Aeronautical Engineer: Should I fly?

[raafhornet]

I'd appreciate anyones suggestions here. I have a good chance with a certain cadetship at the moment but this will put me in debt of about AU$80000.

I am just about to graduate from my degree (Aeronautical Engineering). I have always wanted to be a pilot but some people tell me I shouldn't go that path at all because I'm over qualified. But that doesn't really affect me because it is what I want to do. I'm just not sure whether this cadetship is the right path to take considering the large cost. I will also be stuck to the company for five years with a starting salary of about AU$45000 a year.

I actually feel quite confident with going through with this cadetship but a few people close to me reckon I shouldn't.

I have to make my decision soon too. Any thoughts?

[matkat]

Go for it, you will only regret it as I know I have, now at aged 50 I do have the money to do it but with several ailments and retirement looming I won"t bother now but as I said I wish I had in my earlier days and like you I am also an engineer.

[An2]

raafhornet,
Will you be able to finish off your engineering degree before you start the flight-training? Or could you do it afterwards, perhaps?!
My point being, that it is always a good idea to have two legs to stand on, and that there will "always" be a demand for engineers.
Things can take a turn for the worst and you could (for example) loose your medical, and that's when your "other leg" kicks in!;)

Either way,.....good luck to you!!:ok:

[sgt_bilko]

I often wonder how a potential (engineering) employer will view an engineering degree were you to lose your medical after 10+ years as an airline pilot...

Surely you wouldn't have what they would regard as "relevant work experience" in those 10 years and it would have been a long time since you had graduated? Surely a graduate engineer fresh out of university with an industrial placement would be a much better choice for an employer?


With regards to the original post, is it the cost which worries you? Perhaps it would be a good idea to work out how long it will take to pay off the debt with that salary/how much you will be taking home every month after loan repayments?

[lovezzin]

Join my club! Exactly the same situation as you. You wan't to be a pilot; you're forced into University so you study pretty much the closest thing to aircraft you can. Luckily for me I managed to graduate in Aeronautical Engineering in 2007 but many dont! So for those reading this i shall repeat as many have said before, study what you're good at and enjoy not what you think will look best on you're CV. Aeronautical Engineering is probably one of the most difficult Degree courses to take.

As for this thread, I believe we are in a similar situation (or what i was almost 2 years ago). My plan was to go into Industry and exercise my degree a little, gain some experience and have a good fall-back! Now the industry is as it stands, it looks like I'm going to be working in industry for another year or two atleast. I work for a major Aircraft manufacturer (albeit rotary wing :P) and YES it is a kick in the balls everytime an aircraft takes off outside my office window or comes in and lands.

I would like to think i did the sensible thing (especially in current times) but as more time floats by I do question my decision; I'm definately not getting any younger!!! As for your comment about being over-qualified, I don't believe you are, most pilots (in fact, most of the general public) have degrees now so it's not exactly unique. You've learnt why an aircraft flies (sure, pilots learn the very top-level basics) you just need to learn how to fly the aircraft!

Sorry i didnt help with your decision making, but just thought i would share with you what I did as i felt our situations were so similar (except I'm British and you're Australian!)

Good luck and remember to chase the dream and not the competition.

[Aerocadet]

Can't you fly at a local school during your free time from work?

I am also like you, I'm a graduating Aero Engineering student here in Asia.

Good luck! :ok:

[lovezzin]

Aerocadet: i believe I could but I don't get too much free-time from work, or atleast definately not during the week. To be honest, I'm a little bit worried about getting my PPL (or working towards it) as when i do eventually start my dream, I definately want 100% to go integrated and all schemes start from ab-initio and some even disqualify you if you hold a PPL I believe.

But you're right, I should service my thirst along the route, Hell, even my graduate (same company) housemate is atleast micro-lighting! I also dont have much spare-cash as I'm still recovering from Uni and I'm only on a graduate salary of £25.5k.

Off-Topic but you're from Manila, pretty cool My parents live there at the moment as part of the Diplomatic staff at the British Embassy!

[Sinbad_633]

You won't be the first one. I studied aero engineering at university and then worked as an aerodynamicist for six years. I considered starting training straight after university but I graduated in 2001, so the opportunities dried up over night. I got a good job with a major aircraft manufacturer so I was pretty pleased with my lot considering. Still always wanted to fly though and I was getting pretty bored with my job and needed a challenge so I just went and did it. I owe the bank quite a bit of cash but now I spend my days in the right hand seat bombing around the UK. Haven't regretted it for a second. Having the aero engineering background made the ground school a lot easier too. Just finish your degree first, get a job and put some cash away. Wait for a good time in the industry to start the training with a bit of money to chuck towards it.

[lovezzin]

thanks sinbad! quite inspiring actually! hopefully I can do the same as you soon.....just the patience side i need to work on!

[P1-FTE]

Just the same comments as most of the above, but I graduated with an Aerospace Engineering degree 12 years ago now (blimey!) and have just got my CPL and IR.

It took me longer to do this than I originally planned, but that’s the choices I made along the way, and I've had a great time in engineering and been and seen things that beat even being an airline pilot!

Make sure you get the degree first, as then at least you have a good qualification in a specialist field that is related to what you want to do and its a small enough field to make your qualification always desired by companies.

It also helps a lot with ground school and I think with the flying as well as you know a bit more about "the why" when you move the control column etc.

If you are young enough then get a few years in engineering, pays for flying as well and then you can still go for the cadetships at a later date. Its a good back up plan if your medical does fail etc.

Hope this helps!

[Another TD]

Not quite the same situation as you but as an LAE with a big airline I feel disappointed with myself for not continuing my flight training (I have a CPL but no IR). My job is interesting with lots to learn even after 20 years but the underlining desire to sit in the RHS has not diminished in fact it has resurfaced with even more vigour at the age of 46. So my point is do not stop training because the desire will not go away if you have a true passion for aviation...you will regret it. Many pilots are graduates but the type technical training is not graduate level so maybe that’s what was meant by being over qualified. Having said that you do need to be smart.

[meesta_ree]

I went flying after my engineering degree. Its one of those things you have to do in life and you'll kick yourself if you don't later on. Though I would consider doing a few hours before taking on cadetships, just to be that little more sure of yourself. Also, from experience, do your research and do it well, its a pretty big and expensive choice to make, i spent nearly a year choosing my route. Also no, you won't be over qualified...the extra knowledge will help with the ground exams in some areas...

[gliderone]

#1

On my course at a large integrated school:

3 x Aeronautical Engineering new graduates
1 x Aviation studies new graduate
2 x Mechanical engineering graduates
2 x ex-engineering graduate employees of Airbus (about 15 years experience between them!)

Everyone left engineering for the same reason, largely because that wasn't where we wanted to be in the first place! Go for it, you only get one chance. We also all found the engineering helped during groundschool, if for no other reason than you are used to studying hard!

Good luck mate!

[raafhornet]

Thanks for the replies. I see a lot of people have been in this situation before. I'm glad I came to this forum now because I feel a little more confident of making the decision to fly. I'm going to talk to a flight school and do a lesson with them this Saturday (which would be my 4th all up). Even one lesson really hurts my budget. I'm putting myself through uni so it's not easy saving up for it! The lessons should help with my decision making but I think that decision has pretty much been made.

I really liked this line "and YES it is a kick in the balls everytime an aircraft takes off outside my office window or comes in and lands". I can imagine that feeling!

[Abagnale]

Let me get it straight:
You haven't finished your degree yet,right?Then you get sponsorship for your flight training in the environment where qualified people lose their jobs every day and you think,or somebody told that you were overqualified for the job? My answer is-NO,flying is not for you...You know why?First of all,engineering degree won't make u a better pilot,if you ever become one,there's nothing common between engineering and flying an airplane,I have a computer engineering degree and it didn't help me through my training.Secondly,you cannot analyze facts; if I were you back in the days and somebody would have propesed me to pay for my training even if I would have to fly cessna 150 for the next 10 years paying it back,I wouldn't even think about it,I would say yes,because that was my dream and that is my dream career at the moment,there's nothing else I'm interested in as much as in flying an airplane...I think you should stay on the ground.Don't get me wrong,you'll have a better salary,T and C,better life after all,staying on the ground;because you're simply not ready to sacrifice anything,you want to gain profit without any investments,it just doesn't work this way :ugh::ugh::ugh::ugh::ugh:

[airbandit]

Correct me if I am wrong, I believe there is one more opportunity for you. If you finnish Aeronautical Engineering maybe you are almost eligible for Flight Engineer seat?
Of course there are a not many positions for such job, however, worth to try, because you would gain experience, fun and money towards pilot seat :)

[Abagnale]

2 Lovezzin:
An engineer is a person who uses scientifical knowledge to solve PRACTICAL problems...In my point of view an engineer is a person who can do something with his hands and not only discuss about the theoretical matters.Young man didn't finish his degree yet,and even when he will he won't become an engineer,because engineering requires many years of practice,aswell as I do not consider myself an engineer,because I didn't gain enough experience to solve ANY practical problems,but it payed my CPL,I never liked it and never tell anybody about it,but that was my only option at the time being.Anyway I worked very hard to get where I am now,so you can't call me uneducated ..But that's not the point...Young man doesn't have to take money from his own pocket and pay for his trayning and he is still asking here on this forum if it's worth or not.Simply,young man doesn't really want to fly,that's my opinion.

[raafhornet]

I just replied to you Abagnale but then deleted my message coz I felt I was too long winded.

We were not in the same positions. Firstly, my degree is much more related to aviation --> which is the industry I am greatly interested in. I love aircraft and have always wanted to fly but I couldn't afford to go straight to flight school so I studied Aeronautical Engineering. But now this degree could allow me a number of options unavailable to someone just out of high school applying for a cadetship that may earn more and still satisfy that love of aircraft I have.

In reality though I don't believe it will (satisfy my desire to be on aircraft, look at aircraft, fly aircraft, think about aircraft etc.) which is why I have been looking and applying for flying opportunities such as cadetships to the extent that I have had an interview and had a what looks like a positive result so far.

Congratulations on paying your way through flight school but there's no need to get all bitter about it.

And my name is Raafhornet. Not 'Youngman'.. sheesh..

[lovezzin]

Exactly. If you dont get to fly what you love, atleast you get to work with what you love even if it is, like i said A KICK IN THE BALLS!

Abagnale, Our degrees are worth something, I expect i know more theory about why the aircraft you are sitting in right now flies than you do now even with your licenses and you are actually flying the thing. Therefore I believe once i get to your level in regards to licenses, disregarding RAW flying skill apltitude (as we can't change that) I believe doing my degree would make me a 'better' pilot than you in a sense...

But then are we talking "better" in terms of how we perform the job (which in this case, the Degree wont help too much) or do we mean "better" in being the best that we can possibly be as a pilot...

Im not calling you uneducated as you clearly are. Just educated in the wrong thing :8

[Abagnale]

2 lovezzin:
Here we go again.You haven't got your license yet,but you think you'll make a good pilot.The knowledge about how airplane flies doesn't end with ATPL theory,haven't you thought about it?ATPL theory is the minimum requirement,but you can go further than that and you payed a lot of money for the degree which you'll never use,while I got more complex understanding of subjects just reading books from internet free of charge.Can you feel the difference?To be a better pilot,you should first become one ,I've seen thousands of people like you,who do not respect anything or anybody around them.And,by the way,I speak four different languages and English is not even my second one,so I know it's far from perfect,but it doesn't give right to a 20 year old wannabe to judge about the level of my education.And I'm sure everything that you've achieved so far (or have you achieved anything?) is thanks to your mom and dad,who are ready to pay for anything you wish.Sorry,that's not the type of people I usually shake hands with.:hmm:

[cheif]

Interesting thread!

Having worked as a Licensed A/C engineer for 6 years, and just started flying last year, I always wanted to go back to college and get a degree in Mechanical Engineering.

Kind of hoping when I'm more experienced I could choose to fly in the summers and alternate week-ends in the winter to allow me to attend a full time college course, and still keep an income.

I guess I'm a bit backwards to you guys.

Anyone interested in swapping used atpl and type notes for Mech. Eng. textbooks? Lol

[lovezzin]

Abagnale: I never suggested I would make a great pilot in my own right, the point I was trying to make (albeit a little abstract) is that I couldnt agree with you writing off an Engineering Degree as being unhelpful; especially when you have no understanding of what a real Engineering degee involves.

Good job on using google to read up on subjects you wish to learn more about.

Im not going to even respond to your comments regarding my lack of respect for people/things around me as you have absolutely no idea who i really am, nor what I'm like. Besides, i would gain nothing from it (apart from a big fat hard-on). And more to the point, even if what I have acheived has been thanks to my parents, whats the problem in that? Im sorry your parents didnt do the same for you way back in the day...Sour Grapes.

You speak 4 languages! good on you, but bear in mind wookie language and dalek impressions don't count as real languages.

[Abagnale]

2 lovezzin:
You are a typical arrogant young man who thinks he knows everything...So my degree is not a degree at all,languages I speak are just dialects (I didn't even write which languages I speak,but trust me they're completely different and haven't got anything in common) and my extra knowledge is just info I get from google,when I type 'how does the airplane flies'...So you think the only REAL engineers are just aeronautical engineers,the rest are a bunch of trade school graduates...My friend,with this attitude you shouldn't even try to become a pilot,because you won't succeed...Meanwhile I'm enjoying my job which I DESERVED and you're just moaning about extra knowledge that my help you,just go and ask your mom and dad they might buy your way into right hand seat of a shiny jet,BUT if by any chance I'm going to ocuppy the left-hand seat of the same jet,I'll make your life very miserable and you will hate your job and people like me are majority in this business so think about it :ok: