• A job as a life flight pilot requires at least 1,500 hours of flying experience.helicopter image by Jim Dubois from Fotolia.com
  
  "Life flight" helicopter operations respond to emergencies and transport critically ill or injured patients to medical facilities. Far from an entry-level job, piloting a life flight helicopter requires comprehensive flight training. But with 12 helicopter life flight programs operating in Pennsylvania as of 2010, finding a job near home stands as a reasonable goal. The average life flight helicopter pilot earned between $48,556 and $74,514 in 2010, according to PayScale.com.
  
  

Basic Requirements

• To work as life flight helicopter pilot, you must be 18 years of age, and read, write, speak and understand English proficiently. Before flying for hire, you'll need to obtain a Second-Class Medical Certificate from a Federal Aviation Administration-approved Aviation Medical Examiner, according to federal aviation regulations.
  
  

Certifications and Ratings

• To work as a life flight helicopter pilot, you'll need to earn a commercial rotorcraft license, which requires 150 hours of additional coursework beyond your private pilot certification. Most life flight operations also require pilots to hold an instrument rating, which allows you to fly without visual references, including through clouds, reports FoxChoppers.com.
  
  

Education

• While no formal education requirements exist for this career path, some life flight employers require a high school or GED diploma. Air Methods, the contractor that operates Guthrie Air, JeffSTAT and MedStar Team in Pennsylvania, prefers pilots with a college degree.
  
  

Flight Hours

• Before applying for a job as a life flight helicopter pilot, you must log a minimum of 1,500 to 2,000 hours flying a helicopter. Exact requirements vary among the operations in Pennsylvania, but can range as high as 4,500 hours -- or more.
  
  

Instrument Navigation Hours

• Most life flight pilot jobs require a minimum of 100 instruments hours, and some Pennsylvania programs have additional requirements. For example, Air Methods requires 2,500 total hours of flying under instrument flight rules, or IFR, following protocols for limited visibility.
  
  

Night Flying Hours

• Life flight employers usually require at least 100 hours of unaided night flying. Some companies, such as STAT Medevac and LifeStar, require 200 night hours.
  
  

Turbine Hours

• Aspiring life flight pilots should gain experience flying turbine-engine helicopters. Minimum turbine experience in Pennsylvania ranges from 500 turbine hours for STAT Medevac and LifeStar to 2,000 hours for Air Methods.
  
  

Other Qualifications

• Before applying for a life flight job, research your target operations to see what helicopters you'll be flying, and log as many hours as possible in the same model. Also, build your experience flying in mountainous terrain, as this may give you an advantage with employers in Pennsylvania. An Air Transport Certificate and previous med-flight experience will stand out on your resume, according to AirMethods.com.