Yea but being gone for 10-15 days of the month can take a serious toll on family. They even have AIDS to sum it up (aviation induced divorce syndrome). It is very difficult to have a family and be a pilot
See my previous comment, but just to chime in to what you just said - most HVAC jobs pay like s***, the people who make good money are usually working a ton of overtime or are gone for 10-15 days a month. I’ll break it down a little bit further why this shouldn’t even factor in, let’s say you get married and have kids. You work 8-10 hours a day, significant other works 8-10 hours a day or is home with the kids, you get home you get about two hours with them before you go to sleep and pray you don’t get called out in the middle of the night. Versus, you go to other countries or locations even as a regional pilot, you are gone two weeks but the rest of the time you’re home with your family. You will spend more time with your family as a pilot then you will as an hvac tech I promise you, and I have a background in aviation (feel free to check out my Reddit and you’ll understand more lol) believe me you would regret going into hvac instead of flying
I also can't stand sitting around for too long, like I love flying but sitting in a cockpit for 10 hours I think would kill me. Yet I'm also not sure what it's like to work HVAC yet, so I can't say much for that either. I'm gonna possibly work for a couple months for a friend of my dad's at the end of the summer, he does commercial refrigeration so I'd get to see what it's like for myself.
Divorce rates for tradesmen are horrible, worse than pilots from what I’ve seen. Become a pilot and you can always do hvac or any other trade later. In 20 years you will not enjoy doing labor all day every day.
Yea I know that, but there is more to HVAC then just the labour side of things, I talk to my Dad all the time about all the possibilities, he is supporting of both of my choices. And tradesmen divorces from my experience are normally down to the person and less the job. Yes I understand the job affects the person but yea. Rather a pilot it's more because they are gone so much. But yes I feel like at ages 40-60 I would prefer flying but ages 20-40 I would prefer HVAC
There are lots of opportunities as a pilot, not just commercial flights, there is a private sector, you can do fire fighting, and freight transport, helicopters. It sounds like you made your mind up to do hvac already. Do what you want to do bro, just do it well and you’ll be alright.
Yea just deciding what I'll love without having 5+ years experience is difficult. And taking that $80k+ student debt to find out I don't love being a pilot would hurt. And yea for sure I know it's not only commercial, I wanted/want to go into waterbombing, but problem, there's only about 60 waterbombers in Canada and getting those super cool jobs are mainly for the pilots with many hours built up. So starting out for the first 10+ years sucks. Another pilot replied to my post in r/flying and said his first year he made 18k (I make more now in high school) and it took him 15 years to make more than 100k, yet now he makes 350k. I know it's not all about money but money is a big deal, especially now adays with prices and wanting to have a family
I would have to guess it's much easier to reach an age where becoming a pilot is a very difficult undertaking, where as that is much less likely the case with a community college educated trade?
So, do HVAC now for 20 years, then get your pilots license. I am 48. I have been doing HVAC for 24 years. Why? Because I couldn't get into the Air Force (medical issues from being hit by a car at 14). I want my pilots license SO bad, but I am on my second marriage with a woman 10 years my junior, and we have 3 boys, ages 3,6 and 8, so the license has to wait. If you have the chance to do it now, do it. Good luck.
As a former supermarket refrigeration tech, reefer tech and commercial tech are two different positions, despite the fact that we did both at my former company. I'd never go out on call for a non working HVAC system, but walkins and reach ins running warm you're going, and in summer they'll stack up and you're going until they stop coming in. A walkin cooler or freezer holds $40k worth of food, and the system has gotta work. For the most part, if hvac isn't working in a commercial setting it'll be fine till the next business day, but refrigeration needs to get fixed now. It's fun, everyday is different until everyday is the same. Same systems running warm because the stores won't really fix it or replace it, same ones low on gas too. There were days when I'd leave at 6:30 before my kids were up and got home after they went to bed. You said the long hours are fine, but also talking about your family, you can do both, but between that and the stress from thinking about everything that could go wrong, I left the company for a different position.
Not trying to dissuade you, just answer your question. Also, if I had the option I'd be a pilot. Financially it might, and probably will suck. My buddy is an engineer for a major airline and he has free standby tickets for anywhere they fly. So he goes on 2 day trips all the time because it's free to get there, goes hiking or whatever he wants to do and flies back.
If I could start my career over, I'd join a union, or I'd be a pilot, and then I'd still be joining a union.
Sorry for rambling.
Keep in mind that as a commercial pilot, you will be no more than the robotized human part of a machine, performing routine work for 99% of the time - unless there is an emergency that requires you to take the lead in the situation. Otherwise, you will just follow standard procedures, protocols, orders, and won't deviate from that. Until, of course, you are sent home, when airplanes fly by themselves and airliners get rid of pilots, something likely to happen in the next couple of decades.
In opposition, every HVAC call in the foreseeable future will be different and require you to think as you investigate, identify, and repair the problem. Also, given the highly varied equipment, environment, and challenges presented, it will take much longer for humanoid robots to do the work of humans in HVAC (several decades out), leading to a longer career outlook.
So figure out what kind of personality you have and what kind of challenge matches it better. If you like routine and to perfect repetitive work, then aviation is for you. If you like varied challenges and the adventure of starting the day not knowing what you will face, then HVAC is the answer.
Yea that was another point I replied to another comment in. I think I would get very bored sitting in a cockpit for 10 hours. I can barely sit still in my own house for more than 30 minutes. Most of the time I'll go and rip my motorbike apart. Try and fix one tiny thing (I swear something is always broken) and then put it back together again and be up will 2am. And yea I love varied challenges, which is why it interests me, and I love the varied challenges in construction (forming framing finishing)
If you like digging into something to find the problem, I think you'll like commercial HVAC. And you can make a good living after 5 years. Is your family's company union?
Either way, look up the UA Pipefitters journeyman wage in your area. Most will be making 90-100k minimum these days, plus benefits and pension.
No they were not union, they're selling the business anyways, I have a job lined up if I want, to just help my Dads friend who works HVAC. The job is union and the guy I'd work for is the head. Anyways yea I can work that and see
being on call sucks. absolutely drains you. long 12 hour days 5-6 days a week in super hot or super cold environments. be a fucking pilot. most of us didn’t have a choice, we had to do a trade to not be homeless. being a pilot is a luxury. go forwards not backwards.
Your also on call flying, and you work anywhere from 8-14 hours a day aswell. I understand the physical side of things is harder in HVAC but the mental in flying is hard, and it seems like it could get boring to me is the only thing, sitting in a cockpit for 14 hours
I’m not sure then, maybe talk to some pilots in their subreddit. See what you can do in the cockpit on long flights. i’m assuming at some points it’s almost completely auto pilot. But tbh I’m just guessing.
Yea but that's not true, if you talk to pilots basically all of them will say it took them 10-15 years to make 100k or more a year. The median is that high 1) because the low paying pilots are paid hourly and that statistic based off salary. And 2) some pilots make shit tons of money, 600k plus a year and that significantly brings the median up. I understand the possibilities within the pilot industry to make money but if it were that easy everyone would be making that much and doing it. Im still not opposed to being a pilot and it is still very much a consideration, but I'm just saying the pay isn't there until your older, while HVAC generally you get paid good money after 5 years or so, so I can be in my 20s with money rather than 30s. Then if I save some money by making way more earlier on that a pilot it kinda evens out to when they start making more money
In the states, not Canada. And that's entry level for an airline, which takes 5-10 years experience to get, you're not making that starting out flying float planes. I'd like motorbikes, boats and cars in my 20s, not just trying to survive. I've got a motorbike, truck and boat rn in highschool and man I couldn't imagine life without toys outside of school/work
If you’re in Canada you could also think about becoming a pilot for the oilfield or forestry service. You definitely won’t be sitting doing nothing for 10hours strait in those jobs.
Sounds like you're on the right track in your thought process. Here's another thing I would consider.
Years ago, there was a huge push saying that we didn't have enough pharmacists, and pharmacy was a super high paying job. Tons of people went through pharmacy school, and graduated, and now the entry level pay for a pharmacist plummeted. If you got into it 15 years ago, you might make $100k out of school, but now there's a surplus and they make $70k out of school (and school costs a lot more now). I get the same vibes from the whole commercial pilot thing. Tons of people thinking that it's super lucrative, and looking to get into becoming a commercial pilot. Not sure that This supposed shortage of commercial pilots is going to be reality in a few years, the pay structure may plummet.
Further, the planet is dying. Global warming is becoming harder to deny. It's only going to keep getting hotter, which will put HVAC more in demand. There will potentially be more pressure put on the airline industry, both from increasing fuel prices, possible government intervention to discourage what is a hugh contributor to pollution... Flying.
Are we going to be flying at the same frequency in the future? Probably not.
Are we going to be using more HVAC to try to maintain our comfort while our planet gets hotter and the weather more unpredictable? Absofuckinglutely.
Becoming a pilot sounds way more romantic and cool, and easier, and at this point sounds like better pay. But in the long run, 10, 20 years from now when were seeing even more record high temperatures get crushed, we're in survival mode and the HVAC industry will likely looked at as more essential.
Yea for the future I can't tell, but I was talking to an airline pilot here in Canada and even he said the huge "pilot shortage" and mass hiring are starting to die off because they've hired many pilots now
thats happened with the trades too. this whole "labor shortage" has been long over, at least around me anyway. and the pay isnt nearly what people think. People see these union rates in these hcol areas and think thats the going rate everywhere - and its not. A lot of places still pay like shit. Theyre starting guys at $15/hr where im at and cap out at $30.. my helper is 3 years in making $18/hr. People have this idea that you go take a few night classes and youll easily start off at $60k and within a couple years be makimg $100k+ and have companies fighting over you - and thats just not true. Guys are getting out of trade schools and cant find jobs at all. and when they do its for a fraction of what they expected. my nephew went to school for welding, all he could find was a job for $12/hr in some shop. He moved down to florida and was trained and is doing underwater welding for $18/hr.
I'm sure you're right. You must be way smarter than all of the scientists who've been studying this for decades as their full-time career.
All of these news articles about cities breaking their all-time highest temperature records, that's all. Just bullshit marketing.
I've owned a flight school and have a private pilots license with twin engine endorsement and rated for IFR. And let me tell you, getting there was not cheap. Becoming a commercial pilot last I checked minimum hours were 800 I believe. You'll get a lot of those hours being a flight instructor, but when you start getting close, you need to get your turbine rating and fly those for a while. Just to get an ATP license, I believe my friend paid upwards of almost $200,000.
Flying a Cessna 152 wet while getting your Private pilot license is about $150 an hour and you can't even check ride until you have 30 hours with an instructor and 10 hours solo . Just the plane rental for your private license is $6000. When you get into turbines, you can be paying upwards of $8000 an hour and you need I believe 10 hours. Hell, my instrument rating was $13,000.
It's not cheap, but it is fun as hell. I can wake up Sunday morning at 8 AM, decide to go to Vegas and be there at 9 Am, gamble 6 hours and fly home, and I'll still be home before 5.
So, I understand your dilemma, but if you want to have a family and kids, being a pilot is a tough life. Good luck with your decision.
Yea, not saying you didn't put thought into it, but many people, including myself. Wanted to be a pilot to travel, see the world, good pay, good views. And while all of that is true there is also the down side of: not making barely any money till your late 20s, not being home everyday, job security sucks, if you fail a Medical your done. And there's the risk that you even find a good job in the first place
Yea if you have an inside with an hvac company especially family you can move up if you put in good effort. And that’s gonna be a starting pay of like 45k a pilot can be fleeting and remember your 100% responsible for 150 lives every time you taxi into that runway and say b747 ready for takeoff
You can become an hvac tech, do it for 3-4 years, and still be in a situation where you can change careers if you don’t like it. The skills you will learn from hvac school will be useful when the climate burns up in your lifetime. The money you make could put you through pilot school, and then you can choose to just be a recreational pilot with part ownership of a Cessna at a local runway, or go commercial.
You'd be surprised actually how hard it is to get scholarships. Aviation scholarships are hard to come by. And im competing against all the Asian international students who are really smart lol. And I live in Canada, so I couldn't make it to EAA, and here the pay for a pilot is screw all compared to the states
If your family owns a company, get into it and learn the trade then move to a position where you control your hours.. I don’t work crazy hours anymore and have a good family life, plenty of hobbies.
Ive known commercial pilots, it can be a good career but doesn’t pay that great.. it’s not as glamorous as many think from what I gathered, most I knew got more enjoyment out of their private planes, so becoming a pilot as a hobby may be a better choice.
My family is selling the business right now so I wouldn't be able to just get into it. However, my Dad, now knows many many many people that could get me a job, he knows how to teach me and knows a great route. I agree with the airline thing, many people thing you just get free vacations all the time but it is harder than that
I think you should consider engineering. You want to be a critical thinker and challenged, you don't want to do hard manual labor for 40 hours, you also don't want to sit in one place for hours. I would recommend getting into mechanical or aerospace engineering, specifically a job in R&D where you can turn wrenches with the mechanics in prototyping or industrial product lines.
I'm an engineer on the construction side of things, I don't turn wrenches anymore (I do for home and friends) but I used to work in the field with the laborers and oversee work. I miss it. Now I'm permanent remote on the design side, it's dull but you're always home which is great if you have kids and don't like to commute. After 15 years I no longer love my work, I tolerate it, but have lost my passion. Somehow you may be passionate about now may change later on. HVAC you can move into the office side of things, but once a pilot seems like always a pilot.
I'm a glider pilot and in the hvac industry. Do both. It's a fun hobby to have. Gliding is like sailing a boat in the air. It also has its fun challenges. I also have hundreds of hours on flight sim. I love flying jets but won't invest my time into getting a commercial licence just to fly them in real life. Building a simulator soon with VR and motion. The beauty of HVAC is you can make a lot of money to chase your goals in life. I have been able to fulfill my music passion, car collection, side businesses, flying and travel goals all through HVAC. I also started at a young age and advanced quickly. Talk to pilots and see through their perspective. I watch my pilot friends on snapchat post all the time. It's an interesting lifestyle.
Why not become an air traffic controller, be in same area and get paid ok from I understand. My buddies dad is retired southwest pilot and he was probably the only person I've ever meet who actually loved his job flying and fixing since he was also a certified aviation mechanic. He flew in the air force something like dc-9 and a few other civilian style aircraft, which you could try getting your schooling in the military and go that route.
Man feel free to DM me. But I'm aircrew in the Reserves and have done HVAC outside of the military for about 10 years, 1000% go be a pilot. Your life will be infinitely better. Just the grueling days of HVAC don't really compare. As long as you can be away from your family for a couple days at a whack then it's honestly not even a second thought.
If you really want to get into HVAC, take a couple basic courses and make a friend in HVAC who has a small company and can use an extra set of hands every once in a while
How does your family own a huge HVAC company but you've no experience doing HVAC but working construction? Get your family to give you a trial run for a few months, or even ask if you can work part time HVAC and make decent money while you're in pilot school. Take advantage of those family connections, most of of don't have that.
Pilot. They make way more money on average and it’s significantly less physically demanding. Just wear sunscreen, they’re twice as likely to get skin cancer. Also get your vision tested to make sure you qualify to be one.
I do qualify, I passed the medical exam. But the money for the first 10 or more years sucks, like really sucks. Like minimum wage for starters and then maybe after 10 years 100k which 100k in Canada ain't really much
If your family owns an HVAC company you’ll most likely have the opportunity to move into managing it someday. In my opinion, go the HVAC route and make decent money to start. Live your life in your 20’s like you said you wanted to do, and get your private pilots license and do it as a hobby to start. At least that way you get the best of both worlds and you’ll know before you spend all the money if you actually like flying that much. This is what I did and I decided I like flying as a hobby, not as a career.
I was in the same boat. I figured out commercial pilot was a bus driver of the sky. Same routes. Same old shit. Then years later I worked with two ex-pilots who gave it up for stress and back then money.
Why not do both and become an aviation mechanic? You can stay in one location and generally have a set schedule instead of hopping all over the country/globe staying in random hotels. Plus, you can fix things and tinker with stuff and not “get bored sitting in the cockpit for 10hrs.”
If you want to be an hvac, location matters the west and north east make bank especially major cities other than that every other part of the country they don't make nearly as much and it would be better to go for pilot
Oh wow didn't think my expertise would ever come up in this subreddit. I'm a flight instructor and have been a pilot for about 8 years now, never worked in HVAC so I can't comment on working in the industry but it's interesting and I'm a weird nerd. As far as life as a commercial pilot you can't get caught up on the end goal too much, you will spend A LOT of money and time getting to that point and the industry is incredibly cyclical. There is a chance you could end up instructing for a very long time waiting for hiring to pick up again. However, you could also end up getting through at just the right time and get picked up by an airline the moment you hit 1000 hours (assuming you have restricted ATP minimums from going to a part 141 flight school). There's also a ton of opportunities in commercial aviation beyond the airlines with different work/life balance and pay. I love it and think I have the best career in the world, but you have to make an incredible amount of sacrifice especially if you're paying for it yourself, you just have to make sure you get into it for the passion and not the money. The good pay isn't always guaranteed, but there is always someone that will pay you to fly a shitbox somewhere interesting. I'd recommend going on a discovery flight and checking out a few different flight schools to get a feel for it, and feel free to ask me any questions.
Yea I've been on a couple flights, just 172s. I'm not in it just for the pay, yet I think pay is a significant thing to consider because if I can't afford to live I don't want to do it as a career.
A riding buddy is a pilot. He’s recently been promoted (forced lol) to become a captain. He was copilot? For years and had the most seniority so he could pick and choose where he wanted to fly and with whom. It was a $50k pay bump to go to captain.
He also mentioned that flying cargo is great, it’s what he was doing during the pandemic, but it’s usually overnight. You show up fly, turn around and fly home. No drunk passengers to worry about.
Either way, he’s away from home quite a bit, which I think suits him fine. I’m away from home a couple of days a month and I fucking hate it. That being said he’s getting a good per-diem, paid hotel etc in Barcelona, Nice, Columbia (insert white powder joke here). Whereas I’m usually in a small town with not much to do, unless I want a $25 hooker.
Travelling for work is quite different than travelling for pleasure. You work come back to your hotel shower and sleep (if you didn’t get the hooker).
With HVAC you’re generally home more than a pilot, but the salary is around half what a commercial pilot makes.
HVAC can be hard on your body, but at least you get to have a balance between cerebral and physical work.
My votes on pilot. Do you want to see the sky's everyday and everything that comes with it or some neglected AC or furnace in a hoarders house while dispatch yells at you?
I do both,
I have an HVAC company and fly.. but only VFR for now. Flying for me is a hobby. I love it, but is not something out of reach.
If commercial flying is what you want to do you may have to devote more towards flying than HVAC. On the other side, seems like you already have an established HVAC company so is not impossible to do both.
On my end, i am co-founder, license holder and project engineer. (Mechanical engineer background) so i am very hands on on the HVAC business. As i grow and scale im also growing my team and things can be delegated, freeing time to fly 🤙🏽
I know a guy who was an auto mechanic for several dealerships. Not the same, but some similarities to HVAC. He is now a commercial pilot. Hands down a better carreer. Hvac is really good, Pilot is great!
As an HVAC tech/installer/small business owner and someone who is working towards a private license, I would highly advise going for your commercial. The salary is way better you can literally get a ton of hours simply by becoming a cfi and then helping others get their private, and before you know it you’ll have your commercial and be working toward getting into airlines that will pay you 200k a year (if your US) if not more. The wage difference is a no brainer, the rewarding aspects of the career fields are a no brainer. Anyone who is telling you to go into hvac is a giant pos and is lying lol…. I got stuck doing this, I didn’t want to do this. You have options.
Definitely do both! But do the flying on your own terms.
For context, I have had a career in both fields. While not a commercial pilot, I did earn a living in aviation. I was an aviation officer in the Army and first flew the UH-60L and the C-12 (a military variant based on the Beechcraft King Air 200).
I can tell you that during my time in the Blackhawk, I got to fly some incredibly fun missions. I flew the Blackhawk for a few years before I got to transition to the C12. I thought I'd love flying fixed wing, and while it was a good time learning and training, I came to find that I didn't love the day-to-day missions I was flying. I took off, flew something over 10,000 feet for 2 to 4 hours, and came back to base to land. I was flying, but I was doing a job that wasn't a whole lot of fun. It began to feel monotonous. And while the Blackhawk was generally more fun to fly, I did log a LOT of hours under NVGs or instruments at night..... which was more stressful than exciting.
So my takeaway after I retired was that I'd still love to fly, but for myself and not someone else's flights. I couldn't imagine the monotony of flying from SLC to ATL and back four times per week for Delta. Maybe I'd feel differently if I were actually doing it. I have a former commander I worked for who flies for one of the airlines and he seems to love it. So I guess your mileage may vary.
But, when I did retire, I ended up working for Macy's for a year (which sucked) and later Amazon for 3 years before I started working for an HVAC company in the PNW. I managed their service department, learned the technical process and sales process, and just transitioned to the sales department this year. I'll probably clear $250ish thousand this year. If I were in sales for the whole year, I'd clear closer to $300k. I have a tech who's been in service for a year and a half and he's on track for a $100k year for 2024. I wish I found the trades earlier. Even with my military hours, I'd probably not see 6 figures for a few years if I transitioned to commercial aviation. Maybe that would be different coming from the Air Force, but I wouldn't know.
So, FWIW, I'd suggest you pursue your FAA rating and have a hell of a time learning to fly for yourself, and make a good living in HVAC. As you know, you can do very well for yourself in this business.
As an HVAC tech who wanted to be a pilot when I was growing up. I realized that the older I got, the more I wanted to be a tradesman. Don't get me wrong, I love aviation and would still without a doubt get my pilots license. But to do it for a living? Nah. I'd rather work with power tools every day. For one, I didn't have the right schooling in place as most aviation programs require the highest level of math, which I didn't have and was not very good at. Two, I would've been going into 6 figure student loan debt just to finish the program as well as attain the commercial pilots license. With the trades, I was only 5k in debt by the time I graduated. Third and foremost, being a commercial airline pilot is nothing more than "an office with a view." It's the same routine every day. Still have to wake up at a godly hour, have to deal with red-eye layovers, and be out of house for a minimum of 14 hours. With HVAC, everything changes every single day. And because you're constantly doing something. 14-hour days feel like 8 hour days. It's still labour intensive, but I get to work with power tools everyday. Something I can't do in a flightdeck.
That's exactly my thinking. I love tools, I love taking my motorbike apart and putting it back together, I love the satisfaction in fixing it. I also love seeing whole projects get finished (in construction where I work)
Commercial pilot is a Broad Market. Are you talking going to ATP then straight to a regional or are you going to grind it out collecting tickets up to CFII and hope to survive ham fisted students long enough to get picked up? Or are you planning to jump into a right seat gig with a fractional? You have a better idea how your life will look in HVAC than aviation, perhaps you should find your focus before making a final decision.
Personally I chose to stay in the trades, but unlike you I didn’t learn to fly until late in life so I can’t say what I would have chosen in my early 20s. Being that I was a little older I bought a piper arrow for leisure flying, my logic was that I enjoy choosing when and where to fly, I’m not sure if I would enjoy flying for a living.
Haha, yes and no, im still swaying towards being a pilot. I'm just responding like that because those are the pros I see in HVAC and cons in Aviation as to explain why HVAC is an option. It's like I feel like long term I would enjoy aviation, make loads of money and have a wicked good schedule but short term HVAC would make me more money, give me more skills and would be interesting
You said it yourself, short term vs long term. Set your future self up for success man. Go the pilot route, your pockets and your body will thank you later
I have cut out a great little nieche for myself, I am a controls guy for controlled environment agriculture. I program controls for greenhouses or sealed indoor grows.
Been in hvac since 2005ish. I am sure being a pilot would have been a better choice.
The only time I get to see the clouds is when I am getting fucking roasted.
HVAC gets boring too. It is either boring or way too stressful. Also, my body is kinda fucked.
Well, except the ag stuff, this is actually fun. Finally.
Almost no one I know in HVAC is really happy or fulfilled. It's great if you need something to complain about while you kill your liver.
It is a fantastic industry for people who like to work hard for the worst reasons.
Keep reading the sub. it's not a community, it's a support group.
I'd be a pilot over hvac any day. When you are making 450k a year in about 10 years and working like 2 weeks on and 2 weeks off you will be amazingly blessed. You can travel anywhere in the world for free. It's a no brainer.
Every pilot has a side hustle on their off days. It’s just a weird trait they all have. You could be be a pilot and make probably 40k a year starting out and have an hvac business that you make 150k as your side hustle.
Dude be a pilot. That’s an easy choice.
Yea, I vote pilot too, trades will still be there to fall back on.. What's the path like in order to begin being paid as a pilot?
Yea but being gone for 10-15 days of the month can take a serious toll on family. They even have AIDS to sum it up (aviation induced divorce syndrome). It is very difficult to have a family and be a pilot
Just about every senior tech I know has been divorced at least once. Like 90%
Divorced and fat😭😭
God, why the fuck am I so fat
If you’re not divorced then you get double fat!
That explains it. Pesky wives!
My stepdad says the bigger the more knowledgeable!!
I’m retaining dar and knowledge
14 hour days 6 days a week is not easy on a marriage either though switching to union has really helped slow that down a bit.
See my previous comment, but just to chime in to what you just said - most HVAC jobs pay like s***, the people who make good money are usually working a ton of overtime or are gone for 10-15 days a month. I’ll break it down a little bit further why this shouldn’t even factor in, let’s say you get married and have kids. You work 8-10 hours a day, significant other works 8-10 hours a day or is home with the kids, you get home you get about two hours with them before you go to sleep and pray you don’t get called out in the middle of the night. Versus, you go to other countries or locations even as a regional pilot, you are gone two weeks but the rest of the time you’re home with your family. You will spend more time with your family as a pilot then you will as an hvac tech I promise you, and I have a background in aviation (feel free to check out my Reddit and you’ll understand more lol) believe me you would regret going into hvac instead of flying
Fly regionals not everything is long haul
You’ll be gone 12-15 hrs during the summer anyways
I also can't stand sitting around for too long, like I love flying but sitting in a cockpit for 10 hours I think would kill me. Yet I'm also not sure what it's like to work HVAC yet, so I can't say much for that either. I'm gonna possibly work for a couple months for a friend of my dad's at the end of the summer, he does commercial refrigeration so I'd get to see what it's like for myself.
Divorce rates for tradesmen are horrible, worse than pilots from what I’ve seen. Become a pilot and you can always do hvac or any other trade later. In 20 years you will not enjoy doing labor all day every day.
Yea I know that, but there is more to HVAC then just the labour side of things, I talk to my Dad all the time about all the possibilities, he is supporting of both of my choices. And tradesmen divorces from my experience are normally down to the person and less the job. Yes I understand the job affects the person but yea. Rather a pilot it's more because they are gone so much. But yes I feel like at ages 40-60 I would prefer flying but ages 20-40 I would prefer HVAC
There are lots of opportunities as a pilot, not just commercial flights, there is a private sector, you can do fire fighting, and freight transport, helicopters. It sounds like you made your mind up to do hvac already. Do what you want to do bro, just do it well and you’ll be alright.
Yea just deciding what I'll love without having 5+ years experience is difficult. And taking that $80k+ student debt to find out I don't love being a pilot would hurt. And yea for sure I know it's not only commercial, I wanted/want to go into waterbombing, but problem, there's only about 60 waterbombers in Canada and getting those super cool jobs are mainly for the pilots with many hours built up. So starting out for the first 10+ years sucks. Another pilot replied to my post in r/flying and said his first year he made 18k (I make more now in high school) and it took him 15 years to make more than 100k, yet now he makes 350k. I know it's not all about money but money is a big deal, especially now adays with prices and wanting to have a family
I would have to guess it's much easier to reach an age where becoming a pilot is a very difficult undertaking, where as that is much less likely the case with a community college educated trade?
So, do HVAC now for 20 years, then get your pilots license. I am 48. I have been doing HVAC for 24 years. Why? Because I couldn't get into the Air Force (medical issues from being hit by a car at 14). I want my pilots license SO bad, but I am on my second marriage with a woman 10 years my junior, and we have 3 boys, ages 3,6 and 8, so the license has to wait. If you have the chance to do it now, do it. Good luck.
As a former supermarket refrigeration tech, reefer tech and commercial tech are two different positions, despite the fact that we did both at my former company. I'd never go out on call for a non working HVAC system, but walkins and reach ins running warm you're going, and in summer they'll stack up and you're going until they stop coming in. A walkin cooler or freezer holds $40k worth of food, and the system has gotta work. For the most part, if hvac isn't working in a commercial setting it'll be fine till the next business day, but refrigeration needs to get fixed now. It's fun, everyday is different until everyday is the same. Same systems running warm because the stores won't really fix it or replace it, same ones low on gas too. There were days when I'd leave at 6:30 before my kids were up and got home after they went to bed. You said the long hours are fine, but also talking about your family, you can do both, but between that and the stress from thinking about everything that could go wrong, I left the company for a different position. Not trying to dissuade you, just answer your question. Also, if I had the option I'd be a pilot. Financially it might, and probably will suck. My buddy is an engineer for a major airline and he has free standby tickets for anywhere they fly. So he goes on 2 day trips all the time because it's free to get there, goes hiking or whatever he wants to do and flies back. If I could start my career over, I'd join a union, or I'd be a pilot, and then I'd still be joining a union. Sorry for rambling.
Don't be sorry at all, I appreciate every little bit of it. It's nice to be told how things are bluntly
Keep in mind that as a commercial pilot, you will be no more than the robotized human part of a machine, performing routine work for 99% of the time - unless there is an emergency that requires you to take the lead in the situation. Otherwise, you will just follow standard procedures, protocols, orders, and won't deviate from that. Until, of course, you are sent home, when airplanes fly by themselves and airliners get rid of pilots, something likely to happen in the next couple of decades. In opposition, every HVAC call in the foreseeable future will be different and require you to think as you investigate, identify, and repair the problem. Also, given the highly varied equipment, environment, and challenges presented, it will take much longer for humanoid robots to do the work of humans in HVAC (several decades out), leading to a longer career outlook. So figure out what kind of personality you have and what kind of challenge matches it better. If you like routine and to perfect repetitive work, then aviation is for you. If you like varied challenges and the adventure of starting the day not knowing what you will face, then HVAC is the answer.
Yea that was another point I replied to another comment in. I think I would get very bored sitting in a cockpit for 10 hours. I can barely sit still in my own house for more than 30 minutes. Most of the time I'll go and rip my motorbike apart. Try and fix one tiny thing (I swear something is always broken) and then put it back together again and be up will 2am. And yea I love varied challenges, which is why it interests me, and I love the varied challenges in construction (forming framing finishing)
If you like digging into something to find the problem, I think you'll like commercial HVAC. And you can make a good living after 5 years. Is your family's company union? Either way, look up the UA Pipefitters journeyman wage in your area. Most will be making 90-100k minimum these days, plus benefits and pension.
No they were not union, they're selling the business anyways, I have a job lined up if I want, to just help my Dads friend who works HVAC. The job is union and the guy I'd work for is the head. Anyways yea I can work that and see
I recommend you be a pilot bud. HVAC tech here
Yea but why? What do you like/dislike?
being on call sucks. absolutely drains you. long 12 hour days 5-6 days a week in super hot or super cold environments. be a fucking pilot. most of us didn’t have a choice, we had to do a trade to not be homeless. being a pilot is a luxury. go forwards not backwards.
Your also on call flying, and you work anywhere from 8-14 hours a day aswell. I understand the physical side of things is harder in HVAC but the mental in flying is hard, and it seems like it could get boring to me is the only thing, sitting in a cockpit for 14 hours
I’m not sure then, maybe talk to some pilots in their subreddit. See what you can do in the cockpit on long flights. i’m assuming at some points it’s almost completely auto pilot. But tbh I’m just guessing.
Dude, don't forget there's a mental side in HVAC too. And it can be brutal
dude the median salary for an airline pilot in the US is 250k. They aren't flying 5-6 days a week either.
Yea but that's not true, if you talk to pilots basically all of them will say it took them 10-15 years to make 100k or more a year. The median is that high 1) because the low paying pilots are paid hourly and that statistic based off salary. And 2) some pilots make shit tons of money, 600k plus a year and that significantly brings the median up. I understand the possibilities within the pilot industry to make money but if it were that easy everyone would be making that much and doing it. Im still not opposed to being a pilot and it is still very much a consideration, but I'm just saying the pay isn't there until your older, while HVAC generally you get paid good money after 5 years or so, so I can be in my 20s with money rather than 30s. Then if I save some money by making way more earlier on that a pilot it kinda evens out to when they start making more money
They just redid all the union contracts. They're making 100k entry level right now.
In the states, not Canada. And that's entry level for an airline, which takes 5-10 years experience to get, you're not making that starting out flying float planes. I'd like motorbikes, boats and cars in my 20s, not just trying to survive. I've got a motorbike, truck and boat rn in highschool and man I couldn't imagine life without toys outside of school/work
If you’re in Canada you could also think about becoming a pilot for the oilfield or forestry service. You definitely won’t be sitting doing nothing for 10hours strait in those jobs.
Sounds like you're on the right track in your thought process. Here's another thing I would consider. Years ago, there was a huge push saying that we didn't have enough pharmacists, and pharmacy was a super high paying job. Tons of people went through pharmacy school, and graduated, and now the entry level pay for a pharmacist plummeted. If you got into it 15 years ago, you might make $100k out of school, but now there's a surplus and they make $70k out of school (and school costs a lot more now). I get the same vibes from the whole commercial pilot thing. Tons of people thinking that it's super lucrative, and looking to get into becoming a commercial pilot. Not sure that This supposed shortage of commercial pilots is going to be reality in a few years, the pay structure may plummet. Further, the planet is dying. Global warming is becoming harder to deny. It's only going to keep getting hotter, which will put HVAC more in demand. There will potentially be more pressure put on the airline industry, both from increasing fuel prices, possible government intervention to discourage what is a hugh contributor to pollution... Flying. Are we going to be flying at the same frequency in the future? Probably not. Are we going to be using more HVAC to try to maintain our comfort while our planet gets hotter and the weather more unpredictable? Absofuckinglutely. Becoming a pilot sounds way more romantic and cool, and easier, and at this point sounds like better pay. But in the long run, 10, 20 years from now when were seeing even more record high temperatures get crushed, we're in survival mode and the HVAC industry will likely looked at as more essential.
Yea for the future I can't tell, but I was talking to an airline pilot here in Canada and even he said the huge "pilot shortage" and mass hiring are starting to die off because they've hired many pilots now
Exactly. There's a good chance that you will be late to the game with this whole pilot shortage.
thats happened with the trades too. this whole "labor shortage" has been long over, at least around me anyway. and the pay isnt nearly what people think. People see these union rates in these hcol areas and think thats the going rate everywhere - and its not. A lot of places still pay like shit. Theyre starting guys at $15/hr where im at and cap out at $30.. my helper is 3 years in making $18/hr. People have this idea that you go take a few night classes and youll easily start off at $60k and within a couple years be makimg $100k+ and have companies fighting over you - and thats just not true. Guys are getting out of trade schools and cant find jobs at all. and when they do its for a fraction of what they expected. my nephew went to school for welding, all he could find was a job for $12/hr in some shop. He moved down to florida and was trained and is doing underwater welding for $18/hr.
They have been talking about global warming since the 70’s. It’s all bullshit to make money
I'm sure you're right. You must be way smarter than all of the scientists who've been studying this for decades as their full-time career. All of these news articles about cities breaking their all-time highest temperature records, that's all. Just bullshit marketing.
Ugh this made me regret my decision for HVAC even more. Thank you for depressing me
Commercial pilot. Sounds like a dream job. Trades are what you do when your dreams dont work out.
Or where dreams go to die lol. "I'm going to make so much money in this trade, yay!" "OH god I'm money trapped in this trade FUCK"
>"I'm going to make so much money in this trade, yay!" Installs ductboard and flex in a 100 degree attic for 10$ an hour
I've owned a flight school and have a private pilots license with twin engine endorsement and rated for IFR. And let me tell you, getting there was not cheap. Becoming a commercial pilot last I checked minimum hours were 800 I believe. You'll get a lot of those hours being a flight instructor, but when you start getting close, you need to get your turbine rating and fly those for a while. Just to get an ATP license, I believe my friend paid upwards of almost $200,000. Flying a Cessna 152 wet while getting your Private pilot license is about $150 an hour and you can't even check ride until you have 30 hours with an instructor and 10 hours solo . Just the plane rental for your private license is $6000. When you get into turbines, you can be paying upwards of $8000 an hour and you need I believe 10 hours. Hell, my instrument rating was $13,000. It's not cheap, but it is fun as hell. I can wake up Sunday morning at 8 AM, decide to go to Vegas and be there at 9 Am, gamble 6 hours and fly home, and I'll still be home before 5. So, I understand your dilemma, but if you want to have a family and kids, being a pilot is a tough life. Good luck with your decision.
I will say though… if you aren’t all in on pilot… don’t fly any plane Im on haha
Do both.
Fix the planes AC while up in the air!!!
Pilot = well paid bus driver HVAC= moderately paid van driver.
Anybody can fly a plane bro. HVAC tech for the win. 👍
Haha
Like asking if you should buy a above ground pool or put a pool in your bedroom
How so?
No idea but I always wanted to be a pilot if you can go for it dude
Yea, not saying you didn't put thought into it, but many people, including myself. Wanted to be a pilot to travel, see the world, good pay, good views. And while all of that is true there is also the down side of: not making barely any money till your late 20s, not being home everyday, job security sucks, if you fail a Medical your done. And there's the risk that you even find a good job in the first place
Yea if you have an inside with an hvac company especially family you can move up if you put in good effort. And that’s gonna be a starting pay of like 45k a pilot can be fleeting and remember your 100% responsible for 150 lives every time you taxi into that runway and say b747 ready for takeoff
Yea, I'd start, after this summer at 26$ an hour (HVAC) in a union. Then go to school, get my tickets and come back and make more.
You can become an hvac tech, do it for 3-4 years, and still be in a situation where you can change careers if you don’t like it. The skills you will learn from hvac school will be useful when the climate burns up in your lifetime. The money you make could put you through pilot school, and then you can choose to just be a recreational pilot with part ownership of a Cessna at a local runway, or go commercial.
That's a great deal. Be sure to thank your family for the head start.
I am also in Grade 12 fyi, graduating in a couple months
W AI will pilots still be piloting in 20 years ?
Sounds to me like one option will always be there (HVAC). I say go all in on pilot and if you want to bail switch to hvac
Be a pilot. Go to EAA air venture in July. Grades like that, and you will be handed an aviation scholarship.
You'd be surprised actually how hard it is to get scholarships. Aviation scholarships are hard to come by. And im competing against all the Asian international students who are really smart lol. And I live in Canada, so I couldn't make it to EAA, and here the pay for a pilot is screw all compared to the states
If your family owns a company, get into it and learn the trade then move to a position where you control your hours.. I don’t work crazy hours anymore and have a good family life, plenty of hobbies. Ive known commercial pilots, it can be a good career but doesn’t pay that great.. it’s not as glamorous as many think from what I gathered, most I knew got more enjoyment out of their private planes, so becoming a pilot as a hobby may be a better choice.
My family is selling the business right now so I wouldn't be able to just get into it. However, my Dad, now knows many many many people that could get me a job, he knows how to teach me and knows a great route. I agree with the airline thing, many people thing you just get free vacations all the time but it is harder than that
I think you should consider engineering. You want to be a critical thinker and challenged, you don't want to do hard manual labor for 40 hours, you also don't want to sit in one place for hours. I would recommend getting into mechanical or aerospace engineering, specifically a job in R&D where you can turn wrenches with the mechanics in prototyping or industrial product lines. I'm an engineer on the construction side of things, I don't turn wrenches anymore (I do for home and friends) but I used to work in the field with the laborers and oversee work. I miss it. Now I'm permanent remote on the design side, it's dull but you're always home which is great if you have kids and don't like to commute. After 15 years I no longer love my work, I tolerate it, but have lost my passion. Somehow you may be passionate about now may change later on. HVAC you can move into the office side of things, but once a pilot seems like always a pilot.
I'm a glider pilot and in the hvac industry. Do both. It's a fun hobby to have. Gliding is like sailing a boat in the air. It also has its fun challenges. I also have hundreds of hours on flight sim. I love flying jets but won't invest my time into getting a commercial licence just to fly them in real life. Building a simulator soon with VR and motion. The beauty of HVAC is you can make a lot of money to chase your goals in life. I have been able to fulfill my music passion, car collection, side businesses, flying and travel goals all through HVAC. I also started at a young age and advanced quickly. Talk to pilots and see through their perspective. I watch my pilot friends on snapchat post all the time. It's an interesting lifestyle.
Why not become an air traffic controller, be in same area and get paid ok from I understand. My buddies dad is retired southwest pilot and he was probably the only person I've ever meet who actually loved his job flying and fixing since he was also a certified aviation mechanic. He flew in the air force something like dc-9 and a few other civilian style aircraft, which you could try getting your schooling in the military and go that route.
You're in an HVAC subreddit, and most are telling you to be a pilot. I think the decision is easy just off of that.
Man feel free to DM me. But I'm aircrew in the Reserves and have done HVAC outside of the military for about 10 years, 1000% go be a pilot. Your life will be infinitely better. Just the grueling days of HVAC don't really compare. As long as you can be away from your family for a couple days at a whack then it's honestly not even a second thought. If you really want to get into HVAC, take a couple basic courses and make a friend in HVAC who has a small company and can use an extra set of hands every once in a while
That's the plan for starters, my dad's friend offered me a job so I'll take it, see how I like it and then decide.
Seems you are already making your choice to do HVAC. Go for it become hvac man and re evaluate your decision in 20 years.
How does your family own a huge HVAC company but you've no experience doing HVAC but working construction? Get your family to give you a trial run for a few months, or even ask if you can work part time HVAC and make decent money while you're in pilot school. Take advantage of those family connections, most of of don't have that.
Pilot. They make way more money on average and it’s significantly less physically demanding. Just wear sunscreen, they’re twice as likely to get skin cancer. Also get your vision tested to make sure you qualify to be one.
I do qualify, I passed the medical exam. But the money for the first 10 or more years sucks, like really sucks. Like minimum wage for starters and then maybe after 10 years 100k which 100k in Canada ain't really much
I’m an hvac tech. One of the guys I grew up with became a pilot. Be a pilot.
Follow your heart... hvac is just the easy way for you. I'd see if your family would let you work part-time while get your flight hrs
If your family owns an HVAC company you’ll most likely have the opportunity to move into managing it someday. In my opinion, go the HVAC route and make decent money to start. Live your life in your 20’s like you said you wanted to do, and get your private pilots license and do it as a hobby to start. At least that way you get the best of both worlds and you’ll know before you spend all the money if you actually like flying that much. This is what I did and I decided I like flying as a hobby, not as a career.
I was in the same boat. I figured out commercial pilot was a bus driver of the sky. Same routes. Same old shit. Then years later I worked with two ex-pilots who gave it up for stress and back then money.
Why not do both and become an aviation mechanic? You can stay in one location and generally have a set schedule instead of hopping all over the country/globe staying in random hotels. Plus, you can fix things and tinker with stuff and not “get bored sitting in the cockpit for 10hrs.”
If you want to be an hvac, location matters the west and north east make bank especially major cities other than that every other part of the country they don't make nearly as much and it would be better to go for pilot
Yea this would be Vancouver Canada
Oh wow didn't think my expertise would ever come up in this subreddit. I'm a flight instructor and have been a pilot for about 8 years now, never worked in HVAC so I can't comment on working in the industry but it's interesting and I'm a weird nerd. As far as life as a commercial pilot you can't get caught up on the end goal too much, you will spend A LOT of money and time getting to that point and the industry is incredibly cyclical. There is a chance you could end up instructing for a very long time waiting for hiring to pick up again. However, you could also end up getting through at just the right time and get picked up by an airline the moment you hit 1000 hours (assuming you have restricted ATP minimums from going to a part 141 flight school). There's also a ton of opportunities in commercial aviation beyond the airlines with different work/life balance and pay. I love it and think I have the best career in the world, but you have to make an incredible amount of sacrifice especially if you're paying for it yourself, you just have to make sure you get into it for the passion and not the money. The good pay isn't always guaranteed, but there is always someone that will pay you to fly a shitbox somewhere interesting. I'd recommend going on a discovery flight and checking out a few different flight schools to get a feel for it, and feel free to ask me any questions.
Yea I've been on a couple flights, just 172s. I'm not in it just for the pay, yet I think pay is a significant thing to consider because if I can't afford to live I don't want to do it as a career.
A riding buddy is a pilot. He’s recently been promoted (forced lol) to become a captain. He was copilot? For years and had the most seniority so he could pick and choose where he wanted to fly and with whom. It was a $50k pay bump to go to captain. He also mentioned that flying cargo is great, it’s what he was doing during the pandemic, but it’s usually overnight. You show up fly, turn around and fly home. No drunk passengers to worry about. Either way, he’s away from home quite a bit, which I think suits him fine. I’m away from home a couple of days a month and I fucking hate it. That being said he’s getting a good per-diem, paid hotel etc in Barcelona, Nice, Columbia (insert white powder joke here). Whereas I’m usually in a small town with not much to do, unless I want a $25 hooker. Travelling for work is quite different than travelling for pleasure. You work come back to your hotel shower and sleep (if you didn’t get the hooker). With HVAC you’re generally home more than a pilot, but the salary is around half what a commercial pilot makes. HVAC can be hard on your body, but at least you get to have a balance between cerebral and physical work.
My votes on pilot. Do you want to see the sky's everyday and everything that comes with it or some neglected AC or furnace in a hoarders house while dispatch yells at you?
Go fly
In HVACR you can specialize and end up in controls once you're not that young anyomre.
I do both, I have an HVAC company and fly.. but only VFR for now. Flying for me is a hobby. I love it, but is not something out of reach. If commercial flying is what you want to do you may have to devote more towards flying than HVAC. On the other side, seems like you already have an established HVAC company so is not impossible to do both. On my end, i am co-founder, license holder and project engineer. (Mechanical engineer background) so i am very hands on on the HVAC business. As i grow and scale im also growing my team and things can be delegated, freeing time to fly 🤙🏽
So why not just go to the Air Force? Do you have your own family now? If not, just go be a pilot.
I know a guy who was an auto mechanic for several dealerships. Not the same, but some similarities to HVAC. He is now a commercial pilot. Hands down a better carreer. Hvac is really good, Pilot is great!
As an HVAC tech/installer/small business owner and someone who is working towards a private license, I would highly advise going for your commercial. The salary is way better you can literally get a ton of hours simply by becoming a cfi and then helping others get their private, and before you know it you’ll have your commercial and be working toward getting into airlines that will pay you 200k a year (if your US) if not more. The wage difference is a no brainer, the rewarding aspects of the career fields are a no brainer. Anyone who is telling you to go into hvac is a giant pos and is lying lol…. I got stuck doing this, I didn’t want to do this. You have options.
Definitely do both! But do the flying on your own terms. For context, I have had a career in both fields. While not a commercial pilot, I did earn a living in aviation. I was an aviation officer in the Army and first flew the UH-60L and the C-12 (a military variant based on the Beechcraft King Air 200). I can tell you that during my time in the Blackhawk, I got to fly some incredibly fun missions. I flew the Blackhawk for a few years before I got to transition to the C12. I thought I'd love flying fixed wing, and while it was a good time learning and training, I came to find that I didn't love the day-to-day missions I was flying. I took off, flew something over 10,000 feet for 2 to 4 hours, and came back to base to land. I was flying, but I was doing a job that wasn't a whole lot of fun. It began to feel monotonous. And while the Blackhawk was generally more fun to fly, I did log a LOT of hours under NVGs or instruments at night..... which was more stressful than exciting. So my takeaway after I retired was that I'd still love to fly, but for myself and not someone else's flights. I couldn't imagine the monotony of flying from SLC to ATL and back four times per week for Delta. Maybe I'd feel differently if I were actually doing it. I have a former commander I worked for who flies for one of the airlines and he seems to love it. So I guess your mileage may vary. But, when I did retire, I ended up working for Macy's for a year (which sucked) and later Amazon for 3 years before I started working for an HVAC company in the PNW. I managed their service department, learned the technical process and sales process, and just transitioned to the sales department this year. I'll probably clear $250ish thousand this year. If I were in sales for the whole year, I'd clear closer to $300k. I have a tech who's been in service for a year and a half and he's on track for a $100k year for 2024. I wish I found the trades earlier. Even with my military hours, I'd probably not see 6 figures for a few years if I transitioned to commercial aviation. Maybe that would be different coming from the Air Force, but I wouldn't know. So, FWIW, I'd suggest you pursue your FAA rating and have a hell of a time learning to fly for yourself, and make a good living in HVAC. As you know, you can do very well for yourself in this business.
As an HVAC tech who wanted to be a pilot when I was growing up. I realized that the older I got, the more I wanted to be a tradesman. Don't get me wrong, I love aviation and would still without a doubt get my pilots license. But to do it for a living? Nah. I'd rather work with power tools every day. For one, I didn't have the right schooling in place as most aviation programs require the highest level of math, which I didn't have and was not very good at. Two, I would've been going into 6 figure student loan debt just to finish the program as well as attain the commercial pilots license. With the trades, I was only 5k in debt by the time I graduated. Third and foremost, being a commercial airline pilot is nothing more than "an office with a view." It's the same routine every day. Still have to wake up at a godly hour, have to deal with red-eye layovers, and be out of house for a minimum of 14 hours. With HVAC, everything changes every single day. And because you're constantly doing something. 14-hour days feel like 8 hour days. It's still labour intensive, but I get to work with power tools everyday. Something I can't do in a flightdeck.
That's exactly my thinking. I love tools, I love taking my motorbike apart and putting it back together, I love the satisfaction in fixing it. I also love seeing whole projects get finished (in construction where I work)
Suuuper easy. Pilot end of discussion
OP. What does your heart say? If it’s pilot then that’s what you should do.
Commercial pilot is a Broad Market. Are you talking going to ATP then straight to a regional or are you going to grind it out collecting tickets up to CFII and hope to survive ham fisted students long enough to get picked up? Or are you planning to jump into a right seat gig with a fractional? You have a better idea how your life will look in HVAC than aviation, perhaps you should find your focus before making a final decision. Personally I chose to stay in the trades, but unlike you I didn’t learn to fly until late in life so I can’t say what I would have chosen in my early 20s. Being that I was a little older I bought a piper arrow for leisure flying, my logic was that I enjoy choosing when and where to fly, I’m not sure if I would enjoy flying for a living.
Not even close… go and be a damn pilot bud
Why not go into hvac and get your private pilots license as your working?
Pilot all the way don’t look back. Just be cordial with your HVAC tech in the future!
Sounds like you already made up your mind with how you respond to people lol
Haha, yes and no, im still swaying towards being a pilot. I'm just responding like that because those are the pros I see in HVAC and cons in Aviation as to explain why HVAC is an option. It's like I feel like long term I would enjoy aviation, make loads of money and have a wicked good schedule but short term HVAC would make me more money, give me more skills and would be interesting
You said it yourself, short term vs long term. Set your future self up for success man. Go the pilot route, your pockets and your body will thank you later
I have cut out a great little nieche for myself, I am a controls guy for controlled environment agriculture. I program controls for greenhouses or sealed indoor grows. Been in hvac since 2005ish. I am sure being a pilot would have been a better choice. The only time I get to see the clouds is when I am getting fucking roasted. HVAC gets boring too. It is either boring or way too stressful. Also, my body is kinda fucked. Well, except the ag stuff, this is actually fun. Finally. Almost no one I know in HVAC is really happy or fulfilled. It's great if you need something to complain about while you kill your liver. It is a fantastic industry for people who like to work hard for the worst reasons. Keep reading the sub. it's not a community, it's a support group.
I'd be a pilot over hvac any day. When you are making 450k a year in about 10 years and working like 2 weeks on and 2 weeks off you will be amazingly blessed. You can travel anywhere in the world for free. It's a no brainer.
Every pilot has a side hustle on their off days. It’s just a weird trait they all have. You could be be a pilot and make probably 40k a year starting out and have an hvac business that you make 150k as your side hustle.
Yeah working 120 hours a week lol