AviatorDownunder,
Without knowing your full situation, or meaning to be accusatory, you seem to be a fantastic example of why so many in the industry warn against jumping into cadetships or 'accelerated' airline pilot programs, aimed at those blinded by SJS (shiny jet syndrome
)
It does sound from your posts that you are the victim of a change of heart, and a few extra years of wisdom, seeing that certain things may not be all they are cracked up to be.
Ultimately, in this industry, there is nothing like 'owning' your qualifications, and having them backed up with a few years of experience in the school of hard knocks that is G.A.
You should be a shining example to all of those, busting their arses up north, flying burnt out ****eboxes and wondering WHY?!?!?
; that while you may question it now, ultimately, what you are doing will pay off in the long term.
If airline flying is for you, great, scaring the crap out of yourself a few times in GA will help to make you a better addition to any airlines roster. If airlines turn out to not be what you expected, well, then you have the experience to make a choice to go back and find one of those more adventurous careers that are slowly becoming as rewarding financially as they are for the aviation nerd in you!
As it turns out, as frustrating as my time in GA could be sometimes, I wouldn't give back a second of it. You couldn't buy the life I lived up north during those years. They are some of the best years of my life and I'm sure many others feel the same.
If you feel that you wish to return to exciting flying (and if you aren't genetically blessed enough to have the eyesight and body size for the military, then that means GA), I would recommend converting your qualifications, and getting an instructors rating with a school that will attempt to give you the experience to at least get you to a grade 2 rating.
Instructing might not be glamorous, but As someone who's been an Airline pilot you would be an excellent mentor to people coming up through the ranks. Able to give an experienced perspective to a flying schools students (and perhaps fellow instructors
), on the realities of airline life, and provide an alternative opinion on other career options for pilots in this country.
As the subject matter of this thread indicates, the opportunities are out there, but you'll probably have to take a backward step or two to start climbing the ladder again.