Do You Want To Be An EMS Helicopter Pilot? Here Is How You Do It....

In my travels, I frequently meet young people who are interested in becoming EMS helicopter pilots. While many of us flying HEMS today received our training and built our experience in the military, in the future that will not be the path for many.


Hello, how are you doing? been a while since we chatted. A friend of mine recently had a friend of his contact me wanting information about becoming a Rotary Wing aviator via the civilian route. He is former Navy and plans on using the GI bill for flight training. You are in a much better position to advise him as to the job market etc. Would you mind if I gave him your email and let him contact you?

In the Army, flying a helicopter is a third-tier duty. First you are a soldier, then an officer, and when these responsibilities are complete, then -maybe -you fly. Indeed, flying is but a small part of a military pilot's responsibilities, and not everyone is interested in the additional duties. Whereas the military used to be a good way to a great retirement and lifetime healthcare, those days are over - military members are faced with cutbacks at every turn.


I had the pleasure recently of meeting a fine example of the future of helicopter aviation, HEMS in particular. Zack Taylor is a line-pilot flying AStar helicopters all over Georgia and Florida, he is also the owner of a helicopter-business in Clearwater, Florida, and between his two obligations he is a busy young man. The business Zack owns does tours, and for-hire utility work, but his main focus is on flight training. And he does it well.






Zack Taylor




Here is a biographical excerpt from his company website...
Zack Taylor has been a Certified Flight Instructor (CFI, CFII) in helicopters since 2008. Zack is also a Designated Pilot Examiner with the Tampa FSDO and provides in-house check rides for our helicopter students. When Zack is not at the flight school, he is usually flying Eurocopters for AirLife in Florida and Georgia. Prior to flying EMS Zack flew Bell Helicopters in the Gulf of Mexico to the oil platforms and also has experience flying tours as well as years of flight instruction experience in the Tampa Bay area. His turbine helicopter and “real world” experience along with his teaching background make him a well-rounded instructor.


Click here to visit Zack Taylor's company, Tampa Bay Aviation...




The fact that Zack is a designated pilot examiner is no small detail. This means he can both train and certify pilots to earn a living flying. Of course he has a full staff of instructors, and 12 aircraft (both fixed and rotor) under his control - but it is his connections that are key.


SideBar: Zack has almost completed the requirements to operate as a CFR (Code of Federal Regulations) Part 141 school. This would allow GI Bill recipients to use their benefit for flight training. Stay tuned... From our time together on the HEMS line, I have picked up that Zack is going to do well for himself - but more importantly it occurred to me recently that he is in a favored position to help lots of other people who want to fly helicopters do well for themselves too.










Michelle O'Keefe, Director of Operations




Say you want to become an EMS helicopter pilot without spending six or a dozen years in the military. You now have a clear path with connections from start to finish. At Tampa Bay Aviation you can progress from your first-ever helicopter flight to a commercial-flight-instructor qualification with 200 hours of experience. As an instructor you teach the next wannabe, (aviation is a pyramid scheme) and add time to your logbook on his or her dime. You won't make much money instructing, and will probably sleep in a crash-pad and eat Ramen Noodles, (like many airline pilots flying the line today) but you will quickly progress towards an experience level that will allow you to earn a real paycheck.






Instructor Mr. Roland Collins




A good and logical next step for an aspiring HEMS pilot would be to fly tours for one of the two tour companies owned by the largest air-medical helicopter company in the world. Air Methods Corporation recently bought Sundance Helicopters in Las Vegas and Blue Hawaiian Helicopters in Hawaii, in part to create a pipeline for EMS pilots who can finish building their flight experience by flying tours. Tour pilots fly long hours each day, and build time more quickly than perhaps any other sector of the helicopter business.






Instructor Ken Djoenne




The one piece missing from Air Method's recent vertical-integration move is the initial leap from earthling to aviator. But Zack Taylor can do this - and he works for Air Methods...In discussion Zack told me about how he bought the company he and his wife own today. He was an employee, and then the prior owner offered a deal Zack couldn't refuse. He jumped in and hit the ground running, and has grown his business since beginning. In fact he is so busy that he is trying to work out a way to serve two masters at once - here's hoping he succeeds.



Tampa Bay Aviation by the numbers...



Two hundred hours and an instructor qualification will run you around $65,000 - or around $60,000 if you pay up front for the entire qualification. This sounds like a lot - but if you dig into what it costs to operate a helicopter it will make more sense. The cost is a barrier to entry into the profession, and is one reason why a new EMS pilot earns about 4 times what a new airline pilot does... Student loan programs are available.


Zack owns his own simulator. This helps control his costs and yours. The sim is $140.00 per hour, the aircraft is 290.00 per hour. These prices include the instructor. The simulator allows a student to experience things not possible (due to risk) in an aircraft. It is good stuff.There are many different ways to become a HEMS pilot, Zack Taylor and Tampa Bay Aviation have helped to create clear path to success...
safe flights, and I hope to see you on the line...

How Did You Get Your Job In HEMS?

I frequently meet people who want to join our ranks, and ask how. While I have my own ideas, every situation is different. Would you take a moment and tell your job-getting story in the comment section? You might help a friend, or make a new one...
Thanks!
Dan

FAA Rule Change For Hems Delayed For One Year...

The FAA has delayed for a year the implementation of much of its revision of rules governing helicopter operations to allow operators, and itself, time to adopt the many changes. The final rule was published Feb. 21 and was to take effect on Tuesday but it was apparently too soon for all involved. "Since the publication of the rule, it has become evident that this effective date does not allow certificate holders sufficient time to complete all the necessary steps to implement the new rule," the postponement rule says. However, a little further down, the FAA admits it isn't ready either. 

"In addition, the FAA has determined that the April 22, 2014 effective date does not provide sufficient time for the FAA or the regulated community to implement the other operational rules which are currently scheduled to take effect on that date," the new rule says.  Some of the rules were already delayed and they won't be delayed any further. The FAA says it will have the time to get ready for them so the operators will be expected to, also. Most of those cover the most expensive compliance measures, including the installation of avionics, emergency equipment and the creation of operations control centers, all of which will have to be in place between over the next four years.

A Different View on Flying Stroke and STEMI Patients

click here for a report on flying stroke and STEMI patients

There are lies, damn lies, and statistics. Perhaps it is time for some pushback from FARE, the Foundation for Aeromedical Research. One thing ignored by this type of report is the use of helicopter transport prophylactically, or "just in case."  This is the rationale given for a significant percentage of healthcare services, like CTs and diagnostic tests.  If you argued that the available helicopter "probably" isn't needed and that the patient will "probably" be okay without it, I would say - if it was my loved one - lets fly. The report also ignores the fact that the vast majority of ground ambulances are not staffed with a critical care nurse - and occasionally they are vital.

The answer to safety in aviation is not ceasing flight operations, any more than medical malpractice means we should do away with doctors...

safe flights (are the norm)

Catching a hidden error, before it counts.

Sitting in a recliner at 3:00 am recently, listening to radio traffic from several helicopters on transports, I heard one fellow call-off from his base, obtain coordinates for a scene, and then, after arriving at his destination, call to say no one was there.

He asked the communications specialist to check on the coordinates for accuracy and was told to stand-by. After a few seconds of silence, he came back on the radio and said, "disregard, we have the correct numbers now and are proceeding to the scene - we are about 3 minutes out." He had incorrectly entered the numbers that his crew copied and read to him.

I have done the same thing. You get in a hurry entering data, and you punch the wrong button or roll the wrong number. This type of mistake led to the Russians shooting down a KAL jet. Fatigue contributes to these types of errors.

To read about the KAL shoot-down, click here.

Because we fly HEMS, we frequently check our info and dart out the door.

Occasionally we head to the wrong place. Once a pilot arrived at  Ridgeland (SC), when he was supposed to be going to Richland. Ridgeland is a town near Beaufort,  and Richland is a hospital in Columbia. I was given the heading and distance to Estill recently, when I was supposed to be going to Edisto - the similar sounding name confused my comspec - and me. The paramedic caught the mistake by looking out the window.

Spoken communication is an imperfect process.

Not long ago I was pushing toward the end of a 16 hour day, and although I said I felt fine subjectively, the truth is I was fatigued.

Objectively, my performance was degraded. Fatigue has both subjective and objective components. How we feel versus how we  perform.

I wanted to get it over with as soon as possible. (Get-home-itis) As I loaded my destination into my GPS I entered a couple of characters, the box finished filling the field, I saw the name of my destination-town in the display and pressed direct-to.

Unfortunately, I had selected the wrong airport in that town (there are two). When I got there, I spent a few seconds with a lack of situational-awareness as I tried to make the pieces fit together amidst confusion, discomfort, and fatigue...

I made my error at the beginning of my flight, and it didn't show up till near the end. Just like that KAL jet. I had all the time in the world to discover it.

If one person is doing it, other people are doing it too.So what can we do about this early-mistake problem?

How about, after darting out to the aircraft, and once established in cruise flight, we do a "DART" check.

Destination - lets all agree that where we think we are going is where we are supposed to be going. Check the heading and distance in the GPS against what was originally transmitted and also against what we are all familiar with - medics who work the ground before flying are a great resource regarding what is where. Restate the name of the destination, be it a city/town or a hospital in a city/town.

Altitude - is the altitude we are at appropriate for the patient, terrain, weather, and winds aloft? And what about that highest-obstacle we checked before leaving? When a helicopter lost it's engine due to ice ingestion while cruising at 500 feet above the ground, it had about 10 seconds until touchdown. The recent tour helicopter ditching in NYC occurred in a similarly short period of time. Altitude equals time to think, talk, recover rotor rpm, and make it to a suitable landing spot.
And what about the bird threat? According to research, 90% of all bird strikes happen below three thousand feet AGL. Birds like marshes, lakes, rivers, game preserves, and trash dumps. If we are going to cross one of these areas, are we doing everything we can to avoid birds?

Route - Once things settle down enroute, lets take another look at the map and make sure that the route of flight isn't going to penetrate any special-use airspace or airport traffic area we didn't think about. This is also a good time to talk about any nuke plants in the area. We may be questioned if we fly near one.

Time - Is the time required, now that we are in the wind, still going to work with the fuel on board? Do we still have enough drugs and O2?

Most of us already do some sort of level-off or cruise-check, Adding these other checks to the routine, using this mnemonic as part of your level-off or cruise check may prevent disappointment or disaster.

We hope you enjoy safe flights.

HelicopterEMS.com

A Long..... Slow..... Salute to Billy Wynne . The Lone Survivor...

Do you remember the crash of a helo related to ice ingestion. One guy lived. He needs help now, and is going to need help in the future. He is one of us, and any one of us could be him. I think he should get thousands of messages of support from us, people who fly HEMS. And some money wouldn't hurt either.

A huge hug to "The Chive" for putting together a rescue mission for Billy's finances. I am now a "Chiver."  You guys rock.

If you want to know what gets said after the motor quits...Read Billy's story by clicking here

Post Crash Review... LifeFlight 6 Down January 10, 2003...

The full NTSB report is available by clicking here....
Note: This was not an Air Methods event. The poster of the video on youtube made an error, probably because the Air Methods pilot tried to warn the accident pilot about the weather. At least you tried Nightstalker