Thanks for the reply but you may have misread my original post. I'm currently a geologist and as much as I'd love to retrain to become a plumber I think my trade is OK.


I hadn't thought of training in Canada but its somewhere my partner and I have toyed with moving there. BC helicopters quote $64k for a CPL. That is extremely cheap when comparing to the UK costs.

Can you recommend any schools to consider in Canada? I've done a quick google and it doesn't seem like a huge problem to convert to a UK one. What is the job market like out in Canada for low hour pilots?

I appreciate all your replies it's all food for thought.

You would have immigration to contend with, but that being said, the job market is likely to be slim. But, nothing ventured, etc. You could talk to Sheena Ell at 49N Helicopters in Campbell River.

Two things I've noticed in the almost twenty years I've been a pilot.

1. There has ALWAYS been a pilot shortage.

2. There has ALWAYS been overwhelming competition for entry and mid level.jobs.

Good luck

If you just want to be a pilot, that is easy. But that is all you will be is a pilot. Think outside the box and determine what you can bring to the table or what you can do differently.
As Robbiee says, there has always been a pilot shortage. There has also never been a shortage of pilots who do nothing but complain about how terrible this industry is.
Happy to report that after 30+ years that retirement is in sight. A supportive wife who has been there since day 1, a very healthy bank account, a multi-million dollar home paid for, a beautiful helicopter paid for, the cars, the toys....and most importantly, what a fantastic journey over the past decades. Would happily go back and do it all over again. Best of luck to you.

Hi mate,

I really appreciate the positivity and thanks for sharing.

I definitely have more to offer than just being a pilot. Who doesn't want a full geological history and story of the area you're looking at whilst flying around :)

Ha! I see what you did there...:)

Or you could just fly for fun whenever you want to. Just having a private pilot licences would possibly scratch the itch and whilst it might be nice to be paid to fly, the cost of a commercial licence will pay for quite a bit of flying on its own. Less stress too, especially in the early years when you would be at the bottom of the ladder.

Excellent. Stick with the rock business. Everything I said earlier still applies.

Mate just go for it. You've got a back up career sorted. Better to be looking back on your life in years to come with no regrets. I've been in the industry for 25 years and it's been a rollercoaster but I wouldn't change anything.

Good luck,

He did say "impending". Lots of open positions in the U.S. If you want to fly people around at the end of a rope so bad, there's a way to do it.

DO NOT COME TO CANADA.

It's undercrowded.
It offers a wide range of types of countryside.
In the West coast at least the weather is good, sometimes excellent.
Canadians have free (at point of sale) health care.
It's civilized and the only serious crime wave is stealing bikes.
Flying is a lot cheaper than Europe.
There's an awful lot of Geology here.
From Toronto West we speak your language, literally.

I REPEAT, DO NOT COME! We don't need it to become overcrowded.

I saw that on Hannah Barron's YouTube channel recently. I don't know how that is legal. But it was in a 412 and no freshly minted CPL is going to get their hands on one of them anytime soon.

You've clearly got what it takes to be a pilot 👍

All jokes aside, if you're prepared to move and spend a few years earning relatively little to get a foot in the door of the industry, then your goal is entirely achievable.

The most cost effective solution is without doubt training in the USA and instructing over there. I got a 2 year J1 visa and that allowed me to train and come home with 1400 hours before converting to EASA.

Yes, there are additional complications of exams and converting etc, but getting into that first job as a flight instructor will cost less than half what it would in the UK.

If you don´t mind me asking, does FTO matter in this regard (.i.e. are we talking Bristow and that -one- school they seem to recruit directly from)? And will a mere rating really be a shortcut to Offshore, I always thought hours on type will be required as well (and lots of them).

Chinook Helicopters Ltd, Abbotsford, BC

The hard part of doing a private PPL H will be that you will have to compete with former military people that are well educated and bring a lot of flight hours.

Enlighten me, does that mean that former military have start in the civilian world at PPL level?

No school hire all the people that go through their instructor courses, they’d have more instructors than students! They may hire some, but will likely advertise hiring lots to make you pay for the extra course with them.

SAR is a competitive route to go, good pay, good terms etc. You won’t get a job doing that with FI hours in a single piston and no multi-crew time. Best to go offshore and build twin turbine and multi-crew in heavy types and after a few years you may get to second to a SAR base.

If the “helping others” nature of SAR is what interested you, some HEMS operators may hire low-time IR qualified co-pilots but the pay is poor and it’ll be an extremely long road before you see captaincy, at 30 already you’d be close to being a career copilot.

Not trying to be overt negative, but trying to paint a realistic view of things you’ve said.

As for the classic pilot shortage? It’s been said for ages, there’s definitely no pilot shortage in fixed wing now thanks to Covid, but arguably lots of rotary guys ended up out of work too and are just now getting back into the busy VIP sector. I guess there is a pilot shortage, but only a shortage of highly qualified pilots with the skills required for particular roles.

There is no shortage of under-qualified, new CPL(H) holders. There is a shortage of companies willing to take those on and build their careers, especially if they can get a pilot off of the shelf.

Canada is not immigration friendly anymore...
I was over there a few years ago on a holiday break to convert my FAA license to Canadian, I did all of that I had over 2000 hours helicopters mostly turbine, some longline and some more mountain time, Bell 206, AS350, AS355, EC135. I was 30 at the time and I personally walked in to quite a few companies in the south of BC and their answer was very good CV but we are not sponsoring any visas, bye.

Also bear in mind that most jobs in the UK require an IR, that alone will cost about 50k.

Clearly you jest....