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Old 14th Apr 2013, 18:44
  #295 (permalink)  
RemoveB4Flght
 
Join Date: Jun 2008
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When I was in new hire for my first airline job in my mid twenties, there was a fellow colleague who was in his early forties. He had left a career in finance to do what he had always wanted, so it's never "too late"

I don't think you're too old, but you should be realistic about the economic impact of the next ten years of your life. You need to cover the costs of training through at least CFI instrument, you can do the MEI later. You need to find a job that you can build the requisite 1500 hours towards your ATP. This is most likely 1 year for training (can be done in 6 months), and 2-4 years of instructing, flying small cargo, scenic flights, flying skydivers, etc. Multi time may be forgiven as regional airlines struggle a bit to find ATP rated pilots, but that can change as well.

Speaking of regionals, you are looking between 3 to 10 years of flying as a first officer. The first few years are tough both personally and financially, as 20 grand a year is tough to live on.

With a bit of luck, and some smart moves, you could be a regional airline captain in the next 8 to 10 years and fly to retirement making a respectable income, but you'll never get rich doing it.

A first officer spot at a major is also a possibility, but you'll be close to or past 50 at that point, and may not want to give up the perks of seniority (holidays off, choice of schedule/vacation, etc.) just to spend a few years sitting on reserve on the bigger iron.

Whatever you do, do your homework, make good training and career decisions, and be very sure this is what you want before you commit the time and money.
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