Pilot Life
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Office work! lol Thats what scares me! I wake up screaming in the night thinking that I could be stuck behind a desk until I'm 60! 
Thats why I'm trying to look at other professions, such as piloting, policing and drug dealing!
Whats all this talk about going into £50K debt to become a pilot? I thought that you appled to an airline such as BA and they would train you? I take it I'm way off the mark there!
I know that there's ways of doing it privately, but aren't would-be pilots sponsored by airlines?
Go easy...
Thats why I'm trying to look at other professions, such as piloting, policing and drug dealing!
Whats all this talk about going into £50K debt to become a pilot? I thought that you appled to an airline such as BA and they would train you? I take it I'm way off the mark there!
I know that there's ways of doing it privately, but aren't would-be pilots sponsored by airlines?
Go easy...
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I passed up a chance to go to uni for a career in flying. I know alot may say it's mad but I figured there was no point in wasting 4 or 5 years because flying is what I really badly want to to and nothing in this universe will satisfy or fill the large void in my life but flying! I've only recently obtained my PPL and I'm still paying through the teeth just to stay current and I know I've alot more finacial heartache to come but I won't stop till I get what I want. I eat, talk, and dream of aviation and whenever I'm down here, I'm always wishing and thinking about being up there. If you don't feel the same way as I do then I don't think flying would be a wise choice of career. You should however take a few lessons and maybe go for your PPL, you never know you may become hooked and want to make a career from it. 
PS. I once travelled to the airport just to see an AN-124 land and depart
PS. I once travelled to the airport just to see an AN-124 land and depart
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Chaps- I do sympathise. When you are starting out on the jobs trail, it is a nerve wracking time. I remember my one focus was to get into a company and pension scheme for life. I wish I hadn't been so afraid of being out on my own, but I really didn't have a bean at the time. And now we are told you ain't gonna have it anyway- everybody has to be more mobile. So I have been in a company (and pension) for umpteen years, and I look around, and the wealthy people are not the ones who have been working diligently for someone else for ever- you don't get wealth working for other people! Had I not been stuck with a family, I would have become a property developer (and got rich). And people are doing it now. And if it's not property, it will be something else. Now, I would seriously look at becoming a plumber, and employing others to do it. What else can you name your price and have people willingly pay? That, or dentistry, but there's too much work with that! But sometimes, only one thing will do, and GALAN has unfortunately got the bug. I have learnt that if you want something badly enough in life, and you are able, you will get it. Those pilots have to come from somewhere, and so many BA are retiring now and in the next few years the opportunities will be there. So if it's really what you must do, good luck. But it isn't the only job in the world.
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thehoop
If you think that airlines such as BA sponsor you today then you are sadly misread on the subject! Getting a fATPL/IR will cost you anything between 35k to 70k and then what about the 25k for the type rating that you might need to get a job in these "difficult times"
I've wanted to be a pilot since I was 4, I’m now 25. I've done the education route, I've got a PPL, going for a class one medical in a couple of weeks, I've cleared my student debt and now I’ve been to see my bank manager about getting another £75,000 on my mortgage to train as a pilot and I’ve spent more hours than I care to think in the last few weeks researching every piece of info on flight schools, training routes etc etc etc.
Yes flying is something you can develop an interest in but its got to be a pretty serious interest to consider swallowing everything that is associated with getting into that career at the moment. How are you going to afford your loan repayments in the 3-5 years that it might take you to find a job .....
Oh and Hi fellow PPruNers ... I’m new I’ve been lurking for a long time but thought I should register now that I’m getting close to spending large amounts of cash that I don't have :o)
Blue Skies
Stephen
If you think that airlines such as BA sponsor you today then you are sadly misread on the subject! Getting a fATPL/IR will cost you anything between 35k to 70k and then what about the 25k for the type rating that you might need to get a job in these "difficult times"
I've wanted to be a pilot since I was 4, I’m now 25. I've done the education route, I've got a PPL, going for a class one medical in a couple of weeks, I've cleared my student debt and now I’ve been to see my bank manager about getting another £75,000 on my mortgage to train as a pilot and I’ve spent more hours than I care to think in the last few weeks researching every piece of info on flight schools, training routes etc etc etc.
Yes flying is something you can develop an interest in but its got to be a pretty serious interest to consider swallowing everything that is associated with getting into that career at the moment. How are you going to afford your loan repayments in the 3-5 years that it might take you to find a job .....
Oh and Hi fellow PPruNers ... I’m new I’ve been lurking for a long time but thought I should register now that I’m getting close to spending large amounts of cash that I don't have :o)
Blue Skies
Stephen
Last edited by AllGoodNamesAreTaken; 28th Aug 2003 at 23:59.
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Hey Hoop,
The best thing you can do is try it. I've recently begun studying for a PPL and I'm enjoying it (having been an aviation junky for yeas).
Only problem so far has been airsickness and I think I'm getting on top of it.
Spend some time flying, spend some time with the people and see if you like it. You may have to forego that stereo you were planning to buy, but I think it's worth it.
I'm not planning to be an airline pilot though: too much competition for a job that is apparently not that great.
Regards,
noisy
aka Sick Over The Side
The best thing you can do is try it. I've recently begun studying for a PPL and I'm enjoying it (having been an aviation junky for yeas).
Only problem so far has been airsickness and I think I'm getting on top of it.
Spend some time flying, spend some time with the people and see if you like it. You may have to forego that stereo you were planning to buy, but I think it's worth it.
I'm not planning to be an airline pilot though: too much competition for a job that is apparently not that great.
Regards,
noisy
aka Sick Over The Side
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Well AGNAT, welcome to the club of weirdos! You obviously have the bug that nothing will stamp out. You will go far my boy! (maybe even Tenerife). Just take heart- there are so many of us heading for the exit door soon someone has to replace us!
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and now I’ve been to see my bank manager about getting another £75,000 on my mortgage
I'd be careful about borrowing such large sums. You still need to pay it all back at the end of the day!
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it ain't foreveryone--but
I've found that those who chase the almighty dollar tend to be unhappy with whatever choice thet've made. Doctors, pilots, whoever. If they've chosen a profession in which they lack a passion then it wears thin sooner or later. I fly and have enjoyed all of my jobs, even the unenjoyable ones. Yet I know pilots that sincerely hate their job and wish they could retire NOW or go back in time to re-do their life. These personality types would feel this way ussuslly no matter what, or maybe they really did pick the wrong line of work for them(I suspect the former). In a recent study, a majority of doctors responded that they would not pursue medicine if they had to do it over again. It takes as long to become a professional pilot as it does to become a doctor. Once you've invested that much effort into one field it's virtually impossible to change direction so be very sure what any career involves before committiing. Flying, as in any other endevour, rewards, or bestows lady luck, differently throughout the ranks. If you make it, great. If not, at least you enjoy what you're doing which is more than many many others can claim.
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theHoop you've chosen a bad time to be considering aviation! The industry is just beginning to creep out from under the worst recession it has suffered since WW2. There have been many jobs and airlines gone down the tubes in the last couple of years, and many of those that are left are struggling. Hence the world-weary cynicism you read in this thread - and others.
However, it won't always be like that. Things are beginning to look up, and I believe that profits, expansion and jobs are not far off in many parts of the world. It's too early in the cycle to expect airline sponsorships - you're going to have to be prepared to pay for your own training, and it won't be cheap.
It helps if, like Notso and many others here, you're an out-and-out enthusiast, but it's not a prerequisite. I, like you, only decided to investigate aviation as a career once I was 21. I'm still here, 26 years and 11000 hours later! I did it via the RAF, and joined the airlines later in life. I've had a great time, though I'll never be rich, and I have no intention of packing it in until I have to.
Beware, though. The airline industry is as vicious and cut-throat as any in commerce. These are big companies and, just as in any other multi-national field, people are not thier most important asset, whatever the companies may profess. As was said earlier, you are an employee; a resource - nothing more. You'll get the same lack of respect from the system that you'll hear about from your peers in IT, medicine, engineering, banking, law, or whatever.
But we have the best view!
However, it won't always be like that. Things are beginning to look up, and I believe that profits, expansion and jobs are not far off in many parts of the world. It's too early in the cycle to expect airline sponsorships - you're going to have to be prepared to pay for your own training, and it won't be cheap.
It helps if, like Notso and many others here, you're an out-and-out enthusiast, but it's not a prerequisite. I, like you, only decided to investigate aviation as a career once I was 21. I'm still here, 26 years and 11000 hours later! I did it via the RAF, and joined the airlines later in life. I've had a great time, though I'll never be rich, and I have no intention of packing it in until I have to.
Beware, though. The airline industry is as vicious and cut-throat as any in commerce. These are big companies and, just as in any other multi-national field, people are not thier most important asset, whatever the companies may profess. As was said earlier, you are an employee; a resource - nothing more. You'll get the same lack of respect from the system that you'll hear about from your peers in IT, medicine, engineering, banking, law, or whatever.
But we have the best view!
By all means target an aviation career out of a passing interest and a desire to avoid a desk job.
Just be aware that there are a frightening number of people out there with the same intent who have an awesome insight and understanding of whats involved. Which rather puts you on the back foot.
Not too late to get hooked though - go do a PPL.
Cheers,
WWW
Just be aware that there are a frightening number of people out there with the same intent who have an awesome insight and understanding of whats involved. Which rather puts you on the back foot.
Not too late to get hooked though - go do a PPL.
Cheers,
WWW
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Once again thanks for your feedback. Its been really helpful. I have to say, though, that I'm surprised at the amount of debt pilots are getting themselves into for a job that few here seem to enjoy!
My main interests in flying were to pilot harrier jumpjets or Apache helecoptors! I wanted to be an RAF pilot. Sadly the RAF haven't discovered spectacles yet so that career is out the window!
To be honest, flying a passenger jet for 1000 miles doesn't really hold the same appeal. It seems a world apart from military aviation, although if recent newsreports are anything to go by, you've probably got more chance of being shot down than an RAF pilot!
Thanks once again. BTW this is some forum if you're into planes! 500+ online at one time! Although the name pprune is quite simply poor! Don't know what they were thinking!
My main interests in flying were to pilot harrier jumpjets or Apache helecoptors! I wanted to be an RAF pilot. Sadly the RAF haven't discovered spectacles yet so that career is out the window!
To be honest, flying a passenger jet for 1000 miles doesn't really hold the same appeal. It seems a world apart from military aviation, although if recent newsreports are anything to go by, you've probably got more chance of being shot down than an RAF pilot!
Thanks once again. BTW this is some forum if you're into planes! 500+ online at one time! Although the name pprune is quite simply poor! Don't know what they were thinking!
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I flew throughout my RAF career with glasses. While you couldn't join with them then, I had heard that the RAF were more flexible now? Perhaps not.
As for getting shot down, as long as you're nowhere near the US Army, you should be safe enough - military or civil!
As for getting shot down, as long as you're nowhere near the US Army, you should be safe enough - military or civil!
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I have known since age 4 what I wanted to do when I was a grown up. I flew longhaul regularly and loved every minute of it. When my family and I arrived at our destination, my Father, Mother and Sister would be waving frantically to the relatives on the airport balcony while I would be walking backwards looking at the aeroplane! At the grand old age of 24, with approx. £35K saved and saving the rest at a rate of £700 per month whilst working for the Big Airways as an avionic technician on some of the latest longhaul aircraft and finishing my Aeronautical Engineering degree, I still want to do nothing else and my optimism, passion and drive to succeed are far greater than any negative thought in my mind. It is killing me at the moment, but I never let the odds keep me from pursuing what I know in my heart I was meant to do.
Sometimes I worry that the industry will have changed even more dramatically by the time I get to do what those pilots did when I was a young traveller. I was innocent then and a DC10 Zambian Airways aircraft was the biggest thing I had ever seen! Now, I work on the 747-400 and 777 fleet and a lot of the mystery of these beasts has been taken from me. As I get older and wiser, I find myself on very, very rare occasions wondering if chasing this career it is worth such a large investment in monetary and life terms. Sometimes I feel like kicking myself for 'choosing' the one career that has the rockiest path.
Everytime I sit down and think about it hard and think back to those innocent days, I can't help but feel sad that they are gone and I was never part of them as an airline pilot.
I WILL NOT miss out again.
Sometimes I worry that the industry will have changed even more dramatically by the time I get to do what those pilots did when I was a young traveller. I was innocent then and a DC10 Zambian Airways aircraft was the biggest thing I had ever seen! Now, I work on the 747-400 and 777 fleet and a lot of the mystery of these beasts has been taken from me. As I get older and wiser, I find myself on very, very rare occasions wondering if chasing this career it is worth such a large investment in monetary and life terms. Sometimes I feel like kicking myself for 'choosing' the one career that has the rockiest path.
Everytime I sit down and think about it hard and think back to those innocent days, I can't help but feel sad that they are gone and I was never part of them as an airline pilot.
I WILL NOT miss out again.
Thehoop, pprune is actually a very good name for this bulletin board - it is a play on words. Although it comes from the initials of the board title it was chosen because Pilot Officer Prune was quite a famous aviation character. He was a cartoon character the RAF used in WW2 to publicise to their pilots the various mistakes that could be made and their consequences. Humour is always a good teaching aid.
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I didn't know that!!
Not only have I learned about Global climatology today, but also that new fact. This really does broaden the mind this flying business!!!
Seriously though Hoop you have seen the determination and depth of feeling this subject arouses. I am doing the Groundschool at the mo, sitting at home and it is hard to keep motivated - and I was a sad git who went to the airport to look at airplanes when I was a kid. Just be absolutely certain its what you want, it's an expensive business to play at.
SK
Not only have I learned about Global climatology today, but also that new fact. This really does broaden the mind this flying business!!!
Seriously though Hoop you have seen the determination and depth of feeling this subject arouses. I am doing the Groundschool at the mo, sitting at home and it is hard to keep motivated - and I was a sad git who went to the airport to look at airplanes when I was a kid. Just be absolutely certain its what you want, it's an expensive business to play at.
SK
