5 Pros and Cons of Entering Aviation
Aviation is one of the most glamorous and dynamic industries of all, having uncountable benefits like getting to build and fly commercial and military jets, the luxurious lifestyle of aviators, getting to visit new places, layovers and many more. Various thoughts must have popped into your mind too when I said “Aviation”. What was the first thing that came to your mind? Let me know in the comments section.
So, today in this blog, I will be talking about the pros and cons of “Entering Into Aviation”. Before I get into the details of it, let’s understand what Aviation is.
Aviation is an industry that is surrounded by activities related to aircraft. Aviation comes from the Latin Avis, meaning “bird”. “Aviation” is an appropriate translation that deals with air travel, specifically in a plane. Aviation is majorly divided into two parts, i.e. Civil Aviation and Military Aviation. Civil Aviation includes chartered flying and commercial airline flying. The founders of Aviation are the Wright Brothers, who made their maiden flight on 17th December 1903 with the first powered aircraft.
Now that we know what Aviation is, let’s delve deeper into Aviation and talk about its Pros and Cons! (These points are only for the Aviation Specific jobs. Jobs like HR, marketing etc. are not considered in this blog)
Pros
- Highly Paid Jobs
Aviation is one of the highest paid fields. Compared to other fields/industries, you get a good package from Day 1 on the job itself. Jobs like Pilots, Air Traffic Controller, Flight Dispatcher, AME, etc.; they have a good wage, but yes, with higher returns comes great risk and expenditure.
One of the significant reasons that Aviation is a high paying industry is because of the amount of risk taken by any personnel. One small mistake will cost you a fortune. The riskier your job, the more you get paid.
2. Shorter Course Duration
Jobs like Cabin crew, fares and ticketing, baggage handling, front desk, Load and trim etc, the training period is comparatively less, i.e., something around 6–8 months. These jobs require a basic graduation and then a few months of specific ground training. SO, by spending a small duration, you can get a moderate paying job.
3. Lifestyle Benefits
Travelling and getting the opportunities to talk to people from various countries is an inbuilt advantage that you get from the Aviation and Hospitality Jobs. If you get a job as a cabin crew, you get to communicate with various captains and passengers and deal with them along with keeping the safety of the aircraft in mind. You become a multitasking person. Once you get into Aviation, your mindset gets changed by the ruling thought being the safety of the passengers.
When it comes to talking about lifestyle, no one can beat the Pilots or the Defence personnels in their uniform; everyone gets butterflies in their stomach.
4. The ever-growing industry
Aviation contributes to about 4–5 % of the country’s GDP. Millions of companies depend on the functioning of Air travel for various reasons like transportation of goods, travelling for people, reducing the journey time, air strikes etc. There might have been a few pauses like the one in 2008 due to the recession or the one in 2020 due to the pandemic. Still, the industry has to grow and will keep growing. To see how well the country is doing, one of the parameters is the size of the Aviation Industry. 5 years down the line, travelling by air will become an ordinary mode of transport.
5. Demanding but a rewarding career
An airport is a fast-paced working environment where every second there is an aircraft landing or taking off or flying overhead. The aviation industry is the one that never halts; the flow of passengers continues day and night. Regardless of the job profile that you are working in, without their cooperation, the smooth functioning of the airport is not possible. Every job profile counts.
Cons
- Huge Investment
Aviation is one field where everything, starting from buying an aircraft model, books or a ticket etc., is costly. For example, flying for one hour on a Cessna 172 costs around Rs14000; imagine how much it would cost to fly 200 hours. The same goes for flight dispatcher training and the AME courses. The expenditure does not end by attaining a license. The next expense that comes up is aircraft-specific training, then airline training, and it goes on. Expenses are the preeminent reason that you should consult.
2. The ratio of number of companies vs the number of required jobs is relatively low compared to other industries.
In Aviation, the prominent area where you can get a job quickly and where everyone wants a job is in an Airline. But the number of airlines in India is less than the number of fingers you have. And to get a job in an airline, you need to have the basic graduation and licenses/a few related courses if there are any. Outside airlines, there are chartered companies/flying clubs where you can look for a job, but they hire once in 3–4 months. And after that comes private companies/academies where you can enrol yourself as an active working faculty or as a teaching faculty.
3. It is a very distinct industry. Job switch is difficult.
Once you get into Aviation, a significant number of jobs revolve around aircraft only. If you wish to change your stream for any reason, you will have to spend more time on the new course and start from scratch.
Regarding the job switch, if you already have a job waiting, then it’s easy or else, looking for employment for a new job in aviation will be a bit of a difficult task for you.
4. An international relocation is not feasible
Unlike other companies outside aviation, they have centres in many places, including foreign countries. Most of the airlines and chartered companies do not have any bases in foreign countries. So, if you have to shift to a foreign country for any reason, you might have to look for a new job itself; it’s challenging to get a transfer to some foreign country. An international transfer might not be possible, but a domestic transfer will surely happen.
5. Aviation is a high-risk industry
Aviation is the first industry that always gets the biggest hit. It’s not just for the airlines/chartered companies, but also the employees of the companies. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the first thing that was stopped was flight travel. And if aircraft are not flying, no one will be able to earn. The market crash in 2008 had also made a severe impact on Aviation.
Another example we can talk about is the Shutting down of Jet Airways. No one saw that a mammoth-sized airline, Jet airways shutting down. That was another big hit that aviation took.
I didn’t mean to scare you with these facts. Being an Aviator, I must give a clear picture of aviation to assist you in making the correct decision for your life. There could be a few other pros and cons too. If you have got any, please put them in the comment section and accompany me to enlighten our new aviators.
