Am I mental ?

Emp_Fab

My lifelong dream, ever since I was a child, was to be an airline pilot.  I've never wanted to be anything else, and every job I've had in my adult life has been a poor, poor second choice.  The reason I never became a pilot was my colour vision.  Had I perfect colour vision I'm sure there would have been other obstacles, such as the huge amount of money required etc !  However, the colour vision issue was a no-go barrier.  I took the C.A.A Medical department's colour vision test for a Class 1 medical certificate (required for an Air Transport Pilots Licence) at their HQ in Gatwick many years ago, and failed by 15%.  At the time that was it - game over.  There was no way I could get a Class 1 medical and therefore no way I could end up at the pointy-end of a 737 / A320 / whatever.

Ever since that day, I've gazed up at the skies, watching the vapour trails of the planes as they sail past and knowing in my heart that I was meant to be up there.  Every day - for thirty-odd years.  It's a long story but I've flown full-motion simulators at British Airways and Britannia Airways and (yes, I'm drunk or otherwise I would never be admitting this shit to you) I've always felt that my life has basically been a waste.  I was destined to be a commercial pilot and somehow, fate (and wonky genes) intervened and said "NO !".  I'd accepted that I will never achieve my dream and that anything else is a very poor second-best.  I would go as far as to say it has undoubtedly played a big part in the depression I've suffered for most of my life.

Fast forward to this month.  I accidentally stumbled across a reference to the 'new' colour-vision tests that have been in use by the C.A.A. since 2010.  I had no idea, as I'd all but accepted that my dream was over years ago.  Now... I have reasonably good grounds to suspect that I stand a good chance of passing this new test as it is less stringent than the old test (that I failed by only 15%).  Now, I have a large-ish chunk of money in the bank since my mum passed and we sold her house.  It's still not enough, but getting hold of finance isn't insurmountable.  Medical disqualification is.

So - here I am...   I'll be 54 on the 25th of this month.  I'm six years on from a heart attack (and I've already investigated this and this doesn't disqualify me).  I'm making arrangements to undertake the new colour-vision test to see what comes of it.

If I passed the eye-test, and nothing new cropped up in the rest of the medical, I would - in theory - be eligible to start flight training.  Assuming I managed to raise the extra funds, after ploughing every last penny of my inheritance into it, I could, in theory, get to the point where I could apply to airlines for a job after completing an integrated full-time course that would take approximately two years.  So, I would be at least 56 years old and penniless, trying to get a job.  Age discrimination is illegal in the EU, but that doesn't mean to say it doesn't happen.  There is a huge shortage of pilots in the airline industry and this is only going to get worse as the number of retirees coming up massively exceeds the number of new recruits coming on line, combined with the big upturn in air travel.

I don't know how long I will live.  I do know that when I die, that's it... I'm dust forever more.  I existed on this planet from 1964 until 20xx and I will just become yet another one of the billions that have lived their lives and died on this Earth.  If I don't go for it, my last words will probably be "I wish I could have been a pilot".  My chances of success are, at best, pretty slim - depending on how desperate the airlines get in the near future.

Assuming I pass the new colour-vision test, and the subsequent full medical, am I mental for even contemplating such a gargantuan undertaking when I've only got 11 years of potential employment left ? (65 is the mandatory retirement age for pilots) ?

PC_Dave

I am never getting on a plane again. Ever. Just incase.

DrCornelius

Ok , assuming you die at 60, would you rather die an airline pilot or as an unfulfilled ....(whatever you do now)

Emp_Fab

I'd rather die in my sleep - unlike the 236 screaming passengers behind me :-)

darthed1981

Why not just go for the middle ground and get a private pilot's license, enjoy flying light aircraft first?

Much easier to get in if you can already legally fly a light aircraft perhaps?

I always have dreamed of flying fighter aircraft, the Typhoon being my personal favourite, now THAT is by comparison an impossible dream, even at the tender age of 36 i'm too old and my asthma history totally disqualifies me.

If flying for airlines is your dream and you have no dependents though, why the heck not, only one life as you say...

richardhomer

I have a friend who was a builder all his working life but who trained (at his own expense) to be a pilot. He made the change into flying full time about 10 years ago. He’s a captain now - and is never available to retile my bathroom....

octatonic

Do you believe you have the necessary temperament?

Garthy

You might pass the test by the skin of your teeth, but a) would an airline employ you, b) would they insure you, c) could you handle the social media fallout if something silly happened and you were vilified for not being able to pass the original eyesight test? The new driver of the Paddington rail crash was entirely blameless in the end but his wife went through 6 months of hell first and d) should you make a mistake would you be full of self doubt and could you live with it if this is the case?

Emp_Fab

Absolutely.  I am the epitomy of cool, collected thinking under pressure.

Phil_aka_Pip

A lot of airline pilots die before they are 60, usually of stress-related heart conditions. And you, at your age, want to start now? Young Man!

Emp_Fab

How could anyone not want to do this ???  Life could simply not get any better !

Garthy

It looks fucking tedious if I'm honest, most of the time you'll be above a blanket of cloud or the ocean or flying at night, for up to 10 hours at a time sitting next to a person you may not like, and if it goes wrong you either die or get the blame.

Moominpapa

You seem to have a very clear, down-to-earth sense of the likely obstacles in your way, and for that reason I would say that if you are not going to unduly impact your loved ones by this action then you should go for it. I think you're lucky to have such a powerful dream - lots of people (myself included) have never had a clear sense of what they wanted to do/be. 

Danny1969

Much as I like you .... a former heart attack victim who battles with depression wouldn't be my first choice of pilot if I'm honest  

GoldenEraGuitars

I say fair play to you @Emp_Fab . Too many people out there aren’t living the life they want to live. And you only get one shot at this, why not make it count? 

There will always be obstacles, it’s how you deal with them and move forward that counts. I say go for it and have some fun. I know even if I end up back in a 9-5 at some point I’ll be able to say that I started a guitar business, had a great time, met lots of amazing people and did it my way.

Youll never know unless you give it a chance. It would be interesting to hear some of the other members unrealised dreams... 

blobb

Going by the lad who thumped us onto the pavement at Leeds Bradford a few weeks back, I think all you have to do to qualify is to be able to drive a bus around town for an hour or so.

Iamnobody

You do realise chavs are allowed on planes?

I’d go the private route as outlined above, less pressure and you can just enjoy any flying time you get.

Guitar_Slinger

Srsly @Emp_Fab. Imagine the romanticism of two runs a day to Fuertaventura and back with a plane full of chavs and having to get your arse out of the cabin to help the trolly dollies get everyone seated so you can make your slot for departure, and therefore land on time and get paid.  How would a twenty minute turnaround help your dicky ticker?

You'd get more pleasure  and a more appreciative audience driving a bus loads of pensioners on day trips, IMHO.

equalsql

Do you have a flight sim rig at home? Prepar3D or X-Plane are so advancd now and the add-ons from PMDG, Orbx etc are so good you can practise real world VFR or IFR procedures. Flying SIDs and STARs and practising ILS approaches is all possible because the sims host world navigation data.  

Just saying this might be a way to scratch your itch.

blobb

...or even better, get DCS and the mig15 module.

ourmaninthenorth

Yes.