I have been flying for 37 years and am about to quit altogether. I used to love my job but not anymore.
What OvertHawk said is unfortunately correct.
I would recommend you stay where you are.
If you don't want to spend money for a CPL, there is always ultralight fun, cheap and without any of the hassle.
But the decision is yours and yours only.
Have fun
Originally Posted by
OvertHawk
There are a lot of factors here.
I love aviation, I've been in it since i was 16 and have been a pilot for 20 plus years.
I don't really enjoy my job anymore (and mine is so much better than many)... I still love aviation, but doing it for a living with the increasing administration and politics (and reality) can very quickly blunt that enjoyment.
If you want to be an airline pilot to pursue your love and passion for aviation - then think twice!
Public transport flying is now (probably rightly) a very prescriptive occupation. yes it has many challenges but probably not the ones you're looking for.
If you're imagining golden sunrises, exciting routes and the joy of flight then consider:
Getting up at 04:00; arguing with dispatchers; carrying a five figure debt into the first ten years of your career (at least); having your roster written in pencil and pushed to the limit by software designed to work you to exhaustion; dealing with passengers who are at best indifferent and consider you little more than a bus driver through to at worst aggressive and rude; Getting paid a decidedly average salary for the first decade of your career ( don't forget the debt too!). Getting to "fly" the aeroplane for 5 minutes a sector (if it's your sector)... That's just a few of the issues.
Seriously - I love aviation and i like the money I'm now (after twenty years) getting paid. Would i do it again? - that's an artificial question because no-one has hindsight. I came into it young without a strong career - i had little to lose and much to gain.
If you're asking "should I give up a strong career that I really like, working for a good company in order to start from scratch in aviation?" I would reply - "Are you off your rocker?!?!'
Keep the career stability, get a PPL and go and fly a Tiger Moth at the weekends.
Keep your home life, the potential to have a life outside work that can be predicated beyond 48 hours (and which you will be awake for most of).
It genuinely pains me to write this (and my 26 year old self would be horrified) but you're proposing giving up an awful lot for something which I don't think really exists as you perceive or hope it does.
PM me if you wish to ask more speciifics.
All the best - enjoy your flying!
OH