Can a poor man become a commercial airline pilot?

[cburna]

Hi,

I am a student about to graduate from uni next year. I am already in debt from my uni fees so how do I go about becoming a commercial airline pilot with no money?

I have concluded that I wouldn't be able to afford flight school, even if the bank gave me a loan and airline sponsorships are very rare so this has steered me towards pursing a military career as a pilot.

So I pose the question:

Can a poor man become a commercial pilot? (Other than military route)

Thanks

[PA28R]

i am in same situation like yours, if you really want to fly especially in this economy..you should start looking for an airlines who are accepting cadets from overseas countries..most of them are in middle east or get accepted in flying school who have airline affilations where they gurantee job interviews. if all these fail join healthcare program which is more stable and good money.:rolleyes:

[Artificial Horizon]

Yes of course a poor man can become a commercial pilot. It is just that as a poor man you can't go to Oxford Aviation and pay £70,000 up front for a 13 month course!! I left school with no qualifications and didn't want to pursue the military option so got myself a job as a mailroom boy, not earning a lot. I asked my parents to let me stay at home with no 'board' until I gained my CPL/IR and then spent the next 4 years flying 1-2 hours per week spending atleast 2/3 of my weekly pay on flying related stuff. I never had to get money from my parents or any huge loans. So becoming a commercial pilot is an option for anyone unless of course this sort of route is very hard work but certainly does test your commitment.:}

[cburna]

Artificial horizon, are you flying commercially?

[Artificial Horizon]

Yes, two years Instructing, two years turboprops and now with a very large carrier having just moved from A320's to 777's. No time like the present, just crack on.

[redsnail]

Yes it is possible.
If you've just graduated then get a job. I know that sounds a bit obvious but that's the first step.

Firstly, do a class 1 medical to see if you can get one. (or go to the CAA website and find out the requirements. Gotchas include nasty asthma, diabetes, colour blindness or bad eyes - you should be young enough not to have to be worrying about high blood pressure, obesity etc)

Work out a budget that's do-able.
You'll need to factor in rent (if you can't live at home), consumables, "play" money and your loan repayment.
Consider a "pay as you go" phone versus a contract.
If you must have a credit card, keep the limit as low as possible & pay it off every month.
See what's left over. Squirrel it away into an account that penalises you for lots of withdrawals.

Nuke your student loans is your first objective.
Once you have your loans under control & you have some cash in your "flying account" begin flight training.

You can start with the theory etc and get a PPL.
Continue working & studying for the rest of the exams and licenses.

Do's and Don'ts summary.

Do research the "hows" thoroughly. This site is a good start.
Do get a medical or at least the above items checked.
Do spend a long time pouring over LASORs on the CAA website.
Don't rush into this game without thinking.
Don't get a massive debt for flying.
Do keep your debt & costs manageable to give you freedom to pause your training or to go any where in the world for that first job.
Do visit airfields to get a feel for the environment.
Do keep positive. It is possible to do it all part time & be successful.

[White Otter]

Yeah I'm currently doing what Artificial Horizon used to do. Just get a job that lets you pay to fly as often as possible. Also look for jobs where you can learn things such as working in teams, making difficult choices, etc so you can say you have experience when you go for that airline interview. I'd say that an airline would probably be much more impressed with somebody who has pursued their goals through difficulties like this as well, so look on the bright side.:ok:

[Vems]

Yes. Yes. Yes.

If you work hard, study hard, you'll get there ;)

Just go modular.. please. Integrated costs.. can kill!

[kilafaki]

Can a poor man become a commercial airline pilot?

The answer is yes

Should a poor man become a commercial airline pilot?

Probably not, how would you pay the airline that hires you?:ugh:

[Absolutely Fabulous]

Methinks you're a bit confused..........

its more like if you want to be poor man, you should become a commercial airline pilot :}

[corsair]

I'll add to the chorus of yes's. 'I started with nothing and I still have most of it.' It can be done but it takes longer and requires a lot more dedication. I know I went through it. I made a royal shambles of it but follow Redsnail's advice and you won't go wrong.

Realistically, you have to borrow money and the best way of doing that is to earn plenty of it in some job or other. Things like, relationships, social life, new clothes, holidays, cars take a poor second to flying.

One of the ironies of becoming a pilot if you don't have money is that you must become relatively successful at some other job or career in order to pay for it. Thus only the most motivated succeed. If you want good examples of that. Buy Pilot magazine for April. There is an article featuring pilots who often went from high paying jobs to low paying flying jobs.

Eventually the pay situation comes good when you get a decent airline job, most of the time.

[2 Whites 2 Reds]

Cburna.....

As many wiser men/women than me have said above.....YES! It will take a huge amount of dedication and hard work whichever route you go down but the part time option is extremely testing. Also, something that doesn't often get fully considered is the implications for your girlfriend/family/friends. The training can very subtly take over everything so my advice would be to save well in advance and clear down as much debt as possible beforehand and make time for a social life whilst training. Success isn't much fun if there's no one to share it with. As you probably know, the job's market is awful at the moment so there's no rush....take your time and enjoy the training!

Bets of luck fella.

[okees]

When you guys say go modular, what do you mean by that?

Thanks

[Captain_Scooby]

I realise this is slightly off-topic, but if I may, I'd like to highly recommend getting a credit card that pays cashback, and putting all your training on it. There are about 5 cards that pay cashback, and the top paying one gives you something like 4% back. On £30,000-£40,000 worth of training, that's a lot of money, just for putting it all through the card. All you need to do is pay off the card as soon as you can (I used to pay it off as soon as it appeared on the account, i.e. within about 3 days), and you won't pay a penny in interest!

I'd also like to add that someone mentioned above about paying off your student loan asap. I disagree with this.... it's the lowest rate loan you'll ever get (other than from the folks!), and I'd say forget it about it for now. You can pay it off when you're earning enough to not feel the pinch!

As per your original question, I think it's quite possible.... you just need to do things a little differently, e.g. instead of paying to hourbuild, I blagged a job glider-towing, and that was 300 hours in my logbook, all for the cost of a room in the local YMCA during Summer! All in all, from starting my PPL to finishing my IR took 6 years, and I've really quite enjoyed the journey!

[quant]

yes a poor man can ;)

[pilotmike]

It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a poor man to enter into the kingdom of Commercial Aviation.
Matt 19:24

[PAPI-74]

Try GAPAN and see if they can get you started

[Adios]

Yes, a poor man can become a commercial pilot. A rich man can also become poor trying to become a commercial pilot! And a very rich man can become poor by starting an airline.

[Rj111]

Welcome to the biggest employer's market in the world. It will cost you 40k to be eligable for a job which doesn't exist. :8

[NorthRider]

A commercial pilot can easily become a poor man :}

[corsair]

Don't worry okees, it doesn't apply in Canada. See the stickies.

[captain_overspeed]

No. Because of today's economy. Unless you startup a multi-million dollar e-commerce deal, or win the lottery. Scholarships are out there too, but for little boys and girls in high school thru college.

Try to get a loan. ATP might loan you with some sh:mad:tty rate since they're desperate to keep desperate wannabe pilots in their school.

I'm going for the e-commerce deal to pay my way.

[tom_ace]

There are a couple of cadetships about, you won't start off flying anything particularly shiny, but it's a great way to get your foot in the door.

[tropicalfridge]

You'll need at least £50k to get what you need, and this is a lot of money whoever you are.

You'll need either a big loan from someone or a well paid job to allow you to save up. The option of borrowing from a bank on the risk of getting an airline job at the end which would allow you to pay off the loan is no longer viable. So a poor man can not become as professional pilot, and it remains an elitest profession. If someone ever researched this they would find that airline pilots largely come from middle class backgrounds, and many integrated students are bankrolled by daddy. There's simply no other legal way is your around 20 years old.

However as has already been said, if you set your sights on it and gear everything you do towards it, it can be done.

[lpokijuhyt]

You need to look at this industry with some realism. DON'T become a professional pilot. Make money doing something else and if you really love flying that much then buy a plane and do it as a hobby (it will be cheaper, honestly!) This industry is in the toilet thanks to airlines like Ryanair. They are set the standard for pay for training, no pay until line checks, etc, etc. Things will only get worse. RUN while you can!! I know people will rip me apart for posting this, but I don't want to see you end up in serious debt, mortgage the family house, etc.