I do apologize for not leaving very much in the way of blog posts – not that anyone really cares. Honestly, it seems that this blog is more for family to keep track of me – perhaps just a venue for me to post diary type thoughts. Anyway, for whoever or whatever gives a flying damn…..
I finished IOE last week – Introductory Operating Experience. Basically the first time I fly the actual airplane. I was assigned a check airman who was very good at what he did and made the whole experience very enjoyable. Now that I am done, I feel very satisfied that I actually got through training. I remember when I went to a career fair a while back, I spoke to a recruiter at American Eagle and upon presenting my resume (meager, I must admit), she blew me out of the water telling me that I wasn’t ready for this and that with my limited background studying the jet and flying something of that complexity would prove a tough transition – too tough in her mind. Well, after having been hired on to Trans States (admittedly a shadier outfit than Eagle), I got through the damn training so lady – FUCK YOU. You under estimated me. And that is oh so satisfying. 
. I am now flying American painted airplanes except our chicken is entirely blue instead of red and blue.
So the triumph of having completed training is great. I put a lot of work, time, money, lost time with my wife, etc, to prove to myself that I could do this and I learned a GREAT deal about jets and life at an airline and am much better off as a pilot and a person for having done so. The entirety of training, looking back in 20-20 hindsight – was a complete and total success. And I have “signed the bottom line” on it now.
However, I have now been released to the hounds (otherwise known as schedulers) and the reality has hit of what it is like as an airline pilot. Many parts of it are very neat. The job really isn’t tough and when you land, you are done. There is no concern for deadlines or taking work home to get it done. When you sit reserve, you can basically hang out and watch movies all day and draw a paycheck. Then if they call you to go fly, then just head out and you get to jump into a jet and head out into the wild blue yonder. For me, at this stage in my piloting endeavors, logging time is very satisfying. I currently have 776 total hours of flying. The time builds so slowly it seems, although it is coming at a faster rate now. Every time I log an entry of multi engine jet time, I think back to myself how much difficulty I had putting that time in my book before. If I have any desire on any level to get paid to fly (even as a part time on the side type of gig), this time I am logging right now is incredibly important. Should I pull the eject lever now to pursue something else, I am giving up LOTS of really quality time that looks really good towards any flying job, ever.
Now, I mentioned “should I pursue something else” – I have been giving some thought to it. But the more I think about it, the more I convince myself that even if I do decide I don’t want to a career in aviation – I don’t want to stop right now for the above stated reasons. I have worked really hard to get through training, and as I’ve said it does stand as a stand alone accomplishment not to be diminished by any future actions or decisions. However, a great side effect of having completed the training is that I do have the opportunity to log a shit load of awesome time in my logbook as long as I can suck up the quality of life issues – and that brings me to my next point…..
Doing the airline gig is going to subject my family to a lot of time sans husband/father. I have given much thought about the option of chalking up my victory in training as an incredible experience, but resigning from the airline business to continue my life as an accountant. Now, I say “continue” and I don’t really mean it. The road that I was on previously was the wrong road for me. NCT was a theta trap – and by that I mean, it just sucked the life out of me and I won’t go into all the reasons why. Just suffice it to say that I was paid to exist at the office from 8-5pm regardless of my actual production level. There were many many months of time where I went to work and did absolutely nothing all day – but still had to worry about taking the correct sized lunch and watching the clock waiting for 5 o’clock to come. I felt like a complete waste, because I wasn’t advancing myself professionally at all – and it sucked.
Should I continue back with accounting, the plan would be to figure out a way to make money whilst enrolling back at USF for my CPA classes. It would be a flashback to my bachelor years when I frequented USF – but in many ways those years were some of my happiest. Perhaps I could rekindle some of that feeling. But, even if not, I would be once again advancing the football down the field towards some sort of professional life for myself. Upon completing the CPA exam, my wife and I would probably choose to have a child which would add incredible “purpose” to my life. I think lack of genuine purpose is one of the problems I am dealing with right now – like I said my time in school was some of my happiest because I had a great purpose that was visible and the route of here to there made good sense to me. Once I got married and moved into my own place, life lost purpose to a large degree. My purpose was to build myself professionally – but with all the idle time spent at NCT, even that purpose was lost.
However, re attacking the profession, my purpose would be to build a self sustaining accounting practice which would bring in enough money to enjoy financial happiness. The road between here and there is less marked than I would like and that is uncomfortable for me – but the up side is that the road is malleable in my own hands. Not those of someone else. And that, my friend, lies the defining issue of my life right now. I want to be in control of my own life, make my own schedule, and make the money I want to make and wreak the benefits of my own work wholly – instead of making someone else money and just getting paid an agreed share.
A life of aviation will bring me the internal satisfaction of walking this world knowing I am a good and accomplished pilot. That is something that means very much to me. Having many thousands of hours in my logbook is something that I can feel great about. Flying is the only thing that I have excelled at in this life and I do believe there is a reason for that – genuine interest. It will likely bring me enough money to live comfortably, but will always be issued via a payroll department. The job security is supposedly getting better, but this industry is fickle by nature and it wouldn’t take much to get furloughed into unemployment. Additionally, the health of my body is a key factor to my success in this field. I am blessed to have a pretty healthy and resilient body, but it may not always be that way. So, as you can see, it is a bit of a gamble. Unfortunately, a life of aviation will also bring me many lonely nights in a hotel room or crash pad with my family at home – at that is toughest of all to swallow.
A life of accounting will bring me home most nights, sleeping in my own bed and more predictable time time at home. I wont be subject to seniority and the way the monthly bids come out. I can schedule a vacation far in advance without concern that I may not be able to be there. I will have every holiday off should I want them. And looking back on my life, I will have slept many extra nights (of which I am only blessed with a finite number) with my wife by my side and my dog between my legs (you have to know my job to understand that). The downside to the deal is that I won’t be flying nearly as often (which I have already said that I have a genuine interest in and truly care about – much more than an interest in accounting which will always be artificially created). Sure, I can flight instruct on the side, but it is neat to fly the cool equipment. But, I would be sacrificing many thousands of hours in the air. With accounting, I will also find myself with frustrating situations buried in the tax code trying to figure out client financial situations, the thought of that makes me gag. But admittedly, I will have much more time to be with the people who care about me in this world – airliners, passengers, and employers don’t. My wife, dogs, cats, family and friends do – and that is a definite plus.
From my viewpoint, most of these issues and concerns can be focused down to just a few concepts:
1. If I do the airlines as my career, I will enjoy the job while I am doing it, but then face the reality of being away from home and lonely when I get back onto the ground.
2. If I do accounting, I will likely not enjoy the job while I am doing it, but then when the job is done, I can be at home with my family and friends.
To do a job I don’t care about for the benefits it brings, or to do a job that I do care about and deal with the detriments it brings – Its a tough decision and I don’t have the answer.