Bug,
I have been flying for over 35 years and don't regret it as a career choice, I get to meet some fabulous people, seen most of the world and still enjoy the actual flying.
I have been through all the downturns and seen all the changes in our industry, some for the better, some for the worse.
Flying itself is fabulous, and I am lucky that our side of the industry still enjoys good T&C's, ours have gotten better over the years, while the airline side has gone down.
This downturn in the terms and conditions was in part caused by the crisis in 08, but it has accelerated by the inflow of P2F candidates, now the airlines are very comfortable in using that scam to help their bottom line.
This does not mean that it is the only route into aviation, it has however to many with a bit of money the appearance of the easiest and quickest.
Taken aside the fact that you will end up with a huge debt that will take you 15-20 years to pay back, on a salary that has been significantly reduced, you also run the very high risk that after your first stint as flexi crew you become unemployable.
There are still so many other ways into aviation beside the CTC scheme and the likes, however it has become more and more of a struggle to make it as a career choice.
Going what many here call Modular is far cheaper and carries a far smaller risk of ending up as a failure. The US route is still available to get experience as a flight instructor, as is working at a club here in the UK, then move into Turboprops or regional airliners and work your way up to the airlines, you may actually find along the way that the airlines are not for you, it wasn't a career path I ever contemplated.
Keep asking around, just don't go jumping in at the deep end right away.
Last edited by cldrvr; 26th Feb 2013 at 17:26.