The Benefits of Becoming an Airline Pilot?
Published Jun 26, 2012 on Pilot Jobs
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I am often asked by those who are interested in becoming an airline pilot why I became an airline pilot and what I liked the best about it. The first thing that comes to mind is that I was paid a good amount of money to fly for a living. And as it was in my case, if you have a real passion for flying then being paid to do what you love is the best job in the world.
Aside from being paid to do what they love to do, airline pilots get to travel a lot obviously. They often find themselves “overnighting” in glamorous places such as New York or Washington, DC with time off to explore these exciting places while their airline pays for lodging and travel accommodations. As pilots climb the career ladder in the airlines, they may find themselves flying overseas at the behest of their airlines and exploring foreign cities such as Paris and London. Of course, they overnight in less famous cities also but the chance to see far flung corners of our beautiful country is a pleasure also.
Another benefit of flying for an airline is that they are able to share their travel benefits with their family and friends so you can show them all of the places they have discovered.
Airline Pilots have constantly changing schedules that vary each month. Aside from keeping work schedules that are interesting, airline pilots end up getting a lot of time off compared to most jobs. It is not unusual for airline pilots to get two weeks of time off a month. May pilots use this time to pursue interests such as running a small business on the side, although many use the time off to become serious students of Golf or some other interests.
Other benefits that airline pilots enjoy are good retirement benefits such as their travel benefits being extended for life. Benefits also include good health insurance for pilots and their families, matched 401k retirement funds and paid vacations that last up to three weeks each year in addition to all of the regular time off that they get.
The demand is great for new pilots to train and enter the Airline Industry as Pilots. The need for new pilots is well documented in this blog as well as many other outlets. Acquiring solid flight training is the key to getting started, and you can do so with the knowledge that your services will be in high demand once you have completed training.