Dartman, a Captain with an airline like Virgin or even a smaller airline like Alliance is earning quite sufficient for these times. Not as much as a lawyer or a dentist or possibly a truck driver in the mines, but I know where I would rather be. If someone can"t live in an Australian coastal city on upwards of $130k, they must have expensive tastes in drugs. The time from starting out in GA to the left seat in one of these jets could be 10 to 12 years, but how long does it take in the other professions to tap into the good money? Not that much less, I surmise.
Given the choice of most other occupations, if I had my time again I would still go the airline path.