However, demand for relatively high-time flight experience is equally high. This fairly high standard tends to limit the pool of qualified candidates considerably. Many FAR Part 135 helicopter operators raise the bar even higher. Seismic operators want pilots with long-line experience, the EMS world thinks you have to have EMS flying, and so on. Major, national and regional carriers are recruiting heavily.
Pilots also find the airline industry's working hours and cockpit environments more acceptable.
A third factor affecting supply is that fewer people have become commercial helicopter pilots over the past 10 years. FAA figures offer stark proof. The FAA's Airmen Certification Branch registry in Oklahoma City listed 26,200 commercial helicopter pilots in 1988, but only about 17,800 in 1997. What's more, fewer pilots are leaving the military. Fourth and last, fewer people are becoming commercial helicopter pilots because it is an expensive, long-term process.