Is being a comercial pilot a good job? Enjoyable or just stressful?

Question

I imagine being a commercial pilot is a fun job. Obviously not. I've seen several people on this page just complaning about being pilots and urging pilot hopefuls to stay away from the career field. It's apparently not the best money in the world. I heard it's one of the most stressful jobs. And If you pilots hate your jobs so much (at least thats the vibe I'm getting but correct me if I'm wrong) why did you decide to be pilots?

Answer 1

First thing is that the best thing about aviation is that there is nobody in an aviation career who does not want to be there. Second of all the airlines are laying off many employees but this will change one day once the oil company's raise there prices to high for all modes of transport everybody will stop buying and the oil company's will be forced to drastically reduce their prices or they will just completely go bankrupt all together. And another thing is that being a pilot is an incredible job besides are you going to pay over a thousand dollar's just to fly coach to Paris. Well if not how about being payed to fly to Paris? Those that encourage aviation enthusiast to stay away are not pilot's them selfs. Once you taste flight you will never go back.

Answer 2

See this link.  It answers many questions on commercial pilot's life.

http://science.howstuffworks.com/pilot.h...

Good Luck...

Answer 3

Being an airline pilot is a great job when you are single and 25 years old.  It's one of the worst jobs in the world when you are 30-something, married and have a family.  Being gone every weekend and holiday wears on you after a while.  Not to mention having to miss every one of your kids birthdays, soccer games, etc.  That's why I got out and went back to a career in engineering.

There are a lot of grumpy pilots out there.  Remember, that every single one of them once dreamed of nothing more than being a pilot one day.  It just happens.

That's why so many of us say to have a backup plan.  This is a tough career.  The excitement of taking off and landing a jet will wear off eventually (most likely very quickly).  There will come a time where you have been to all the cool cities your airline travels too and they all feel like any other city in the world.  Then comes the furlough and the fear of loosing your house.  Eventually, the fun part of it is gone.  After all that happens, it takes a certain type of person, and most importantly their spouse, to continue with it.  Being gone 50% of the time, or more... is it worth it?  Some say yes, others say no.

Again, every airline pilot out there, including the ones who hate their jobs, was once a kid who dreamed of flying an airplane for a living.

Answer 4

lludwig3 Says it all. Im still flying 34 years later and I've been through everything he said and its true.

Right now with 6 years to retirement I dig my head in the sand and accept what the company gives me ,ie salary days off leave benefits , all declining I might add, and go fly the airplane .which I still enjoy . No matter where it takes me or what I fly I enjoy the flying.

If I had to do it again I would'nt fly for a living. So if there is some other job you could see yourself enjoying and the pay is good then do that instead .Later on you will be able to buy you own airplane and go to where you want with it.

Answer 5

its one of the best paid careers you can have.

BA and Emirates are paying their long-haul captains up to $250,000-$300,000 a year!

Answer 6

to me it would be stressful and lots of airlines are now even

layoff pilots as well

Answer 7

The flying is fun, and everyone likes that on clear sunny days.. and when you get days and weeks off  all over the world... it seems great... because IT IS....  but for all the good parts... and there are a LOT of them... there is a dark side that most candidates do not know about.  If I can talk you out of being a pilot... then you should not have been one in the first place anyway. (IMHO)  It really is a job that takes more focus and dedication than most. Sounds to be a big statement... but remember that you are going to be re-qualified EVERY year, and depending on your job, can be twice a year.. and if you are flying more than one type of aircraft.. 3 or more times a year...  Go ask your family doctor when he was requalified last.. or your highschool teacher, college professor.. and the answer will be the same....  huh???  Bear in mind also, that you don't just s***w up a test and get to retake it... your records are maintained by your company for the Federal Government.. and EVERY checkride, oral exam, written exam, line check, etc... is recorded along with the results. EVERY job you apply for.. the first thing they are going to do is pull your records...and if you had any problems along the way... you will be explaining them. Most pilots (more than 50%) have a CLEAN record... probably higher percentage than that... no mistakes, no retesting, no failures.. so the bar is set high...    If you get a DWI... you have a major problem that will disqualify you on the spot for most jobs. As with anything else... when there is a shortage... it might be overlooked.. but that doesn't happen very often. Since 9/11...  there have been no shortages... Now, for instructors, there is almost always a shortage because it is the lowest paying least desireable job there is in aviation. I would rather pump gas than teach basic Private Pilot.

So it becomes a career of compromises...  where you are going to live, the plane you will fly, the schedule you will work, the money you will make are balanced against your "quality of life" issues. What is more important to you... being near your family, or advancing your career?  Then you will see the great divide.. some guys will walk in to ask directions for some other job.. and be offered a job on the spot... while you beat your head against the wall trying to get the same job for years. You will see complete and total idiots out online, that are down right dangerous... and they make it through training.. and you will say goodbye to a friend in your hire class that was washed out that was a much better pilot. That's the way it goes sometimes.  You will constantly be making decisions on what job to take or pass, move or stay... and all the while you will be dealing with a very unsympathetic company that is only concerned with the bottom line.  You lose an engine, and fly the remainder of the flight perfectly smooth, nail the landing and taxi to the gate (if they let you) and the people getting off are grateful.. but the company sees only that you did what you were trained to do... so don't get too excited about your work.

You start out VERY proud, excited, enthusiastic.. and it just grinds you down over the years.  You see other guys go on to real estate, software development..etc.. and they are making 3 to 4 times the money and home every night...this might not be for you...  

I would not urge someone to NOT be a pilot... I started flying when I was 16, and I still fly now, just not for a living... I still love it.. but I don't miss the c**p.. and there is a LOT of c**p that goes with it.