WCO

Appreciate those notes, will touch base with him and noted on the 250 with external visor removed.

In these parts a light & intermediate contractor with through a doorway longline makes between $90K and $140K a year with travel paid, all depending how much flying there is. 2019 was busy locally but anticipating a slow 2020 with current events.

Appreciate the heads up, to update I’m still running the SPH5 but pulled my visors off as they were in the way in the Astar on the line. So sunglassing it until I pony up on likely an LH050 with ANR. If I can find a fabric cover / bungee visor setup that works may interim that to lope along with my old helmet another few years. What I really want is to find a nice 100hr used LH050, as I’m Scottish and the prices of new helmets cause me to consume expensive quantities of whiskey.

Don’t get hung up on visors, pun intended. A single visor is often preferable to the duals, especially if it’s internal (Gallet LH050 style). This said the first dozen years I’ve run an SPH5 dual visor and it’s pretty well worn out and overdue for a refit. I’ll replace it soon I suspect with a LH050 as the dual visor is aggravating in the astar. Moral of my story is I’d keep it simple in the start as the first one will last you are least a decade. And shakey is right don’t blow the wad on the first lid, whatever you get is going to work for a long, long time. When you get to specialized work you’d like something smaller / lighter / etc for your affordable SPH5 of HGU will be ready to be replaced.

I’m a bit out of touch with the general industry and I try to keep it that way, as I’m still happy in this industry a dozen years in which seems uncommon. All I can predict is 2020 will be full of the unexpected.

OP, year on touching base how did the course go? And anything stand out or hit home?

First fellow I’ve heard from who’s tried both the Northwall and 050, that’s very helpful information. Would love to pick your brain a tad on the specific preferences about the Northwall, as those two lids are the only ones on my short list.

Found that with the weight specs too, MSA lists shell weights pre-padding and comms. A little like weighing your car without the interior, windows, and electrics. Makes for a neat number but not sure what it means in the end. Good to hear on the Northwall.

I've flown the last year without my ten year old SPH5, it probably could have gone another ten but had an inadvertent rain mishap in Prince Rupert, I've wanted something smaller and lighter for awhile anyhow so it's a blessing in disguise. Been wearing a Bose A20 ANR headset and frankly it's been fantastic. I have a long neck and torso, and get frequent neck strains long lining, so I'm after the lightest and smallest helmet on the market this time, ideally to fit with Bose comms. Cost really isn't an issue this time around as if I actually end up wearing it, it's more than paying for itself. I'll likely go single internal visor for clearance, and weight. On my radar right now, -Northwall LMT if it's still a thing. -MSA LH 50 (not sure if Bose can be applied) What else should I consider, and where to buy it from in Canada? Cheers and thanks.

I’m in the same boat with the helmet replacement looming, my SPH-5 is shot. Want something far smaller and lighter, hadn’t heard of the Northwall before will look into it. As for Bose comms, resounding yes. You still hear any abnormal noises only the constant drones are eliminated, and I did a good deal of Google fu research on ANR hurting hearing and couldn’t find anything to substantiate it. Looking at the single internal visor gallet or the northwall now.

I’m of the opposite thinking, if I was to pay for my own course there’s only one I’m doing, HNZ topflight / the old Canadian program. Quality in training varies, it’s not all the same information by any means. I’m too poor for cheap tools, too.

I’m alright with flight pay personally, the more the company earns the more you earn, that’s a fair and equitable relationship. Would just be nice to see more transparent billing in my eyes.

Ditto. Last and only time I saw it match was on a contract where the customer was a mid-time rotary pilot who changed careers and knew the industry. In work with more than one start per hour, it’s defensible to add the industry norm, locally here at least, of .1 per hour for starts on lights and intermediates. In a perfect world there’d be a start charge after the first, and air time billed. But this isn’t a perfect industry, I was shocked to learn.

I'm not going to try and write a manual here your course will be where you get all that, and I wouldn't be the most qualified to do it anyhow. I'll offer one point that's been rung home for me numerous times in the mountains, though it's logistical not technical; sufficient fuel and a bit more. Don't be tempted to go too light on fuel to save a little performance, staying within the bounds of your machine's performance of course. I'd rather have the extra 10-25% fuel and work harder for the approach and departure. In a training environment with known spots it's easy to work just the right amount of fuel, in operational flying there's always headwinds, an unplanned stop, choked out passes and valleys, or any other number of fuel sapping diversions. In the mountains you need to take your time and fuel is time.

Really appreciate the replies thank you, I'd been looking into the C28 and I could find little on it that was current and that explains everything. I'm presuming the C30 is more than a different compressor, it's never that simple. I'm going to hazard a guess some of those well priced L1s I've been seeing are C28 powered, makes sense.