What did you do for a living before Aviation

Before my Aviation career, I was a student living with mom and dad. But I worked for an airline caterer, you know, with the cool lift box trucks, even became a driver after turning 18 (had to get chauffeur's license), and not bad pay $4.85/hr for a kid back in 1975/76.
 
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I was a (very bad and easily flustered) waiter, then went into alarm sales, car sales, car alarm sales, auto detailing and window tinting, and driving a courier route. Oh, and I was also a customer service rep for a wallboard company.
 
Car sales, then education, then aviation.
 
I've worked for a couple newspapers, one in the press room operating ad insert machines, Army stint (Infantry) leaving as an E5, back to starving student status, then into engineering.
 
Retail, manufacturing, car service & mx and unloaded trucks at UPS sort. Pretty much any job I could find to obtain money for flight training.
 
Busboy
Cook
Waiter
Software engineer
Project manager
Software engineer
IT Manager
Project manager / SQL Developer --- Started flying here
IT Consultant
IT Manager
My dream is to get out of IT but no clue what I really want to do with my life yet.
 
drove tractor
worked at a full service gas station
stuffed vending machines
joined Air Force became jet engine mechanic
started flying in aero club in Okinawa
came back to states no aero club
became air traffic controller
got married, had twin girls
bought airplane
started flying again
 
Same thing I'm doing now, just with a different company and for more money. With more gray hair, too.
 
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Collected balloon borne repeaters for a couple years in high school.
Got my private cert right out of high school.
Wal-Mart.
Swamper for an oil field hotshot company.
Wal-Mart again.
Farm mechanic.
Organic farmer.
Snowcat mechanic.
Line service.
Commercial pilot.
A&P mechanic/commercial pilot.
 
Worked at toy store and then a miniature golf course while in college. Thought I should grow up and become a pilot.
 
Timbeck2 said:
drove tractor
worked at a full service gas station
stuffed vending machines
joined Air Force became jet engine mechanic
started flying in aero club in Okinawa
came back to states no aero club
became air traffic controller
got married, had twin girls
bought airplane
started flying again
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It takes a real man to raise daughters.
 
Pimp. Thought airline pilot was the next logical step.

Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk
 
Lots of farm work before finishing high school.
Trade school to learn to be a mechanic.
1 year as a mechanic.
4 years army, left with a bayonet in my right hip.
Truck driver and mechanic, and started racing as a hobby.
Racing full time, high performance mechanic, pit crew member for a couple NASCAR teams, race fuel business and still driving truck.
After 10 years of the race business, aviation, part time racing as a mechanic and pit crew member.
Finally, aviation and no more driving truck.....
 
My first career was aviation.

That said, I've had many different jobs in aviation.
 
After getting off active duty I had this STUPID mantra in my head that said "If you make flying your JOB it will become one". Boy was that ever WRONG. After a short time as a series 7 and series 3 licensed stock broker I quickly realized just how much I missed it.
 
Art VanDelay said:
After getting off active duty I had this STUPID mantra in my head that said "If you make flying your JOB it will become one". Boy was that ever WRONG. After a short time as a series 7 and series 3 licensed stock broker I quickly realized just how much I missed it.
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You must have done well since you can afford to live in Del Boca Vista. I envy you
 
Zeldman said:
Lots of farm work before finishing high school.
Trade school to learn to be a mechanic.
1 year as a mechanic.
4 years army, left with a bayonet in my right hip.
Truck driver and mechanic, and started racing as a hobby.
Racing full time, high performance mechanic, pit crew member for a couple NASCAR teams, race fuel business and still driving truck.
After 10 years of the race business, aviation, part time racing as a mechanic and pit crew member.
Finally, aviation and no more driving truck.....
Click to expand...

That's why I joined the Air Force - no bayonets.
 
Shepherd said:
Hey! Flying a pterodactyl was darn hard work!
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flintstones-pterodactyl-airplne.jpg


Were you right seat or left?
 
Grit newspaper boy
Worked in adult toy store
Became male prostitute
Senior male prositute
 
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I've been a rocket scientist as long as I can remember and a Marine. When I had a party to celebrate my promotion to Colonel in the Reserves and getting my pilots license, my boss asked why I got a pilots license and I said because he finally paid me enough. He said he must be paying me too much. The company got bought by a bigger company and we both lost our jobs. I guess he was right.
 
I was a software developer through college, but that was really just a means to an end. It paid for college and all my flying. After the tech industry collapse in the late 90s, my dev studio closed in '01 and we were all laid off. I used that as the sign to make the switch to flying full time and started instructing. I never looked back.
 
Air Force out of High School, part-time Airline CS agent during some of it.
College, while working for up to two airlines at a time, plus a car rental company.
Several Airlines since, mostly regionals, Customer Service, Ramp, Operations, and management slots.
Started a car rental franchise, and sold it, sometime in between.

Pretty much my entire adult life has been spent in and around the Airports.
 
Before graduating high school:

- Lemonade stand (age 8 or so)
- HTML programmer (age 10)
- Babysitter (14-17)

During college:

- Auto mechanic (specializing in Jaguars)
- Hauling cars around the country/truck driver (pickup, not semi)

I've spent my post-college career in aviation, although I had no interest in flying at first. Although I've been a commercial pilot for 8 years, I've only spent about a year and a half as a professional pilot. Otherwise I've been an engineer/program manager.
 
the ones I've found fun...
Zoo Keeper Assistant, Photojournalist, Archaeologist, GIS Specialist/Program Coordinator (current)
 
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