Is it really that worth it to be an airline pilot as a career option?

[agent.oen]

I have been dreaming of being an airline pilot for as far as I can remember. Let’s face it, nothing beats aviation; it is by far the most interesting industry ever. Moreover, what’s better than working in the core of this industry – flying airplanes?!!! Thing is, after having done a good deal of research, I have come to ask the question:
Is it really that worth it to be an airline pilot as a career option?

True, there’s the glamour, but it’s far from what it used to be like, a couple of years ago. Back then, everyone would look up to you as if you had achieved the status of being a god. All eyes would be on you while walking through the airport dressed smartly, with big wings pinned to your chest, 4 gold bands on your sleeve and that distinct hat! Some may say the salary is excellent, the working hours are low, holidays and leave are aplenty… But a quick read through various threads on Pprune shows that salaries are really low till one achieves the status of a Captain. Even then, it depends on the airline and what sort of flights you conduct – long haul vs. short. Couple all the above with the following:

Finding a job is far from easy. There are way too many inexperienced pilots in the market, all holding the minimum qualifications required. Airlines are really choosy and generally require experienced pilots not inexperienced wannabes. Many CVs are rejected, letters of interest go unanswered and few airline company sites show pilot vacancies.:*
It is experienced captains that are required and not fresh pilots. The pilot shortage issue mainly deals with the shortage of experienced, type-rated pilots rather than the general CPL-IR 250hr, inexperienced pilot. :*
If you do find a job (lucky you!), the job security is not as good as when considering other industries. The airline may go bankrupt unexpectedly, or the next 9/11 may cause quite a few experienced pilots to be suddenly unemployed.:*
There is no luxury of choosing a company/country – if you’re offered a position in a different country or in a country you would not like to live in, it’s a take it or leave it situation. There are so many other CPL/IR holders in the market, some of whom have even funded their own type rating that it’s really easy for an airline to contact the next ‘hungry applicant’ on the waiting list. :*
The starting salaries are very low – you’d actually be better off in a finance company as a junior graduate –just have a look at the starting salaries in both industries for proof!:*
Promotion is based on seniority – this may be rather lengthy depending on the seniority list. Promotion = better pay => more time to get a better salary when compared to an IT or finance job where the salaries increase every year (and start off as more too).:*
Getting the licenses is extremely expensive – chances of sponsored training are extremely limited due to the surplus of young and inexperienced pilots. Why would airlines need to go through the extra expense of sponsoring cadets? Pilot wannabes are almost happy enough to fund their own type rating, what’s the point of sponsored training nowadays?!! To top it all, generally younger applicants would be favoured as the company would get a better return on investment albeit older applicants may have a more mature way of tackling problems. With this age consideration, how likely is it for an 18year old to fund EUR 50,000? A 30-year old might do this, while choosing not to invest such money in property.:*
Maintaining the license and class 1 medical certificate is an expensive annual cost.:*
Whilst being employed as a pilot, every 6 months you’re subjected to tests and exams to ensure you’re still able to fly the aircraft. Failure of such examinations may probably lead to reconsideration of your position within the airline – further stress (but totally understandable from a safety point of view).:*
Once you’re in the job, you may not get the chance to really be with your family. Rosters are unpredictable, times vary day to day and family planning is far from easy.:*
Airlines will try to push pilots to fly more hours rather than employ more pilots as cost cutting is one of the major business strategies. It is then the responsibility of the pilot to ensure at all times that s/he is not being pushed too far. If they are pushed too far and an incident/accident occurs, then investigations first turn to the pilot – number of hours flown being one of the first items investigated.:*
Making a mistake may lead a pilot in serious trouble even if there are no accidents – some mistakes are made due to fatigue, others are made due to pilots having a particular mind-set, but most mistakes would occur due to the feeling of being an excellent airman after having flown for 2000+ hrs. In any case, we are all prone to making mistakes – we’re only human!:*
I have come to the conclusion that it looks like the only reason to be a pilot is if one purely loves aviation and is willing to sacrifice so many other things for the dream of flying. I have the feeling that many wannabes are not completely aware of the situation in the industry and are blinded by the ‘shortage of pilots’ news, the salary and glamour of the job.

I think that priorities should be set right… What is it that these wannabes want in life – the glamour, the money, the feeling of being surrounded by buttons, screens, switches and levers that only a professional would know how to use or is it the real thrill of flying? But then again, flying is so automated these days that is mostly a monitoring job rather than anything else! The aircraft’s FMS does all the work – select correct FL, thrust settings, speed, give ETAs…!!

Of course, other jobs have their own share of stress and downsides. Some may be boring even – imagine a 9 to 5 office job! But from what I’ve concluded, after a really lengthy research, is that a junior pilot would be in a worse off position when compared to a junior graduate (in e.g. IT or Finance).

Wannabes – your thoughts
F/Os and Captains – am I being overly negative or does this reflect the situation?:rolleyes:

As I said previously, I have always wanted to be an airline pilot, I was ready to go through hard times studying and working… but it looks like it doesn’t pay off that well anymore. So is being an airline pilot really worth it? Or should one stop at PPL/IR and really enjoy the thrill of flying that way while earning more money in a normal, routine job in a booming industry such as IT or Finance? :confused:

[XXPLOD]

Two sides to every coin I guess. It might be my imagination but the regular pitch from some FTOs of the apparent shortage of pilots seems to have gone a little quiet with the 'credit crunch' and general doom and gloom in the news.

I wish I could turn the clock back 12 years as I'm fairly sure I'd go for it. Now, at the wise old age of 32 and a police officer easily earning what a Captain in a TP earns on average, I'm not sure I could take the risk and potentially end up cutting my salary 60% to take a FO job, if I could get a job of course, judging by the various figures cited in the Terms and Endearment threads.

I have a PPL and plan to do the basic CPL groundschool and then probably at some point next year do a CPL/ME course. I could at least look at p/t FI options in the coming years as a way of flying for nowt/not too much. That may be the best of both worlds, although I know it won't stop the wistful stare at commercial planes as they descend into Southampton.

[Wee Weasley Welshman]

Its a fantastic job that can be very well paid and hugely rewarding and damn good fun.

Every generation of pilot has always looked wistfully back at the golden age of flight that has just passed.

Its different but its still great.

WWW

[portsharbourflyer]

As an FO I am now earning about 40/50%of what I use to in my previous career; however I know this will only be a short-term paycut. In the longrun it is likely I will earn more or at least as much as my previous career. Anyway if it doesn't work out then I can always return to my old caereer, at least I will have enjoyed a few years flying which will be a priceless experience.

I now get to drive to work when the roads are clear and I don't have to sit behind a PC for 8 hours a day crunching numbers for five days a week.

So do I think my 50K investment and pay cut were worth it; yes.

The decision to fly as I have said in previous posts is based on a passion for flying; if I had thought about this in a rational way then I probably wouldn't have bothered. But while the above lists the negative aspects the one big plus is getting paid to fly.

[agent.oen]

WWW I know it's a fantastic job! As I said, nothing beats flying! The only way I find flying rewarding is that feeling you get once you manage to achieve sitting in an airline cockpit, after years of hard work and sweat. Of course, a perfect landing adds to the touch too :)

But it definitely is not rewarding, at least in the short term. Look at all the finances involved, the unanswered letters of interest, the CVs sent with not much of a reply other than, 'We regret to inform you but.... waiting list for 4 years...' :mad:

Then the paycut if you get lucky... Work it out from a financial point of view:
loan and interest payments (if a loan is required)
costs of getting the licenses
costs for maintaining licenses and medical while hoping to get selected
paycut once selectedThat's looking at quite a large sum of money that could be invested elsewhere where interests are paid in your favour!

Oh and let's not forget the opportunity costs involved:
say you get lucky and work with a low cost airline in the UK... Everyone knows how expensive property is in the UK! But there is no luxury in the airline pilot area to choose a desired country with the highest GDP per capita and then find a job in that country!
You could be saving more money by going for the alternative opportunity byliving and working in a country where incomes are high, taxes are reasonable and cost of living is low. One country in the EU comes to mind.

The point that's baffling me is if it is really worth going for such a career option looking at the situation from all corners. Or would the best alternative be a PPL/IR whereby one may experience true flying?

I'm stumped :(

AO.

[BerksFlyer]

agent.oen

With all honesty this is a question that most ignore and just get on with it. If you want it that bad, you will jump them hurdles.

Good luck should you chase that dream :ok:

[portsharbourflyer]

agent,

It is good that you have taken a realistic look on this; it is better than some of the posters who are believing all the marketing hype and taking out 50-70K loans to do an integrated course with only a supermarket job as a backup. However it is only yourself that can truly answer the question and I still believe that if you are asking the question you aren't keen enough.

Add an IR to a PPL and you are nearly there to a CPL IR, as to add the IR to your PPL you will need at least 70 hours p1, 7 written exams (approx half the ATPLs) and even a single engine IR course will st you back about 8000. If you have a decent paid job you can still chip away at the CPL/IR part time; then at least the if you do decide the take the plunge the license is there to take the plunge with.

Why don't you consider becoming a part time instructor along side your current job, at least this way you can continue to get your flying paid for and at least in ten or twently years time if you change your mind you will have the hours to make the career change with; better to be 40 with a 1000 or so hours in the log book making the career change than to be going through the MLC and been a low hour career changer.

Good luck

[agent.oen]

PHF,

it is true that my keen-ness has been dampened. A couple of years ago, there was only very little that could have brought me to think sensibly as I was only thinking passionately about flying. Unfortunately, now that some years have gone by, my thinking process has (let's say) matured and I've become a more rational thinker rather than a passionate one.

I have been told that I should pursue my dreams as I will only die regretting I never did try. I've also been told to at least get my 'ticket' to aviation - CPL/IR - so that I may enlist in opportunities that interest me. However I do not believe that aviation is an industry where one has the luxury to choose the country s/he wishes to work in, let alone the airline too. This is not the case in other (better-paying) jobs. Why work in a country you would not be satisfied working in? This raises a negative working & living environment which plays an extremely important role in job satisfaction!

I must admit, this post is more of a shout to people help me find my way. But further intentions are to bring out the 'words of wisdom' from the professionals to put things into their true perspective - the realistic point of view.

Big dilemma.

[G09]

Hi agent, you have made some very good points but on the other hand I have to say that the salaries shouldn't be compared globally, as the differences in salaries vary between countries/airlines significantly. I have recently read a research on the best-paying jobs in the US, where pilots ended up 9th in compare with German research where this career was ranked #1.

[v6g]

Whilst I agree with all the factors that agent stated at the top, there is one over-riding factor that has swayed my decision to stay away from a career in aviation. The lack of cheap oil. Putting the current speculation-led boom aside, the worlds biggest oil fields are very close to declining. The water-cut of the super-giant field in Saudi Arabia is increasing rapidly (this is a sign that a field is reaching maximum maturity). Once-mighty Russia is now declining, as is the North Sea together with 60% of the worlds oil producing nations. The third world is rapidly industrializing. I just don't think there's enough cheap oil left in the world for somebody in their 20's and 30's to have a career in aviation. It's not going to be a growth industry for much longer. And with the cost of training and initial salaries you need to consider it a life-long investment, not short term.

Why do you think the OPEC sovereign wealth funds are investing heavily in rail, shipping & sea ports, instead of aviation? Maybe they know something.

It's really a matter of what your alternatives are. For me, my career in engineering presents far better opportunities. If you don't have a better alternative then maybe aviation is right for you. I think it's best to pursue a career where the worker isn't considered part of the revenue stream.

I certainly don't regret doing my training to CPL level, and I look forward to being a part-time instructor for as long as people can still afford it. I might even get into air-taxi if I can, but I'm unlikely to ever make it my primary career.

[clanger32]

One fact that everyone - EVERYONE - needs to know and remember every day of their lives.....you're a long time dead.

Someone very dear to me once said "you can either do a job that gives you the lifestyle you want, or you can do a job you enjoy and some very, very lucky people get to do both".

I've driven a desk for 12 years and I can tell you that whilst I may never again hit the heights of the salary I was earning when I quit that life, I will never miss the stress, the commute on packed trains, the feeling that nothing you do actually means anything.

Flying - well, everyone I know who flys commercially says that sooner or later it becomes "just a job" - but the crux of it is, it's still a better job that flying that desk....

Just because the money is better in an office, don't forget my first line. Do you want to look back on your life on your death bed and say "well I earned more being an accountant/project manager/lawyer/plumber [etc etc] but I never really enjoyed it"
Flying isn't a badly paid career....it might be a bit bumpy to start with, but then lawyers don't start out earning 6 figure salaries either. Aviation is still very well paid nevertheless.

[jb2_86_uk]

Thanks clanger, its about time someone let some sunlight in on this, the gloomiest of all the doom and gloomy threads.

Ive been getting quite stressed with this place lately, seems the "pilots" are so busy trying to disuade wannabees, the industry will collapse not due to higher oil prices but because there are no newly qualified pilots to take on the baton!

Agent: If you are having doubts then maybe you are not ready for the (huge) investment and effort that lie ahead. But at the end of the day, any money spent/debt you make training is YOUR money or debt, and you shall have to deal with it accordingly. Its no good asking for others to tell you what to do as they (we) have no vested interest in the outcome. Greedy pilots will tell you not to bother as they dont want the competition. Wanabees will tell you not to bother as they dont want the competiton either. If you really know in your heart of hearts that you want to be an airline pilot, and you chose not to chase it, then yes you will probably regret that decision to your death-bed. Im sorry to put it so bluntly but this forum, and indeed the world is filled with people who exist purely to cut you down just to make themselves feel better.

Rant over....

If you wanna be a pilot: go for it. If you don't: don't. Its that simple. But its YOUR decision.

JB

[Kyriakos]

I am currently completing my Electrical Engineering degree at the University of Arizona here in the U.S. but I believe life is short and you have to do whatever your heart and soul says.

It wasn’t until last year that I realized that becoming a pilot must not only remain a secret dream and I feel that I cannot hide my passion behind my Flight simulation software. I would love to do that for living, despite the fact that the salary at the beginning won’t be as big as an engineer’s one. But I care less about that issue, only thing that matters to me is sitting behind a real cockpit, waking up in the middle of the night for a routine flight, enjoying layovers at a cheap hotel, and even being away from my family for a couple of days. I know what it takes and I am absolutely ready for it.

[Kyriakos]

oh and for those who believe that a pilot is just responsible for monitoring a bunch of instruments, let me add to that, a pilot is also responsible for "monitoring" a multi-million piece of machinery plus 200 on-board souls....if thats not something to you then im sorry, ur in the wrong business.

[Mikehotel152]

Clanger32, Kyriakos I couldn't agree more. :ok:

I too have piloted a desk for a few years and realised that you can't go through life regretting things you haven't done. You only get one chance at life and, much the same as there's no point being the richest corpse in the graveyard, there's no sense to be found in going to work every day wishing you were doing something else. The grass isn't always greener, but it might be a shade of green that suits you more!

Any more cliches? :}

[Prophead]

'Back then, everyone would look up to you as if you had achieved the status of being a god. All eyes would be on you while walking through the airport dressed smartly, with big wings pinned to your chest, 4 gold bands on your sleeve and that distinct hat!'

If this is the reason for wanting to become a pilot then i wouldnt bother, this kind of image is one portrayed in films and is far removed from the truth. To get through the CPL/IR you need a real desire to fly not to wear a uniform.

There is a saying that airline pilots are glorified bus drivers. This is often used as an insult by non-pilots. It is true however and most pilots i know dont take it as an insult at all. I have always wanted to be a commercial pilot and would be happier flying cargo with no pax and no busy terminals. For me it has always been about the view from the cockpit, moving a huge piece of machinery around the world, and of course the actual art of flying.

This is a job remember, it has the same ups & downs of any job (no pun intended). You will hear alot of moaning on here from proffessional pilots,this is just human nature. Go to any career based forum and you will hear the same. Anyone who paid thousands to train just so they can act like the god of the sky will soon become disillusioned, but most people who do it as they love to fly would not swap it for anything else. You could always buy a pilots uniform on ebay and just walk around the terminals if thats what flots your boat.:)

My advice to anyone thinking of starting out would be to get a PPL and see if you actually enjoy flying, mess about on the flight sim even but do it realistically with one of the pmdg type add-ons (Leave the uniform in the cupboard though:ok:) then take it from there.

[cfwake]

All I would say, and I haven't read all of your post, (but it's not difficult to get the idea) is that you have to ask yourself...once all is said and done, can you happily sit doing another job for the rest of your life without regretting constantly you choice to not become a pilot? We all asked ourself that question before starting training at some point, and if the answer is no, then unfortunately you have little choice, because you'll reach a point where the desire gets the better of you and you WILL do the training. I'm only doing my I/R now and every time I get into an aeroplane the buzz I feel is unparalleled.

Jobs? There's one out there for you if you put the work in, and if you have the drive to succeed, nothing and no-one will stop you. As a friend of mine told me once, no matter what you want to do, even if you want to be the Prime Minister, if you want to do it more than anyone else, you'll do it.

Your post sounds almost like you're trying to talk yourself out of it. Well training requires everyone to take a very, very significant leap of faith at one point and you have to decide if you're going to take it or be one of the many who, when they meet one, can only muster "I always wanted to be a pilot".

There are many of them about.

[Wee Weasley Welshman]

Something you need to understand is that the these days the flying is a small part of the job of an airline pilot. I can go a whole week of flying with only 15 minutes of hands on the controls.

A much larger part of the job is a balancing act. The CAAs interests, the MELs interests, the companies commercial interests, the passengers interests, your interests, the crews interests, ATCs interests, the policemans interests, the dispatchers interests, the airports interests, the engineers interests all weigh on your shoulders on a difficult day. Balancing that lot to come up with an optimum decision isn't easy. Its cerebral. Its personal. It has nothing to do with handling an aeroplane.

Someone once said that professional flying is a good hobby spoiled.

There is a lot of truth in that.


But on a good day on a good trip with a good crew its obscene fun for obscene money.

It does beat sitting behind a desk. Even on a bad day. Follow the dream. Just do it slowly and keep your debt low as we enter a bad couple of years (sorry - couldn't resist!)


WWW

[Kyriakos]

Why bad couple of years? Share your experience.

Once, a pilot stated in the forum:
after sitting behind the cockpit i say to myself "I cant believe im getting paid for doing this"

...gigantic words...

[G SXTY]

Go on then, I'll bite.

there’s the glamour, but it’s far from what it used to be like, a couple of years ago.
No-one flies commercially because it 'glamorous'. It isn't. By the time you get a CPL/IR, any perception of glamour you once had will be long gone.

a quick read through various threads on Pprune shows that salaries are really low till one achieves the status of a Captain.
Depends what you're comparing with. UK turboprop FO - low to mid £20s, potentially £30k plus if you stick around. UK jet FO - £40k and upwards. Lower than your average barrister earns, but not exactly "really low."

Finding a job is far from easy. There are way too many inexperienced pilots in the market, all holding the minimum qualifications required. Airlines are really choosy and generally require experienced pilots not inexperienced wannabes.
Well that bit is generally true, but there are well established routes into the industry for low hours guys, such as instructing, parachute dropping, air taxi, night freight etc. There are also numerous turboprop operators who are quite happy to take 200hr pilots - and I was one of them. Lots of people seem to view a first job on anything less than a 737 / A320 as some kind of failure.

It is experienced captains that are required and not fresh pilots. The pilot shortage issue mainly deals with the shortage of experienced, type-rated pilots rather than the general CPL-IR 250hr, inexperienced pilot.
Both are required. Experienced captains are a scarcer commodity and command more money. There will never be a shortage of 200hr newly qualified pilots, and they will always be chasing a relatively small number of jobs, but that doesn't mean there are no jobs out there.

If you do find a job (lucky you!), the job security is not as good as when considering other industries. The airline may go bankrupt unexpectedly, or the next 9/11 may cause quite a few experienced pilots to be suddenly unemployed.
Indeed. You might also have mentioned the consequences of losing your class 1 medical, but in fairness there are very few 'jobs for life' these days. You'll find job insecurity in finance, trading, I.T. - it's not exclusive to aviation.

There is no luxury of choosing a company/country – if you’re offered a position in a different country or in a country you would not like to live in, it’s a take it or leave it situation.
Only for a first job, thereafter, not at all. Once you have airline experience you have great flexibility to choose a location and company that suit your preferences. Net Jets let you live pretty much anywhere in Europe. Some BA longhaul guys commute to LHR from even further afield.

The starting salaries are very low – you’d actually be better off in a finance company as a junior graduate
I don't believe that's true, but even assuming it is, so what? I used to earn much more money in shipping, but I was bored silly. Escorts earn lots of money - it doesn't mean everyone wants to do it.

Maintaining the license and class 1 medical certificate is an expensive annual cost.
Only if you're unemployed, my airline pays for mine.

Whilst being employed as a pilot, every 6 months you’re subjected to tests and exams to ensure you’re still able to fly the aircraft. Failure of such examinations may probably lead to reconsideration of your position within the airline.
Then stop right now. If you can get an IR, make it through airline selection and pass an initial type-rating, you should be able to cope with recurrent training. To put it bluntly, the (extremely rare) individuals who struggle at this level should never have got into commercial training in the first place. Get some aptitude testing if you need reassurance.

Once you’re in the job, you may not get the chance to really be with your family. Rosters are unpredictable, times vary day to day and family planning is far from easy.
That's a sweeping generalisation. Some rosters are very stable, some not so great. Personally I prefer having time off during the week and not commuting to London with millions of other worker bees. I actually get more quality time at home now than I did in my previous career.

I have come to the conclusion that it looks like the only reason to be a pilot is if one purely loves aviation and is willing to sacrifice so many other things for the dream of flying. I have the feeling that many wannabes are not completely aware of the situation in the industry and are blinded by the ‘shortage of pilots’ news, the salary and glamour of the job.
Well yes, but with respect your post suggests that your knowledge of the industry is a bit patchy.

I think that priorities should be set right… What is it that these wannabes want in life – the glamour, the money, the feeling of being surrounded by buttons, screens, switches and levers that only a professional would know how to use or is it the real thrill of flying? But then again, flying is so automated these days that is mostly a monitoring job rather than anything else! The aircraft’s FMS does all the work – select correct FL, thrust settings, speed, give ETAs…!!
I have a very nice FMS, but no autothrust, and the rudder trimmer keeps me amused for hours. Selecting the correct FL is one thing, getting the aircraft to actually acquire it is quite another. Trust me, there's plenty of piloting to be done, even with an FMS.

Of course, other jobs have their own share of stress and downsides. Some may be boring even – imagine a 9 to 5 office job! But from what I’ve concluded, after a really lengthy research, is that a junior pilot would be in a worse off position when compared to a junior graduate (in e.g. IT or Finance).
I have recently changed career. I did 15 years in shipping, 10 of them commuting to London. At first it was a decent job that paid the bills - by the end I hated it (and the lifestyle - particularly the commuting) with a passion you would not believe. I don't want to sound patronising, but I'm assuming you haven't experienced being a junior pilot or a junior graduate - you are speculating what it would be like? I have done both, and I know which I prefer.

You have sparked a very good debate agent.oen and it's to your credit that you can stand back and analyse the downsides of aviation as well as the plus points. That will stand you in very good stead if you do decide to go for it. However, you have a tendency to exaggerate those downsides, which belies a lack of experience of commercial aviation and needs correcting for the sake of other wannabes.

Only you can decide whether the good points outweigh the bad ones, but in a nutshell; if you love flying, if you have the aptitude and determination to do this, then you can succeed. The determined ones always get there in the end. My only regret about getting into flying? I wish I'd done it 10 years ago.

[Wee Weasley Welshman]

Where but PPRuNe do you get this sort of insight?

WWW

[JB007]

Another excellent and thought out post from G SXTY...it's say's it all...really well!:D

[sparx007]

at the end of the day eveyone's situation in different...personally i have a dream that i will do all i can to achieve...maybe i'm being naive BUT there will never be a time when i look back and say what if?????

I agree with alot said, both positive points and negative but ultimately you have to look at your own situation and make a decision..... as i said, for me life is short so i try to do all i want to do in life and enjoy each day....hopefully one day i'll be enjoying my days at FL35....no matter how much fun you can have on an office swivel chair, i doubt it would compare!!!!!!!

good luck with it all whichever path you embark on.

Sparx

[Rugbyears]

sparx007 - Well said, those are my sentiments exactly!

[agent.oen]

G_Sixty, thanks for the bite/gobble! The reason for the negative-ness that can be clearly sensed from my post is, I would say, a slight strategy in order to get the positive aspects shining clearly from pilots.

What I can say is that the general concept portrayed by the replies is to live your life happy, no matter what. If flying is the dream of your life, then it’s better going for it than spending the rest of your life sitting in a chair regretting never having gone for it – even if this means potentially losing Eur-60k plus annual expenses required to maintain the licenses and medical. It’s better having the ‘ticket’ to fly just in case an opportunity does happen to come by in the country you live in (if you do not wish to relocate), rather than not have the ‘ticket’ when opportunities do happen to show up.

This is the general gist I’ve observed from the post. Furthermore, although the salaries starting off may be lower than others, it is still enough to get by with…till you become the senior.

I still have the dilemma, but things are starting to be a bit more clear now. :ok:

[G SXTY]

No problem, glad to help.

Getting from zero hours to the right hand seat of something fast and shiny is a massive undertaking, it really is. Financially, mentally, emotionally, it's tough on you - and your family. It won't suit everyone, and that's no reflection on them.

I just want to see guys going into it with their eyes wide open, well briefed on the pitfalls and the benefits.

You're doing the right thing by asking the questions.

[zuluflyer]

surely if u want a rewarding career without having to pay high taxes then the middle east would be a great place to start your career in aviation with emirates or qatar. they have such good perks free house pay for your electricity bills and childrens education on top of that the usual free flights. another country would be hong kong and cathay pacific although i am not sure about the perks i just know that it is a tax free haven. however in dubai u would be on a lower salary as the perks make up for your lifestyle. just a thought for agent eon

[portsharbourflyer]

Zuluflyer;

Although Qatar have run second officers schemes in the past (though very few seem to have ever been recruited onto this) and Etihad are now runnning a cadet scheme; the middle east airlines do not recruit low time inexeperienced ex-pat pilots. Some of the airlines out there are lowering there requirements but not to the extent that those without previous multi crew time are considered.

[supramkiv]

Thought I would put my 2 cents in, was a qualified IFA with FPC's, didn't enjoy it so went to uni to gain a marketing degree and did my PPL as a hobby and never looked back, qualified with 1:1 off to Florida 2 weeks later to hour build followed by the usual hard long slog to ME/IR Fatpl.

2 weeks after MCC sent of CV's and within a month aptitude test and interview with 2 Irish co's, and 4 months later started RHS as FO. Just very lucky, good timing and put in alot of study for my 2 interviews.

Looking back now online it's the best job and the best choice I ever made, I earn a very comfortable amount of money, do less hours then most, have all expenses paid, and have alot of respect from my peers from outside the industry for the postion I hold.

My opinion is based on the fact I literally by some fate fell into this job though so please consider the reality for most. All I can say is that if you make it I cannot see any other proffesional job in the world that can match it. Good luck!

[portsharbourflyer]

2007 was an exceptionally good year for recruitment.

However I will say myself and all the colleagues I had gone through training with finally managed to get flying jobs last year. Although most of us had been waiting just three years for the break. However for every downturn there is an upturn so aslong you are prepared to sit the quiet years out with instructing (full time or part time) or some other GA activity to keep your flying active and current then you are likely to get there in the end.

I will also add although the majority of my colleagues (including myself) had gone down the instructing route; that said all the ones that opted for a self funded type rating instead of instructing had also found employment.