Articles for category Becoming A Pilot
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Nov
09
2015
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Posted by Admin
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RP: How did you get your start in helicopters?
After returning from Desert Storm, I started taking flight lessons in an R22 and chose a career in law enforcement. I continued serving in the Kansas Army National Guard as a crew chief on Hueys and Blackhawks. In law enforcement, I was a state trooper in the Kansas Highway Patrol, and was eventually selected for a pilot-in-command position in the patrol’s Special Operations Air Unit. That’s how I got my break flying missions every day in helicopters and airplanes. It was just after 9/11 and there were so many security and surveillance flight missions. It was a great time to be a pilot in law enforcement who wanted to fly and build flight time. Best job I ever had!
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Categories:
Career Development
Becoming A Pilot
Training
Company Profiles
Human Interest
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Feb
28
2014
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Posted by Admin
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VA Benefits & Helicopter Training
By Heidi McBride
Having the opportunity to use our VA benefits to pay for professional helicopter flight training is, for many of us Veterans, an incomprehensible dream come true. Using the Post-9/11 GI Bill can genuinely pay for 100% of your fight training, pay for your books and supplies, and provide a reasonable housing stipend. There are, however, many crucial factors to consider before you blindly pick a flight school and jump in feet first. More than one veteran has chosen too hastily and regretted their choice of school once they became aware of all the options available to them.
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Categories:
Career Development
Becoming A Pilot
Training
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Nov
29
2010
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Posted by Admin
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GOMER: Working in the Gulf of Mexico - Part 2
Article, Photos, & Video by Lyn Burks
In my experience, if you would like to see how serious a helicopter operator is about safety, then look no further than its new hire or recurrent pilot training programs. On one hand, there are programs which barely meet the FAA minimums, with their training program loosely packaged between the covers of Part 135 Operations Specifications. On the other, there are operators who go beyond the OpSpecs and fill the training “tool box” with innovative techniques and dedicated people.
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Categories:
Career Development
Becoming A Pilot
Safety
Helicopter Sectors
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Aug
17
2010
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Posted by Admin
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In aviation today, it is financially difficult to fund advancement in the helicopter industry. However, there are opportunities out there. These opportunities can be found through the Whirly-Girls Organization. The Whirly-Girls Organization is a non-profit organization of International Female Helicopter Pilots. The organization is a charitable organization that is dedicated to advancing women in helicopter aviation through the industry’s largest pool of annual scholarships, while providing women helicopter pilots a forum for the exchange of information and opportunities. Each year, the Whirly-Girls Organization attends the HAI conference and awards these scholarships.
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Categories:
Career Development
Becoming A Pilot
Training
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Dec
29
2009
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Posted by Admin
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In November of 2008, a helicopter flight training school in Broomfield, Colorado, received their part 141 Certification, a designation earned through the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).The process of writing a standardized curriculum, training the Certified Flight Instructors (CFIs), and upgrading classroom facilities was rigorous, but the owners and instructors at this school were convinced that the benefits they would receive through certification would far out-weigh the heavy workload necessary to get there.They anticipated that their students would qualify for career training loans at a variety of banks and lending institutions, that the State of Colorado would allow access to training grants and loans available, and that ultimately federal grants and loans would be available to students who qualify through the Higher Education Act (HEA) of 1956.
It didn’t take long for those beliefs to be shattered.
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Categories:
Becoming A Pilot
Training
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Dec
28
2009
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Posted by Admin
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Why you don't make any money! By Willie Dykes
Foreword: The article is a little raw. It is an attempt to describe a 37 year love/hate relationship with this industry. The open-endedness is deliberate. Though it's a little hard to see in the exchanges contained inonline forums, I have found helicopter pilots to be among the most intelligent, clear thinking, and broad minded people on the planet. They don't need to be told what to do. This problem of ours needs all the creativity and energy we can muster from the boys. If the discussion/debate is kept loud and noisy, the solution will emerge-usually from the least likely source. Your site is the best thing we have going for us. Power to the people.
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Categories:
Becoming A Pilot
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Dec
28
2009
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Posted by Admin
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The Life of an Army Helicopter Pilot by CW3 BERNIE SMITH, US ARMY
I offer this article as an Army UH-60 Blackhawk pilot since 1990, therefore my views are that of the Army and not any other Service. I will give information as accurate as I can. Pilots of other Army aircraft may disagree on some details, such as the Blackhawk being the finest helicopter ever produced. Thanks Igor.
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Categories:
Becoming A Pilot
Helicopter Sectors
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Dec
28
2009
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Posted by Admin
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The Life of a Test Pilot by SHAWN COYLE
Test Pilot Background
The first thing that has to be made clear is that Test Pilot refers to Research and Development, Certification or Engineering flight testing. The US Army has a course they call the Test Pilot course, but it should be more properly called the 'Post Maintenance Check Pilot (PMCF) course. The two are completely different.
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Categories:
Becoming A Pilot
Training
Helicopter Sectors
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Dec
14
2009
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Posted by Admin
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Is now a good time to become a Helicopter Pilot? by Lyn Burks
On the supply side there is a trend occurring that is beginning to create a shortage of qualified helicopter pilots. There are many factors that are influencing that trend. One of the factors is that over the last decade the rate at which new pilots are being trained has been steadily decreasing.
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Categories:
Becoming A Pilot
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Dec
08
2009
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Posted by Admin
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By Paul Huston - A story written by a female heli pilot when she received her CFI license.
I am a certified flight instructor! Believe me it feels fabulous!
The ground started at about 9:00am. There were lots of questions about endorsements, training techniques and some really tough aerodynamics. I had a moment of panic when my brain checked out for a few minutes and I misinterpreted an airspace requirement. I took a minute to collect my thoughts and then told the examiner that I had answered the question completely wrong. He agreed wholeheartedly, which didn't make me feel much better but the brain kicked on again and I had the correct answer. Then after about two and a half hours of oral questioning I presented a ground lesson to five other students. Two of the students were fixed wing students so they asked great questions ...
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Categories:
Becoming A Pilot
Training