Air Ambulance Job for Quality of Life
 

With the major airlines hiring so many qualified pilots, are conditions improving in second tier jobs like Air Ambulance Pilots? I will retiring with a military pension soon and so I can afford to put quality of life ahead of pay. I have the resume for a major, but I don’t see wanting to work the airlines long enough to see the big paycheck so spending 5-10 years at the bottom of a seniority list isn’t appealing.

The aspects of air Ambulance that appeal to me are:
1. Can live in a small town in a nice area without commuting.
2. Won’t spend much time away from home in hotels.
3. In some cases, can be on standby from home.
4. Fly a lot less than airlines, (I don’t need to build hours).

Can anyone with first hand knowledge confirm that my expectations are realistic?

Thank you!

You're not going to get rich doing it.

Some jobs employ enough pilots to do 12 or 14 our shifts, but many still do around the clock on call (a violation of the regulation, but far from extinct).

I've flown for four different aeromedical operations over the years, everything from remote dirt airstrips to international turbojet operations, piston, turboprop, turbojet, administrative flying, organ recovery, and emergency medical.

At a lot of operations, more stock is placed in the wishes of the medical personnel than that of the pilots. I didn't tolerate that; never let medical personnel influence safety of flight decisions. That becomes a real problem if the company is run or operated by medical personnel.

There are some ok operators out there, and a lot that aren't.

There are a number of operators who illegally discriminate over insurance. It's common for a hospital or clinic to call for a transport, and be asked for the patient's insurance information. When its insufficient or the patient is uninsured, the medical facility is told that the airplane just broke down, or is assigned to another flight. This isn't legal, but it happens a lot. I refused to work for operators that do that.

Air ambulance flying generally doesn't have a lot of pilots who stay with it long term.

My expectations are 70K to low six figures. If I only had to fly 20 hours per month it works out to about $300/hour and I would avoid hotel life. Is my logic flawed?

Your first bullet points are correct on. I flew out of a busy fixed wing base and only flew 22 to 30 hours per month.

There are a few bases where the med crew "runs" the flight department side and are "experts" on RVR, weather and anything aviation related. Not every base or flight nurses are like this, many are great, hard working people who focus on their job and let you do yours.


I only ran out of duty time about five to eight times per year and had to stay in a hotel. Your experience may vary greatly form company to company and base to base.

Good luck with your choice!

I would like to find a way into this business, any place hiring low time first officer?

Thanks for all the feedback!

Hopefully someone with more experience weighs in on this, but from my research, air Ambulance companies are looking for about 2000 total and 1000 PIC. This seems a bit high for what they offer in pay so maybe they will go down as the pilots shortage continues. Another consideration that I have heard of the industry is that it is not a very good stepping stone if the airlines are your ultimate goal because you don’t fly much.

If you like flying the backside of the clock, single pilot for low pay then it's for you. I did air ambulance for quite a few years and I'm young but getting called out at 1-3am to fly someone back and do it all again the next day can really burn a guy out quick. Yes, I did have my share of day flying and it was always good to help someone in need but I couldn't make air ambulance my last job.

Hugely dependent on what employer and what program. I flew for AMC on a hospital contract and it was a fantastic retirement job. I’d still be there if the pay were adequate for a primary career. Community programs are less good. Smaller operators are also generally less desirable.

How about trying airline flying ( top six ) if you can get on , first . You can always get an air ambulance position later if airline flying isn’t for you .

I am considering that option but after 20 years of living where the government tells me, I am reluctant to give up the geographic freedom that a pension can provide. I don’t want to commute and I can’t think of a major city that I want to live in.

In addition to the bullet points in my OP, one of my top choices of retirement locations has an air Ambulance service but it is a regional airport about a 3 hour drive to a major city.

My priorities are free time and living where I want first, pay second.

Your expectations are quite realistic and accurate for an air ambulance job. Depending on the operator, it is possible to get stuck out on overnights though. For a community operator, they usually fly 3 legs per patient. If you can pick up and drop off the patient within your duty time, returning to base might not happen. This was my turn off from my last job. Got tired of calling the wife saying I wouldn't be home that night.

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Thanks again for all the replies. I reached out to the company that services my first choice of retirement locations to get more information.
Maybe after I retire from the military and have a long vacation, I might be more motivated to chase an airline pilot paycheck. Right now the life of an Ambulance pilot sounds good to me.

Good luck with that.

Have a plan B.

Have a plan C, too.

I was an active Reservist and at a Legacy...furloughed after 9-11. Reserves were keeping us financially covered...then an air ambulance job opened up in my town.

My experience:

1. Most air ambulance companies are small. To keep costs down they are minimally staffed.

2. This means you are on a very short leash almost all of the time. FAR abuse or bending, I believe, is common. Two days off a week. Rest of the time...”resting,” but meant can’t have a beer, or do any real social planning. While it looked on paper that the pilots were getting scheduled rest...the reality was being on-call nearly 24/7/365.

3. Pay is mediocre, benefits not very good (you wouldn’t need them as a mil retiree).

4. Many of the operators make you pay for your training, or sign a contract.

5. I was astounded to find out how poor the training...and checkride histories....were of the other guys, compared to mil or airline. At least at the company I was with (four airplanes, about 16 pilots total), the pass rate on checkrides was 50%....and I mean recurrent, not just initial! (I passed!)

When I went for my first recurrent at a major (respected) sim company, I asked a systems question. I was shocked when the instructor and the highly experienced students in the class all had different opinions on how a system worked. I only had a hundred hours in the plane...but realized it was the blind leading the blind, and I probably knew the answer better than they did.

6. I’d say 80% of my flights started between 10:00pm and midnight. They’d finish at dawn. Exhaustion was a norm.

7. Maintenace at my company was pretty good...but at many places...tight budgets.

8. There can be “get there-itis” with a critical patient or organ transplant when wx or mx is iffy. I think this leads to a high accident rate in the air ambulance field.

9. I’ve helped load patients that weighed over 300 lbs. A miracle I didn’t ruin my back.

10. I’ve transported people with drug-resistant diseases, and wondered how safe I was being in the same tube for a couple of hours.

11. Landed in places with malaria...and we had no mosquito repellant.

12. FAA oversight varies from draconian to laissez-faire....even from the same Inspector.

12. The Lear 35 was a fun airplane but has a few quirks.

13. Overall: I have a few stories where I felt like what we did was altruistic and really helped someone out. But in light of the above, and the rampant abuse of medical insurance/Medicare by hospitals, doctors, and even the air ambulance companies...

I wish I had never done it, and just put in more time at my Reserve unit.

For you: I’d say corporate, at a decent-sized flight department, at a Fortune 500 company.

Just my 2-cents (a nickel with inflation). :p

I bet a cake doughnut that you never saw six figures doing it, either.

Your experience sounds typical for ambulance operators, though perhaps trending toward the upper end. There's considerably worse out there.

Helicopter operators can be far worse, and have a worse safety record.

can anyone speak to trends in the industry? Most of the negative experiences posted on forums I have read don’t seem very recent. I remember about 8 years ago when I first had the option of getting out of the military, my friends in the airlines were talking about how terrible the conditions were. With improvements being negotiated by pilot unions, it seem like the Air Ambulance industry would need to follow in order to compete.

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

Yeah, it's all old experience. Nobody here would know what the real world is like today. You're absolutely right. It's all peaches and cream. Fly 3 hours a month, work six days, make six figures twice over, and there are girls in bikini's with palm fronds fanning pilots as they lounge eating grapes. It's really quite good.

Ambulance pilot unions?

I appreciate specific feedback from pilots with experience in this area, but if you don’t have anything to contribute besides snarky comments then why bother? Just trying to make everyone else as sour as you?

I contributed from the perspective of a guy who's flown for four different air ambulance operations, and was the director of maintenance for one of them.

What the **** more do you want?

You're the one *****ing that it's not enough. Grow up.

I believe Air Methods has a union.

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AMC does have a union and you can look up the pay so I’m not sure what the other guy was taking about. In the cba, you can be credited up to 6 yrs so I recommend using this to your advantage in the interview.

He’s right you are snarky and have the trigger finger of a twenty year kid. Who gives a rat’s behind what experience you have when you post replies like that. You lose all credibility, most of which you’d deserve, if you could hold your snarls inside your head.

QUOTE=JohnBurke;2706830]I contributed from the perspective of a guy who's flown for four different air ambulance operations, and was the director of maintenance for one of them.

What the **** more do you want?

You're the one *****ing that it's not enough. Grow up.[/QUOTE]

Again, I appreciate the feedback and hope this thread can stay civil. If you feel my comments are out of line and feel the need let me know, please PM me.

I realize that asking for opinions on the internet will get a variety of responses. I am taking all specific feedback I received into account. My reference to dated information was regarding some of the many other other forums that I have read that are 5+ years old, not to invalidate the experience of anyone who replied here.

Thanks again!

I respect your experience and apologize for being confrontational. No hard feelings.

You weren’t

Air Med Services, LLC
 

Air Med Services, LLC is based in Lafayette, LA
We currently have 4 King Air 200's
2 Lear 45's
There is also a Citation XLS and Bravo but these are contract aircraft and have steady crews assigned so its unlikely to get into either of these.
We work an 8 on 4 off schedule
All pilots are based in Lafayette, I do not see any changes to this anytime soon.
Captains start at $90,000 per year and some make more with overtime and/or vacation sell back.
Average yearly flight time is around 400 hours. Jet guys probably fly more.
Blue Cross and Blue Shield, you can add dental and vision, long term care is provided, short term can be purchased. $50,000 life insurance policy, you can purchase additional if you want.
The big draw aside from the extremly smart, strong and handsome D.O. (me), is the Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP), It takes a year at least to get into the 401K or Roth 401K, there are two sign up periods per year, once you are in a 401K you are automatically in the ESOP which contributes a garanteed 4% but has been higher(about 12%) each of the 12 years I have been here.
We are an ambulance company. The Parent company is Acadian Ambulance, however; we fly more charter and administrative, only 10-15 % is ambulance work.
The schedule varies and there can be late night trips, there will be periods away from home but nothing beyond the 8 day schedule is requires (you may be coerced but we always say days off are golden you don't have to work them).
There is flexibility in the schedule and pilots trading with other pilots is common.
The average Captain flys about 4 of the 8 days on, when not scheduled for a flight you are not required to be at the airport in most cases.
King air work is usually day trips but can be longer.
We do have an Education Loan Agreement to protect the pilots and company from less scrupulous pilots who are happy to move in get training and then move to what they believe is the next best thing.
You pretty much need to live near Lafayette to make the schedule work.
I've been here 12 years and wont leave until I retire and they get tired of me.
Jet pilot pay may not be up to par yet but we plan to address that this spring.
Acadian Ambulance, now called Acadian Companies is a diverse operation, we have a security monitoring company that has branched out to total security systems for homes and businesses as well as design and installation of outdoor entertainment systems.
We operate the National EMS training academy(NEMSA), Safety Management Systems which trains for many safety sensitive positions and provides onsite safety monitoring as well on sight EMS.
The ground ambulance operation, helicopter operations and of course our fixed wing operations. This diversification allows us to be stable even when flight operations drop off. In over twenty years no pilot has ever been laid off.
In short flying for us is not a perfect fit for everyone. I would not consider it a retirement job because at times we work hard. At other times you wonder if we forgot you work here.
Feel free to contact any of our pilots I'll PM you the contact info.
My opinion is it's the best flying job in the world.

Air Med Services, LLC, Co-Pilot,Some PIC info
 

I didn't address co-pilots earlier.
We do hire low time co-pilots. All you need is Commercial, Instrument, Multi-engine. Captains act as mentors to help you with your career.
Pay is $45,000 for a SIC and we have no shortage of applicants.
The schedule is rough, allowing only the FAA required 13 days off per quarter (unscheduled part 135). The idea is we want you to gain flight time and advance. This basically means every other weekend off.
All pilots regardless of experience start out in the King Airs and moving to jets is based on availability of a position, pilot ability and seniority in the company. Experienced Captains often start out as King Air Captains.
For a Captain we like to see:
3,000 total time
2,000 multi
1,000 turbine
ATP
We often hire with far lower times and no ATP.

I hope you find what you’re looking for. After I left the military, I went to fly for an air ambulance company in Georgia. I then moved on to a regional to gain 121 experience and then to a legacy. From personal experience, I can say that flying for the air ambulance operation was the worst of all three. I won’t spell everything out since most posts already covered it, but there is one thing that hasn’t been said: when flying for an airline, there are thousands of other pilots who can do my job. When flying for a Part 135/91 operation, there was almost no one available to cover me when I needed time off. Maybe the operation you’re looking at is far better than the one I worked for? But I know one thing, I’ll never go back to Part 135/91 flying again after my experiences there. Good luck to you.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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

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.

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.

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.