Want to bush fly, need advice

[lawman]

I'm considering going for a Comm. license with a goal of bush flying. I've been up North, love it, want to go back. Here's my situation;

1. Have obtained a category 1 medical with daylight only restriction due to color blindness. Should I appeal this with TC?

2. My interests lye in fixed wing floats and rotary. I know the market is far from great now, but traditionally, is the demand for pilots greater in fixed wing over rotary wing? Would training costs for fixed wing without multi or ifr be similar to costs for rotary wing?

3. What is the average annual or monthly salary for a low hour pilot starting out and what salary could you expect to be earning down the road as a bush pilot with say 2000 - 3000 hours?

Any advice or resources you can offer would be appreciated.

[sky's the limit]

Hi there,

A couple quick answers from my perspective having flown many hours in FW in the bush before flying many more in helicopters.

You will find it tough right now no matter which direction you go, but as with anything if you really are set on it then give it a go - one piece of advice though, getting the license is the easy part, finding work takes much more effort.

The cost of a full CPL, Multi/IFR is about the same as getting a rotary CPL, give or take a few dollars and length of time you spend getting it. Both are very expensive.

Average annual salary is low on both FW and RW. By 2000-3000hrs though you will most likely be out earning the FW people in RW. Again, it is so dependent on what the industry is doing when you get there. Two years ago there were lots of 2000hr heli guys making north of 100K in busy outfits - this year I'd say it would be lower as the year started so poorly and in some places never picked up at all. The FW has the airline or corporate option which can pay well down the road, but it is usually WAY down the road if at all and if your aspirations are bush work then if may not be for you.

Anyway, there are plenty of people on here who can help you out with your questions and you'll probably get a variety of responses as many of us have dramatically different careers.

stl

[North Shore]

1. Have obtained a category 1 medical with daylight only restriction due to color blindness. Should I appeal this with TC?

Give Transport Canada Medical in your area a call, and ask them what you options are WRT colour blindness. I found the Drs there more than helpful when I had questions about my vision.

In any case, the standard colour-blind test is the series of Ishihara (sp?) plates - a series of red and green numbers traced out in dots . AFAIK, if you fail that, you are 'colour blind' but, for the purposes of aviation, there is another test, known as the 'Lantern' test, which can also assess your vision.

Call the Docs at Transport - they'll know..

[Driving Rain]

If you decide to go float flying hold off on the IFR until you're ready to jump to that world. Unfortunately not many companies fly twin Beechcraft anymore. The best place to get twin time would be Yellowknife with a company that has Twin Otters or with a company that still operates the Beech. My multi seaplane command time was for me the most important column in my log book, at the time I didn't realize it. Think long term, do you want to work for a company that has varied types and provides advancement?

You might find your niche and stay float flying, open a business and stay where you are, have a family and build your life around that. I know a few guys that have done that and are very happy and successful people. Most of them started without a pot to piss in but they hung in and are so much better off today.

Unfortunately the wages in the float side of things have not kept pace with inflation. STL can better tell you if the helicopter side has. I think the fling wing side does pay better but expect to sleep in the rough more as a helicopter pilot. I did very little drill camp duty in my years in the arctic and bush maybe 2 months in that 10 year period. The rest, I was at home, in my own bed or in a hotel with a phone and TV. For sure helicopter crews spend lots more time away from home than fixed wing pilots. It's something to consider for your family life.

I loved all the time I spent up north. I made friends that have lasted my life and wouldn't trade the route I took for all the world.

Good Luck
Blue sky and Calm Water
DR

[tcraft]

See a psychiatrist, spend the rest on hookers and booze!

[matt777]

Have you tried the Farnsworth D15 test?

[AEROBAT]

I failed the colour blindness test when I joined the forces but I got in anyway. Later when I got my first aviation medical I told the Doc I had failed previously but I passed the test and he said if there isn't good lighting in the office it makes a difference when taking the test. He said it is best to do it near a window.

I have never had a problem since that time I did it joining the forces and I doubt if colour blindness goes away so maybe you should see your family Doc and get a re-test.

[Meatservo]

Driving Rain and STL summed it up pretty well. If you're on a budget, I guess earning your CPL and float rating, then finding a job and saving up for the multi IFR might be a good way to go.

This has started arguments in the past, but if you're young you might want to consider a college or university program that includes flight training, I recommend it, although it won't make one bit of difference to your ability to fly five years down the road, a bit of edumacation never hurt anyone.

The pay in fixed-wing is absolute garbage, and getting worse. It hasn't kept up with inflation, in fact a twin otter Captain in the bush makes less in actual dollars than he would have in the 1980s, I can't even imagine how much less that is if inflation is taken into account. I stay sane by pretending my job is just a hobby, that way, I don't consider it a waste of time the way I would if I was looking in my bank account every day. One day I guess I'll have to go off and find a job on a big aeroplane with wheels, so I can try and survive until I start to make reasonable dough just before I retire. I hesitate to do this simply because I find it difficult to imagine giving up the life of a "bush" pilot, that is on the days I'm not thinking about money.

Of course, if this sounds like fun to you, you'll need a multi IFR, to fly that plane. Generally it takes a great deal of perseverance to get the kind of experience you'll need to get a job in the left seat of a twin otter, although since the pay stopped being all that attractive I've noticed less experienced guys are getting the job. Probably because the more experienced guys have better things to do than break their backs for the kind of pay that's currently on the table. There are exceptions of course. However, look at the Thunder Airlines job ad on this forum. See the pay they are giving out for a king air captain with five years' seniority? If I can figure out how to go back in time, I'm gonna go for that job. If you're lucky you might get that much in a good year once or twice before you "retire" if you decide to be a bush pilot. By "retire", of course, I mean "die penniless". Although I guess if I could travel in time, I'd get more ambitious than that anyway. Bet on horses and football, stuff like that.

Anyway, on the bright side, the scenery is nice, it's a bit more of an extreme sport than regular airline flying, you get to spend lots of time by yourself, which is nice, and the older aeroplanes are kind of neat. I've seen things I never imagined I would see and you get to develop some interesting relationships when a "crew pairing" results in traveling around the country with the same guy for three months, living in tents, begging for food, stealing fuel, scraping ice off the plane with the brim of your baseball hat, developing back injuries, consoling each other through satellite-phone breakups with wives and girlfriends, etc.

Good Luck!