how long can you be sick and get paid
This is one of the few truly good things about EK. You don't get penalized if you get sick; you will continue to get your base pay, housing allowance etc.
There have been a lot of cases where guys were on sick leave for extended periods. One guy I met had a really bad motorcycle accident in the desert and was off work for close to three years. Another guy fell sick during basic indoc and was off work for 6 months. Once he was better he did office work and once his medical was reestablished he continued his line training like nothing happened.