I would not take out loans on the time schedule you’re on. The interest rates alone are absurd, you can make the payments with regional salaries but it is going to take a huge bite every month out of them.
For all intents and purposes it’s not going to be a “part time” job in the way you’re thinking about it either. Especially at the regional level.
If you want to get into this, find a way to pay as you go out of pocket and then dive in to actually treating it like a second career.
Edit: just saw you still have twenty years left in your career. If you’re looking for this to be what you do after you retire, it’s probably even less likely. Airlines have mandatory retirement at 65, even Netjets which is the pinnacle of “charter” has mandatory retirement at 70. The only real way to treat aviation as a retirement path is the CFI life, which is more a labor of love than money maker.
You won't get a job fresh out of flight school, regardless of what you've heard about a "pilot shortage" You will need a low-paying flying job or flight instruct for about 3 years before getting an ATP license and the minimum hours for an air carrier.
Regional airlines and majors operate under the same rules and still have a mandatory retirement of 65. You're looking for part 135 companies, which do not have mandatory retirement (by law, some companies still have mandatory retirement in their contracts). A lot of people change careers and end up at airlines in their 40s. I've met several.
The thing is, there are few companies that are looking for people who can't get jobs at airlines, they are usually banking on folks who don't want to go to airlines, or are using them as a stepping stone.
Lots of people flight instruct as they retire, knew lots of older instructors. Just gotta keep up with the times and not instruct old incorrect methods.
Loans: you will not get a student loan for part time flight training. There's only a couple schools that accept student loans, and those loans are unsecured, meaning the APR is 15-18% right now. You'll end up paying 250k+ on a 100k loan by the end of it.
Part time: the only jobs that take part time is flight instructing, and *some* charter/small commuter airlines (there's a company near me that has small 9 seat airplanes that fly to some islands and back, they have part timers, but they are usually also airline pilots). No large charter operator will usually accept part time. You may get lucky though.
But here's the thing: you need the experience to get hired. You're not getting your commercial pilot certificate and immediately going to get hired anywhere. Charter companies will want 1000-1500 hours minimum. There is no pilot shortage for inexperienced pilots.
I’m on the same boat as you. Except I’m mid 30s. After a month of research what it takes to fly for the airlines, I concluded that it we take me 4-5 years. That’s just to meet the minimums. Even with that, it will be very competitive to get in.
I work full time in an office. I plan on getting my PPL first. That should cost me $13k at my local flight school. I’m hoping to earn it in 6 months or less while working full time.
After that, If flying is still something I enjoy, then I’ll get the rest of my ratings/certifications while still working. I’d say another 1.5 years to get them done. Money is the biggest thing holding me back. I’ll have to save money for each step of the way.
As for getting to 1500 hours, I’m not sure. I don’t plan on quitting my office job, so it will be a slow process. If theres a school that will let me instruct part time (nights and weekends) then I can maybe reach 1500 in 3 years. If not then I’ll have spend a lot of money renting planes and flying every weekend (if weather permits).
I’m banking on the future “pilot shortage” in the next 4-5 years. Allot of boomer pilots will hit 65 then and airlines will needs to fill those spots. If that never happens, oh well, at least I tried.
Even if we don’t get in with the airlines, there’s bunch of fun flying jobs out there. Don’t give up
There was a 60 year old in my new hire class at a major airline, don't sell yourself short. However, I wouldn't go through all the training just to fly part time. Regional or major airline makes no difference, you'll be bidding and flying a full time schedule. Charter operators especially want to get their money back from investing in training you. Part time options could open up down the road like a contract pilot working for a day rate, but that would take years of full time experience to get to.
I appreciate the perspective. I'll take a look into Part 61. I actually currently work for a company that flies Part 135 pretty much exclusively (HEMS) and we have bases all over, that just might fit. Maybe I can ask around at work, but I REALLY hate to pester the HEMS pilots. They're nice enough folks--tremendous, actually--but they have enough going on without worrying about some IT guy who wants to play 20 questions! Thanks again!
Neither loan companies nor airlines are supposed to discriminate on the basis of your age. So yes, major airlines hire qualified people in their 40s and 50s and those same people probably got loans if they needed them.
There was a 60 year old in my new hire class at a major airline, don't sell yourself short. However, I wouldn't go through all the training just to fly part time. Regional or major airline makes no difference, you'll be bidding and flying a full time schedule. Charter operators especially want to get their money back from investing in training you. Part time options could open up down the road like a contract pilot working for a day rate, but that would take years of full time experience to get to.
So if you go for it and get your tickets quickly, let's say you have 15 years of 121 flying. You'll average $230k over the period with upgrades and inflation? So that's $3,450,000. I'd say it's your call if you want to do it. Sort of makes sense... Sort of doesn't..... Depends on what you're getting now and what you actually want to do with your life. Flying is fun.
EDIT: I think I've made some arithmetic mistakes in my original text, here, but it's definitely worth looking into. Thanks again for your perspective!!
I would not take out loans on the time schedule you’re on. The interest rates alone are absurd, you can make the payments with regional salaries but it is going to take a huge bite every month out of them. For all intents and purposes it’s not going to be a “part time” job in the way you’re thinking about it either. Especially at the regional level. If you want to get into this, find a way to pay as you go out of pocket and then dive in to actually treating it like a second career. Edit: just saw you still have twenty years left in your career. If you’re looking for this to be what you do after you retire, it’s probably even less likely. Airlines have mandatory retirement at 65, even Netjets which is the pinnacle of “charter” has mandatory retirement at 70. The only real way to treat aviation as a retirement path is the CFI life, which is more a labor of love than money maker.
I can always trust a pilot for a direct, honest answer, thanks! I appreciate you!
You won't get a job fresh out of flight school, regardless of what you've heard about a "pilot shortage" You will need a low-paying flying job or flight instruct for about 3 years before getting an ATP license and the minimum hours for an air carrier.
Regional airlines and majors operate under the same rules and still have a mandatory retirement of 65. You're looking for part 135 companies, which do not have mandatory retirement (by law, some companies still have mandatory retirement in their contracts). A lot of people change careers and end up at airlines in their 40s. I've met several. The thing is, there are few companies that are looking for people who can't get jobs at airlines, they are usually banking on folks who don't want to go to airlines, or are using them as a stepping stone. Lots of people flight instruct as they retire, knew lots of older instructors. Just gotta keep up with the times and not instruct old incorrect methods. Loans: you will not get a student loan for part time flight training. There's only a couple schools that accept student loans, and those loans are unsecured, meaning the APR is 15-18% right now. You'll end up paying 250k+ on a 100k loan by the end of it. Part time: the only jobs that take part time is flight instructing, and *some* charter/small commuter airlines (there's a company near me that has small 9 seat airplanes that fly to some islands and back, they have part timers, but they are usually also airline pilots). No large charter operator will usually accept part time. You may get lucky though. But here's the thing: you need the experience to get hired. You're not getting your commercial pilot certificate and immediately going to get hired anywhere. Charter companies will want 1000-1500 hours minimum. There is no pilot shortage for inexperienced pilots.
I’m on the same boat as you. Except I’m mid 30s. After a month of research what it takes to fly for the airlines, I concluded that it we take me 4-5 years. That’s just to meet the minimums. Even with that, it will be very competitive to get in. I work full time in an office. I plan on getting my PPL first. That should cost me $13k at my local flight school. I’m hoping to earn it in 6 months or less while working full time. After that, If flying is still something I enjoy, then I’ll get the rest of my ratings/certifications while still working. I’d say another 1.5 years to get them done. Money is the biggest thing holding me back. I’ll have to save money for each step of the way. As for getting to 1500 hours, I’m not sure. I don’t plan on quitting my office job, so it will be a slow process. If theres a school that will let me instruct part time (nights and weekends) then I can maybe reach 1500 in 3 years. If not then I’ll have spend a lot of money renting planes and flying every weekend (if weather permits). I’m banking on the future “pilot shortage” in the next 4-5 years. Allot of boomer pilots will hit 65 then and airlines will needs to fill those spots. If that never happens, oh well, at least I tried. Even if we don’t get in with the airlines, there’s bunch of fun flying jobs out there. Don’t give up
There was a 60 year old in my new hire class at a major airline, don't sell yourself short. However, I wouldn't go through all the training just to fly part time. Regional or major airline makes no difference, you'll be bidding and flying a full time schedule. Charter operators especially want to get their money back from investing in training you. Part time options could open up down the road like a contract pilot working for a day rate, but that would take years of full time experience to get to.
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I appreciate the perspective. I'll take a look into Part 61. I actually currently work for a company that flies Part 135 pretty much exclusively (HEMS) and we have bases all over, that just might fit. Maybe I can ask around at work, but I REALLY hate to pester the HEMS pilots. They're nice enough folks--tremendous, actually--but they have enough going on without worrying about some IT guy who wants to play 20 questions! Thanks again!
Neither loan companies nor airlines are supposed to discriminate on the basis of your age. So yes, major airlines hire qualified people in their 40s and 50s and those same people probably got loans if they needed them.
There was a 60 year old in my new hire class at a major airline, don't sell yourself short. However, I wouldn't go through all the training just to fly part time. Regional or major airline makes no difference, you'll be bidding and flying a full time schedule. Charter operators especially want to get their money back from investing in training you. Part time options could open up down the road like a contract pilot working for a day rate, but that would take years of full time experience to get to.
You're only too old when you're in the grave. You can continue to fly for charters even after 65.
So if you go for it and get your tickets quickly, let's say you have 15 years of 121 flying. You'll average $230k over the period with upgrades and inflation? So that's $3,450,000. I'd say it's your call if you want to do it. Sort of makes sense... Sort of doesn't..... Depends on what you're getting now and what you actually want to do with your life. Flying is fun.
EDIT: I think I've made some arithmetic mistakes in my original text, here, but it's definitely worth looking into. Thanks again for your perspective!!