I want to get into the utility world but how with the companies requiring so many VRLL hours and such? Seems impossible. I've put in my CFI time, I'm over it. How do you break into the utility market? Resumes get no response, and the ones that do say requirements not met. Frustrating.

Go to TEMSCO, fly a season of tours let Your work ethic speak for itself and then potentially get a chance to get trained to long line if you return for a second year. Come away with a couple hundred hours astar experience a bit of long line time. then apply to an operator in the lower 48 and continue to learn. 

TEMSCO x2 

I worked for them 20 yrs ago, went into HAA but i still keep in touch with a few guys from there / then and they are in skycranes, 58's, etc doing all the cool stuff that my ham fisted a $$ could never do. 

Also, working in AK / TEMSCO / the people / was an awesome experience. 

but what does having put in time as a CFI have to do with anything. I would not get involved in utilty if I were you. Lousy hours with long days, constant travel. Most of the small utility companies are made up almost exclusively of dumb rednecks. If you must, another option is Temsco for a season of tours, not being an idiot and willing to come back for the next season. 

brrrrr!!

Easy pal 

Most of the small utility guys are self made. Some of the hardest working people in the industry. 

 The smaller companies can't afford to train, beware of the guys offering long line school. You could learn a few basics but nothing someone can't tell you in and hour.  Long lining is really an eye-hand skill with an ear for the machine and sense for the conditions but it's not magic or even hard. Thousands of us do it.

 Big companies consider us mostly another numberand don't train. Keep trying to get into anywhere that does powerline, fire, logging, whatever. You may need to look outside the US and be prepared for crap money, zero schedule and no family life. That will be normal for years. Some places will take on a patrol pilot and help you LL.

 Eventually if you can long line even a little look for a single pilot fire job, probably in a 407 so don't pass on 100 hours in one. Fire is crap too but any chance to get on an initial attack contract will get bucket time.

Myself, just another dumb redneck which helps since most every lineman, fire fighter, logger I've known are also dum rednecks.

OR... Hold out for a one-in-a-million corporate pilot job and fly the pretty people around.

so smaller companies don't train and big companies don't train but find a place that trains and long lining is a eye hand skill and you need an ear for the machine . man you can't get advice like that just anywhere 

Join the Navy and do long line on ship replenishment.

and if you want to learn how to shoot a gun, join the army.

That's NOT longline.......and anyone who thinks a 25 ft tag line  better rethink what VRLL actually is.

Well, 25 feet is longer than anything else he has done.

I know a few guys with good attitudes that boot leg a little LL time during simple after maintenance flights with a line on and with an actual LL pilot.. the machine needed to fly anyway so a very short intro to LL occurred.

 Ride along from a worksite on a return ferry and get a few minutes stabilizping the line before landing.you'll learn plenty in just a few minutes riding with a liner that will sit you down at a white board and draw out the basics.

 Lastly express an interest, willing to learn maybe the boss will arrange some non-revenue time and some to show you. Rare but it happens.

go find a company that does long line and hang around for months with a good attitude until the day arrives where they need a maintenance flight and have the "actual long line pilot" teach you to long line "because the machine needs to fly anyway" is a brilliant plan. or hang around a worksite until the pilot lets you long line and draws you a picture of a helicopter with a line hanging underneath it. the other great plan is to ask them to teach you lol

but sweeping the hangar and taking out the trash for a point 1 here and there, even with a great attitude, is not a viable career path.

To pull up them bootstraps. 

The Dues always have to be paid !

 Lots of us came the starving CFI to company gopher route. The chief pilot of PJ helicopter was once upon a time a fuel truck driver and helicopter washer.

 I drove truck, was the mechanics assistant plenty of time. Finally got barely good enough to fly Christmas trees and made my way to power line from there.

tell me about this CFI to gopher pilot thing because a CFI with time is not going to go drive a fuel truck, wash helicopters or hand wrenches to a mechanic and wait around to fly. it just doesn't work that way. 

Weird because we have one right now at our company with over 1000 hours and wants to learn VRLL.  Hes going to drive fuel trucks and fly when theres time.  He will build hours in the machine and learn VRLL along the way until he has enough hours to satirsfy minimum requirements

so a pilot decided to quit a flying job so he could drive a fuel truck and wait around until somebody trains him in vr. that is weird lol

Go to a VR course to get basic instruction and maybe around 5 hours. Then seek a job doing a type 3 fire contract and hopefully they'll give you another 5 hours of training before the contract starts. (You'll need at least 10 for the contract). You'll do some non-precision longline work during the season and build up your time to eventually do some construction work later.

That last post was the best advice so far. Flying long line for USFS contract isn't brain surgery .

Just take it easy, stay safe and at the end of your first season you'll find that "you is one".

To find that job, do a little research, develop a bit of a network and show up in person, be humble and get that job.

Good luck