Need some advice from your rotorheads!
 

I am 35 years old from Norway, i have worked as a paramedic for 12 years and performe more missions that i would like to count. I feel my days as paramedic is over, all my life my big passion has been helicopters and i would now like to make them my job. In my work i have been lucky to spend time in our EC135 and loved all hours in it.. There is nothing better than see the grim on the pilots face when i was performing water picup in sling in freesing water:ugh: But i have spend some time on the stick, and its a great machine to fly. its a little weak in wrong winds do to the fenestron and big tail.. little sail back there in side winds:} Sorry for my bad english

My plan now is to travel to Hillsboro Aviation and take PPL, CPL, IR, ME, CFI and CFII then convert them to JAA, ATPL some where in Europe.

In norway taking the JAA and ATPL will cost a ****t load of money and giv me 170hours. Nobody will hire a pilot withe that few hours.

Hillsboro wil give me a job instruc after a while and i would have around 1300hours when i have completed my education.

Do you think is wise to do hours on both the R22 and H300? and som ranger time in the end? Does anyone now a good contry in Europe to convert the FAA to JAA, ATPL and the cost? Would you recomend more education or some type certifications? anyone heard of Hillsboro, is it a good school?

I will be glad for all help you can give, the reason why im askin you bunch is that i have the greates respect for you and just love the forum...

Best regards
The tired medic ho just want to fly

Welcome to Rotorheads :ok:

There are quite a few threads running which can help you: have you tried the "Search" function?

At the top of the page as a 'sticky' is So you want to be a helicopter pilot: well worth going to for a start.

That will lead you to FAQ Training and employment prospects, always a good read, which then has links to a host of useful threads. If you search "Hillsboro" there are even more threads, many of which may well answer your queries :)

Isn't ther a company in Florida who will train you to FAA and JAA and you finish with both licenses, I think they use S300 and B206.

Velkommen til.
Im at Hillsboro Aviation now and just finished my CFII, you said "Hillsboro will give me a job instruc, when im done"
Well that sounds about perfect go for it, but last time we were around 15 aplicants for 3 positions, and we all graduated from Hillsboro.
So yes you can do you education here, but I dont think you will be guarentied a job.
Im planning on converting my licences to JAA at Oxford aviation, but nothing for sure yet.

Støy.

Training
 

What about Bristow Academy www.heli.com , can train for both licences and with something like 30 instructors they are practically always hiring although nothing is guaranteed. Good luck with whatever path you take, you'll never look back!!

Hasn't Oxford ceased helicopter training?

Cheers

Whirls

Hi AT_WORLDS_END, I'm from the UK, I went to Bristow Academy in March 2005 and did all my ratings (FAA only) to CFII. It's a great school & I can highly recommend it. Unfortunately I wasn't taken on as a CFI at the end of my course (out of my CFI class 2 out of 9 were employed) but I got a CFI job at Rotors of the Rockies in Colorado and flying there was the experience of a lifetime.

I now have 1100hrs TT and over 100 in twins and I'm back in the UK studying JAA groundschool at Bristol GS, 8 exams done and 5 to do next month. The JAA to FAA conversion process has been quite straightforward so far. If the economic situation was better I'd be doing a JAA IR next but it's too much of a risk right now (zero cash :{) so I think I'll need to head off overseas again.:ok:

Make no mistake, it's a tough and expensive road you're thinking of embarking on, but if you love flying then you won't regret it. Definitely do your homework before you spend a penny though. For example - to fly offshore in Europe you will need to self-fund a JAA Instrument Rating ($40k for the conversion FAA-JAA, even more for an initial rating)...

Cheers

Kris

Thanks for all your information and Pm... i now have lots of info to make a good plan:)

again Thanks:ok:

Don't forget to check out the M1 and J1 AFTER way of doing things.

Saves time on J1 that gives you competitive edge - sort of against those who have less time on their J1 left. Also be carefull to have the DS 2019 form printed and handed to you (so you know it's real :-D ) by end of this year (31.12.2009) and then enter USA no later than June 2010. Ideally May or so. In case you want to take time. I don't think you would once you kickstart things, but..

J1, such great tool for European heli pilots in training, is being phased out.
You can read about it here at lengths. The future of special subclass of M1 as vaguely proposed, is not that certain.

You'll feel like home (literally) with all the Scandinavians - mostly from Norway in both Bristow Academy and Hillsboro.

If you've got the cash side of things sorted, get your M1 visa sorted for PPL and bit more, then return on J1. Summer in Oregon's great. Florida summer doesn't suit me personally (spent one in Georgia, 'bit higher' but).

There's lot to trawl through to get an idea, make up your mind etc.
Hillsboro won't give you JAA papers. On the other hand, there's quite a queue for Bristow Academy's FAA/JAA programme. It's also more expensive.
Some went to BA for FAA programme only and then it's easier to work hard and do the JAA DS with the test centre around the corner. You better check with Anisha or whoever is there for that stuff now.

Although probably 'easiest' to score a job as CFI with the school, it's not that case for everyone - pretty obvious. Less US students due to stricter lending rules etc also means less CFIs needed in small schools - where you'd head if not successful in 'alma mater'. Not the case of either of the abovementioned schools, plenty Europeans, Americans, very few Asians or Latinos. Should be about the same in Bristow Academy although they also do military RW training for some Latin American govts so definitely more than Hillsboro.
Nice vids on youtube if you search.

As for R22 vs S300. Ehm. If you end up in Bristow Academy, try to get at least 50h TT in R22 - from what I've heard/read from past students, not that easy. Most schools use R22 due to cost etc, and BA is mostly S300. You can't instruct in the USA in R22 without 50h on them. In Hillsboro, vast majority of training is in R22, only few heavier (or those tall guys who don't like being cramped in Robbies) studes have to fly in 300. There are no 'S300 only' instructors in HAI as far as I was told by Jenifer.

Also, once you finalise the plans when you start, check out the dates for RHC (in California) 'safety courses' as it's requirement in FAA system, to have SFAR 73 sign-off. You can do that as soon as you have PPL(H). Be warned, book early, very early. Irrelevant for instructing in Schweizers, but you want to be competitive and for chance to instruct in the most common heli for initial training, R22, kinda no-brainer.

If you want, I'll PM you a link to my picasa with couple XC pics out of HAI.
With Norsk lowering requirements (oops, Bristow Norway), as soon as you have CPL/fATPL and IR(H), it's a chance. Having FAA IR also helps reducing minimum hours towards JAA IR(H), thus less. Places like Bilund in Denmark etc.

Jetranger time won't do you much good with low hours. It's good to do the JAA type rating if you're in Bristow Academy, as it could be useful for the SE IR route before ME IR(H). But that's very, very far ahead. Pardon my bloating.

Me? Could have finished training or be almost done had my funding not been badly screwed. Or sorting J1 for next year. Whatever. Ehm, not so. Screw that 50h in R22. No use for them for loong time.