Helicopter pilot, Is it worth it?

[clark3942]

The question I know many rotor and fixed wing pilots have asked themselves. I'm a 23 year old, recently graduated from college with a degree I "like" but am not passionately invested in. I have been off and on heli training for the past 5 years and don't know if I should pursue flying as a career or if it's better off as a hobby.

Now I know what everyones going to say, "if you love it then go for it" "its better than the 9 to 5" I've read other similar threads and they all sooner or later boil down to the career pilots who love the industry and have been in it for decades, telling people how great it is. I'm sure it's fantastic for those who are single, don't plan on having kids and have a loyal spouse, or the lucky few that managed to find a job with steady hours in the location they want to live. But I value at least some day to day consistency, family, and possibly kids when the time comes and I don't want to miss every anniversary or graduation because I'm on a 7/7 or 14/14 schedule. I would be willing to move if I found the right job but I don't want to relocate every season or every few seasons like I see a lot of pilots doing. It's stupid to go into a career just for the money or the fame, you also need to enjoy what you're doing. But I also think it's stupid to go into a career without much life balance and winding up single at 40 or twice divorced with step kids.

Is it realistic for me to go into the industry with expectations of having a family life or should I cut my ties and stay private? I understand there are a lot of variables on all of these factors but I'm just looking for some honest answers on if my expectations are feasible.

Disclaimer I don't have anything against the industry or the people that work in it. I understand the versatility of helicopters is what leads to such random jobs schedules and I'm sure there are plenty of people who love their jobs and have great family lives, this isn't meant to bash the pilot dads out there. Just looking for some advice

Thanks for all the help
-Andrew

 

[Silvaire]

I chose long ago to keep it a hobby and live the family life but the other day there was a Jetranger parked on the ramp and I thought that if I had it to do over again I’d probably at least have gotten the rotor license. That thing just looked so darn cool!

 

[RyanB]

“Is it worth it?”

That’s a question only you can answer for yourself sir. It’s obviously worth it to the guys who possess the rating, but it may not be worth it to you.

 

[deyoung]

What Ryan said.

Beyond that... "if you love it then go for it" "its better than the 9 to 5"... well, that's the cliche, but I don't think it's as simple as that. A lot of people who are doing what they feel passionate about didn't get there by jumping at "follow your passion!" from the beginning. A lot of the time, you don't even know what your passion is, or will be in 10 or 20 years. Especially when you're 23. It develops, or you discover it, through experience as you learn and try a lot of things.

Also, there is a lot to be said for financial security, especially if you are looking at doing something that has serious expenses associated with it. (Like, say, helicopters.) Money may not be able to buy happiness, at least not by itself, but it can buy relief from many sources of stress in your life, and that is nothing to dismiss lightly.

 

[LDJones]

No.

 

[IK04]

Go for it.

Think of it this way: You will rarely fly an aircraft worth less than a Million Dollars if you go for corporate jobs...

 

[Cooter]

You need to define a career path before you can determine whether or not it fits with your family goals. It’s ok to make a sacrifice up front and pursue family later and not all flying jobs work against family life. Find out if there is a workable path that fits your plan first. But without military experience, I’d say you have a long road ahead.

 

[TCABM]

...I have been off and on heli training for the past 5 years and don't know if I should pursue flying as a career or if it's better off as a hobby...

Got to have a fat wallet to get to pro heli mins. And a fatter one to do it as a hobby.

If you want to have a pro flying career and a family, it can be done.

While there may be some sacrifices along the way, your attitude is what will determine your success since hard decisions will have to be made along the way.

And that’s independent of whether you go down the aviation career path or not.

ETA: after reading your OP again, don’t waste your time and money trying to go pro.

 

[German guy]

Considering how more and more traditional helicopter work is being done with drones, it is probably not an industry I would get into.
Note, that I am saying this as somebody who's only interest in flying professionally is in flying helicopters.

 

[Velocity173]

Well it looks like you’re hung up on a perceived type of schedule that keeps you away from family. I hate to say it but most flying jobs whether RW or FW will include time away from family. Having said that, my schedule (HEMS) 7/7 allows me to be home every day / night. If I want off for any family event, I can easily get off for it. Someone will always take overtime. My 7 off are untouchable.

What @Cooter said is crucial. Really it comes down to priorities and picking the right segment of RW flight. Your path will most likely entail putting up with a lot of BS for several years. That means low pay as a CFI, then a little better pay flying tours, news or LE. Later on move up to better pay flying utility, fire, GoM or EMS. If you develop some overseas contacts, you’ll be at whole different level making well over the $200K range. Those are mostly heavily recruited by former military though.

Nothing wrong with pursuing something you love either. That love of aviation generally erodes over time but it still beats a 9-5 desk job. Personally, I don’t dread my “Monday” and am not chomping at the bit to clock out on my “Friday.” Basically it’s low stress, no company politics / pressure, very little paperwork / planning, sometimes challenging flying and hanging out with friends...then I go home. Really couldn’t imagine doing anything else.

 

[hindsight2020]

1) Army Guard WO slot straight off the street.
2) Build time and get paid. May involve a rotation or two to the suck.
3) Transition to rotor EMS in a desirable city. 7/7 is not technically family unfriendly when you're in your home city. (FW EMS by comparison is much more remote/less prevalent in desirable places. At least based on my research).
4) Profit.

That's how I would do it if I had a penchant for that weird contraption flying thing

 

[RudyP]

It's stupid to go into a career just for the money or the fame, you also need to enjoy what you're doing. But I also think it's stupid to go into a career without much life balance and winding up single at 40 or twice divorced with step kids.

I'll be the first to admit I don't know all there is to know about a professional aviation career but I'm pretty sure "the money or the fame" are not good reasons to go into it!

It seems to me to be a perfectly fine career choice for those who can live on limited income (especially for the first decade or two) and make the personal sacrifices you describe because they just love flying and there isn't much else that they can really envision themselves doing.

 

[hindsight2020]

I'll be the first to admit I don't know all there is to know about a professional aviation career but I'm pretty sure "the money or the fame" are not good reasons to go into it!

It seems to me to be a perfectly fine career choice for those who can live on limited income (especially for the first decade or two)

Isn't that just a euphemism for "hobby" though?

 

[Velocity173]

A good insight into the law enforcement side of the house. You can bet that’s a pretty easy schedule as flying gigs go.

 

[clark3942]

Thank you everyone for your replies and honesty.

The sense I'm getting here and with other similar threads I've read is that a reasonable family life is doable but takes time and patience to find the right job, and even then isn't really a guarantee. In other words, if aviation is your passion and you can't live without it then you'll find a way to make it work. Otherwise you might be better off elsewhere and fly fixed wing private cause god knows I can't afford private rotor time with any consistency. While I very much enjoy flying, I can't bring myself to call flying my passion. No-one else in my family has any aviation experience so I kind of stumbled on it as a very enjoyable possibly career choice but have since learned that going the career route isn't exactly straight forward like other professions. (Correct me if I'm wrong).

With that being said I think many of you would agree that if I'm already doubting the lifestyle before I get started then this probably isn't going to work for me 15 years down the line.

 

[Velocity173]

Great. There goes my $500 referral bonus opportunity...I tried.

 

[hindsight2020]

A good insight into the law enforcement side of the house. You can bet that’s a pretty easy schedule as flying gigs go.

Yeah, that's my buddy Mover, who interviewed her recently. Some context though. She's part-time LE. And she got the Army to send her to CRNA school so she gave up the flying side of Army for it.

She doesn't spend too much time divulging that tid bit, but CRNA money is major airline money. That's largely unheard of for a median rotor wing pilot, and also is the only way a nurse would get to rival medical doctors on the salary front. So it was an easy out, since the Army paid for it. That's a lotto ticket, if you understand how hard it is for civilian nurses to get themselves into a CRNA program. I'd be a part time helicopter pilot too if I was making CRNA money, and I haven't logged a single hour in the blasted things.

In other words, that rotor gig doesn't pay the bills, the CRNA gig does. And she gave up Blackhawks for it, which isn't exactly a compliment to the profession from my pov.

Do civilian PDs keep these folks on the payroll full-time? I have no idea, but it almost sounds like volunteer firefighter styled business. Incidentally, Mover is a volunteer deputy as a major airline pilot. It's not LE putting food on the table for these folks. I do know of folks who do an LE career, get the pension, then go play airline pilot though, especially on some federal agencies, since the non-LE/non-ATC federal pension is garbage these days.

 

[Velocity173]

Yeah, that's my buddy Mover, who interviewed her recently. Some context though. She's part-time LE. And she got the Army to send her to CRNA school so she gave up the flying side of Army for it.

She doesn't spend too much time divulging that tid bit, but CRNA money is major airline money. That's largely unheard of for a median rotor wing pilot, and also is the only way a nurse would get to rival medical doctors on the salary front. So it was an easy out, since the Army paid for it. That's a lotto ticket, if you understand how hard it is for civilian nurses to get themselves into a CRNA program. I'd be a part time helicopter pilot too if I was making CRNA money, and I haven't logged a single hour in the blasted things.

In other words, that rotor gig doesn't pay the bills, the CRNA gig does. And she gave up Blackhawks for it, which isn't exactly a compliment to the profession from my pov.

Do civilian PDs keep these folks on the payroll full-time? I have no idea, but it almost sounds like volunteer firefighter styled business. Incidentally, Mover is a volunteer deputy as a major airline pilot. It's not LE putting food on the table for these folks. I do know of folks who do an LE career, get the pension, then go play airline pilot though, especially on some federal agencies, since the non-LE/non-ATC federal pension is garbage these days.

Yeah they’ve got full time police / state trooper flight slots. We’ve got a few that left for EMS. Only thing I wouldn’t like about the LE stuff is that most require you to be a police officer “walking the beat” prior to going full time flying. Friend of mine was actually working at a prison before he finally decided to just ship and fly for CBP instead.

 

[hindsight2020]

Yeah LE Aviation sounds like one of those things where you want to wanna be LE first, and make flying incidental. I hear that's why morale at CBP AMOC is in the dumps right now. Pedestrian LE leadership that doesn't get pilots. Plus everybody that can, is getting much better gigs in the airline side, especially since the movement out of the undesirable SW locations are pretty much zilch these days.

 

[Velocity173]

Yeah LE Aviation sounds like one of those things where you want to wanna be LE first, and make flying incidental. I hear that's why morale at CBP AMOC is in the dumps right now. Pedestrian LE leadership that doesn't get pilots. Plus everybody that can, is getting much better gigs in the airline side, especially since the movement out of the undesirable SW locations are pretty much zilch these days.

To me CBP would be a little too much like the military. A lot of tactical training outside of aviation. Too much BS red tape associated with govt regs. I wanted to get away from all that when I retired. I hear they’re hurting for pilots though and age waivers are easy to get these days.

 

[Lindberg]

I know single 40 year olds who have crushing and not crushing jobs, and none are in aviation. A good friend just married at 45 for the first time, and she's never had a job that interfered. Being in a rush to get married and start having kids is not the path to happiness; it will happen when it happens. So decide what you want to do with your life and start doing it. The pieces will fall into place.

 

[TCABM]

...Some context though. She's part-time LE. And she got the Army to send her to CRNA school so she gave up the flying side of Army for it.

...That's a lotto ticket, if you understand how hard it is for civilian nurses to get themselves into a CRNA program.

And therein lies the rub. Every time I hear work life balance, I ask what someone means by that, and usually the response is really ‘I’d like to be paid at the top of the scale while contributing at the bottom of the scale’. That’s just not how success works; usually it’s work hard and eventually play harder.

Lets take the UH60 to CRNA example. The army program is a selective application and requires an BSN with stats or bio/organic chemistry pre-req followed by a 36 month grad school and then a 3:1 active duty payback, which isn’t that bad considering the Army paid for the schooling and the candidate is in an active duty status during the program.

By the way, neither of those programs are the cake walk that today’s college graduate experiences, as you well know.

At the end of the payback period, a nurse anesthetist can command major airline money in the private sector, but they’ll still be at the whims surgical scheduling and on-call work. And I’m sure if you ask them about work/life balance during those early years, they’d tell you it didn’t exist.

But, I digress...

 

[hindsight2020]

And therein lies the rub. Every time I hear work life balance, I ask what someone means by that, and usually the response is really ‘I’d like to be paid at the top of the scale while contributing at the bottom of the scale’. That’s just not how success works; usually it’s work hard and eventually play harder.

Lets take the UH60 to CRNA example. The army program is a selective application and requires an BSN with stats or bio/organic chemistry pre-req followed by a 36 month grad school and then a 3:1 active duty payback, which isn’t that bad considering the Army paid for the schooling and the candidate is in an active duty status during the program.

By the way, neither of those programs are the cake walk that today’s college graduate experiences, as you well know.

At the end of the payback period, a nurse anesthetist can command major airline money in the private sector, but they’ll still be at the whims surgical scheduling and on-call work. And I’m sure if you ask them about work/life balance during those early years, they’d tell you it didn’t exist.

But, I digress...

Indeed, I'm not chucking daggers at the lady or insinuating she didn't compete, but just like airline pilots, a lot of the domestic logistics of the crnas I've encountered, are fixed to prioritize the job in a way that amortizes down the opportunity costs you highlight to very low values. Childless women, empty nesters abound, economically subordinate stay at home husbands et al.

For those of young age, say for example the guy who sold me the arrow who was married to a crna, he specifically quit the regional airline pursuit in order to be Mr mom and allow momma to make the big bucks. Granted this was in the lost decade so the choice was a layup on the decision making matrix. That dude looked lost though, I almost asked him do you really want to sell this thing? But that's my perception, I didn't know the backstory beyond what he let on.

He dabbled in side real estate and flew pin money piston cfi work here and there. I would be miserable in such a setup, I'm honest enough to admit that. and I did in fact marry someone compatible with the domestic life we could agree with. That's of course a to each their own thing, and l make no judgement of people's valuation, just saying its not for everybody.

My comments were meant to contrast the income and schedules of the helo world for the OP. I found that video being used to illustrate the " life" of an LE helo pilot ironic, based on the choices the interviewee made herself. She wouldn't be the example I would use if I was trying to convince someone to be a career helo pilot. Any job you tell someone would make a great side gig (what essentially that lady said by admitting she begrudgingly left the big chopper for the crna money) is not a compliment to the job as a career. Aviation reeks of that dynamic, at least many of its sectors do. That was my only point.

But it sounds like the OP is leaning to keep flying recreational.