Tenacious T Posted January 1, 2012 Report Share Posted January 1, 2012 A lot of operators have a requirement of 500 hrs AS350 which I assume is driven by insurance. My question is, does EC130 time count towards this requirement since it is technically a AS350B4? Any input is appreciated. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rick1128 Posted January 1, 2012 Report Share Posted January 1, 2012 A lot of operators have a requirement of 500 hrs AS350 which I assume is driven by insurance. My question is, does EC130 time count towards this requirement since it is technically a AS350B4? Any input is appreciated. It has been my experience that when an operator quotes a specific amount of time in type, it is from what is called the 'open pilot' clause of the insurance policy. The higher the pilot requirements, usually the lower the insurance premium is. The operator then has the option of putting a pilot on the policy 'by name'. This means the pilot is named on the policy as an insured pilot. It is not unknown for operators to have no 'open pilot' clause and name all their pilots or for them to have extremely high pilot requirements and put their pilots on 'by name'. I know of one operator that required pilots covered in the 'open pilot' clause to have a minimum of 10,000 in type. All his pilots were named of the policy. One other thing it allows the operator to do is to be quite selective of who he hires. "Sorry, you don't meet the insurance requirements" covers a lot sins. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heligirl03 Posted January 1, 2012 Report Share Posted January 1, 2012 To my knowledge, EC130B4 will not equal AS350. Even with an operator who flies both it's 2 courses and 2 checkrides. I've gotten a good chunk of time in each over the last year and I can tell ya, they are two wholly different beasts. Sure they have some underlying components in common but that's about where the likeness ends. Assuming we are not looking at an AS350B3... In the EC you'll find dual hydraulics (!!), FADEC (!!), VEMD, that darn fenestron (higher workload, bumpier ride in moderate wind), and quite different flight characteristics overall (sloppier). While each has their place, IMO the Astar is a workhorse in the right hands and there's a reason for the hour requirements. It didn't earn the nickname "Squirrel" for nothin'! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDHelicopterPilot Posted January 2, 2012 Report Share Posted January 2, 2012 To me they are all the same. Then again I have several thousand hours in the AS350D,BA,B2 and EC130B4. The time in type is as you pointed out mostly for insurance. Also, some companies use it to weed out applicants. They probably would not count the EC130 time towards AS350 requirements. However, it is a plus that you have Eurocopter time as there are many similarities along the AS350/EC130 line. It is not a deal beaker and sure is worth still applying for such a job. If the company wants they can name you on the policy as the other poster said. If you didn't have any Eurocopter time and still wanted to apply to a job with AS350 time requirement I would pass on applying for it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heligirl03 Posted January 2, 2012 Report Share Posted January 2, 2012 JD I think your post says it all with "several thousand hours". If you've got the bulk time, it's almost always worth at least a phone call and resume. In the end, a helicopter is a helicopter is a helicopter. But if you're trying to break in to utility with a couple of hundred turbine hours in an EC130, well, let's hope you have some other relevant qualifications or a good friend! T, I guess more background info would help, but generally speaking it looks like we agree that EC130 and AS350 time are not directly equivalent on the technicality of their certification. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tenacious T Posted January 2, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 2, 2012 I was curious if it was equivalent in the insurer's mind. I guess the important point though is, if the company wants you, they will get you covered. Thanks for the input, as always this forum is a great resource. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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