new helicopter pilot needs some advice about going commercial
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: brisbane, australia
Posts: 1
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
new helicopter pilot needs some advice about going commercial
I've just finished my private license to fly heli's, I'm enjoying it and considering going the whole way to become a commercial heli pilot.
My concern is that of employment, is there much around if i go down that route? I've looked around myself and all the jobs I can find require a min of 1,500hrs etc...
How would I get those hours up? I'm in Australia so I'm assuming by doing some outback cattle herding or something, but that doesn't help with getting the additional few thousand hours of twin turbine time that most decient jobs require...
does anyone have any links to a good article regarding my situation of being new to the industry or do you have any good suggestions or experiances?
My concern is that of employment, is there much around if i go down that route? I've looked around myself and all the jobs I can find require a min of 1,500hrs etc...
How would I get those hours up? I'm in Australia so I'm assuming by doing some outback cattle herding or something, but that doesn't help with getting the additional few thousand hours of twin turbine time that most decient jobs require...
does anyone have any links to a good article regarding my situation of being new to the industry or do you have any good suggestions or experiances?
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: London
Posts: 17
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I was in the same boat as you around a year ago and eventually decided to go down the dull old route of fixed wing. I loved flying helis and still do...but the lack of jobs out there and the sheer costs involved in getting all the turbine time you mention made me realise that while helicopters are great fun, it's the world of planks which offers the best career.
Good luck!
Good luck!
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Indonesia
Posts: 23
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Hey Foxx,
Don't let 'em get ya down. You can do it but you have to really, really want it. It can be a long hard slog but I'm pretty sure that our industry will soon be screaming for pilots. CASAs new fee structure is already driving potential students away from aviation and some are being priced out of the industry.
Some advice which may help: You gotta want it!! Potential employers will be spending big $$ on your development and are pretty good identifying who is worth the risk.
Being single or having a partner who is willing to travel with you is a must. You need to be the man on the spot to get the job. You can send out all the resumes and letters in the world and you aren't going to get much interest. If you are there and they need a pilot, hey you got the job! Decide what kind of flying you want to do and go where it is. Go to the heli bases and roll your swag out next to the door.
I got my first job by flying to Tasmania, showing up at a heli base and telling them that they could stop looking for a pilot "I'm here". Don't be cocky, just confident. (Don't let them know that you feel like you're in way over your head) that brand new license is a license keep learning for the rest of your career.
I have spent the last eight years flying full and part time in the N.T. Collecting croc eggs, shooting pigs, buffalo, fishing etc. I started out flying a Kawasaki KH-4 (piston) and then they sold that and bought a jetranger. Hey presto, turbine hours!
I have just cracked my dream job, based in Cairns, flying for a great company with a fantastic maintenance program (very important). Best of all they operate multiple turbine helicopters, all of which I hope to be endorsed on soon. I fly with guys who have over 10,000 hours and learn something new every day.
Mate, sorry to be so long winded.
Best of luck and don't go mustering (cattle herding) unless you've got plenty of experience with cows on the ground.
Drop me an e-mail if you like,
Brendon
Don't let 'em get ya down. You can do it but you have to really, really want it. It can be a long hard slog but I'm pretty sure that our industry will soon be screaming for pilots. CASAs new fee structure is already driving potential students away from aviation and some are being priced out of the industry.
Some advice which may help: You gotta want it!! Potential employers will be spending big $$ on your development and are pretty good identifying who is worth the risk.
Being single or having a partner who is willing to travel with you is a must. You need to be the man on the spot to get the job. You can send out all the resumes and letters in the world and you aren't going to get much interest. If you are there and they need a pilot, hey you got the job! Decide what kind of flying you want to do and go where it is. Go to the heli bases and roll your swag out next to the door.
I got my first job by flying to Tasmania, showing up at a heli base and telling them that they could stop looking for a pilot "I'm here". Don't be cocky, just confident. (Don't let them know that you feel like you're in way over your head) that brand new license is a license keep learning for the rest of your career.
I have spent the last eight years flying full and part time in the N.T. Collecting croc eggs, shooting pigs, buffalo, fishing etc. I started out flying a Kawasaki KH-4 (piston) and then they sold that and bought a jetranger. Hey presto, turbine hours!
I have just cracked my dream job, based in Cairns, flying for a great company with a fantastic maintenance program (very important). Best of all they operate multiple turbine helicopters, all of which I hope to be endorsed on soon. I fly with guys who have over 10,000 hours and learn something new every day.
Mate, sorry to be so long winded.
Best of luck and don't go mustering (cattle herding) unless you've got plenty of experience with cows on the ground.
Drop me an e-mail if you like,
Brendon
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Where i hang my hat
Age: 46
Posts: 91
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
As i understand it there is a good chance of uilding hous as a CFI and CFII. Thatīs what im gonna do and most foreigners like me do over here anyway. My goal is to leave here in 2 years with my ppl,cpl,cfi and cfii and more thatn 1000 hours.
Good luck man.
Good luck man.
I'm currently flying Helos for a living (because if you actually enjoy flying, rather than looking at gauges - nothing beats it) - but i'm obviously not stupid enough to think that i'll ever make any money at it!
What kind of position would I be in were I to start flying planks with 2-3,000 hrs Heli, maybe 1,000 turbine, but with only 250hrs fixed wing?
Does helicopter time count in the fixed wing world?
What kind of position would I be in were I to start flying planks with 2-3,000 hrs Heli, maybe 1,000 turbine, but with only 250hrs fixed wing?
Does helicopter time count in the fixed wing world?
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: the other side
Posts: 18
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
All this talk of flying planks is depressing.
If helo's are what you want then stick to it.
I am.
I have spent Ģ23k all ready and i am back in the UK driving trucks to save for the next round of expendature (FI).
There arnt many things in life that i know for certain, but this is one :
I WILL fly helos for a living.
Sometimes even i doubt myself but it is allways there and i know that nothing else in life will even come close to flying.
Keep the dream, and you too will get there. ( hopefuly )
If helo's are what you want then stick to it.
I am.
I have spent Ģ23k all ready and i am back in the UK driving trucks to save for the next round of expendature (FI).
There arnt many things in life that i know for certain, but this is one :
I WILL fly helos for a living.
Sometimes even i doubt myself but it is allways there and i know that nothing else in life will even come close to flying.
Keep the dream, and you too will get there. ( hopefuly )
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Australia
Posts: 102
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Foxxx,
Firstly, let's get a few facts established.
1. Becoming a professional helicopter pilot is expensive.
2. Becoming a professional helicopter pilot can be difficult and time consuming.
3. Being a professional can be extremely rewarding, both professionally and financially.
Given all of the above, are you still interested? If so, then do it and ignore the nay sayers out there. There will always be plenty of people out there to put you off but if you already have reservations, then maybe it's not for you.
This game is NOT to be entered into lightly but the rewards are there for those who go for it 100%.
I refute entirely the comments made that there are no jobs out there for rotary pilots and that all the jobs are for the fixed wing guys. If you read the latest edition of Flight Safety, watched the ABC news on Jan 31, or have read some of the threads on this forum you'd be aware that the helicopter industry here in Australia is in a phase of rapid expansion. The trick is to put yourself in a position to take advantage of it.
Have you considered the military? They're always looking for pilots.
Good luck,
P68
Firstly, let's get a few facts established.
1. Becoming a professional helicopter pilot is expensive.
2. Becoming a professional helicopter pilot can be difficult and time consuming.
3. Being a professional can be extremely rewarding, both professionally and financially.
Given all of the above, are you still interested? If so, then do it and ignore the nay sayers out there. There will always be plenty of people out there to put you off but if you already have reservations, then maybe it's not for you.
This game is NOT to be entered into lightly but the rewards are there for those who go for it 100%.
I refute entirely the comments made that there are no jobs out there for rotary pilots and that all the jobs are for the fixed wing guys. If you read the latest edition of Flight Safety, watched the ABC news on Jan 31, or have read some of the threads on this forum you'd be aware that the helicopter industry here in Australia is in a phase of rapid expansion. The trick is to put yourself in a position to take advantage of it.
Have you considered the military? They're always looking for pilots.
Good luck,
P68
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Liverpool
Posts: 4
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Done quite a few searches and couldn't find anything that helped so forgive me if this has already been discussed. I have a PPL (H) and plan to go Commercial and get my FI.
Here's my question, should I opt for the ATPL (H) ground school or just do CPL(H) .. its obviously less exams. I don't plan on doing multi pilot off shore stuff but things change down the line... any advice on this please?
Thanks.
Here's my question, should I opt for the ATPL (H) ground school or just do CPL(H) .. its obviously less exams. I don't plan on doing multi pilot off shore stuff but things change down the line... any advice on this please?
Thanks.
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: europe
Posts: 148
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
There is no right or wrong way...
CPL
Pros: slightly cheaper, less exams, perhaps more of a helicopter slant
Cons: less choice in groundschool provider, less established question banks, will have to hit the books later on in your career to get an IR and/or an ATPL
ATPL
Pros: Futureproofing
Cons: reverse of the CPL pros
When you start out the mere concept of being paid to fly seems so tantilising, how could you want for anything more? Why would I want to go offshore? They don't really fly, they're like airline pilots and we all know what they're like.
However, as you approach 1000 hours almost exclusively in light pistons you wonder if it really was worth the £50,000 you spent after successfully convincing family members that although it would be a struggle for everyone, this was your dream.
Now, for the last year and a half you have worked every weekend and most weekdays taking what feels like an exclusive club of the world's most obtuse people on trial lessons.
You start to realise that as a good instructor you are rarely touching the controls. You are juggling the politics of a small school, along with keeping customers happy who don't quite understand that although they are paying £10,000 and feel they deserve a service akin to spending that money elsewhere, the actual profit being made on their £10,000 is probably equivalent to getting your car worked on.
You hope that you might get some charter work on a light turbine this summer ... if you're lucky. You deserve it. You know you can fly, you know you can do a good job, even if you don't have x hours on type. But the operator doesn't see it that way. And the other school has been promising you an AOC for ages, if you just do this ... and that ...
On the upside, the money is reasonable when you aren't firmly engaged in drinking tea and cloud watching with the changable British weather, but you know you won't be taking home much more in the foreseeable future.
Holiday? How can you plan one of those, you work all summer and if you chalk yourself out the schedule for 2 weeks will you ever get back to the top of the freelancer pile? And what if you book a week off and its perfect flying weather, then you have a month of rain and wind?
Then one day your CV turns up on someones desk. You get a call. How do you fancy flying a twin to the rigs? Pension. Loss of licence insurance. A fantastic salary. A fixed roster with loads of time off. Certainty in your day-to-day schedule. Career progression. But you need to be on an IR course next month... Although at the moment that sounds so against the grain, thats not why you became a helicopter pilot! But just wait
I've painted a one-sided picture, but you need to understand the realities of your future career path if at this stage you want to firmly wipe one option out.
CPL
Pros: slightly cheaper, less exams, perhaps more of a helicopter slant
Cons: less choice in groundschool provider, less established question banks, will have to hit the books later on in your career to get an IR and/or an ATPL
ATPL
Pros: Futureproofing
Cons: reverse of the CPL pros
When you start out the mere concept of being paid to fly seems so tantilising, how could you want for anything more? Why would I want to go offshore? They don't really fly, they're like airline pilots and we all know what they're like.
However, as you approach 1000 hours almost exclusively in light pistons you wonder if it really was worth the £50,000 you spent after successfully convincing family members that although it would be a struggle for everyone, this was your dream.
Now, for the last year and a half you have worked every weekend and most weekdays taking what feels like an exclusive club of the world's most obtuse people on trial lessons.
You start to realise that as a good instructor you are rarely touching the controls. You are juggling the politics of a small school, along with keeping customers happy who don't quite understand that although they are paying £10,000 and feel they deserve a service akin to spending that money elsewhere, the actual profit being made on their £10,000 is probably equivalent to getting your car worked on.
You hope that you might get some charter work on a light turbine this summer ... if you're lucky. You deserve it. You know you can fly, you know you can do a good job, even if you don't have x hours on type. But the operator doesn't see it that way. And the other school has been promising you an AOC for ages, if you just do this ... and that ...
On the upside, the money is reasonable when you aren't firmly engaged in drinking tea and cloud watching with the changable British weather, but you know you won't be taking home much more in the foreseeable future.
Holiday? How can you plan one of those, you work all summer and if you chalk yourself out the schedule for 2 weeks will you ever get back to the top of the freelancer pile? And what if you book a week off and its perfect flying weather, then you have a month of rain and wind?
Then one day your CV turns up on someones desk. You get a call. How do you fancy flying a twin to the rigs? Pension. Loss of licence insurance. A fantastic salary. A fixed roster with loads of time off. Certainty in your day-to-day schedule. Career progression. But you need to be on an IR course next month... Although at the moment that sounds so against the grain, thats not why you became a helicopter pilot! But just wait
I've painted a one-sided picture, but you need to understand the realities of your future career path if at this stage you want to firmly wipe one option out.
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Liverpool
Posts: 4
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Thanks for that. great reply. This I guess was part of the question I wanted answered, ATPL (H) at this stage makes sense cos its done in one go. do you have to be IR to fly offshore?
Am I right in thinking that you need ATPL's to be IR or fly multi crew. Is that the only differences?
Am I right in thinking that you need ATPL's to be IR or fly multi crew. Is that the only differences?
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: europe
Posts: 148
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Yes, you have to have an IR to fly offshore. A CPL/IR would cut it provided you never wanted to move from the co-joe seat.
However, CPL theory plus IR theory is as much work as doing ATPL theory from the start. If you then decide you want an ATPL, its pretty much the full monty I'm afraid.
ATPL theory covers you for 36months for the IR theory. If you get the IR in 36months (either by paying yourself or being bonded by an offshore company) then you have 7 years from the expiry of your IR (so forever if you keep your IR current) to get the hours for your ATPL. If it goes over 36months and you still have no IR, you may get a CPL/IR without further theory, but that is a big unofficial maybe.
Personally, I think the extra effort for ATPL is worth it. But there are lots of people with very valid reasons who opted for CPL.
ATPL allows you to be commander of a multicrew helicopter.
An IR is simply that, an instrument rating. It can be attached to a PPL or CPL, and is attached to an ATPL
However, CPL theory plus IR theory is as much work as doing ATPL theory from the start. If you then decide you want an ATPL, its pretty much the full monty I'm afraid.
ATPL theory covers you for 36months for the IR theory. If you get the IR in 36months (either by paying yourself or being bonded by an offshore company) then you have 7 years from the expiry of your IR (so forever if you keep your IR current) to get the hours for your ATPL. If it goes over 36months and you still have no IR, you may get a CPL/IR without further theory, but that is a big unofficial maybe.
Personally, I think the extra effort for ATPL is worth it. But there are lots of people with very valid reasons who opted for CPL.
ATPL allows you to be commander of a multicrew helicopter.
An IR is simply that, an instrument rating. It can be attached to a PPL or CPL, and is attached to an ATPL
