Listen mate, you sound like you've got your head screwed on the right way, with a backup plan in hand in case it all goes Pete Tong, so just do it !
I'm in the same boat as you, 36, well-paid job in IT, except it's as dull as ditchwater ! I've wanted to fly since I was a kid, but due to family and life circumstances, I only now earn enough to pay for it.
I might not get a job, I might blow 35 to 40k, but at least I can say I tried before I have go back to building Windows 2003 servers ! !
I can fall back on my IT skills if it all goes pear-shaped (if they haven't outsourced the UK to India by that time !), but I'm banking on a turnaround in the US economy and an upsurge in pilot demand at a time when a lot of guys and gals will have been put off by the doom and gloom merchants. I appreciate it's a long shot, but it's a shot you and I have got to take!
Good luck m8
