hey i know we have a bunch of pilots on this forum. But does anyone have their helicopter license? If so hit me up i have some questions.
No.... You don't want to fly one of those things, do you? 10,000 moving parts flying in loose formation around an oil leak? Scary stuff. :icon_mrgreen:
I'm not a rotorhead, but I might be able to answer your question. What do you want to know?
i need to know cost comparrison to fixed wing aircraft. Such as hours, tools, and books. Im getting tired of bartending and want to get back into flying. Unfortunately im tired of flying fixed wing and want to try rotory aircraft. Need to know how much money and time it will take. Its been awhile since ive flown and i know the price of av gas has risen along with the hourly rate...
Compared with a C-150 or C-172? Back when I was maintaining a fleet of about 50 training aircraft we had a couple of whirlygigs. I remember the R-22 rented out wet for about $180 an hour. The 172's used to rent for about $80 an hour wet.
I don't recall the FAR's precisely, but I think the rotorcraft add-on rating is about 30 hours of instruction. Don't quote me though, it's been about 10 years. Don't expect to do it in the minimum time required, especially if you're rusty. Helicopters fly bass-ackwards and require a sensitive touch. :icon_mrgreen:
Your best bet is to call up a rotorcraft flight school and ask them what their full course price is for an add-on rating. If they can't tell you they're not a flight school - call up somebody who doesn't have their head up their ass. In the midwest at least, there are a lot of outfits with their heads up their asses. It is worth the drive/ride to a good school.
Be careful if you want to get a job flying them. Flying helicopters commercially is a very competitive business. Most outfits hire ex army copter pilots because they're pre-trained and usually have the hours. You'd better have a logbook thicker than a new york city phone book if you want to fly them for a living. However, it is a fairly small community of pilots. Most everyone knows everyone else, especially in the fire/aerial lift community.
Good luck to you either way, it's another skill to add to the resume! :cheers:
Funny how things work, I got tired of flying and bought a motersickle! :laugh:
I would like to finish my instrurment,twin engine,complex, high performance,and commercial ratings.I currently only have a basic private pilot certificate.A bare bones 172 wet is 125 an hour in my area and that's on the cheap side.I'd like to learn to fly a heli just to say i've done some thing few others have done.
see i heard the the rotory industry was set to increase 30 %. not sure if its true or not. but im damn sure tired of watching the airline industry go in an out of bankrubtcy. Besides anywhere you try to get into a comercial industry for flying you need alot of hours.
Quote from: nastynate6695 on August 16, 2007, 10:56:26 AM
see i heard the the rotory industry was set to increase 30 %. not sure if its true or not. but im damn sure tired of watching the airline industry go in an out of bankrubtcy. Besides anywhere you try to get into a comercial industry for flying you need alot of hours.
When I was a line service man,I took care of a mans 182.He did aireal tours and some short commutes for business men that need to get some where quick and couldn't wait on the airlines.