannot be beat. It can however, be a grind at times, there can be drama, boredom and any number of issues. It's not all sunshine and roses. It all depends on your attitude, personality and outlook.
But it takes a serious commitment and you need to ask yourself if you are ready or capable of that. Its a marathon and not a sprint. The only person who knows this, is you. So you need to be honest with yourself and see if you are prepared and do you have the ability for a long term endeavor, can you set goals and meet them, not quit when the going gets rough, and can you handle the many bumps and uncertainties in the road ahead without giving up and throwing in the towel? Can you handle stress and pressure well? Are you willing to re-locate from time to time? Are you willing to accept working for lowish wages for a few years at perhaps various jobs to make your way and build time? Do you have a partner who would be fine with this? There is a lot for you to consider and you just need to be realistic.
Whatever you choose, best of luck. Feel free to ask whatever questions you want to, loads of good experience and knowledge here.
I've done nothing worthy of note to be completely honest, things that meet the bare minimum in order to live a somewhat comfortable but never truly fulfilling life due to my ever present thought train of what my life could have been like, it's a toxic mindset but I can't help myself. I completely agree on being able to fly a small plane free of anything but the sky around you was one of the truly joyous moments of my flight training which took place during the solo flights in a cessna 172. The cross country flying was somewhat similar though their was a sense of urgency to get to the next location. I've always daydreamed of getting a home in one of those communities that lives right next to a private runway and just being able to wake up and go for a flight.
Over all these years I've come to realize the nature of the grind which I went into blindly when I started my training, I definitely appreciate it now and feel that I've got enough of a taste that I could comfortably endure what I'd told myself made the job not worth it previously. I can't let the idea go and don't think I can be satisfied with myself unless I try. Thanks for the encouraging words and insight, I hope I find my calling soon.
What are you doing for a living now? Does it afford you the opportunity to just fly for fun? Sounds like GA is where your heart is. Don't misunderstand me. Even the worst day of sloggimg through LGA in a snow storm and dealing with the eventual irate passenger beats all the times I sat at a desk looking out the window, but it doesn't come close to the pure bliss of flying a taildragger off of grass. Airline flying is just a job that affords me the means to indulge in more enjoyable past times.
Edit: Dangnabit! Aloft beat me to it!
Various bottom line work ethic jobs that nobody in the entire company seems to want to be there. That window glance is probably the hardest part about not following through, it's the idea that I still can do it but wasted so much time already. I can only imagine the excitement of taking a tail dragger off of a grass runway, maybe someday. I'm glad you pursued what you saw on the other side of that window.
I agree with you. I think his view of flying may be a bit romanticized. Not all flying is the same and not everyone is built/capable of every type of flying either. Frankly, if I were a young buck, I get in some hours and haul my ass off to Alaska and experience real flying in every type of wx and environment in the air and on the ground. Besides, you'd be in one of the most beautiful places in the world and the views.......not much to compare them to. Plus, you'd be acquiring and honing skills that can only make you a better pilot in the long run. What an adventure that would be. People do make/build a life and stay there too.
There is no one kind of flying is the "ultimate". It's what you enjoy, are good at and would like to do for the rest of your life that matters. For some, that's being a bush pilot, for others it's being at a commercial pax carrier,for some it's international freight, for some it's corporate or charter flying, for some it's rescue work, for some LEO flying, for some it's governmental contract flying, for some firefighting.........there are many types of flying and a lot to explore and consider. No one type of flying is "better" than another. It's a personal choice.
My view is definitely romanticized and I've thought a lot about that over the years, every year that passed where I would hold a job that had essentially no meaning to me compared to one in aviation that would have some was a real reality check. There were some guys that ended up going to Alaska instead of pursuing the CFI route, maybe they wanted that raw experience like you mentioned. I feel like I have that responsibility now to discover all of the different avenues of flight before I can make a mature decision on my love for it.
After 10 years you could have been at Southwest.
I got into aviation at a bad time, Sept 11 had just happened and I was a newly minted CFI. Looking back I didn't really know what I was getting into. I just kept plugging along and before you know it, 3 years later I was at a good regional. 3 years after that a Captain there.
Granted I was in my 20's, single....but many of my colleagues from school dropped along the way. I suspect most who left didn't have the same passion I had. Those who stuck around are now all well into their careers. Some at Southwest even....
There's a real ebb and flow to aviation careers. But stick around for 10 or 15 years and you'd be surprised where you end up.
Just thinking about being there right now is quite painful but it's that line of thinking that was partly responsible for stopping my pursuit in the first place, I have to let that go. That was a really rough time to be in aviation but that's great to hear you stuck to it and got into a regional in that time. If I put all my effort into it again maybe I can be at Southwest in the next ten years instead of sitting here wondering the same thing again.
Ehh ... people can't fly for a hundred reasons: financial (initially, anyway), medical, temperament ...
Your life is defined by how you live it today, in this particular moment. Everyone of us has known regret and missed opportunity, for whatever reason.
Perhaps you WOULD have been at Southwest. Maybe not.
What matters, I think, is who you are today. If circumstances suck, make them better. If they're good, relish them, and do something to share that with others.
Your life isn't defined by your past, but by what you do with it NOW. Trying, if it's important to you, is far more important than whether you succeed or not.
Bottom line: crap, or get off the pot. The path is yours to follow, whatever the ultimate outcome.
Living and mastering the moment is something I strive to improve upon, regretting and reminiscing about where or what I could have been seems to go against that. That's a nice saying that I'll likely not forget. It's far past due for me to start choosing a path.
Sounds like a trip to the nearest soaring club is in order.
I think about that a lot, just going up and getting that feeling that I had during my solo flight seems like a much needed motivational move to spark action.
"The Guy in the Glass"
by Dale Wimbrow, (c) 1934
When you get what you want in your struggle for self,
And the world makes you King for a day,
Then go to the mirror and look at yourself,
And see what that guy has to say.
For it isn't your Father, or Mother, or Wife,
Who judgement upon you must pass.
The feller whose verdict counts most in your life
Is the guy staring back from the glass.
He's the feller to please, never mind all the rest,
For he's with you clear up to the end,
And you've passed your most dangerous, difficult test
If the guy in the glass is your friend.
You may be like Jack Horner and "chisel" a plum,
And think you're a wonderful guy,
But the man in the glass says you're only a bum
If you can't look him straight in the eye.
You can fool the whole world down the pathway of years,
And get pats on the back as you pass,
But your final reward will be heartaches and tears
If you've cheated the guy in the glass.
That is one of the most beautiful poems I've ever read, thank you for that.
Who cares where you would have been? Seriously. What have you to gain by thinking about it? "Stuff" happens.
Sometimes it's beyond our control, sometimes it's because we chose poorly. Either way, it's history and it can't be changed. Accept it and drive on. We all have regrets and things we would do or say differently if we could. Make like Elsa and let it go.
What you need to ask yourself is, "where are you going" or "what can/might be" and make it happen.
Or, just keep looking back and miss out on the present while simultaneously robbing yourself of your future. Don't forget the past, but don't let it ruin your life.
"It's not whether you get knocked down, it's whether you get up."
-Vince Lombardi
You're right, I have nothing to gain by it. The only thing it does is take away whatever energy I have and prevents me from getting the stuff I want to do done. I still have a lot more ahead even though I falsely convince myself that too much is gone which just isn't true. I think I've been trying to find it within myself over these last 10 years to move forward, I've never given up on that idea of hope.
I did the same as you, quit for about 8 years and worked a desk job. Every time an airliner flew over I always had to stop what I was doing and wonder what if or what buttons are they pushing up there. One day I took the risk and finally finished up and pursued the dream but I don't regret it for a second since I now appreciate every second of my job from having worked a desk job that I didn't like. The regional job made me appreciate and value the best QOL gig in the industry that I have now with never having to sit in a hotel again, ever. I still hang out with one of the finance guys from my desk job and he can't believe I'm home every night, working 3 days a week instead of 5 and making 3X the pay.
Just hearing someone respond to me about being in a similar situation and pushing past the apathy makes me feel like maybe all is not lost. It's funny that you mentioned stopping what you're doing to think about what buttons they we're pushing because I always look up to try and identify the aircraft and wonder what workload they are under in that moment. That sounds like a decision that would also be in my best interest to make, it's gratifying to hear everything worked out.
Well said Aloft and why I took early retirement and not "too many gadgets."
One day I hope I can retire into this as well, I hope the joy of flight is with you everyday.
"When you come to a fork in the road, take it."
- Yogi Berra
Sent from my XT1650 using Tapatalk
At this moment I would say I'm at that fork and that I'm capable of taking it, I'm really tired of not.
I started training in 2006 too. Been at a legacy almost 4 years now. So I'd say you could for sure have been at southwest.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Perhaps I will see you there in the near future, glad to hear you made it.
The airline I work at has all day trips (G4). When I was at the regional I used to wonder where I would be had I never quit before but now I have no regrets knowing what I know now. When I was on the outside looking in, G4 was nowhere on my top 10 career choices but now there is nowhere else I'd rather be. It's amazing to get paid for almost all of the time you're away from home and be able to live a normal life. Even the 12 days a month that I work I'm still home in time for dinner with the family. I'm know some people really enjoy their layovers and airport sits but even though I always made the best of them I still felt like I was wasting my life. Now I have lots time for the wife, kids, friends and hobbies.
That sounds like an incredible work life balance, something that I would place a lot of value on myself, I'll definitely keep that in my thoughts in the future.
My first semester, I was enrolled in an intro to aviation class that had upwards of 20 other students. Through out the two years that number dropped dramatically, for a number of reasons. When it was all said and done, I know of two other people who are now flying for a paycheck out of that class, myself being the only one in the 121 world (and I literally just made it, still waiting IOE). I honestly believe that the process of becoming a pilot is that of a marathon runners mentality. If you look too far ahead in the race, or dwell on obstacles further down the road you will become overwhelmed with negativity. That mixed with the dreary return on investment initially, most decide it is just not worth it. I still keep in touch with many people that dropped out of flight training, some are happy with their decisions to do so, others are regretful. Especially the people that dropped due to losing the desire, less to do with financial issues. I have had a few friends ask me whether they should give it another go, since they see my progress in my career. This is my response...
You have to want this career more than you have ever desired anything else, it is not a career you just fall into and half heartedly make it through. Everyone has obstacles they have to overcome in order to seek fulfillment in their professional lives. It is up to you whether or not you let those obstacles deter you from the big picture. Many times in training and even in my 135 gig I wanted to quit, whether it was during a plateau in training or a pittance of a paycheck while getting people from point A to point B safely. I still have doubt to this day whether or not my decision to be a career pilot will be worth it. Why do I keep going? Because when I go to work, I feel grateful to be doing what I'm doing. A very small percentage of our population can make a living doing what some dream of doing. So I cherish every day I have to put my uniform on and fly an airplane, because there are many others that don't get to do the same thing. That is what keeps the fire burning while the crappy details of this career attempt to interfere with my aspirations.
As far as wondering whether or not where you would be right now, get that out of your head. Life is too short to wonder about those things, if you aren't happy and want a change up, Do it!! Will the road be long and dark at times? It sure will. Will you want to quit and tell yourself the headache is not worth it? Oh yeah, probably during every endeavor you will face. It again boils down to your mentality, enjoy the marathon and focus on the short term goals. If you do that, the long term goals will fall into place eventually..
It's intriguing to hear only so few stuck through it, I think I easily fall into the category of dwelling too much into the future and being overwhelmed with negativity. There were a couple of guys in my class who were farther into their training and dropped out due to losing the desire which really hit me hard, I started to wonder why? My biggest weakness I feel was not getting a taste of the rat race before enrolling, combined with my romanticized view of flight and I fell into despair, but this was a very immature way to think and I feel if I'd gone through the process and explored the upper echelons of career aviation that I would have had a very different opinion.
It always leaves me a bit speechless when people that have no inherent responsibility to help someone they may have never met focus on the truly important things in life, I want to do it for those people, I want to do it so that such endeavors are honored and not just empty attempts and so that one day we can live in a world where such things are the majority instead of the minority.
Edit: Was unable to edit my original post but just wanted to acknowledge the large response that this post got, I made it because I've been wanting to make it for the ten years I've thought about it and just wanted to say that I'm at a stage in my life where I can truly tell myself that I am prepared to take that path to a more invigorating lifestyle whatever that may be, thank you all for your insight and invaluable advice, I won't forget it.
