Help...........!!!

[Dazed and Confused]

I'm interested in a career in flying but am unsure on the best plan of attack.

My preference would be in the Helicopter industry but after reading so much about the lack of jobs and also the minimum flying hours I'm begining to think this is a none starter. The expence is also a 'big' issue.

How do/have you guys do/done it?

I have no preference to where in the world to work or what flying it would be, but due to massive amount of initial training costs I'd like to have an idea if it's actually worth it. Seems a none starter in the U.K but what's the probability of starting out elsewhere?

Would a better option to be heading towards fixed-wing?..........(please tell me no)

Am I least likely to get work because of my age? (22)

I'm completly lost and confused !?!?!?!

Any ideas or helpful insights to the industry would be greatly recieved.

[MaxNr]

Hi D & C, As your at the "which way should I go" stage, and the expence is an obvious concern, I think you`ll find the fixed wing world is the cheapest way to see if you like it. Book yourself a couple of introductory flights with both a fixed wing and rotory flight school to see which bug bites the hardest!!! After that start doing your research. Its a whole ton of cash to make any form of flying a career without joining the armed forces, so think long and hard...Just one thing, don`t rule out training overseas as it tends to be a lot cheaper (and I don`t necessarily mean the USA). Best of luck...Max

[Pete O'Tewbe]

D & C (sounds like a gynaecological operation)

As you rightly say, the expense of helicopter training is a big issue particularly as you may well be selling the 'Big Issue' for a while after you get your licence.

O'Tewbe's advice - unless you wish Her Maj to fund your heli training, go for planks.

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Never Pass Gas.....

[touareg]

I think the advice posted above holds true.

If you really want to fly helicopters you will find out after those first few hours and the bug will get you.

It can take some time to reach the final goal but like lots of things in life if its worth doing its worth doing well and worth waiting for.

The first job after training which I suppose is often a teaching job can come as a direct result of who you trained with so pick that school carefully.

No matter what, if you love it don't quit.

I started flying at 35 am now 42 and love every minute of it. It took me 15 years to find the job to afford the training and the time to be able to cross the hurdle you are at.

As a Naval officer (Seaman)this proved frustrating and resulted in a fair amount of emotional baggage.

It can be done though even if you don't have the resources at the moment.

good luck and hang on in there.

[212man]

I think the word is expense, not expence. It always helps if you can spell when applying for sponsorship from a company that is just about to spend £N000 where N is a large number.

Also, although to some extent cruising the internet asking for help could be deemed as showing initiative, it does show a lack of imagination. Are you aware of the flying scholarship schemes that various organisations offer? eg GAPAN and the RAF.

Would a University Air Squadron be of benefit? It's all free. Have you approached the big three ( now two, but that's a different story!) operators in the UK and said "do you train helicopter pilots?"? Certainly one does, and has done so for over thirty years, though sadly it has contracted the work out and closed its own school.

If you really like flying, you will love helicopters. However, comma, you will find the business to be a shrinking one with ever decreasing margins and ever increasing competition between operators. What that means in practice is you may be made redundant somewhat earlier than retirement. Then again that could happen in the FW world, but at least in general it is expanding as a market.

You will never make the same money as you would in a big airline, but it is still well above national norms. A 15 year North sea captain is earning in the early £50Ks, which is better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick. Until you get made redundant at 50..........

Go FW and spend some of your ill gotten gains, therein, on fun flying be it helicopters or aerobatics or what ever.

Hope that helps!

write if you want details.


[This message has been edited by 212man (edited 28 October 1999).]

[PVR]

As for 212driver, give the bloke a break, if you know how to spill chock a letter before posting, why not tell us all instead of taking the urine, He's only a new boy on this.

[This message has been edited by PVR (edited 18 January 2000).]

[212man]

PVR.

Don't misunderstand me. If you read elswhere in these forums you will find a note from someone who was sitting on an airline selection board (though how he ommits to say). He said that large numbers were discarded out of hand for spelling/grammar.

I am not the world's english expert, and I don't use a spell checker, but I think it is something worth getting right if possible.

I did try to then go on to paint a picture of the RW world at present, and I guess, from the fact that you are trying to un-freeze your FW ATPL, you would conccur.

I still think a bit more get up and go is required to sus out where the opportunities are. The latest Flight has a letter from someone who seems to think the world/airlines owe him a living and why have they not paid for his licence.

Nuff said.

[Chip Lite]

I'm a bit sick of th pdantic arshols who continually blat on about pople who cann't spll. Prhps thy should giv more thought to the contnt than how it is writtn. Aftrall if thy ar so damn clvr, thy wouldn't hav th tim to spnd on thir computr corrcting othr's mistak's.

As far as hlicoptr's ar concrnd, th fun is in th larning of anything, aftr that it's just a job. Unfortunatly th hlicoptr industry has turnd vry sour ovr rcnt yars. I hav two son's if ithr or both want to fly, my ncouragmnt will b towards fixd-wing. Anyon with any sns will do th sam and lt th grady managmnt ruminat on thir lack of xprinc and lt's watch th accidnt's roll in, polic first I think, oh no sorry thy ar alrady thr.

[Chip Lite]

212 Not aimed particularly at you, you were the catalyst, but there are so many people who take exception to the odd finger fumble, there are more important things in life.

Yes, I heard of a company, one Mr Dick B doesn't like, that rejects anyone who doesn't fill in their application form in black when it states as such. Well quite right if they can't read then bin'em at the paper sift.

I reitierate, treat the helicopter industry like an unexploded firework. I have no respect for it or the people/organisation that run it.

[tigerpilot]

Well said, chip lite, concur 100%

I also have a son in his early 20's. and threatened to poke him in the eye if he even thought about flying for a living, although it has paid our bills for the last 30 odd years!

[PVR]

212driver I apologise, got the point with job app's.
Lots of old, Bold & Bald pilots on this subject with similar views, how many would do it again if they were starting out as 18 year olds once more? I would, & I would let Her Majesty pay for the training.

[This message has been edited by PVR (edited 30 October 1999).]

[This message has been edited by PVR (edited 30 October 1999).]

[212man]

I think we get the general gist. Helicopter flying can be great, but like anything it becomes a job with some degree of monotany. For many, at the moment, it has ceased to be a job at all which is why I agree with the others that going FW is probably the route to take.

It's a shame that people seem to take such exception to the mention of spelling. Perhaps we should all revert to the phonetic system that trendy educationalist advocated in the '70s, which left a whole generation years behind with their english. Do people object to maths answers being wrong as well?

were steadily moving towards a computer society where any form of academic elitism or competition is seen as detrimental and where criticism as personnel which leads i think to a deciduous deteriation in standards across all aspects of society and the profesions particularly teaching where are children intrust their education. Hey, but the meaning int that bad.

Let's not get personal, we all share the same sentiments.

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PS.Chip lite, the reason I have time to visit this site is that I am home on leave from a total **** hole where I spend 2/3 of my life.


[This message has been edited by 212man (edited 30 October 1999).]

[This message has been edited by 212man (edited 30 October 1999).]

[Chip Lite]

Good! It's about time the helicopter fraternity spoke with one voice.

You will hear much more from me in about three month's time!

[John_Olav]

Hi there D C!

I was (am) in the same situation as you are.
Right now I have been at this helicopter school for about one month. I like it more and more each day. Yes it is a lot of money, but this is sometihng I have wanted to do for a long time. I saved up money for the training, and I also borrowed some from my bank in Norway. My impression is that if you are in it for money, you have choosen the wrong path. But how many people really look forward to going to school or their job. I really look forward to every day. Hopefully it will be like that for a long time. My advice will be that you save up some money, then go for it. It is very possible. I have to state that I do not come from a family with unlimited funds. It was all funded by myself, with a little bit of help from a bank. I am also 22.
Please e mail me at [email protected] if you have any questions at all.
I hope to hear what your decide to do.

John Olav Ofstad

[MaxNr]

Hey 212man, good to see the old spelling and grammer went out the window in that final paragraph. Welcome back to humanity!!!!

[212man]

Max Nr.

The sad thing is some people won't spot the irony, judging from the other postings around the forums. I get plenty of "humanity" where I work, it's great!

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[MBJ]

212man - agree with you about the spelling in general. It is particularly important on CV's. Can't spell = can't be bothered.

Be that as it may, D&C, get the Queen to pay for your training. Join the Navy if you can. Never did me any harm..cheap booze, fast women and excellent training if you can stand the pace.

[PVR]

MBJ do you know what you have just started!!
Dazed & Con - don't want to be a nautical bus driver? You could join the Army and fly something like the Apache. And it doesn't matter if you didn't do very well at school.

[This message has been edited by PVR (edited 03 November 1999).]

[MBJ]

PVR, you sad brown job! Why live in a slit trench under a poncho eating strange and unidentifiable foods, when you can return from the fray to aircon (of sorts) a bar and a dry pit?

Still, coming from the days when we used to bolt 2"RP onto a Wessex I would love at least to test-drive an Apache..