Fixed wing to Whirly bird?

Tram

Tram

Well-Known Member
ANyone ever thought about doing this?

Seems like the local AirEvac guys are enjoying life, making decent money and it seems like that is an industry that is probably gonna be around awhile..

Anyone have any words of wisdom for someone who may be thinkin' about switching sides? LOL..
 
Tram said:
ANyone ever thought about doing this?

Seems like the local AirEvac guys are enjoying life, making decent money and it seems like that is an industry that is probably gonna be around awhile..

Anyone have any words of wisdom for someone who may be thinkin' about switching sides? LOL..
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VERY expensive, unless you're sponsored.....or have cash laying around.

It's not just a matter of getting the Comm/ Rotorcraft, it's building experience to become competitive as a civilian, since there's many military rotorcraft pilots available to take the many jobs available.
 
Yeh, it's not cheap, that's for sure..

Looks like $9K to get the private.. and then another $5-6k to pick up the commercial..

Then getting the time is a whole 'nother ball of wax..
 
I know a local cop that did it... immensely enjoying life as an EMS pilot. I can reach out and see how he accrued his time.
 
Yeh, I'd be interested to know how guys are doing it..

I've heard one way is to get the time, then get the time to meet tour operation min's.. How much that would be, I'm not sure..

The unit I'd love to fly for posts mins of 1,500TT, 1,000 heli, 500 turbine and a few others.. From what a local guy was telling me, basically all I need is the 1,000 heli time as all my other time will move over with me..

I'm going to talk to them next week.. Gonna check out a few tour operators in the Gatlinburg area this weekend also..
 
I have no idea how folks do this as civilians, but if you have the means I'm sure it is a lot of fun. From what I have heard talking to friends in the military rotary community, the civilian jobs out there pay significantly less than their fixed wing counterparts (given similar experience). Something to think about, but beyond that, there are a good amount of civvie helo flying jobs that I think would be beyond awesome. A friend of mine used his GI Bill benefits to pay for his training up through Helo CFII (whatever that designation is), and has been flying as an R-22 instructor full time for several years. I believe he is just at hiring mins right now (1000's hrs-ish) and hunting for work. Unfortunately he is up against hundreds of guys coming out of the military with thousands of hours of turbine rotary time, so that makes the hunt a little bit harder.
 
Tram said:
Yeh, it's not cheap, that's for sure..

Looks like $9K to get the private.. and then another $5-6k to pick up the commercial..

Then getting the time is a whole 'nother ball of wax..
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Why would you need to get a private rotorcraft? Wouldn't you just go straight for the commercial or ATP rotorcraft add-on?
 
///AMG said:
the civilian jobs out there pay significantly less than their fixed wing counterparts (given similar experience). Something to think about
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Very true, but the prospect of being home every night might offset the monetary loss for those looking to get out of the 121 game. At this juncture, the pay is actually a move up for most SIC regional right seaters and a lateral move for regional left seaters, which accomplish 50% of domestic flying anyways.


J.
 
woodreau said:
Why would you need to get a private rotorcraft? Wouldn't you just go straight for the commercial or ATP rotorcraft add-on?
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I think the biggest thing is if you get the private, then anything after private can be logged as PIC..

So..

If you get the private (~30 hours) then anything after that, you can log as PIC..

To get the COMM you have to have at least 50 hours (I believe) which if you already had the private you'd be 20 hours or so ahead of the game.. No real reason not to get the private..
 
C150J said:
Very true, but the prospect of being home every night might offset the monetary loss for those looking to get out of the 121 game. At this juncture, the pay is actually a move up for most SIC regional right seaters and a lateral move for regional left seaters, which accomplish 50% of domestic flying anyways.
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I am "out" of 121 on Aug 3.. I have 3 months LOA coming to me and in the mean time I am doing to work a "normal" job.. If at the end of that 3 months I am not ready to put a pistol to my head, I am probably out of 121 for good..

There is much more to life than money.. Being gone 1/2 the month is no longer for me.. I'm getting 18 days off a month right now.. I doubt it's gonna get any better than that (unless of course, I could get on at FedEx, bid reserve and then sit for 28 days a month LOL )..

So I'm looking at my prospects.. I'm gonna have to go back to school to pick up another degree or something, as the job I am going to be working, I'm not sure it is something I can "retire from."

I dunno, we'll see.. :D
 
C150J said:
Very true, but the prospect of being home every night might offset the monetary loss for those looking to get out of the 121 game. At this juncture, the pay is actually a move up for most SIC regional right seaters and a lateral move for regional left seaters, which accomplish 50% of domestic flying anyways.


J.
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I agree.....I would totally take the pay cut personally, but it could be an issue for some people depending on their financial situation, etc
 
Italianaviator said:
Wow thats cheap I was quoted $25,000 for the commercial addon down here in Ormond Beach
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It shouldn't be that much if you already have your fixed wing ratings..

To pick up the heli add on you gotta have:

Requirements for Pilots WITH airplane pilot certificates

* Already hold a Helicopter Private (or higher) Pilot Certificate
* Current FAA Medical Certificate
* Minimum of 150 hrs of Flight Time, 100 hours of which must be in Powered Aircraft
* Minimum of 100 hrs of Pilot-in-Command (PIC) Time, minimum of 50 in a Helicopter, 35 of which must be solo.
* 10 Hours of Instrument Training in an Aircraft is Required
* Helicopter Instrument Rating not required
* NO FAA WRITTEN Exam
* Pass an FAA Oral and Practical Flight Test
 
I am just going to throw in a quick perspective on some things I saw mentioned.
My intention is not to make this a military vs. civilian pilots slam-a-thon. I have a lot of respect for my military counterparts. They do a tough job that is different than most civilian jobs.

Military pilots are well trained but unless they have come out of tours in war zones they do not have an incredible amount of hours. Most military guys fly heavy twins from the time they are halfway through flight school. They have limited experience in light turbines which is the majority of the market right now. I am not saying they are not capable of flying light turbines but just they do not fly them as much. Most military pilots fly with a crew and very rarely solo PIC. This can level the playing field for civilian pilots who progress through light turbines. Again these guys are the top notch pilots trained for a very difficult mission. They are very competitive in the medium/ heavy market but most EMS operators are single pilot light turbines.

Time away from home most EMS companies require you to work 7 on 7off or 14/14. This is in case the other crew flight times out in a day. So you are away from home half the month. Most tour companies also work on the on/off schedule. As for utility work in some cases you spend your summers in logging camps waiting for fires or go to work on Tuesday come home in September kind of thing.

Right now minimums are increasing all over the board. The Gulf of Mexico companies have raised their times to 1200- 1500 with 100 hrs of simulated inst. They also work a 14/14 schedule. I kept an ad for a company that last year was hiring at 400 hrs for photo flights and this year they said they were not calling anyone with less than 700 hrs. It seems that there are so many out of work pilots between 500- 1500 hrs that when an operator puts in an ad they will receive around average 500 resumes with in the week.

The add on rating is a tricky one. Regardless of the minimums you still have to figure out how to build time. The insurance companies require between 200 - 300 hrs helo to teach or do work in the machine. There are companies right now that are just flying people to build time. That is all they do. They have waiting lists for these helicopters just to build flight time. Aside from the insurance there is a certain feel that comes with flying the helicopter i think most student s do not get to until over 100 hrs. That is when you see the huge leap in skills when it comes to landing pinnacles, auto's stuff like that. Not to say this is true for everyone but it is the trend I noticed. There are a lot of schools right now fighting for students so if they tell you they can get you done in the minimums be cautious. The average ppl exam in the US is at 60- 70 hrs right now.

Please do not take my post as being negative I love what I do and just want to shed a little light on the mysterious lifestyle of the helicopter pilot. I also did not want anyone to get scammed by false promises in the training market right now. If you have any direct question or comments please fire away. It is monsoon here and I do not have much else to do since we will not fly regularly for the next month.
Shane
 
Thanks for your thorough post, Shane!

scottyboy75 said:
Time away from home most EMS companies require you to work 7 on 7off or 14/14. This is in case the other crew flight times out in a day. So you are away from home half the month. M
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Say you're a pilot for an EMS outfit in Atlanta, and live in the greater-Atlanta area. When working 7/7, do you literally spend all of your time at the airport/facility? Just curious, as it would be great if you could be on call for 12 hours and then head home for your rest period. Not sure if this is true anywhere, though.

Thanks again!
 
Most companies require you to stay there for availability. In case they have multiple call outs. Bird get broken, bent. Stuff like that not to sure about them all but that is how the SLC companies work it.
Shane
 
scottyboy75 said:
Military pilots are well trained but unless they have come out of tours in war zones they do not have an incredible amount of hours. Most military guys fly heavy twins from the time they are halfway through flight school. They have limited experience in light turbines which is the majority of the market right now. I am not saying they are not capable of flying light turbines but just they do not fly them as much. Most military pilots fly with a crew and very rarely solo PIC. This can level the playing field for civilian pilots who progress through light turbines. Again these guys are the top notch pilots trained for a very difficult mission. They are very competitive in the medium/ heavy market but most EMS operators are single pilot light turbines.
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Interesting perspective....not being a helo dude myself, I hadn't really thought of things in these terms but it makes sense. I'm sure there would be a considerable difference between flying a 206 or Augusta single pilot IFR, and a dualed up Seahawk/Blackhawk. On the other hand I would imagine that EMS flying would be a natural extension of experience for those folks who flew medevac while in uniform, airframe differences aside.
 
Yeah I think there are some definite skills that transfer over. I have military guys do things with helicopters that blow my mind. I just wanted to illustrate the point that the military factor in helicopters in not as intimidating as it sounds.
Shane
 
scottyboy75 said:
Yeah I think there are some definite skills that transfer over. I have military guys do things with helicopters that blow my mind. I just wanted to illustrate the point that the military factor in helicopters in not as intimidating as it sounds.
Shane
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Yeah that makes a lot of sense actually. I'm sure there are civvie only pilots who can make helos dance better than many of their military counterparts as well, so it's not like one background automatically makes you more suited for the job than another.
 
It is actually the one thing that keeps the standards high for us. The little competition between us. When I was working as a CFII. We had a little rivalry going between us and the Apaches. It was a lot of fun and I had to buy some lunches for those guys and got a couple of lunches from them it was real cool.
 
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