A Helicopter Pilot's Life

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by: vertrefadmin
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For a single person, this is a great career. For the married ones, flying jobs can be a little harder on your relationship.

When most of us first started flying helicopters very few of us knew what we were getting into. Aside from the rare individual that had some experienced helicopter pilot telling him/her that they were making a decision that would affect the rest of their life, the rest of us dove into helicopter flight training without much thought about what the life of a helicopter pilot entails. We just wanted to fly! This section is a very general description of what can happen if you become a helicopter pilot.


Flying helicopters is a fun career. As a helicopter pilot you have the potential of seeing every nook and cranny of the entire planet (and some helicopter pilots do exactly that). Your career will broaden your experience and make you a better pilot. Jobs are few but because of the type of work, you will be in unique places that the 'normal' job doesn't go to. You may end up flying for the Fire Service in Alaska, you may fly off a tuna boat near Guam, you might work for the border patrol, or rescue climbers in South America. Where you get a job is as diverse as your imagination.

For a single person, this is a great career. For the married ones, flying jobs can be a little harder on your relationship. I knew a pilot in Alaska who spoke about a condition that affects helicopter pilots on utility contracts: AIDS - Aviation Induced Divorce Syndrome (He was on his 5th marriage). Most of the older pilots I know are divorced or have interesting marriages but all of them love to fly helicopters and they are all very good at their jobs. I'm not saying that being a helicopter pilot will doom your marriage but it can make it difficult at times. You make your choices in life and you live with those choices...

You can have helicopter pilot jobs that keep you closer to home and these jobs tend to be healthier for a relationship. EMS, Law Enforcement, and ENG (Electronic News Gathering) jobs seem to be the helicopter pilot jobs that keeps a pilot closer to home. I think that is why we all tend to gravitate towards these types of jobs as we near the end of our flying careers. Flight Instruction is another job that lets you sleep in your own bed every night. Some pilots, however, are addicted to the nomadic life of the contract helicopter pilot.
 

As a helicopter pilot you have the potential of seeing every nook and cranny of the entire planet

If you need the fun flying jobs and the thrill of going somewhere new every season, you should do this while you are single. I kept a log of all the places I slept at while flying photo and I was in over 54 different places in a 4 month period. I learned to travel light and keep my possessions down to a minimum. I thought flying photo was bad but after fighting fires, government contracts, and doing utility work, I realized that was
nothing! The helicopter job openings move around the world and we as helicopter pilots travel with them. There are only so many helicopter jobs and if you want to keep flying you need to go where the work is.



I've known helicopter pilots who have followed helicopter jobs all over the world for their entire lives and they are happy they did. I also know a helicopter pilot who hasn't left his home state and he is also happy because he has had his family around everyday and he's learned how to fly in one area very well. I guess it really doesn't matter what you decide as long as it makes you happy. Just realize that being a helicopter pilot has some unique strings attached to it. Most of the helicopter pilots I know are happy they are flying helicopters. It's a great job and it can be a great life. Just choose helicopter jobs that mix well with your current situation.

 

 

About the Author

Rey Madrid has been flying for 20 years and is currently an active helicopter pilot and a Director of Safety in Alaska.

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