Required education
ADN or BSN
Average annual salary
$51k–$98k
Attributes
Fast-paced
React and make decisions quickly in demanding conditions.
Out-of-Hospital
Treat patients in their homes, during travel, or other non-hospital environments.
Varied
Take on different tasks, patients, and situations every day.
Independent
Work on your own or even start your own practice, in some states.
Patient-facing
Work hands-on, directly with patients.
You’ll take care of patients on rescue flights, after car accidents and in other emergency situations so you’ll need to be able to make decisions quickly.
What you’ll do
Treatment
You’ll provide medical care to patients who are often in a critical condition before, during and after air transportation.
Where you’ll work
- Hospitals
- Emergency rooms
- Helicopters
- Airplanes
How to become a Flight Nurse
01
Get an Associate’s Degree in Nursing (ADN) or Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN).
02
Pass the NCLEX-RN.
03
Work as a Registered Nurse, gaining 3–5 years’ experience in Critical Care.
You may also need some certifications, including Basic Life Support, Advanced Cardiac Life Support and Transport Professional Advanced Trauma Course.
04
Become a Certified Flight Registered Nurse through the Board of Certification for Emergency Nursing.
05
You’re ready to work as a Flight Nurse.
Join an Organization
Become a member of a Flight Nurse organization to find career opportunities, learn from your colleagues, and support the profession.
Related Organizations
Real Nurses Real Stories
Tim Lenth, RN, and his son Adam Lenth, RN, are air medical flight nurses. They must work together to administer care in high acuity situations — all while flying 145 miles per hour, hundreds of feet above ground, in the tight confines of a helicopter.
2016-08-30T04:00:00Z
A Holistic Nurse’s role is also out-of hospital.
A Wound, Ostomy, Continence Nurse is another type of Community Nurse.
