I finished my CPL/IR about 9 years ago. At that time the industry was in a much deeper recession than now, and in all it took me the best part of 4 years to get my first job. And that was at a parachute club for £120 per week (before about £55 of deductions) to be treated like **** and all that routine.
But the line that 'you've got to be in it to win it' will always be true. Within 3 months of living in squalor in Kent I got an interview to go and do some proper flying. I am now with a UK regional, and very happy indeed. I will never forget the stress, the cr@p jobs I took so that I would have minimum notice to give on the off chance that Dickie Branson recognised my potential and bothered to pick up the phone (he still hasn't), and the tears and broken relationships that were all attributale to my stuboness to give in.
And was it worth it? I am sorry to all those to whom I was rude and intolerant and all that, and eternally grateful to those who supported me emotionally and finacially. And eternally endebted to them. Yes, it was worth it: and I think all those who are close to me would agree, and I know that hey are chuffed for me.
There are a few guys who recently joined our company who I heard moaning that they'd had to wait 3 or 4 months to get their first job. I thought 'Boo hoo. You don't know how lucky you are.' And they don't. And I am dead chuffed for them. That's the way it should be.
To all of you that don't have their luck, stick at it. Take those ****ty jobs, go back to your old industry, keep applying, keep phoning, go and visit the airlines that you want to work for, be realistic. You will not get the right seat in a 747-400 as your first type, but you might get an F27 doing night freight or something.
This is just the best industry to work in, everyone has a tale to tell. Just take this opportunity to make yours one of harder hardship and worse deprivation than mine, and I'll see you on the seniority list...