Q&A

Q: I am very interested in attending a flight school that has me sold on the training. The training will cost a lot of money. My goal is to become an airline pilot. I know I have to start off in the regionals and work my way up, but my concern is being able to take care of my debt while making $20,000 for two to three years while I try to climb the regional ladder. Do you have any advice on how I should plan to pay off the debt until I start to earn a decent living in the regional airlines?

-Mark from New York

A:Your question has confounded thousands of would-be professional aviators and derailed the aspirations of countless airmen who have dreamed about flying for a living. There is no easy answer. There are so many factors to consider.

First, whatever you have been quoted for the total cost of training, add another 50 percent. An acquaintance enrolled in a name-brand academy based upon a quote of $50,000 to $60,000. By the time he left the school, the tab had grown to $110,000. This is not a lone example. These institutions don't intentionally misrepresent the true costs. Total expenditures depend on a person's individual aptitude for brainwork and the manual skills required for flying an airplane, among other factors. Like the FAA flight time requirement for a private pilot certificate, consider the quote you received to be a minimum.

Second, supporting oneself during training is another very real consideration. Whether at an aviation college or an academy, a fulltime commitment is required for an extended period of time.

Third, what is the likelihood of locking down a job soon after the final checkride is complete? Given the state of the economy and the fact that no airline is hiring at the moment, there are many aspiring pilots stuck in the pipeline right now.

The FAA just completed its annual aviation industry forecast, and we will look at it more closely in an upcoming issue. But, the essential news is that the FAA's 2009 forecast for commercial aviation calls for a "sharp decline in activity in the near term, with a return to growth over the long term. The level of activity and demand in the long term, however, is not expected to snap back to levels published in the previous FAA forecast. The most significant factor preventing recovery to prior forecast levels is the state of the economy, both domestic and worldwide."

So, back to your question: How to pay off the training? If the total cost of earning all the FAA certificates and ratings is $75,000, the monthly payments over 10 years at 7 percent interest would be $870.81. At a 20-year payoff, it is $581.47. With a take-home pay of about $1,200 monthly as a first-year regional airline first officer, you will be hard pressed to support yourself and service the loan.

Here are some ideas to consider based upon advice direct from young regional airline pilots.

"Save up for it. Don't go into hock. You will financially bleed to death."

"Have a serious talk with mom and dad. Perhaps they will invest in you with a reasonable payback schedule."

"Sell what assets are expendable. Get rid of the Harley, the real estate in Arizona, and whatever toys you can live without. Plow that money into your training."

A very plausible strategy is to develop an additional but flexible source of income, such as construction, house painting, eBay, janitorial services, or an online business. One fellow flying for a regional airline bought old houses, fixed them up, and sold them at a profit. He makes more money doing that part-time than flying!

Send us your career question [email protected] and we'll answer the best ones here. Sorry, but we are not able to provide individual responses. Wayne Phillips is an airline transport pilot with Boeing 737 and Falcon 20 type ratings. He is a B-737 instructor and operates the Airline Training Orientation Program at the Continental Airlines Pilot Training Center. He is also a speaker for the AOPA Air Safety Foundation and flies around Michigan in his Cessna 182RG.