Originally Posted by
stephxox
What are the major difficulties in becoming a pilot?
1. Hand-eye coordination - use your trial lesson to figure out if you have got it. Some people may have all the brains in the world but can't fly straight and level!
2. Mental arithmetic - you say you have a degree in PE, any maths in that? Can you do distance/speed/time problems while under pressure. Some people have all the hand-eye coordination but no mental maths ability!
3. Deep understanding of meteorology, aircraft tech and performance - lots of studying involved.
4. Resilience - can you bounce back after a good sortie, or a failed test flight?
5. Attitude - can you get on with all types of people? If not, can you compromise and learn to make the best of a bad pairing with a difficult Captain/Ops Manager?
These represent about 0.001% of the possible difficulties in becoming a professional pilot.
I was a military pilot for 5 years, then moved to a ground-based Ops job. I didn't even attempt the CPL/ATPL exams because I had started a family and just didn't want to fly for Lyin'Air or Sleazyjet. You must prioritise according to your age, commitments and cash!