Expert: David A. NewMyer - 3/7/2004

Question
Dear Sir,
I am 33y.o. with a background in mechanical engineering.  Since I was a boy, however, I've always wanted to be a helicopter pilot.  I've recently been considering a career change and my thoughts have come back to this.  I am apprehensive, though, as I would be devoting a lot of time and money toward this pursuit and I am unsure of the current trends in the job market in this industry.  How much time would it take me to obtain ratings needed to pursue a commercial helicopter position?  Approximately how much would it cost?  Am I too old?
Also, I wonder how competative I would be as a civilian trained helicopter pilot.  What is the job market like for pilots trained as a civilian vs. military?
Any information you could offer me would greatly appreciated.  Any links to further research education and financing would also be appreciated.  Thank you so much for your time.

Answer
Hi, Kirk:

Thank you for your questions.  I will try to assist!

1.  Are you too old?  In general, I would say that 35 is not too old to make a career change IF you realize that it will require some time, some money and some sacrifice (especially if you are a family man).  ANY career change is not easy and aviation has its particular quirks that will seem difficult at times.  So, be prepared, but, no, I do not think you are too old.  One other thing:  It MUST be something that you really WANT to do....the desire to make the change is one thing but, my belief is that, if you realy LIKE what you do every day, it makes going to work a whole lot easier.  So, make sure that helicopter flying (or flying in general) is something that you really like before you make the decision to switch careers.  One way to address that is to take your flying lessons on a part time basis and sort of "work into it" over a longer period of time.  That might help you make up your mind.

2.  The job market for helicopter pilots, in general, is not a large one.  For example, here are some statistics for you:

ACTIVE ROTORCRAFT ONLY PILOTS IN THE USA (CIVILIAN)= 7,770
(IN 2002)

TOTAL ACTIVE PILOTS IN THE USA IN 2002= 661,358

TOTAL ACTIVE ROTORCRAFT IN THE USA IN 2002=6800

TOTAL ACTIVE AIRCRAFT IN THE USA IN 2002, INCLUDING ROTORCRAFT=                             211,040

The key to the stats above is to realize that the SIZE of the rotorcraft industry in the USA, as compared to the FIXED WING aviation industry, is small.  And, the jobs are pretty much focused in law enforcement, off shore oil industry support, corporate flight departments and specialty flying.

3.  As for the civilian trained vs. military-trained market for pilots, the key there is that, even with the downsizing of the military ten years or so ago, there are still A LOT of military-trained rotorcraft pilots out there who did not have to pay for their training....and, they are very qualified rotorcraft pilots, having flown hundreds of hours a year in rotorcraft over careers spanning a minimum of six years to up over 20 years.  So, in terms of their helicopter flying experience, they normally have a civilian-trained helicopter pilot beat.  It is, therefore, VERY competitive with the military pilots entering the job market....again, not as many as ten years ago, but, still significant competition.

4.  Costs of training and the time it would take and LINKS to more information:  All I know is that helicopter flight training is expensive....but, I can link you to other sites, especially the website of the Helicopter Association International, or, HAI:  

www.rotor.com  

Check out THEIR links page, especially their links to their industry members since many of them provide rotorcraft training.

Best wishes to you and let me know via another question on Allexperts.com if you need anything else,

Sincerely,

David A. NewMyer, Ph.D., Professor and Chair
Aviation Management and Flight
Southern Illinois University Carbondale
http://www.aviation.siu.edu