Financial advice
 

Hi All,

Want to ask a honest financial question and be open with you. Short intro, helicopter pilot from Germany, have been active in the past on PP before but didn't use PP for years. New account now.
The next issue is what I would like to share with those who are interested and all feedback is appreciated :

H175 captain at 39 years old with 4500 hours, mostly offshore. Enjoying the (shady) offshore world but me and my family have some financial trouble, almost at the end of every month.
Big debt (minus 105K euro) , double housing, double cars. Hardly any money saved for the future. Wasn't really planned like this but its my own responsibility and fault.
Active on all the social media and a nice network from the past 10 years.

But I don't see how I can reduce the debt and build some extra money soon. I need to make some big buks if there are any left in this industry. Anyone advice for a way out ? (except robbing a bank?)
Jobs in the middle east, africa, brunei, or somewhere else? Moving with the family to a safe compound is no problem, 28on/28 off no problem. Flying the H175 ? Any advice ? I can feel a bit down while having a great job, lot of mistakes and surely would do things differently when looking back at the past.

Hope to hear from someone in a DM or with a reply.

Thank you in advance.

Sin

Is it too late to pay another €20k and go airlines?

Wish I could help you but all I can say is, stay positive and keep your chin up for now! I'm sure things will get better for you :)

Sell the other house and car for a start. If you can't live on an offshore helicopter Captain salary then you are dong something wrong. Go talk to your bank manager or a financial adviser - not other helicopter pilots. Start reading 'The Barefoot Investor' for basic financial advice.

It's pretty simple.

You are spending too much.

​​​​​​Google "Danshari".

Believe me.
Been there, done that.. No way back for me...

Financially independent since then....

Thank you for the appreciated feed back, taking the effort and time to come up with solutions for me make me feel understood.

The problem with the double housing/cars is that this double thingy really is necessary for medical reasons in the family. Spending another 30K and with my age the fixed wing solution could be interested but it is really high risk.

All I hear is "excuses this, excuses that"...

If you say "it's necessary", it means you have already decided you don't want it any other way.

There are always options...

Sell the house, cancel the lease, move into an rv.. (which allows you to sell the other car as well)..
Or move into a temporary crew accomodation..

Or move into a motel..

No offense-but I heard it all (from people earning close to a quarter million a year, with no money in the bank because "there was no way they could save it, although they only spent money for really necessary things"..

In the USA....there is a commonsense financial advisor named Dave Ramsey who has a nationally broadcast radio show and also has a website that might be helpful.

The techniques and theories he offers should translate into other countries to some degree.

His big thing is helping folks get debt free and he offers some very hard nosed advice.....good advice

It is about changing habit practices and spending habits for him.

You might hit the internet and see if you can find his site.

It is free so not trying to sell anything here.

I wish I had learned of him back when I was young....instead of having to learn these lessons the hard way.

Hueyracer said it all: get rid of those expenses. Sell at least one car / one house and get something less expensive. It might not be as comfortable but it will to pay the bills.

another 10 years and you'll have a dictator back, so hang on in there !! In the meantime, try something else. It's easier than you think.

Again thank you for the feed back. The real problem is that we have a customised car and adapted house due to medical reasons in the family.
If we can find something similar in (for example) Dubai and live there with the whole family it will be a no brainer and we will go.

Not going to fixed wing in the beginning is my own stubborn mistake, chased the dream without really thinking about the future, ignored all the warnings and red flags in the helicopter industry.
I'm aware of some of the books/ advisors mentioned above, not with Dave Ramsey.

Thank you all for the effort to help out.

It's all said, if you can't live on a offshore captain salary, you're doing something wrong.
Sit down with a financial advisor and see if he/she can help you.
Even with two houses, two cars etc , people who earn less money can/have to do it so I'm with Hueyracer, there's always an option.
Even if you would go for another job with a bit more money, it won't solve your debt and money shortage each month, it's your spending that you need to sort out.

175 captain living in Germany flying offshore?

Please see my intro. It’s from Germany.

Anyway, to be honest I can imagine my first thoughts if I saw someone else posting the same post as my intro.

He didnt say he is flying in Germany! 175 are flying in Netherland, GB.....

skadi