Low timer looking for a start in Canada
 

Greetings Chaps,
I'm a low time pilot who will be hitting the dusty trails looking for work once the hiring season begins this year. From what I understand it's a waste of time sending in the resume, it's better to visit in person. Can anyone recommend what companies to go to, and more importantly, who not to go to? I'm more than willing to work until my hands bleed and I'm half blind from inhaling avgas, but I've heard a few horror stories about low timers being ridden bareback too. What's generally a starting wage for a newbie?
P.s. I've have an R22, R44 and B206 endorsement if that's any help.

The odds of that happening are slim!

Do you have a Canadian license (I assume you have because you're talking about endorsments)?
How many hours do you have?
How old are you, in other words do you qualify for a working student visa?

Yes I have a Canadian CPL(H), and I'm on about 135 hours total at the moment. I'm 26 at the moment, and I have applied for a usit under 35 visa. I presume the student visa you are talking about is the usit student programme, or is there another one?

Davy, have you any info on what's happening in Canada? Are you over there yourself?

Sorry to be the bearer of bad tidings but I strongly suggest that you do not waste any time, money or effort coming to Canada looking for a start as a low-timer.

Have a look at the Vertical Magazine Forums for the current feeling toward immigrant pilots.

Ok thanks WL, yeah things sure are going down the drain, jeez I didn't really understand just how bad things are in Canada. I guess my piddly 135 hours don't really amount to a hill of beans in the big scheme of things. Not to worry, I'll adapt and overcome (basically go back to my old job).....

Yeah, like the good folk have said, as a low timer it's a bad idea going to Canada for helicopter work. Hell, its gonna be bad enough for guys with 2000 hours, let alone 100+ hours. Since you have your Canadian CPL, you must know how ti al works there. As a low timer, you would only get a job as a hangar rat. Cleaning machines and all sorts of other jobs, all for a very low wage. After you prove yourself, maybe summer 2010, they would let you do maintenance runs and occasional ferry flight. Canada is one of the hardest places to start in the industry as a low time pilot.

Dont waste the student visa this year, unless you wanna escape the crashing emerald isle for other work. In the past Iw ould normally tell most people not to go to Canada until they had between 700-1000 hours. Now, its just gone bad. Very bad!

Since you have a CPL now, you cant go the American route and work there either. So, not sure what the best route would be at this point. Maybe consider doing the JAA and getting an IR to head to the North Sea?? Who knows at this stage. Work around the world is drying up, and its only gonna get worse. What we need to do is get out there and find a way to drive up the price of oil - then we will be in good hands again!!!

Good luck!

I'm from Canada and really don't hold well with much of the thread on Vertical...kind of on the Open Minded Side when it comes to Aviation, considering I would like a chance to show up and work somewhere else in the world just once. Not to mention I've worked with Kiwi's, Aust, Frenchies, Poms, Hungarians, Romanians, Ruskies etc and found them all good guys/gals to work with.

So that being said, if you have a different skill set that you could work, AND produce mind you, other than the ground, that might be something you might want to look into...and at the same time see a little of our rather large country. Are you a computer programmer, engineer, accountant, carpenter etc? Maybe a HR specialist perhaps? That way you could justify your being in Aviation in Canada without the thought of stealing jobs...all the while working on your immigrant status.

At 135 hours, if I was in a positon to hire, you probably wouldn't get it based on moral grounds (lot's of hungry Canucks here too). But if you get in the office doing something else on more of a long term kick the door may open for you as time passes. I'm 3500 hrs and did it the hard way here in Canada (Ground Pounding for ****e money).

If you can sell yourself there is no stopping you...and that is very important, no matter how many hours you have, when your a VFR bush type pilot here in the Great White North. Companies I know of that have a reputation for hiring low -timers are Airborne Energy Solutions, Gemini Helicopters, Ultra Helicopters, Big Horn Helicopters (they are a training/conversion type of school that hires their own...very good), VIH sometimes (but they are very large and that extra skill set I was talking about may come in handy) and Bailey Helicopters.

I wish you and all the rest of you new lowtimers just breaking in the best of luck...it sounds tough out there right now...but then it took me 5 years I think to start pulling some revenue in too.

BWB

Any company that gives you a start is a good one, but if you manage Bailey helicopters, thank your lucky stars and keep your ears open and your mouth shut - there are a lot of very senior guys there from whom you will learn a lot - but don't worry, they won't bite!

Probably the most concentrated place to make the effort is North of Edmonton in Alberta, but certainly stick your nose in at Bighorn in Springbank. Don't forget the Tim Hortons!

And good luck - in this game (and life in general) it's being in the right place at the right time and you ain't going to be there if you stay at home! If you want Allah's help to win the lottery, you have to buy the ticket!

phil

PS - Make sure you get a car you can sleep in!

Don't let the whiners over on the thread at verticalmag scare you off. Sure it's tougher now for a newbie then it was in recent years but you can't win if you don't play.

Good luck wherever you go.

Tad uncalled for norunway.

Is it really ethical to "offer encouragement" to a non-Canadian to go out to Canada where there isn't a lot of work for low time pilots? I'd suggest not.

Cheers

Whirls

Norunway
 

Fair enough, il not post on here anymore. Il be eager to see all the positive encouragement from yourself in future similar topics on here.

As a Brit Expat who has been flying in Canada for aprox 20years, I would normally encourage anyone to come over and give it a go, especially at this time of year as it is normally the time companies start hiring for the busy summer season. To be honest though with all the machines parked at the moment I think as a 100hr pilot you would be wasting your time, but you never know, its all about timing. Up until the end of last year there were still seats to be filled with the outlook for work through the winter looking good on exploration, drills etc.But that has all been put on hold till who knows when. Some of us still working, but its real slow. Haven;t heard of too many lay offs, but most guys are contract over here so just means no lay off, but no phone calls either.

Don;t get too discouraged over the whiners on the Vertical forums about foreigners working here, these guys doing the whining seem to forget all the Canucks working international. It will pick up again, then we will need to import pilots again to fill seats. In the meantime if you are serious about coming over here, get some hours on vertical reference,, confined areas, hover exit, whiteout, longline precision and production, etc as these ae the real skills needed to make it here. Oh yeah and lots of turbine. Good luck.:ok:

Out of interest, what are the pay scales like in Canada? I heard they were dropping because of a lack of positions and too many pilots.

Fly for Fun

Just outta interest, what part E.Anglia you from, I only ask because I;m originally from Lincolnshire:ok:. Far as I know, nobody cutting wages yet, like I stated on my previous post most guys/gals are contract.Depends on experience and type ratings, lights, intermediates, mediums or heavies as to payscale.Myself have over 10,000hrs with alot of it precision longline so it pays comparable with most other countries with same experience, if not better. Company I work for pay daily rate, bush pay and flight pay daily with minimums, amount of min hours depends on time of year normally 2hrs a day in winter 4hrs a day summer, but that will vary company to company and on a busy year you'll fly way over mins. Also depends what province you are based out of, Western provinces always paid better, but you;ll need approved mountain course for most contracts out west, most guys/gals here have that anyway.

I have worked in UK, ME, Africa ,US,S.America,to name a few places, far as I;m concerned Canada a good place to be if you like to fly lots of variety and lots of hours and a good way of life, don;t forget it;s middle of winter here, very short days and extreme cold, so I think it will pick up in next couple months as days get longer on exploration anyways, I;m currently sat on exploration camp and thats what I;m hearing. As for fire season, well thats in the hands of Mother Nature, but we sure are due for a good one and if it does burn, then we;ll all be b***ching cos we want some time off. Hope that helps.Just as a last note, this time last year we were struggling to keep aircraft flying due to lack of experienced crews, and that was middle of winter.Get outta this recession and it will be same again, things are only on hold, NOT cancelled.

From people in the know, would an over 35yr old 1000hr pilot with an electrical background have much more opportunity? The moons line up for me in late April, early May. Is that leaving it too late to make the move?

Thanks

Mick

VH Mick,
You're too old for the working holiday visa and I think in the current climate Canadian companies wont need to sponsor Pilots. A mate of mine has just come back due to lack of work and another is hanging on until spring but he is really hanging around for the snowboarding.
With your 1000 hours can't you find something around OZ?

Ringer

Heliringer

I'd be interested to know how long, approx hrs and what part your mate was flying in Canada? PM me if you like. I've always wanted to go to Canada and don't really want to put it off for another year. Do you know if April, May would be too late to go?

thanks

VH mick

Personally from the amount of jobs I see going in Australia I would probably stay there. I think I might actually just head to Australia for work. The fact that there are no jobs whatsoever in Canada, and it will most likely be one of the worst seasons - which might be hard to believe because I thought last summer was the worst season, its probably a good idea to stay put.

Hey Murdock

Thats a bit doom and gloom, if ya don;t mind me saying. No jobs whatsoever in Canada isn;t quite right,company I fly for just hired a 100hr guy two weeks ago, headsheds must know something us mere minions don;t. Also think Stars and CHC still looking, check Vertical marketplace, think HTS, Heliquest , Trans North all looking for guys/gals. Could be old adverts, if so you;d think they would be removed. I stand to be corrected, but where I am right now theres 4 drills turning. Yeah ok so they are skidding um round with Cats, but ya know how that goes, always seem to need heli support when things break....:ugh:Rumour on this job, another 6 heliportable drills turning up in march, theres hope yet.....

Here is another job posted on a well known site today, hope it helps,:ok:


LONGLINE PILOT GUARDIAN HELICOPTERS INC. requires a pilot to crew diamond drilling contracts. This job involves substantial amounts of flying and REQUIRES Bell 206 / AS 350 longline experience. 204 /205 drill move experience would be an asset. Excellent pay with benefits to qualified pesonnel. Fulltime or Contract position available. Contact: Chief Pilot
Email: [email protected]
Telephone:
Fax: 403-730-6312 Address:
Springbank AirportCalgary, AlbertaDate Ad placed: 02/09/2009

Yeah, that's true. Sounded a bit doom and gloom alright, but just kinda making a broader statement of things in a comparative way. I hear and see more job adverts going on on the Australian side of things than in Canada - albeit, it is winter for Canada and always quiet.

Luckily for those of us that are experienced in the ways of moving drills and seismic ops, there are still some ops going, but the general gist of things is that its all been cut back dramatically.

As far as I know, STARS aren't looking for people - except an engineer. CHC, if you mean Global, they had advised me 2 months ago, that they would not be hiring anyone for the foreseeable future of at least 6-12 months.They were after letting go of 75 people 6 weeks ago. CHL, are also cutting back. HTS had also mentioned a short while ago, that there would be no hiring anytime soon (Canada side anyway, not sure of U.S. side). Not sure of Trans North, but had been mentioned that they weren't looking for people either.

There was a new issue of Vertical Mag, and in the back you see lots of advertisements for pilots - unfortunately, I think those ads have all been bought in a block format and are just there - sadly giving some of us false hope.

I saw Ultra put out their usual spring advertisement - but who knows their true intentions. Good timing on the Guardian Helicopters job, I just saw that one show up today. There is a job going for Cougar, but you need some decent experience under your belt, and ATPL and IR.

I guess, I am hopeful, for everyone, that there will be good work this summer in Canada - but I cant shake the feeling, that after the way things went last summer and the talks going on in a lot of companies, its just not gonna happen this summer.

It is a strange old market though. It seemed that CHC were losing contracts, Africa and Thailand, but today I heard they just won some contracts in Thailand again - so here's hoping. Although, I am sure Bristow were disappointed hearing that, as they were swooping in there with their 76's, but a lost cause now. It would seem that Bristow are poised to become the biggest and greatest, but even though have been cutting back on hiring globally.

I dunno, cant keep up with it all. I just think that for a low timer starting out, this is gonna be one of the hardest summers in a long time to get at it. However, by all means, go for it!! Dont let anyone hold you back or get in your way. Determination usually gets people through. Best of luck to you all!

Check out this site.

Helicopter Employment Available

Basicly, lots of lower time Canadian pilots looking for work who by law and moral code are first in line.
Sorry, but Canada,s hot Heli market has cooled alot in the last 12 month,s, and we are all sad to see the glory days gone.
A good bumper sticker making the rounds again here-
Please God, let there be another oil boom, and I,ll promise not to pi$$ it all away this time!

Sorry I could not be abit more positive, but this unfortunate reality is upon us.

I'm sorry, but take for example the working holiday visa scheme. It allows the applicant, who has to be under a certain age, to work under the same conditions as a local for a certain amount of time, normally 1 - 2 years. It's based on reciprocity, which means that if for example 500 Swedes are allowed to go to Canada, 500 Canadians are allowed to go to Sweden to work.

Why are Canadians "by law and moral" first in line for a job, when Canadians can come here and take up work here? The JAR CPL(H) theory is (to be?) made easier so a conversion is not as a big deal as it was before.

It is pretty easy economics, a Canadian low time pilot will stay and work in Canada, allowing the Canadian industry to prosper as a whole. Where as a low time pilot from some other country will most likely go home after their visa expires, taking their new found experience and talents home with them.
The way the system works, if there is a need in excess of what Canada, and Canadians can fulfill, then by all means, come on over and take advantage of some great flying and learning.
But, if the need for excess pilots is no longer there, then it is reasonable to assume that we take care of own first, and only when the need arises to hire foreigners again arises, will we hire foreigners.
The industry here in Canada is in for some very tough years, and saying to a low time pilot that it is fine to come over and spend a ton of money when the chance of being hired is almost zero, I think is irresponsible.
Right now, as I look out my door, I see 8 helicopters on the ground with no work, and another 3 that are on contract.
I look out my window and I have two 10,000 hour pilots clearing snow in the customers parking lot that is empty, and has been all week. We stopped paying for a company to come clear the snow for us.
The front desk has a 12,000 hour pilot sitting behind it, because the last receptionist is on reduced hours, the other two were let go.
We have all taken a 10% wage cut, 20% for me and the Chief Eng. until things improve.
We were a medium sized company with 13 heli,s, now reduced to 8.
We used to have 8 pickups on lease over the winter, up to 12 in the summer, only 2 today.
We used to bring on a 100 hr pilot most winters to mentor and bring up through the ranks, not this year, nor for the forseeable future.
We used to hire foreign pilots, but right now we have Canadians who have 5000 hours out of work, and you think that we should consider hiring some foreigner before one of these guys, WHY, because you think it,s your fricken right.
I say, save your money until the economy has improved, and has been improving for a few years, and when we need extra guys, we,ll be happy to have you back.

What goes around.
 

Good thoughts Longdog and very honest.

We just had a low hour Canadian post on an Australian web site looking to come down and go mustering or whatever he can get, why do ppl imagine that the industry must be thriving in Australia/NZ just because it's on a downturn in the North?

The grass is not always greener on the side of the fence (or the Atlantic) guys. Sometimes you have to ride out the economic down turn in your own country and support your own industries.

It's tough all over.

Finding a job in Canada?
 

Hello all,

An update, ive now moved to Canada i have a 2 year work permit CanadianCPL and Aussie, Full Mountain course and about 300hr most in turbines.

Ive been on the road for a month now looking for work through BC and Alberta.

Still nothing.

If anyone has any hints or useful comments please drop me a line as ive been looking for work for 3 years as a pilot or even ground crew but im striking out.

Thanks John

50hrs EC120B
100hrs AS350B/B2
60hrs B206
90hrs B47
5hrs R44

Sling
Fixed 206 Floats
Bucketing
Airial Ignition
BGT
Mountain Course
Night

Thanks ttt

it is pretty early in the season for operator's to be hiring, so don't get discouraged. also, i think that operators are being pretty tentative with personnel commitments at the moment due to economic jitters. fortunately, last year was a good fire year in western canada which kept many operators afloat so there are still lots of options. have you tried bailey helicopters in fort st john?

Ill try them now thanks, i did get alot of people saying mayby but none willing to say yes

I have heard that Icefield Helicopters in Alberta hires lower time pilots for doing scenic tours and a bit of long lining. Check out there website www.icefieldheli.com. The only concrete near the operation are the highways, so its not for everyone (city slickers). Although there is a lot of granite and beautiful glaciers and scenery in the area.

Times are very tough. CHL, the largest Canadian operator, has laid off pilots, AMEs and support staff. The VFR market will be VERY tough this year. IF you have B212 and /or S61 time and want to work in Afghanistan, we are creating a wish list but many of the pilots on that list are experienced, mountain guys with lots of hours.

If it was me, I would not spend a lot of money travelling Canada looking for a low time VFR job this season.

wde

Any update on the job searching this season folks? Are things as bad as last year, or have they starting to pick up a bit again?
Any companies taking on low timers?

Job prospects in Canada/USA for UK CPL (H)
 

Hi Guys, I'm currently working in the UK as a CPL (H), on a SE Turbine, with over 2500TT and was wondering what i would have to do, to be considered for work in either USA or Canada or indeed anywhere else in the world with a slightly better climate than the UK!

HJ

Sorry to burst the bubble...Not going to happen in the US.

There are hundreds if not thousands of unemployed helicopter pilots with more hours than you. ON top of that, I am guessing you are not legal to work here.

First step would probably be get the necessary visas and permissions to work in either territory. Given that both Canada and the USA have plenty of pilots looking for work already, if you don't even have the right to work, why would they even consider you over them?

Job prospects in Canada/USA for UK CPL (H)
 

Thanx for the reply lads,,,it was the "getting legal to work" bit i was pondering?
However, given the situation you describe over ther,,,it looks like back to th edrawing board! :ugh:

Any Low timer jobs out there in Canada?
 

Hey guys, I've checked most of the companies from west to east, not many options for low timers out there right now. Does anyone know of someone who is hiring within Canada, 250TT R22/B206?

Sorry mate Canada is really slow at the moment. Hard enough with a few 1000 hrs!

If you have the right to work in Canada maybe try the like of Airborne and the like that operate 44s on the oil patch!

Good luck wish I was back there this year!

I heard there's a bit of a need for helicopter pilots in Canada. Also I see a lot of news regarding immigration to Canada getting "easier/ faster" for certain jobs/ people. Is it worth to apply for a Visa as a helicopter pilot? Is Sponsorship essential to having a chance? What are the chances with an EASA + FAA CPLH + FI-H? I have 2500 hours total (1500 piston/ 1000 turbine), current on AS 350, R44 and MD500, currently flying pipeline/ powerline utility, charters, instruction.

I'm 40 years old, not married, financially stable. Looking for a long term perspective, that pretty much has disappeared here in Germany over the last years. No career to speak of, too few jobs, no progression, pay and conditions are a joke compared to other countries. I know the grass is allways greener on the other side but over the last 7 years I've been in this industry in this country I've kept telling myself that things would improve with 1000 hours/ 2000 hours/ the right type rating etc. lot's of unpaid overtime/ weekends, all the stuff that apparently helps. Reality is that you never have the right Type Rating, are allways 20 hours short, applied 2 weeks too late, still need that MCC course, another training etc.

Any pointers are appreciated and of course I would be willing to agree to a bonding of some sort if that get's me into a decent company with a real long term perspective :ok:

The only advice I can offer is take a look at the cost of housing and the cost of living in general (mobile phone, TV+internet, dairy, car insurance, etc). Make sure you can afford to live there on the "poor" wages generally on offer.