My Parents Refuse To Let/Support Me To Become a Pilot

[hamzathespartan117]

Hey im a 14 year old boy in Canada. I loved aviation since i was little and wanted to be a pilot but my parents refuse to help me. They dont want me being a pilot but they want me being a "AERONAUTICAL ENGINEER" Emphasize the aeronautical engineer. I want to be an Airline transport pilot but no they wont let me and if i do they wont support me and i'll have to leave (But everyone will have to leave homer oneday). SO i said okay ill be an engineer and they said after i get a degree in that they wont care what i do. So all i can do right now is get good grades. I know a lot of aeronautical engineers have went to become a pilot so i think theyre may be a loop hole there and somehow i can become a pilot. I was thinking when im 16 get a job and focus on studying and if i go to university for the degree start by getting my ppl if i have enough money. They wont help me but theyll help me 1000000000000000000000000000000000000% to become a aeronautical engineer. Anyone who has been through this?? Anyone can give me advice because they wont listen no matter what and i cant change theyre mind. But they no my weakness which is i cant ever disagree with someone and i cant say no to them. So im gonna be an engineer sort of but also a pilot. SO i want to know what should i do to become apilot while studying. I know its gonna cost me a lot about 60-80000 Canadian dollars. So please help me and what should i do now? I want to live my dream and fly a 777- or a 747 or A380 one day. So what should i do? Especially if im gonna be doing engineering and planing to get my ppl + a few ratings if i have money for it while i study in university if thats possible. It would help if anyone can say anything or if any pilot who went through something like this can reply. But if you have nothing good to say and nothing helpfull then sorry but then just dont sy anything. Thank you

[just curious]

So what should I do?

Be thankful that your parents love you, and be grateful that they are wise.
Study hard in school, and join the Air Cadets so that you can get a free no-strings taste of aviation and perhaps your private license for free.

In the ten years from now til graduation save up your allowance. As a graduated engineer you will be able to afford the likely 80000 it's gonna cost.

During that ten years write down the name of every company operating jet service in Canada. Check the list at age 24 to see who's still in existence. Then thank your parents.

[TA/RA]

Hello my friend. I feel for your situation. Have your parents given you a reason why they feel so strongly that you should not follow your dream? A wise person once said to me that if you truely enjoy what you do, you will never "work" a day in your life. I have been in aviation for 11 years and started at a your age with a passion for flying similar to yours. While it hasn't been all sun and roses, I can honestly say that there is nothing I would rather do. My suggestion to you is to respect your parents but also respect your heart and dreams. I would get a job as soon as possible, and save your money to take a flying lesson every once in a while, once your parents see how serious you are and that you are determined to reach your goal with or without them they may gain respect for your determination and change their mind.


If this doesn't work I would suggest that you fly when you can and go through with the aeronautical engineering for the time being. You are very fortunate to have parents who are willing to support you 100% to get an education of any type. But do not five up on your goal and dream. With enough determination and drive anything is possible.

Ta/ra

[RenegadeAV8R]

So what should I do?

Be thankful that your parents love you, and be grateful that they are wise.
Study hard in school, and join the Air Cadets so that you can get a free no-strings taste of aviation and perhaps your private license for free.

In the ten years from now til graduation save up your allowance. As a graduated engineer you will be able to afford the likely 80000 it's gonna cost.

Making a living as a pilot is similar to making a living as an comedian/actor/musician/artist.

It seems that your parents want you to have a successful and stable life; who can blame them?

As an engineer who could very easily afford the cost of training to become a professional pilot. This is what I did myself.

The Air Cadets is a great idea too.

[Ecco]

Sorry to be arsh here...but 99% of time, little dudes with parents money are the worst thing to hire in aviation industry..

Go swet your but off, and after you finish to pay for it,you'll then rally understand what it really is, and what you really want.

Again...nothing personal.


By the way,for about 40$ an hour you can get yourself in the cockpit at a flying club playing with controls..

Good luck!

[hamzathespartan117]

well thanks everyone. You guys are all really nice and for the question why? I think it may be because im a muslim but i hardly know my relegeon. I know they love me and support me so i guees ill stick with engineering and save up to get cash and go for lessons and fly one day. Im keeping this post open for anyone and till i have a career as a pilot. I like all your suggestions. Thank you. BTW i cant join air cadets because my parents say that theyll have my name and i may be having to go in the air force so they want to keep me safe and i understand that

[bizjets101]

Never give up your dreams ~~~

What area of Canada do you live in???

There are flying clubs, and unlimited resources on the net to learn about flying - and as far
as turning 16 that is just around the corner.

So if you keep your parents happy for now, there is no reason you can't also learn about flying on the side!!!

If your in a major city, we might be able to find you a part time position at a FBO or flight school!!!, maybe helping out with some corporate outfit - who knows.

[MUSKEG]

A career in aviation will let you do things and see things very few see. It will expose you to great people who are ingenious at inventing cheap ways to entertain themselves because thats all they can afford. Personally speaking after seeing all the sights and living the dream, it becomes a nightmare once you look retirement in the face. If you do pursue flying get on with a major carrier asap and ride the union to a respectable income and a pension once your done. If you stay in charter what you make is what you get after the door hits you in the ass. You will need a backup plan for retirement.

[Dash-Ate]

Is this istp's son?

[Moose47]

<<<BTW i cant join air cadets because my parents say that theyll have my name and i may be having to go in the air force so they want to keep me safe and i understand that>>>

So basically what your parents are saying is that it's OK to reap the benefits of living in this country but when it comes to defending Canada, @#$! it?

[sdogg0]

So I may not be the oldest and wisest person on this forum but I feel my young age qualifies me to say something regarding this topic. You may not understand now why your parents do not want you too be a pilot but one day you will. I think 99% of people on this forum would relive there young adult lives if it meant there parents funding a $100 000 engineering degree. I know I would. My thoughts on this situation are, first get your Engineering Degree. Work part time during college, do not party, drink, etc. and use that money to fund your flying lessons throughout school. By the end of your schooling you will be very close if not finished your degree. It may be hard to keep from going out and partying with all your friends during school, but if you are dedicated enough you will be able to achieve your goal and obtain an amazing education at the same time.

No matter what, ensure you dont let your dream slip away from you. It can be easy getting a bad taste of aviation with the posters on this forum, but it is your dream and only your dream.

Good luck!!

[fish4life]

well thanks everyone. You guys are all really nice and for the question why? I think it may be because im a muslim but i hardly know my relegeon. I know they love me and support me so i guees ill stick with engineering and save up to get cash and go for lessons and fly one day. Im keeping this post open for anyone and till i have a career as a pilot. I like all your suggestions. Thank you. BTW i cant join air cadets because my parents say that theyll have my name and i may be having to go in the air force so they want to keep me safe and i understand that

I was in Air Cadets and I can tell you this is completely false. In saying this your parents are just being ignorant, perhaps you should do a little research on Air Cadets to prove to your parents it isn't true and they might change your mind. Having said that joining Air Cadets is great for building character and will help with this:

But they no my weakness which is i cant ever disagree with someone and i cant say no to them.

Because if you want to be a pilot that is a very bad and dangerous trait to have, it is one thing to respectfully disagree with someone but you have to be able to say NO at the proper and appropriate times.

[1000 HP]

Like you I always wanted to be a pilot. I remember building my first airplane model (A 337) sometime around 1971. My brother and I loaded it up with a string of firecrackers and blew it up in mid air. I guess we saw too much Vietnam news. I liked airplane movies and built balsa planes etc. I announced in grade 10 that I would be a pilot. My parents laughed at me and did not expect me to succeed. They would not let me use their car to drive out to the airport for lessons at age 17. They did not help me financially, not even 10 cents. As a matter of fact, I paid rent from the time I was 13 (10% of my gross). At the time I thought they were butt-heads because most of my friends were receiving parental help in one form or another. So I bought my own car, moved out, got my own place, worked hard, and in 2.4 years, I had a commercial licence. I worked flying full-time for many years, and most of the time had enough for the essentials, scotch, beer, and condoms. Once I had to cut out the condoms, and have a wonderful kid as a result. Now, I fly, get paid good while I fly, and have a full-time awesome paying non-flying job. Despite the great pay, I am considering upgrading to an ATPL at the ripe age of 44 and giving up the 100 hour work week. Go hard or go home. Good Luck Kid

[TA/RA]

As a former Air Cadet, I can tell you that there are many muslim air cadets. The program may be sponsored by the air force but it in no obligates you to join the airforce or enables them to call you up involuntarily. It is a good program that teaches some aviation but more so teaches leadership, community service and accountability. With all due respect to your parents it sounds like they are creating a self fulfilling prophecy about "the man" always trying to get the best of you. It sound like they may need to be informed about civic responsibility and realize that while they think they are doing what is best for you they are holding you back. With that said, I agree that you should go for it and do the engineering and then get your license, at least you will have a backup career if shit hits the fan.

I know where you are coming from, my parents tried to convince me to take over the family business instead of aviation and I am very glad I convinced them otherwise.

You may not understand now why your parents do not want you too be a pilot but one day you will. I think 99% of people on this forum would relive there young adult lives if it meant there parents funding a $100 000 engineering degree.

I disagree, I dont think that 99% of the people on this forum would do as you say.

[1000 HP]

I disagree, I dont think that 99% of the people on this forum would do as you say.

Exactly. I have had many days where I wished I were not a pilot, but every year, I am glad that I am.

[Ecco]

<<<BTW i cant join air cadets because my parents say that theyll have my name and i may be having to go in the air force so they want to keep me safe and i understand that>>>

So basically what your parents are saying is that it's OK to reap the benefits of living in this country but when it comes to defending Canada, @#$! it?

Lmaol...nice jab!!

[niss]

Is pilot really looked at so low now?

[Canuck223]

Your parents approach may cause you stress, but at the end of the day they do have your best intrests at heart.

MrsCanuck223 and I had this conversation years ago over a similar issue. What do you do when your kid's dreams lead to a lifestyle that may be unsupporting? (As in, s/he wants to be a rock star/artist/pilot/)

In conversations with our peer group (cousins and brothers/sisters) our decision was this.

1) Try not to crush the dream.
2) Have the child describe the life they want to live.
3) Outline the financial realities.
4) Outline the limits of our ability or tolerance for support in adulthood.
5) Suggest a path that keeps the dream alive, while keeping a roof overhead.

Which is a long way of saying that when the kid wants to be a rock star, you pay for guitar lessons, but also push hard for the job skills s/he needs to pay thier own way in life.

[Hedley]

When I grow up, I want to be Charlie Sheen.

PS Get the Engineering degree and the ATPL. I did, and according to many people here, I'm not very bright, so you can do it, too.

PPS My son, a 4th generation pilot, logged his first dual at age 10 months, and logged his first instrument approach in actual IMC before he turned 2 yrs old. Seriously. He soloed in our Maule at the minimum legal age of 14, and by the time he was 16, he was flying solo aerobatics, formation and formation aerobatics in our Pitts. My only unreasonable demand on him was that he didn't fly nosewheel for his first 200 hrs, which simply destroys your stick & rudder skills.

http://www.pittspecials.com/images/eric_form1.jpg
http://www.pittspecials.com/images/eric_form.jpg

Not all parents are unsupportive d1cks of their kid's interest in aviation, despite what you might read here. None of my kids ever had a chance to not learn how to fly, or ride a motorcycle, or drive a car, or ...

PPPS What we ride: http://i.imgur.com/P6lpj.jpg

[Bede]

I know a guy who did an engineering degree with coop placements. He used flying companies as his coop placements and built time that way.

He's at Cathay now.

[yycflyguy]

Sounds like good parenting to me.

[Hedley]

There's an Air Canada pilot in Toronto - I won't use his name here - whom is also a medical doctor, and is incidentally also qualified to do both TC and FAA medical exams. My uncle is currently trying to sell him a house, but he wants to buy a $3M house for $2M which is slowing things down a tad

Anyways. He's an MD and an ATPL. If he can do it, so can you!

My only unreasonable demand on him was that he didn't fly nosewheel for his first 200 hrs, which simply destroys your stick & rudder skills

I lied. He flew the C421 a bit in his first 200 hrs, to get the feeling of a slightly heavier airplane. We didn't have the Beech 18 back then.

btw, my oldest is 18 now, and is well on his way to obtaining both an Engineering degree and an ATPL. That probably makes me a sh1tty father here, but oh well.

[ogc]

I didnt start flying till I was 26.

I finished high school, got a business degree got a job and worked for a couple years. Managed to save up some money.

I then quit my job and got my CPL.

You are 14 years old, you are still very very young so time is on your side.

Having your parents pay for an engineering degree is a gift that you should accept. I imagine during this time they will also pay for your food and lodging. So get a part time job and fly with the money you make. Also insist on leaving home when you go to university, if you manage to keep yourself in line you will be a much more well rounded individual at the end of it.

[Shiny Side Up]

Not all parents are unsupportive d1cks of their kid's interest in aviation, despite what you might read here.

No, but certainly having access to an airplane and being higher up on the class scale certainly helps. The only way my parents helped me with anything was by putting me to work. I've held a job since I was 12. "You want to be a pilot? You pay for it." My Dad gave me a hard hat for free and an old pair of boots.

Moral of the story is, if your parents will support you in any way, consider yourself fortunate. Take whatever help they will give and be thankful for it. Learn to work for the rest yourself.

[Hedley]

being higher up on the class scale certainly helps

not sure if that was directed at me or not, but my family certainly wasn't financially "upper class". My father was just an ex-military pilot that worked in the private sector as an engineer. I've met more than one billionaire in my life, and I can assure you we never travelled in that crowd!

I was just a kid that was fascinated by machinery and computers, so I learned about them, and loved to play with them. Still do.

Biggest gift you can get from your parents is a genetic head start and a good worth ethic, neither of which cost a penny.