It is sad that profession came to this when you consider the amount of skill and knowledge you need to be a pilot and then you end up paying to fly as well.
I am so glad that forums like this exist and you can talk to others in similar situation.
Being in my forties is not going to help with job search either so I will definitely stick to CPL and maybe part time instructing to keep my flying skills. Unless someone on this forum could advise that I am wrong and CPL/IR/ME 40 year old chap is employable without having to buy type ratings or Ryanairs pyramid schemes etc.?
To be frank, being only small time pilot and successful in another profession but probably a bit naive for airline industry, I cant believe it is legal to employ people and make them pay to work. Soon there will be a scheme where pilots will pay for passenger tickets as well so airlines can attract more customers . Maybe we could all brainstorm on how airline managements can make more money out of us ...