Verified answer

You can start training at any age, but you must be 17 to get your private pilot certificate, and 18 to get your commercial pilot certificate.

There are many civilian helicopter flight schools out there. They will be expensive, and getting a loan can be difficult and costly as well. Do some planning and research before starting.

Don't neglect investigating the military as well.

http://usmilitary.about.com/od/armytrng/ss/rotaryp...

You can find general information about the helicopter industry and flying on these sites:

http://www.verticalreference.com/

http://www.justhelicopters.com/

http://www.helicopterflight.net/

There is also a lot of information available from the FAA:

http://www.faa.gov/pilots/

http://www.faa.gov/library/manuals/

http://www.faa.gov/pilots/become/

Once you have done some homework, the first thing you should do is take an introductory lesson from a flight school near you to make sure you like it, and to get familiar with the school and its instructors. Your first lesson will last about 30 minutes and you will actually get to be on the controls during that time. You can find helicopter flight schools on the following websites:

http://www.sacusa.com/1directory/states.asp?catego...

http://www.verticalreference.com/MoreStuff/Helicop...

Choosing a Flight School

There are many great schools out there, and there are a few poor ones. You should consider the following when choosing a school:

- Find a school that has enough instructor and aircraft availability for you to train as often as you like.

- They should allow you to pay as you go.

- Meet the instructor(s) you will be flying with. Make sure you feel comfortable with your instructor. This is very important.

- Make sure the school is concerned with safety. The pilots should be conscientious, not cocky, and they should do preflight checks, safety briefings, etc. Don't hesitate to ask questions about their maintenance.

- Many schools do hire their own graduates as instructors, but be wary of schools that make premature promises about employment. There are never any guarantees.

- Caveat emptor, when looking at any flight school. You will be making a huge investment in time, effort, and money. Give this decision the careful consideration and research it deserves.

You can find more good information about choosing a school on the following sites:

http://www.helicopterflight.net/flight_training.ht...

http://www.helicopterflight.net/flight_schools.htm

On Training Aircraft:

The two main civilian training aircraft are the Robinson 22 and the Schweizer 300. Investigate the differences between the two, as there are pros and cons to each. Some people prefer one or the other. Be sure to look a step ahead and consider the types of flight instructor positions available for someone with experience each one. Once you get to 1000 hours or so and start looking for a "real" pilot position, which one you flew becomes much less significant. Also, you can always consider getting some experience in both during your training.

I personally prefer the Schweizer, as I am confident that if something were to go wrong, I would have the best possible chance of survival in that aircraft. You can read more of my thoughts on these two here:

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=ArozJ...

Medical Certification

Prior to beginning your training in earnest, you should obtain at least a third class medical certificate (you might as well get a second class if you are training for a career as pilot). You can view the medical requirements here:

http://ecfr.gpoaccess.gov/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=ec...

You can find an Aviation Medical Examiner here:

http://www.faa.gov/pilots/amelocator/

Training Requirements (Civilian, US):

You will undergo flight and ground training, a flight physical, written tests, and practical tests. A private helicopter certificate takes 40 hours minimum flight time, and a commercial certificate takes 150 hours minimum. An instrument rating requires 40 hours. The most efficient way is to complete this rating while working on your commercial. The average student is often able to finish private, instrument, and commercial ratings within the 150 hours, assuming consistent training.

With a commercial certificate and 150 hours, few, if any, employers will hire you due to your lack of experience. Most people therefore get a flight instructor certificate as well. Instructing will usually be your first job until you have about 1000 hours of flight time. Then, you can move on to flying offshore or tours. Schools do often hire their own graduates and help with job placement, but there are never any guarantees. Flight schools are a great place to make industry connections, but do not assume that there will be a job waiting for you when you finish training.

Duration:

How long it will take depends on how frequently you fly, and what your ultimate goals are. I've seen some people complete all of their ratings (private, instrument, commercial, CFI, CFII) in as little as 8 months. I have also seen others take several years just to get their private.

How often you fly will depend on three things: your schedule, the flight school's schedule, and the availability of funds. Any one of those may cause you to get stuck, and to take longer. Do some research, and plan ahead carefully to minimize delays created by any of these.

Once you start instructing, you might be able to get 1000 hours in 12-18 months at an average school.

Costs:

Flight time is the bulk of the expense. If your average instruction rate is $275/hr., then 150 hours will cost $41,250. Your books, ground lessons, supplies, written tests, CFI/CFII (flight instructor) training, etc. will be in addition to that. Furthermore, many flight schools will require some minimum experience before they hire you as an instructor, between 200 and 300 hours. Some or all of the additional time may come out of your pocket as well. $275 x 200 = $55,000 + some of the expenses mentioned above.

Flying Airplanes:

Some people make the argument that you should fly airplanes first to save money. They assume this to be true rather than actually tallying the costs to see if it holds true. They are basing this on the assumption that you will finish your helicopter add-ons in the minimum time. Also, they often forget that a commercial helicopter license only requires 150, not 250 hours. In my opinion, if you really want to fly helicopters, then fly helicopters.

Jobs and Pay

When you first finish your training, you will typically work as a flight instructor to build experience. Flight instructors at a busy school will be lucky to earn $25K-30K. You might work as an instructor for a year or two before gaining enough experience to move to a higher level job.

Your next job might be flying offshore in the Gulf of Mexico, or doing tours in the Grand Canyon, Alaska, or Hawaii. These jobs might average around $40K-50K.

An air ambulance pilot with some experience might average $60K-70K.

Corporate pilots are typically the highest earners and might reach $100K-120K.

There are obviously exceptions to the averages, but this might give you an idea. Many pilots also have a schedule that allows them to get a second part time job to supplement their income.

You can view some pay scales from a number of companies here:

http://www.helicoptersalaries.com/

Other jobs include news, fire fighting, forestry/logging, police (usually only for existing officers though), or charters.

Aviation is an awesome and rewarding career, but you can get burned if just dive in head first. Talk to pilots, research schools, get information from several different sources, figure the costs, and go into it fully prepared and knowledgeable about every possible path towards your goals. Don't start until you can prove to yourself that the path you have selected is the right one.

Good luck!

You can start training at 17 in order to get your license when you're 18.