North Sea Helo Advice
 

Hi Everyone.
Looking for some advice from any North Sea Helo guys or gals. My son has expressed any interest in flying helicopters commercially!. As a fixed wing pilot I can advise him on the current disastrous state of affairs in our industry, however I have lost touch with things in the rotary world. Would anyone care to comment on terms and conditions, lifestyle and prospects for a new pilot in the North Sea.
Thanks :ok:

I don't fly rotary but I am around them and have used there services many a time. From what i've seen and heard the pay, T's & C's and rosters are far better than the fixed wing side of the aviation industry at the moment and you are still treated like a human being. This is only what I have experienced out of Aberdeen and cannot vouch for other area's of the world. However, getting into the business is not so straight forward with many highly experienced ex military chopper pilots competing for the same jobs.

I am sure someone with more facts will belong shortly or alternatively the rotoray section of this forum may yield some more results. Hope this helps!

I'd concur with the previous poster that you may be better asking this in the Rotorheads section, there are lots of Offshore pilots in there. I can give you a very, very rough idea in the meantime, as I am just waiting to start with a major North Sea operator and have a few friends already working there.

Most contracts at Aberdeen seem to be 'equal time' rosters, ie working roughly 180ish days pa and starting salaries seem to vary between 47-52ish for an ab-initio. Obviously there is a seniority system like the airlines, but I was told at my interview that you can easily upgrade from FO-SFO-Capt in around 5 years, dependent of course on movement in the company or not. Captains salaries for the major operators go from 80ish upto circa 110k, plus the usual allowances for TRE etc and SFO salaries around 62-64k starting going upto 70ishk.

I'm ex-mil myself and I believe there are lots of us at the likes of Bond, which offer quicker routes to captaincy for experienced pilots, however a friend at CHC was the only ex-mil pilot in around 3 or 4 intakes of new pilots, most being ab-initios or commercial pilots.

The shifts are all different between the companies and commuting may not be an option, that said there are shifts in places like the Shetlands where you would be working 14/14 and people commute to all manner of places. Typical shifts at other operators up there include 7/7 and 12/9 etc. Working day, I am told, varies by operator but lots of earlyish starts but early finishes, eg 6-7 am lift finished around lunch. Hence, lots of time at home with no nights away, good job security, good salaries, excellent T&Cs etc

Whilst I have yet to start up there, I would agree that the T&Cs look superior to a new start in the airlines. If your son can handle living in Aberdeen (a surprisingly cosmopolitan town and beautiful countryside) then I think it appears a far better start in commercial aviation than many other locations....