MetallicSponge

I come from a very similar situation, but unfortunately have not been so lucky thusfar. I worked in IT for approx 10 years through college and afterward, as a Systems Engineer working on Cisco, Microsoft networks, etc. I had always wanted to fly and when i turned 27 decided to go for it, leaving my nearly $80,000 a year IT job.

I went part 141 in Florida as well, spent around 2-1/2 years as a student then flight instructor building hours. I was eventually hired as an FO at a large regional airline. This is when reality started kicking in.

Top level FO pay at my airline (and most regionals in US) was around $32,000. Upgrade times there were around 5-7 years, so quite a while to make that small salary considering the incredible debt load and training to get to this point (my loans for college + flight school are nearly $130,000, and are set for repayment over 30 years!). Top that off with often terrible schedule changes and work rules, and it makes for an interesting situation; the actual FLYING is incredible and i love it to this day, but the rest of the environment and situation surrounding the job is pretty terrible right now. Moral is very low, and like OP said the market is in a strange state of flux right now with older pilots retiring, low pay, no retirement, and limited jobs.

Now here's the kicker, and something everyone thinking about a flying job needs to keep in mind. About 4 years into my airline career I was suddenly diagnosed with a very rare medical condition which has resulted in the loss of my flight medical. There was no warning, no symptoms prior, but after three surgeries I still am not fit to operate an aircraft per FAA regulations. Thanks to our pilots union I still technically hold my job at my airline for another year or so, but my medical situation is becoming very bleak.

Because of this diagnosis I have had to take a consulting job in IT again just to pay the bills. So, here I am 8 years later, $130,000 dollars in training debt, only to be back working IT for 1/2 of what I was making before I left, all because of a random medical situation I have no control over. Do i regret it? Thats hard to say. I LOVED the flying, throughout training, instructing, and flying jets. I miss it every.single.day. However, its hard to look back and say I put myself into 30 years of incredible debt and got something out of it, other than an all too short flying vacation.

I wish OP the best of luck, and anyone else looking into a flying career. Flying is something that you simply have to experience to see how challenging, exciting, and intertwined with your life it can become. But be ready, for there are a million ways to have your wings clipped, both through your own doing or things that are out of your hands. Keep your nose clean and your eyes on the goal, take the right parts of the job seriously and the flying will be pure enjoyment.

OP, I am in US but feel free to PM me if you want to chat about airline life as a new FO.

I actually did instruct ground school for about a year. It can be a good time, and its a great way to keep the fundamentals fresh, but I don't think I could do it for a career. Plus, not being able to fly, but working so close with aviation would be the ultimate tease

Many people can't/don't repay, thats the sad part. I was negotiating a repayment with my loan company and the gentleman on the phone said that they no longer even offered aviation training loans at his bank (its was a national) b/c it was one of if not their highest default rate.

It might be grass is greener complex but it does seem like outside the US the pay and job in general is quite a bit improved. A good portion of the student at my flight school were from Europe, Asia, India, etc. They would come to US to get their primary training and licenses as it was much cheaper than training in Europe, then go through the conversion like OP.

The actual jet and airline training is free (as long as you stay at company 2 years), but he primary flight training is definitely not, and costs more than most college degrees, in addition to the time commitment and often inability to hold a regular job in addition to your training/instructing. Its quite a broken system for sure, and I'm really curious to see what happens over the next few years as these retirements hit, paired with increased minimums for hiring. Honestly its a recipe for disaster, with an all-time low number of new pilots coming in due to the poor career and pay outlook.

Unfortunately a lot of places (at least here in the US) its not included. The ironic part is about 6 months after I was grounded our union added loss of medical insurance plans. Of course b/c i wasn't an active line pilot I didn't qualify, and would need a medical exam prior to being accepted into the program, which I would never pass at this point.

But to reiterate yes, to those looking to fly, if your company/union doesn't offer loss of medical get the ball rolling and fight for it! It may save your butt one day, and certainly would have helped me tremendously in my situation.