Becoming a pilot! Pilots please help!?

Question

i've wanted to be a commercial pilot for a few years. i'm 17 now and will graduate May 2009. i would like to start training right out of highschool. there are still things i want to know such as: if there are any pilots reading this did you go to an actual university and get a degree or did you go straight to aviation school? if you went to a university what did you study and get a degree in? is it necessary to have a degree to become a pilot? did you like aviation school? if you don't mind, what is your annual income? i've heard that pilots may start out at as little as $20,000 a year and over the years work up to over $100,000 a year. is there anything i can start studying now before i graduate? excluding getting my private pilot's license. it's just too pricy at the moment. i'm saving for school afterwards. one more: did you have to show your highschool transcripts and test results to get into aviation school? if so, what were the minimum requirements? please help and thanks!

Answer 1

Some people may not like what I am about to write, but it is all true.  You need to be realistic, and I am offering you realism.

"Aviation School" means several different things, so it's not easy to grasp what your expectations are.

Yes, you absolutely MUST have a 4-year college degree to be hired as a pilot by a major airline.  The answerer who said that you don't is 25 years behind the times.  You will hear that you don't need a college degree to get on with the airlines, but that is not correct.  You do need it.

The college degree shows that you can finish what you start, do things in the right order, and follow instructions.  That is why they want to see it.

Your degree can be in almost any subject, though hard sciences (that is. not psychology, sociology, or political science), engineering, math, or business skills are the most appreciated by the airline hiring managers.

Accountants make great pilots.  They are determined, detail oriented, and willing to work hard.  Also, you need a degree that will give you a backup career.  The chances of the airline industry being financially healthy during the majority of your working life are slim to none.

My degree was in physics and math, and if I had not been able to fly until retirement, I would have been lucky to have gotten a job teaching high school science.  Few pilots now being hired will fly until the day they retire.  It just simply doesn't work that way any more.  And the economy is in the process of crashing and burning.  Wear your asbestos underwear.

The best all around solution is to go military.  They can give you training far superior to what you can get in a civilian "aviation school," and it's free for those who qualify.  Air Force, Navy, or Marines.  All military pilots are commissioned officers, which means they have 4 year college degrees first.  Go through ROTC.  Airline hiring officials smile brightly upon applicants with this background.  And you can contact your recruiters any time you want to for a preliminary briefing.

If you don't want to go military then you must get your own certificates and ratings and build hours the hard way.  Expect to spend 10-15 years and (it's hard to say, because we are at the beginning of a severe inflation/depression period) maybe $120,000 on flight time.

One good method is when you get about 1200 hours to check out the out-of-the-way air cargo services that fly beat-up old prop airliners and go to rough airstrips in Alaska and the Congo.  That's how I did it.  I flew World War Two piston cargo planes, flew in and out of mud runways in the posterior portion of nobody knows where, had a great time, and learned a lot.  I wouldn't take nothin' for my journey, now...

It can help you build a lot of time fast, and get experience with heavy machinery you can't otherwise get.

I hope I have given you a feel for what is realistic, without discouraging you permanently.  If you are determined and talented, you can get there.

Good luck!

Answer 2

GET A DEGREE! You need a fallback career path. There are far too many variables (economic situation, health problems...etc). Don't count on aviation as a career. If you make it in, great. If you can stay in, good for you. Personally, I think you should get a "real" job and just fly for fun.

Answer 3

This is the way I did it... not saying it's the best but it worked for me.

Started flying at a flight school/college in 2002. Stayed there for about 3 years and finished my commercial license, and all my flight instructor ratings. Also finished my associates degree in Aviation science. After finishing there I became a flight instructor. Had a blast, loved teaching people to do what I loved to do. After about a year of that, I had built up enough flight experience to apply to a regional airline. Got hired by a company that I did not research as much as I should have. Spent 6 months away from home because they always had me working (making $18,000 a year). Had an opportunity to leave to a better job and took it. I have been at my current airline for a little over a year and it is great. I have about 15 days off a month and am currently making around 35k a year.  Right now I am in the process of finishing my bachelors degree online. Everyone is correct, a 4 year degree is a must if you ever want to advance past the regional airlines.

If I had to do it over again the main thing I would change is to not go to an aviation college. Get a degree in something you would enjoy if you couldn't fly. Airlines don't care what your degree is in. Check out your local airport flight schools. Mostly friendly people who love flying.