Expert: David A. NewMyer - 1/22/2010

Question
Dear David,

I was wondering if it is possible to start an aviation career after a PhD in physics. I'm currently 24 and I'll get my PhD in 3-4 years. Is it too late then to think about it?
Thank you in advance.

Best,
Marco

Answer
Hi, Marco:

Nice to hear from you---I will try to assist you with your question.

First of all, let me say that it is never too late (other than if you are past the age of 65 for a flying career with airlines!) to begin down the road to a career in ANYTHING as long as you have the sense that you will like it (or that you already like it for some reason).

Second, the aviation industry does consist of a wide range of segments, such as:

Aviation manufacturing

Airlines

General Aviation (all flying other than that done by the military or scheduled airlnes)

Government agencies involved in aviation (federal/national, state/provincial and local--at the local level, mostly airport owners/operators)

Also, within those segments are many different career paths, such as pilot, mechanic/aviation technician, airport manager, customer service manager, airport planner, aerospace engineer, and so forth---so, there are a lot of paths to choose from within the aviation field.

So, you need to think about where you want to end up in terms of the segment of industry you want to work in and the type of job you are thinking about.

If you are getting an PhD in Physics, one thought would be to see if you can use that knowledge and related skills in aviation in some way.....in airfoil design or in aviation electronics/avionics design, etc., as an example.  So, one thought would be to figure out a way to merge your obvious passion for physics with aviation.

One other thought to consider is that, IF you wish to fly, and IF you wish to fly for the airlines, a consideration that you must factor in is SENIORITY.  That is, many of the benefits of a flight career with an airline can be determined by your hire date seniority---the more senior you are compared to others in the pilot pool at a given airline, the better in terms of the type of aircraft you may bid to fly on AND in terms of the choice of routes you get to fly (both of which can have an impact on the amount of money you make).  So, IF flying for the airlines is part of your plan, you might want to consider starting your career SOONER rather than later.  The reason for this is, once the airlines start hiring in earnest again after the economic decline is over, it is forecast that there will be an impending GLOBAL pilot shortage.  That is the result of a decline in beginning pilots in flight training over the last two years combined with the impacts of the "age 65" retirement rule in the USA (pilots flying for large airlines were allowed to retire at age 65 beginning two years ago, rather than at age 60---the full impact of that retirement age change will be over in two to three more years.....), and combined with the overall growth of airlines in the economic upturn that will happen starting in late 2010 and into 2011...

All this means that you might want to start flying NOW so  that you will be ready to take advantage of the airline hiring boom that will likely be here by 2012 or so.....

I hope that this answer helps.  If you need more information, please contact me again with a follow up question via AllExperts.

Best wishes,

David A. NewMyer, Ph.D., Professor and Chair
Aviation Management and Flight
Southern Illinois University Carbondale
http://www.aviation.siu.edu