One9iner
I read your posts with interest. I can certainly sympathise with your position. Several years ago I was hunting around the big schools, FTE, CTC and Oxford trying to weigh the risks and the benefits of training. To be honest, even back then (late 2005) I felt that taking on the flight training loan and going for it was a huge huge risk - as did everyone else. It gave me sleepless nights. Not everyone was getting employment straight away (far from it), the threat of failing the CPL/IR or not being recommended by the school weighed heavily on most peoples minds. The holy grail of the first airline interview was still very elusive even during the relatively "bouyant" times of the recent past. Indeed, several of my course mates (course of 12) are still unemployed today, years after we finished training.
I make this point because that was then, those were the good times. Starting an integrated ATPL now and taking on that debt with the aviation industry in its current state of turmoil reallly is a terrible grass roots business decision. Strip out all the emotion involved (ie the burning desire to get flying as soon as humanly possible) and most level headed people would come to the same conclusion. Put the dream on hold for a while and do something else. Thats not the same as giving up on it. This is what my brother is doing who has recently graduated from uni and is desperate to fly. He's sensible enough to see that in 14 to 15 months time when he gets kicked out from an FTO with his licences and ratings, there will be no jobs going (or at least no jobs which provide an adaquate return on his investment of £70-80k). Its just my personal opinion, but I think paying that amount of money to train to only be rewarded with a holding pool number, or, if you're lucky, 6 months on £1000/month, is the most appalling deal. If that is the most you have to look forward to, how can now possibly be justified as the right time to start training?
On the flip side, it is easy for me to say this because I have a relatively secure RHS jet job. With that in mind I can tell you a couple of useful things. While it is a fantastic job (in terms of the actual flying)... after a couple of years of doing it, you really gotta believe that it does become a JOB. The adrenalin doesn't pump quite so readily anymore at 4am heading off to tenerife. The constant grind of shift work, missed social events and the company constantly trying to peck away at your terms and conditions becomes fatiguing in itself. I'm happy to do it because I'm being paid a good salary on a permanent contract. If I was on £1000/month with no benefits, working as hard as I work now, I would feel sick to my very core. I am paying back £1150/month and will be until around 2015...and even on a full SFO salary, its not like I'm throwing money around.
Ultimately as you quite rightly say, it is a personal decision. In many ways it is grossly unfair of me to sit here trying to dissuade you from chasing your dream as you have just as much right to it as I ever had. The only reason I chose to post is because I have met many many CTC cadets at work, all of whom are genuinely lovely guys and they are being totally screwed over. I fear the same fate awaits you.
Remember, just because you can "afford" to live as an unemployed pilot paying back the loan and stacking shelves...do you willingly want to put yourself in to that position? I just hope you realize that the 'Plan B' you speak of is effectively going to be your 'Plan A', in the short term at least.
Good luck whatever you decide.
V2