Career Advice from current pilots..?
Hi Guys,
Like many people who find themselves in this forum, i am a young aspiring commercial airline pilot. Since as long as i can remember it has been my dream to become a pilot, and my passion to do this has never weakened. I am now reaching the end of my university degree and starting to look at my options in transforming my dream into reality. (Looking at OAA to be precise.)
Now i know this post is like many others in this forum, but ever since i have been regularly reading through the many posts, there seems to be an overwhelming amount of negative views and attitude toward the profession from current airline pilots working in the industry.
At the moment i find myself in quite an anxious state of mind, knowing that almost all airline pilots in the sky today started off with enthusiasm and passion just like me, but now seem to have a very different opinion of the airline industry.
So i am asking the following simple questions to any airline pilot in this forum who is currently working, to try and get a clear informed view of the industry (Please could ONLY pilots respond to this post, just to enable me and any other interested reader get a genuine feel for the opinions of pilots who are there doing the job right now)
- Have you lost enthusiasm for your career, if so why?
- What genuine advice would you give to someone in my position, knowing what you know now about the industry?
- Is the profession different to how you expected?
- Would you say you are happy in your career, or given the chance to start again would you take a different route in your career?
I understand some people may think these questions are a little strange, but i want to get a realistic idea of the profession from those who are actually doing it. We all know it’s a hugely expensive and intense career route to take, with plenty of job insecurity and hard work. And we all know that whatever job you do there is always going to be times where you don’t like it. So please don’t mention these factors in answering. I guess what I’m looking for is an informed opinion of the profession from current airline pilots.
Thanks for your time
G