My Iraqi war vet daughter has always dreamt of being a helo pilot. Unfortunately there is no private or GOVT loan money available for career training. The GOVT guarantees college loans but NOT career training loans. In this economy there is NO loan money available so she will soon lose her GI Bill benefits and her dream.

1. Your daughter would need to attend a helo school to receive her licence.

2. She could use her VA Education Benefits to pay for the school and possibly the license. The school she attends would have to be approved for use of VA Education funds, just like truck driving schools and other schools of this nature are approved for VA Education funds.

3. A list of currently approved training/schools is located here: http://inquiry.vba.va.gov/weam...stitutionCriteria.do

4. Free Vocational Counseling is available from the VA for your daughter and other Veterans here: http://www.gibill.va.gov/GI_Bill_Info/Counseling.htm

My daughter has done all of her homework.
She has identified all of the specifics.
THE ONLY PROBLEM?

There is no loan money available for career training.
The government backs college loans (thus making some education money available), but
the government does NOT back career training loans.
AND, private loans are near twenty percent if available at all.
She does NOT want to have to attend a four-year aviation college just for the twelve months needed for helo training.

Her GI Bill benefits will expire before this economy loosens up enough money for loans.
It's really sad.

If she has eligability for post 9/11 GI BIll, then that is 15 years. The previous GI bill was 10 years. I am sorry that she is not able to find a program that meets he desires and in which she can use her education benifits. It is also unfortunate that she did not avail herself of the very good Army Helicopter training program.

I do have a question, does she have any pilot training at this time? Has she made sure that the job market is there for pilots and what the total time requirements are to get a commerical job as a pilot? Many of the commercial pilots have military training, and I am would not be suprised if that is also the fact with helicopter pilots. Has your daughter looked at cost versus earnign capacity? It is great to have a dream, but if you have to borrow to reach the dream, and you can not earn enought to pay it back, you are worse off then when you started.

Here is some info I found:

Helicopter pilots typically fly short flights in duration at low altitudes carrying workers and/or supplies to offshore oil rigs, transporting accident victims to a hospital heliport, lifting heavy loads to tops of buildings or to remote mountain sites, rescuing stranded people, or disbursing fire extinguishing agents on forest fires. Helicopter pilots can maneuver their helicopter to hover over a particular area, or land on a small cleared area.

Salary Range
$29,000 - $57,000

Educational Requirements
College Preferred; most require 4 year degree

Aviation Employers
Helicopter Operators, Large Corporations, Private Companies, Hospitals, Government Agencies, Radio and TV Stations

Thanx to all!!
My daughter was in the Illinois Air Force National Guard and maintained the KC135 refuelers in the Azores and in Turkey.
She could not get helo training in the Air Force.
Her GI Bill expires in less than two years and we're hoping the loan money loosens up before its too late.