falcon20driver said:
If you really wan't to fly, and also get a 4 year degree free, it's called the Illinois Veterans Grant, flight training through comm, inst. and multi, and maybe CFI and a 4 year degree 100% paid by the state of Illinois.
To qualify, move to Illinois asap, get a driver license and find a job for 6 months to establish residency, the first day you get there enlist in one of the armed forces delayed entry programs, I enlisted for 6 years in the Marine Corps and got a guaranteed job as an avionics technician, the MOS is 6400, if you go avionics you should stay away from the front lines if you don't want to be up there.
Get an honorable discharge and you must move back to Illinois with 6 months to qualify for the IVG.
Search Illinois Veterans Grant for more info.
I had a blast the 6 years I did in the USMC, if you go avionics it's an 8 hour a day job 5 days a week.
I second that advice. Get some milspec time, get the bennies, get out with some cash saved up. You'll be in command.
All I can tell you is, keep your pecker hard and your powder dry and the world will turn. That may mean working hard for it, just like the rest of us silly bastages. You think I left a secure 40,000 dollar a year factory job over a decade ago, dumped 20,000 dollars into a hinky flight school and another 30,000 to finish up college, sweating my ass off flying jumpers, cfi'ing and flying cattle around in navajo's, to wind flying a freaking desk somewhere?
I wouldn't sweat the current glut in regional hiring, as I have a feeling the majors are going to be claiming back a lot of flying from contractors and wholly owneds in their new business model of the future. They are going to be competing with the jet blues and the southwests to survive, so it may be quite possible there is going to be a dramatic shake up in how business is done in the future.
With all the majors taking huge paycuts and looking at getting their furloghed guys back to work, I suspect the new lower end wages at the majors is going to make it redundant to pay senior captains at code shares the same money to do outsourced flying. Look at Northwest, latest news is mainline is buying 70 seat regional jets. What does that mean? I don't know, but I suspect there is a bad moon rising in Mesaba or Pinnacles future.
Airline analysts also predict that Delta mainline as well as other legacy carriers, will be half as big in 2015 as they are now. Take it with a grain of salt, but you may be better off taking the military route, getting your life skills buffed up, grabing the government dole and putting some dinero in the bank, so you can come into this career well provisioned after the dust settles.
If you took a four year enlistment to get bennies and learn some technical field in the military, you could get some real life experience and uncle sam will help cover your tution in the future. Plus, once you get stationed somwhere, you could start flying lessons at the base flying club...so it's quite possible you would get out with a head start on your time building.
It's not two or four year plan, this flying thing. You have to be looking 5, 10, 15, or even 16 years into the future. Your path will be beset with changes and segues you haven't even considered yet.
Heck, you could spend a hundred grand plus to get through one of these university flight programs after floating a bodacious loan, only to lose an eye after gradution horsing around during a quick game of smear the queer. Schit happens.
Look at your setback not as an ending, just an operational stumbling block in your path to getting this task done. If you really believe and put forth some effort, you will get it.
