Pilot hopeful with some questions.

[ShortCircuit99]

Hello all, I'm looking to go to school next September for heli pilot. That being said, i have concerns about employment once i finish school. I have heard lots about having to start with ground crew or working away from home. I'm perfectly fine with all of that and am used to working away from home. But my concern is I can't find these jobs! Iv seen some employment opportunities on this site but other then that I have been unable to find much other then pilot jobs requiring 1500+ hours and numerous extra certifications. How did you all find your first jobs? Is it more of a who you know type of thing? Is there multiple places to look for employment or is it more of a confined search area?

And will this economy pigeonhole me into continuing with my current career for the foreseeable future?

Hours are the most important for me. I can take a low wage if need be, I can work away from home. But i need the actual work.

Thanks for taking the time to read and answer.

[Fly The Wing]

Helicopters are harder to get into than fixed wing because there are no airlines to create hiring swings. Movement is based on increased work like during fire season, oil patch demand, and retirements. A guy once described the heli industry in the entire country to me as; 1000 guys flying full time, 1000 guys flying seasonally, and 1000 guys looking for a job. Not sure how real it is but its a tough road.

Personally I would only do my training somewhere that I'd have a chance of getting hired, so if the school is just a school and not a busy charter, don't bother. Remember instructing is not an entry level job in rotary you'd need good time first. In Alberta there is a company with a school and a bunch of machines. Somebody there once told me they like to hire people with specific oil patch trade experience. The useful load on a R22 is so small that if they can hire a guy to fly in fix the thing and fly himself out they gain 200lbs useful load over having to pay a pilot and a whatever the trade is? I'm not even sure what trade, Instrumentation (FIG), electrical, heavy duty mechanic maybe? Being dual ticketed would help.

Fire season is a big place people get their start. Having experience on the fire line or loading machines with equipment might be a good way in. But if it's a wet year forget it. You need tinder box, everybody and their dog is maxing out their hours, type of season. Worth mentioning might be the military. If you have a university degree or possibly a college diploma, and qualify for officer candidate school, after primary flight training, is helicopter selection. It depends from year to year on demand but typically if you want helos you get them. Everybody wants fighters or transports and half of them, get sent to fly sea kings, or 412's or whatever. Its a big commitment lifestyle wise but can be an amazing way into the industry.

[.Heisenberg.]

I'm a commercial helicopter pilot, luckily still employed. 2016 is probably one of the worst years in memory for this industry. I've heard of some companies flying as little as 50 hours all year. This is a particularly bad time to be a newly licensed pilot with only 100 hours. What Fly The Wing said about getting started in fires is not true. Alberta Forestry has minimums, and you won't have a chance getting on a fire until you're well over 500 hours pilot in command, and BC Forestry likes to see a mountain course.

If you talk with any school take everything they say with a grain of salt. They are in business to produce new pilots regardless of how terrible the industry is doing. It is probably the only aspect of this industry that is virtually recession proof. They are always able to find people willing to spend 50-60 thousand dollars on their license because a lot of people jump in without doing any research and talking to people that actually work in the industry.

That being said, there are people that get lucky and are in the right place at the right time and manage to find work. You need to be prepared to work for what could be 5 or more years on ground crew before being promoted to a pilot seat. There are fewer and fewer ways for 100 hour pilots to gain the necessary experience to move on and tourism is probably the best option. There are two companies in the Banff area that hire ground crew, one of them moves them up to pilot positions. The other option is the news helicopters. Look into LR Helicopters as they have the contracts for these machines in B.C., Alberta and Ontario as far as I know. They do have a school and believe they would no doubt give preference to hiring their students before considering anyone else.

I don't mean to scare you off, but you need to be aware of what you may potentially getting yourself into. It is an incredibly difficult industry to even get a ground crew position, let alone a pilot seat.

[North Shore]

What are the demographics like, Heisenberg? (Or are they uncertain?!)
When I head out to my local helo firebase, I see an awful lot of grey hair in the front of those 205s. Is there a demographic bulge similar to what is being seen in the airline industry?