Success Story

While working on cattle stations in Australia with his wife, Jeff Drake met helicopter pilots who herded cattle with Robinson R22s. "I thought it was pretty amazing," he says. He also worked as a tour guide, which involved taking helicopter flights over the Grand Canyon. That was enough to prompt Drake to begin helicopter flight lessons. Today, Drake provides aerial support for offshore oil and natural gas companies operating in the Gulf of Mexico.

Drake was in his 30s when he started flying. "Luckily, a person can get into a relatively well paying position flying turbine helicopters after just a few short years in smaller piston machines," he says. He built time flight instructing and flying aerial photography in Robinson R22s. "Safety is always a little bit of a concern when instructing and the pay is not so hot, but it was great fun all the way through," he says.

Boatpix.com hired Drake to take low-level photos of boats. "This was a really fun job," he said. "We shot Cigarette boat races and fishing tournaments as well as private shoots all over the United States." The downside, he says, "was lots of travel, living in hotels, and flying as much as eight hours a day." Drake was lucky that his photographer wife was able to join him on many assignments.

These days Drake works a two-weeks-on, two-weeks-off schedule. He flies about four hours a day on average in Bell 206, 407, and 412 helicopters as well as Sikorsky S-76s. The starting pay where he works is about $52,000 per year, but overtime and bonuses can take pilots earnings up from there. "There is a predicted shortage of helicopter pilots in the next decade," says Drake. To get into helicopter flying, Drake recommends talking to pilots. "If you build the time, act professionally and friendly, then there should be no problem getting a job in the offshore industry."

In his off time, Drake enjoys photography, hiking, and camping. He also loves snowboarding, but being a dad living along the Gulf Coast has put a damper on that activity.

Pete Bedell is a Boeing 737 first officer for a major airline and contributor to AOPA Flight Training and AOPA Pilot magazines.