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-   -   Air Ambulance Job for Quality of Life (https://www.airlinepilotforums.com/part-135/117775-air-ambulance-job-quality-life.html)

birdstrike88 11-15-2018 01:33 AM

With most jobs in the 135 world a lot depends on who you work for. I’ve done the regionals, 135 freight and now air ambulance. I absolutely love it. QOL is fantastic. The company leaves us alone and our med crews are great. My advice is too find out as much as you can about the operator before you apply. There are some scumbag operators in this industry. Find something where you only work half the month and verify you are only on for 12 hours a shift. Bottom pay should be in the 70’s for that schedule. Be aware of the companies that offer more pay, but require you to work 2/3rds of the year. If I worked an 8/4, or some others work 2 weeks on 1 week off, I’d make over 110k a year. Look at the daily pay not the annual. Pay and benefits have increased significantly in the past years. Don’t be afraid to negotiate better pay. Where in the country do you live? Or what operation are you looking at? Hopefully someone here can give you some info on the company.

kaputt 11-15-2018 05:59 AM

Have you looked into Quest Diagnostics? It’s not Air Ambulance, but it is flying medical labs and supplies around. Flying is a little bit back side of the clock, but you come home every night and get weekends and holidays off.

There is a whole thread on here about them. Pay is pretty good for Captains I think.

Boris Badenov 11-15-2018 06:22 AM

Flying a clapped out Hawker all over the world is a totally different gig from flying a King Air an hour at a time. I flew for AMC like a few others in this thread and it really was a pretty easy and chill job. The only down side was the pay, and with a military pension that is less of a problem. Most of the rotor guys were retired military and they all seemed pretty happy. That said, I would not recommend jet Mede ac. Haven’t done it, but know a few who have. This is one of those counterintuitive situations where the little turboprop is better than the big jet.

59lracc 11-15-2018 01:20 PM

I am looking at the Pacific NW. there is only one major airline that has domiciles that I would consider and I plan to apply to keep my options open. I’m interested in a med company with a couple locations that I like and the job posting is for 7 on, 7 off. I plan to stop by the airport they operate out of next time I’m on vacation to try and get more information and maybe introduce myself to people who might have influence on hiring. I’m also not in a hurry to start working right away and will probably travel a few months before I commit to anything so I’m at least 2 years out from being available.

aerocats 01-06-2019 12:49 PM

Air Medical Jet Pilot
 
I wanted to weigh in on this discussion with some helpful information. I currently work for an air medical operator. We fly for a specific hospital in a citation encore with two pilots. The average annual hours flown are 125-150. Work schedule is 4/4. It's a very comfortable job and the benefits are average. Pay is slightly below corporate or fractional operators average coming in at around mid 50's for FO's and 70's for Cpts. with abundant opportunity to work open shifts with the ability to make another 6-12k/yr. Rotating day/night schedule. This is a great job for someone who's priority is work/life balance and home life. Never overnight trips living out of a suitcase or waiting on a shuttle bus. Most trips are within 1.5 hrs each leg. Nice equipment and good training. If you are retired from another career, you can't beat it. I retired a few years ago and went to work for Southwest Airlines for 9 months before deciding the lifestyle was not for me. I like being home with more interests than that life would afford and with over 12,000 hrs of flight time, I wasn't interested in building time or sitting in a seat for 5-7 hrs/day or flying 800-900 hrs/year. To each their own. There are not many two pilot jet air medical jobs out there that fly for a specific customer......perhaps that's why the pay is below average. Hope this helps.

New Guy 007 01-17-2019 01:16 PM


Originally Posted by partypilot1 (Post 2706780)
MedEvac was great, I recommend it. I flew for AMC and it’s possible to hit 6 figures if you want to pick up extra flying but if not, enjoy the 12 hr shifts kicked up in your crew room. As a lead pilot I had a few extra duties. Easiest flying around

Anyone have anything about EagleMed, based out of ICT? Their website states 7/7 schedule, new salary for certain bases. Appreciate any replies.

Macjet 01-19-2019 08:06 PM

In my experience asking about QOL for an air ambulance job is akin to asking how to retain your virginity while doing porn. The equipment is usually crap, the pressure to fly is intense, and the medics think they run the show. And all that for $60-75K a year. Sorry, but that's crap.

My fourth year with the airlines and I made a little over $200k last year averaging 10 days flying a month and I flew a little under 280 for the year. My advice is to skip the clown show and get paid. Money and time off do buy happiness.

Das Auto 01-20-2019 06:24 AM


Originally Posted by Macjet (Post 2746401)
The equipment is usually crap, the pressure to fly is intense, and the medics think they run the show.

For the most paty this is a true statement. The medics usually know their place but some of the nurses act like they're the ones in command, and you're just the dumb ambulance driver. Turbulence is always the pilots fault, weight and balance discipline is just being dramatic, and a missed approach is poor judgement.
Funny because I never once poked my head back there and gave my opinion on how much fentanyl the patient should be on.

AK15T 05-26-2019 11:20 AM

I've been with Guardian for about 6 months. So far, I have to say it's been nice. AMGH bought them a year or two ago, and they've done a lot to turn this company around. Most of the Kingair PICs up here in Alaska are making 90-100 a year, 20 on/10 off, or 2 on/2 off schedule. Kingair and PC-12 guys in the lower 48 are making more like 70-80.

There are difficult things about the job, but most of them are balanced by having a steady schedule. Middle of the night flights are common, most operations are single pilot, and being on call for up to 14 hours can wear you down. At the end of the day though, I definitely don't feel overworked(%90 of the time), and they're pretty reasonable about safety etc. Dispatch here isn't allowed to pilot shop, if you don't feel like coming home Part 91 16 hours into your day, they're pretty cool about it(so far).

Just like any other 135 job though, there's a lot of autonomy, and they expect you to be an adult. Calling fatigue 6 hours into your shift after one flight is a quick way to get on the **** list. My general experience is that if you're reasonable about doing every flight that you're capable of, they won't harass you for saying no if you don't feel comfortable doing something. The thing that causes the most grief are the pilots coming into this who assume they don't have to work. We're payed for being ready to go, and staying flexible, which means that getting woken up from your nap to go fly is a reality.


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