Too tall?

Specialties Flight

Published

I recently noticed that many of the flight nurses/emt-p's I have seen are relatively small ladies, or men not much taller than 5 foot 10.

I never considered myself a particularly large individual, I am 6'2" 200 lbls. Am I too big for those small helicopters?

don't want to get my head whopped off.

Specializes in Rotor EMS, Ped's ICU, CT-ICU,.
I recently noticed that many of the flight nurses/emt-p's I have seen are relatively small ladies, or men not much taller than 5 foot 10.

I never considered myself a particularly large individual, I am 6'2" 200 lbls. Am I too big for those small helicopters?

don't want to get my head whopped off.

Your ht/wt may be around the max allowable for most flight programs...your ht/wt should not disqualify you from any flight program I am familiar with.

It's not an issue of decapitation, but more of your ability to maneuver inside the small patient compartment while wearing a helmet (if the program has a helmet policy).

For example, an EC-135 (one of the smaller helicopters) rotor blade would still be relatively high above your head when you are standing upright (assuming no flex at the tip from wind). However, once you put a helmet on, you might find that sitting the forward-facing seat in the patient compartment might be a bit of a chore on a longer mission.

The company I work for requires under 200# and under 6feet. Half of our medics are over 200#. One of our pilots is probably 6'5" and 260. All of our nurses are under 150. They are all female.

Specializes in Emergency/Trauma/Education.

Depends on the program and the aircraft.

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