Anyone a Commercial Oilfield Helicopter Pilot in Alberta? I'm looking for more info.

[woodsman27]

I have been working around McMurray and have started chatting with some of the helicopter pilots. It seems like most of them will only work the summer time and take the winter off, which seems like it would suit my lifestyle better. What does it take to get hired on at a reituble company after flight school? I would imagine the market is highly competitive, but again I have no idea – it seems like most of the pilots we fly with have 5+ years of experience. Also, what is the typical salary of oilfield pilots (no experience/experienced)?

 

[Luke The Drifter]

I looked into being a chopper pilot for the oilfield shortly after I got out of high school. Now I could be wrong on some of these things but I basically found out that you have no real schedule, pay isn't that great and flight school is friggin expensive. But then again that was several years ago and maybe things have changed. I know id love to do it if the opportunity came along and I knew I could make a good living doing it!

 

[Carrots]

Big money for heli training

 

[Trashy]

50,000 for chopper school..... Had a friend do it 5 years ago and that is what it cost him.

 

[Summiteer]

A lot of the guys doing that for a living seem to do it because they love flying, not necessarily for the big money. Big investment up front and it can be several years before you are actually working as a pilot. Seem to be a lot of ground crew at the Whitecourt airport with pilots licenses.

 

[Snowdin]

What everyone said. That was my dream about 20 years ago. I operated remote gas plants and wells for couple years. Was going to start heli lessons and decided it wasn't worth it. They only wanted to increase my hourly wage by 5 bucks after getting the license. Said no thanks and moved on. You better really love being a heli pilot if your going go down this road.

 

[teeroy]

the only ones that make good money in helicopters are the ones that own them, or the guys that fix them....providing they have the work. got to spend lots of time talking to pilots when I was hauling seedlings, as mentioned, most were in it because they loved to fly. seemed like most of them came from money, and didn't really care

 

[gates559]

Perhaps they made their money years ago smuggling drugs and now they just casually work the summers for fun, spending their winters in the south.

 

[teeroy]

Perhaps they made their money years ago smuggling drugs and now they just casually work the summers for fun, spending their winters in the south.

one older American guy I chatted with was a chopper pilot in 'nam. I'm not sure where he got his cash but he had huge gold rings on every finger and was a super cool dude. aviator shades, full head of white hair and a white beard....said he could never do anything else but fly choppers. every time he would come in for a load of seedlings he would do a big circle with that chopper almost completely sideways, looked like he was going to crash it until the last second when he'd level it out and land. it was awesome...

 

[sumx54]

They do it for the lifestyle not the money. They live on kraft dinner for the first 5 years while pushing barrels of fuel up the ramp. Working like dogs.
I worked for one of the biggest aviation companies out there for years as a remote oilfield specialist. I have many pilot friends. Broke as a joke but loving the lifestyle.

 

[woodsman27]

Thanks for the info. I was pretty sure that was the case - not great pay and tough to get into. That being said has anyone got their private helicopter licence? I know having a chopper is an expensive hobby, but I don't have much interest in planes. Although, some of the super cub's look like they would be a blast to fly.

 

[FatGuy]

Anyone a Commercial Oilfield Helicopter Pilot in Alberta? I'm looking for mo...

I work at a airstrip north of ft Mac in the bush as a operations specialist. I talk with lots of chopper pilots daily. Almost all of them do it as a passion as stated earlier. Most take on other type of Avaition type jobs in off season to survive. Lots of pilots that come here are from ont and que. they work 4 week on 1 week off. Pay is more if you are long lining and if you can do precision work pay is more.
But nothing cooler then ripping around in a chopper.
Plus you get to haul Argos around. Lol

 

[Snowdin]

Thanks for the info. I was pretty sure that was the case - not great pay and tough to get into. That being said has anyone got their private helicopter licence? I know having a chopper is an expensive hobby, but I don't have much interest in planes. Although, some of the super cub's look like they would be a blast to fly.

Expensive hobby! Your looking at a couple hundred G's for a used R-22. Then they have to be maintained on a schedule. C of A (Certificate of airworthiness) is not cheap. You better have a good paying job if you want to fly choppers as a hobby.

 

[pipes]

the reason helecopters are so expensive to operate is because they don't actually fly, they beat the air into submission. That puts a lot of stress on the air frame.

 

[Mike270412]

I know two guys that got their license and both went back to rig moving cause they couldn't live on minimum wage for fuelling choppers and sweeping floors.

 

[fidorama]

on my way to work one morning a few years ago now I was going up hwy14 (Anthony Henday section) when they had s big weird looking chopper lift the top 100' off a radio tower then slowly lower and drop it on the ground nearby... that was cool to see! Craziest looking copter I have ever seen. must be designed for heavy lifts.. likely sea cans.... very long rotor blades on that baby.. wish I would have stopped to take pics

 

[sumx54]

on my way to work one morning a few years ago now I was going up hwy14 (Anthony Henday section) when they had s big weird looking chopper lift the top 100' off a radio tower then slowly lower and drop it on the ground nearby... that was cool to see! Craziest looking copter I have ever seen. must be designed for heavy lifts.. likely sea cans.... very long rotor blades on that baby.. wish I would have stopped to take pics

..........

 

[maxwell]

Yup it was installing both sections of the more remote towers for the heartland transmission project. 8500$ an hour but man did that thing work fast! Fully erected tower in half hour. Amazing.


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[Pistonbroke]

..........

Sikorsky Skycrane- serious badazzz lifting power

 

[neilsleder]

Anyone see the first season of licence to drill, where they filmed the Nabors rig that was a fly in rig? They used a helicopter called the moose, that was a bad as heli! I built lots of stuff for that rig and watch them fly in some stuff for it. My welding truck made it onto tv but not me lol.


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