I've only been employed for about a year, but i've already started making alternative plans for the future. In fact, the airline i work for has had to restrict the number of people permitted to work part-time since so many have started taking classes on the side.
There are two possibilities i'm pursuing atm. I'm fortunate enough to have a bachelor degree, and my plan is to take classes to get an MBA. Being a pilot is a very specialized skill, and a very tough one to transfer to a different industry. ATC has been mentioned, which would seem like an easy transition when considering which skills you possess. We're also trained to be very safety-minded people, in quite a different way than "normal" people, and i believe this is a skill that would be quite valuable in other high-risk industries. The oil industry comes to mind, and with a degree in HR you'd probably fit in quite well. I even heard of one retired pilot who got a job at an oil company traveling around the world and checking out the various airlines that the company used to transport its employees.
My other option is to get an MBA and apply for a nice desk job, working weekdays and enjoying weekends and holidays with friends and family. I'm thinking that if i can't fly anymore (due to the never-ending downwards spiral of our industry), i don't want to have anything to do with the aviation industry. There are plenty of decent jobs out there which allows you to have a normal life, a normal sleeping pattern, and even summer holidays!
Good luck to you.
