I also know a few airline pilots (they were my flight intructors) and this is their typical career path as a civilian:
_ They graduate from college as a flight instructor (CFI) at ~ 22 year old (yo) with ~ 250-300 flight hours (FH)
_ They spend ~ 3 years teaching as CFI (~500 FH/yr). Once they get ~ 1500 FH, they obtain their Airline Transport Pilot License (ATP) (~25 yo)
_ With an ATP, they start as First Officer (FO) at a regional airline (Horizon, Mesa,...). Then get upgraded to Captain (CPT) after 2-3 years (they fly ~ 1000 FH/year) (~28 yo)
_ Then usually after ~5 years at regional, they eventually get to the Major Airlines (Alaska, Southwest, Delta...) (~30 yo). Again they start as FO and likely flying single aisle aircrafts (Boeing 737 or Airbus A320). They spend ~10 year as FO before getting upgraded to CPT (~40 yo)
For military pilot, they have a 10 years service commitment after earning their wings. So if someone get commissioned at 22 yo, then ~ 2 more year for pilot training, they gotta wait until ~34-35 yo to become civilian again. However, these pilots usually go straight to major airlines after leaving service.
For pay scale, you can go to airlinepilotcentral.com and check. Below is just an example from American Airline (update in 2021) (
American Airlines | AirlinePilotCentral.com):
View attachment 369437
As a general rule, you add 000 after their hourly rate to find their annual pay (as they fly ~1000 hr/year). So if you make Captain (aka "the Left seat") in your 40s, you have ~20 years to earn big bucks. True, airline pilots don't make 100k+ as RPh in their 20s, they catch up with us once they reach Major Airline (see below for FO pay scale from American Airline):
View attachment 369438
With a lot of pilots retired during the pandemic, now is a good time to become an airline pilot. Your pay is better and your upgrade time is shorter.