Whiteshadow Posted May 10, 2012 Report Share Posted May 10, 2012 http://now.msn.com/money/0509-helicopter-pilot-shortage.aspx I know we have all heard this from time to time. I have to wonder if it might be true this time. Of course, it may just be my tendency to being overly optimistic about my future, but I hope this means my timing is just right............ By the way, passed my private checkride yesterday! One of my proudest moments! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zippiesdrainage Posted May 10, 2012 Report Share Posted May 10, 2012 "Turns out kids today aren't interested in flying choppers despite the loud noise, threat of gasoline explosions and danger of having your face ruined by a spinning rotor." Since when do they let 6th graders write news articles? I bet the whole time the author was thinking to themselves "This is so awesome and funny and I should also try to find a way to reference the Ninja Turtles too while I'm at it!" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whiteshadow Posted May 10, 2012 Author Report Share Posted May 10, 2012 I know, I put it up on my fb too and let people know not to believe the whole "most dangerous job" bit. Written by someone who knows nothing about helicopters! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
superstallion6113 Posted May 10, 2012 Report Share Posted May 10, 2012 Seems like an indirect advertisement for Peninsula Helicopters to me. Clink the link in the article and it takes you to their page. It's a bunch or horse hockey. It's the same thing most of the schools in the country try to get you to believe. Reality is, for me anyhow, is I'm becoming a helicopter pilot for the love of flying helos, and a passion for rotary wing aviation that has lasted the last 11 years of my life. Not for a cushy well paying job that's easy to get into after 2 years of school. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flying Pig Posted May 10, 2012 Report Share Posted May 10, 2012 That article is pretty funny Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BH206L3 Posted May 12, 2012 Report Share Posted May 12, 2012 Pure BS nothing more, yea come companies are having some trouble filling some seats. Mostly very specialized stuff requiring more that just flight school. Its about as bad a market as I have ever seen, and I been around in the 1970's and it was bad then, its worst now. They were telling us about the pilot shortage then too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NorCalHeliKid Posted May 13, 2012 Report Share Posted May 13, 2012 Where are the numbers? I dont see any names of people who are in dire need of pilots? This article is a straight faced lie. Call around and ask if anyone has a short stack of resumes of worthy applicants. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
helonorth Posted May 13, 2012 Report Share Posted May 13, 2012 It does seem like most companies are hiring, though. Air Methods, on their website, lists 83 open positions. That is about four times as many as I have ever seen. This probably has to do with the Omni buyout, though. If you have any amount of long line time and a couple thousand hours, there are a lot of operators looking for you. Where I work, we have many positions open. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagle5 Posted May 13, 2012 Report Share Posted May 13, 2012 Pure BS nothing more, yea come companies are having some trouble filling some seats. Mostly very specialized stuff requiring more that just flight school. Its about as bad a market as I have ever seen, and I been around in the 1970's and it was bad then, its worst now. They were telling us about the pilot shortage then too. These days its all about the Viet Nam era pilots retiring, what was the reason for the shortage in the 1970s? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shaun Posted May 13, 2012 Report Share Posted May 13, 2012 This isn't a news article, this is a article aggrator filled by work from home companies to create content that can be attached to adds, such as e-how. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
helonorth Posted May 13, 2012 Report Share Posted May 13, 2012 These days its all about the Viet Nam era pilots retiring, what was the reason for the shortage in the 1970s?There was no shortage in the '70's. The army trained some 40,000 pilots. I work with a lot of Vietnam pilots that were driving trucks in the 1970's. Nothing for them to do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagle5 Posted May 13, 2012 Report Share Posted May 13, 2012 There was no shortage in the '70's. The army trained some 40,000 pilots. I work with a lot of Vietnam pilots that were driving trucks in the 1970's. Nothing for them to do. I know there was no shortage in the 70s. I was just wondering what the lie was that they were telling them (since he mentioned that they were saying that there was a shortage)? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDHelicopterPilot Posted May 13, 2012 Report Share Posted May 13, 2012 In my opinion the job market has improved slightly. The main issue is the backlog of low time pilots (CFIs). If you look in the EMS market there are quite a few openings. What is needed is to get some of the GOM pilots into these slots thereby opening up the GOM for the CFIs looking to move on. The problem here is, not everyone wants to do EMS. EMS is a low flight time job so one has to be sure to have 3000+ hrs and plenty of night time before moving into EMS. Also, many pilots who do want to go into EMS don't like the location or lack IFR time. Many companies require IMC time for those IFR bases. Be sure to get what little IFR you can in the GOM and you should be OK. If a pilot does want to get into EMS, then I recommend that they be sure to have the above flight time. Also, be willing to go to a base you may not really want. As long as you work hard, do well and stick it out you can transfer bases or change companies. This worked for me and I am now in a good position for my career. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kodoz Posted May 14, 2012 Report Share Posted May 14, 2012 I work at Peninsula Helicopters NW, but have nothing to do with this article or the page it links to. But it explains all the calls and emails last week. And the surprise when I explained to them all exactly how tough it is to get a job flying. And that we weren't giving away any scholarships. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pilot#476398 Posted May 15, 2012 Report Share Posted May 15, 2012 This article is a must read for every person out there who is in search of a career! It should be posted in high schools and colleges all across the country! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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