In my thirties, a well-paid job, no family to tow, a dream of flying... That's where I was twenty years ago. And without all those aviation forums, all I heard was the "pilot shortage" flying school song... By the time I got my CPL, I decided that I didn't like the way this industry was luring low-timers into paying even more ratings, into doing those unpaid "ground internships", and so on, so I gave up.
Five non-flying years later, still a low-timer, I tried my luck with my own chopper and my own sightseeing business, under someone else's AOC. Two years with mixed results, I gained valuable experience and I did not lose too much money when I broke this suboptimal partnering, sold the ship and stopped flying again.
10 years later, as my flying non-career is now mostly behind me, I consider myself lucky: I can afford to fly my own helicopter privately, I fly whenever/wherever I want, I can --should refrain from-- brag about being "a helicopter pilot", and, guess what, I am still dreaming of an unlikely upturn in the industry and a possible flying career!
... While few high-timers are still dreaming...
Last edited by Petit-Lion; 13th Aug 2021 at 20:39.
Reason: spelling