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"Best" career path?


Cod

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Hi guys, I'm a low time pilot, currently working on CFI with an ultimate career goal (perhaps 10 years from now) of EMS. My question pertains to career path options; specifically, for you guys already off and running in the helicopter industry--how would you describe the "ideal" career path?

 

We are all familiar with the "standard" route that most new pilots use: 1. Training, 2. CFI, 3. Tours, 4. GOM? 5. EMS/Utility/Fire/Corporate, etc.

 

I am interested in knowing the perspective of the experienced pilots out there on what their ideal stepping stones would be if they could do it all over again and call their own shots with their own personal Genie. For example: "if I could do it over again I would press to get my tour job in Alaska instead of Grand Canyon...", or; "if I could do it all over again, I would spend two extra seasons as a tour pilot and build more time...",or; "If I could do it over again, I would just avoid working GOM..." (or, "I wish I never left GOM!") ; or, "if I could do it over again, I would depart CFI duty early, (at 500 hours) and jump to R44 tours before moving to xyz."

 

There are lots of ways to skin this cat to progress from raw student status to senior captain status, and I understand it's all subjective. But in your perfect world, what's the best (or most-fun) way? Any good shortcuts? Bad shortcuts that are actually dead-ends?

 

Cheers,

 

Cod

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There is no right way. What worked for one guy may or may not work for you. This business is unpredictable. Your flying career will take you down many many paths; Some good, some bad. They will do that in order to mold you and shape you into a better pilot. Its a silly thing to ask really. Everybody will have a different answer, and maybe thats what youre looking for.

Edited by RagMan
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If I always had the end goal of getting into EMS:

 

1. Training

2. CFI

3. Vegas tour job with whoever will hire you. (Sundance or Papillon) Fly your balls off for a year.

 

Step 4 depends on if you have 2000 hours total time and meet the hiring mins for EMS after your year of tours. (And feel comfortable doing that job with your experience). If so, apply for a job with whatever company has a base where you want to end up. Work at whatever base you can get and apply for transfers closer to where you want to be as you build seniority.

 

If not, work for Maverick and make some money while you build time and then apply for EMS when you meet the mins. Or maybe go to the gulf if you can stand it and want some different weather experience.

 

This is pretty much what I did and I think it worked out pretty well. Just figure out what your end goal is and work towards it.

Edited by Azhigher
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I know guys who went into Ag spraying instead of working as a CFI and there are some tour companies that offer other benefits besides turbine time (some can get you utility experience, some can get you charter, some can get you a lot of busy class B experience and others can get you twin time.) or if you know a guy you can go to the gulf instead of tours at 1000 and get offshore time.

 

Start with the end in mind. Where do you want to fly EMS? What companies operate in that area and what do those companies want for experience (both listed and unlisted requirements). Do you want to do EMS in a major city? Doing tours in New York will look better on your resume than tours in the Canyon, and vice versa if you want to fly EMS somewhere where the airport elevation is higher than sea level. Do you want to do EMS in a small town in the middle of nowhere Alaska? You can bet they would rather see that you already have Alaska flight experience and won't care about how many times you've had to transition between 3 major class B airports or flown through the Washington DC SFRA. Does the company you want to fly twins? Look for the easiest way to get into twins the fastest, which I would assume to be the gulf.

 

Start with the end in mind and work backwards.

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EMS is a job for an OLD pilot or, just possibly, someone with a young family. There is no reason to do this if you're not an old pilot, and many, many reasons NOT to do EMS,. Fourteen years in the biz...

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The first glaring thing that needs to be clarified is; in the helicopter business, there are no shortcuts. Secondly, for most, while the goal is clear, the path is not. The reason for this is; being hired, anywhere, is not a given. Therefore, to say “I’ll do tours” or the “GOM” may not be a reality. With that being said, you fly the job you get until the next job comes along. It MAY be tours or the GOM but you never know.

 

For EMS, build experience, not time…… That is, lots of unaided night, actual IFR, twin, poor weather, busy airspace with an healthy dose of “team building” activities…….

Edited by Spike
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Go to doctor school, buy my own helicopter, fly it to Hugh Hefner's house on the weekends

If it counts, I fly over Hugh Hefner's place weekly.....

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The first glaring thing that needs to be clarified is; in the helicopter business, there are no shortcuts. Secondly, for most, while the goal is clear, the path is not. The reason for this is; being hired, anywhere, is not a given. Therefore, to say Ill do tours or the GOM may not be a reality. With that being said, you fly the job you get until the next job comes along. It MAY be tours or the GOM but you never know.

 

For EMS, build experience, not time That is, lots of unaided night, actual IFR, twin, poor weather, busy airspace with an healthy dose of team building activities.

Is NVG time valued in EMS?

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Is NVG time valued in EMS?

 

Afirm…. However, for a civilian pilot, NVG time will be hard to get. Therefore, unaided night is the next best thing…. Plus, if you read the job ads, you’ll find lots of EMS operators will require a number of hours of unaided night…… And, EMS operators will hire pilots with no NVG time and train them within…. With that, NVG time is usually preferred but not a deal breaker if you don’t have any….

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Afirm. However, for a civilian pilot, NVG time will be hard to get. Therefore, unaided night is the next best thing. Plus, if you read the job ads, youll find lots of EMS operators will require a number of hours of unaided night And, EMS operators will hire pilots with no NVG time and train them within. With that, NVG time is usually preferred but not a deal breaker if you dont have any.

I've always wondered why they, the EMS industry operate night unaided so much, personally I find terain flight unaided terrifying. I also have a hard time understanding their lack or unwillingness to do IFR.

 

I have only a handful of night unaided hours but hundreds of NVG hours, is that frowned upon in EMS?

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I've always wondered why they, the EMS industry operate night unaided so much, personally I find terain flight unaided terrifying. I also have a hard time understanding their lack or unwillingness to do IFR.

 

I have only a handful of night unaided hours but hundreds of NVG hours, is that frowned upon in EMS?

 

IFR programs are expensive to operate. NVG’s are less expensive and require little to no previous experience to qualify for a PIC seat. Furthermore, I did a quick review of the job ads and found the aided/unaided requirements to hover around 100-200 hour mark, or a combo thereof….. Having a mixture of aided/unaided is best. With that, no, tons of NVG hours isn’t frowned upon unless all of your night flying is aided… Again, the most common night requirement I found was 100 hours of unaided night….. Meet that (or close to) and you’d be good to go…….

Edited by Spike
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  • 3 weeks later...

Joe- you seem to be mistaken on how EMS operates entirely. At my company, we are 100% goggles and must have them on at all times during night, whether flipped up or aided. Some pilots flip them up in cruise when there isn't much to see, then down for takeoff and landing. If landing in well lit areas like some hospital pads without obstacles, some pilots keep them up and land unaided. You have the choice. And remember, you can always use your searchlight, this isn't blackout ops in combat. No one is doing terrain flight in EMS, so you don't have to worry about terrain flight unaided. If you try to fly below 200 ft except for takeoff and landing, you will be fired post haste.

 

In regards to IFR, it usually just doesn't make sense. First there is the cost. To have a SPIFR program you need a twin with autopilot. The cost increase over a basic 407 is huge. Most of the flights that twin will be doing can be accomplished with that 407 for much cheaper. There is usually an IFR twin in the area that can do the hospital transfers when the VFR ships cannot. You aren't doing an instrument approach to a scene call, so IFR has limited use.

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