Originally Posted by
bananarepublic
Depends if you're in it for the money or because you want to be a pilot.
It will take you 5-7 years to earn over 60k/month if you join as a cadet. If you factor compound as well as further career promotion and pay rise with your current career then the pay gap will be massive.
I am in similar situation except I am much older (38) and with a slightly higher monthly salary, and a mortgage, and a wife.
Been reading every thread on this forum trying to look for something positive, obviously in vain. It's depressing to see that how a once internationally renowned airlines that represents my home town has reduced to something like a LCC and staff are generally disgruntled and depressed. I understand the negativity and hostility and I truly wish thatbtjings will improve for every CX/KA/UO pilots, as well as cabin crew and ground staff.
Flying is my dream but sadly I have not been able to afford the cost and the time to get my own licenses, so cadet is really my way out...Taking the time off for a PPL and working all the way up along the DESO path is a practical impossibility. When HR called I was happy for a short moment and I thought that it could work by selling my home and using my saving to grind through the 55ish weeks of training in FTA, I was being totally naive, because things are just getting worse. The new training package is absolutely difficult even for someone with zero financial burden. I did the simple math and came to the conclusion that if I ever made it to FO, I will be in my mid 40s, without a property and probably a few hundred bucks left in my saving account, as well as an angry wife. It appears to me that the cadet programme is for young lads who are well off and do not have much responsibilities. I feel sorry for myself for not having done better when I first applied years ago - when cx was at a better position. Meanwhile, I also feel extremely sorry for my friends in aviation because most of them are a thousand times smarter than I am, and they have been very supportive and helpful throughout my application process. But yet a majority of them are suffering from the aftermath of the pandemic and consequences of mismanagement.
A word of advice to the inspiring ones, althought I am not a pilot, go for it if you are young or if you don't have a family to support or a mortgage to pay off. Don't hold back in chasing after your dream. Otherwise, for those who are in similar position as I am, just accept the fact that your ship has sailed, because it wouldn't work for you unless you have a few millions dollars in your saving account at your disposal.