Category Archives: Flying Stories
The Next Generation
I was reading a post on Facebook the other day by one of our newer pilots. He was going to celebrate his Mother’s birthday. She was turning 56. What? A few of our other pilots are about the same age … Continue reading →
Firefighting in the city
Athens, Hellas and the wildfire that had travelled cross country for about 15 miles, was now reaching the city. The fire was running through the upscale neighborhood about as fast as a person could run. There were in fact a … Continue reading →
Pretty Good
I was talking with one of our pilots the other day and he was lamenting what he perceived as his eroding flying skills. I thought for a moment before commenting because I considered him to be of one of the … Continue reading →
Say Again ?
I fly mostly in countries other than the U.S.A. English is the international language of aviation and anywhere in the world I fly I am able to communicate in some fashion in English. Being able to communicate in a common … Continue reading →
He could have been….
A Chief Pilot I worked for many years ago had developed an obvious problem with alcohol consumption. In those days the stereo typical bush pilot and helicopter pilot was a hard flying,drinking,living, rugged individual or so the myth was sold.I … Continue reading →
Hydraulic Failures
Flying a helicopter without hydraulic boost can be an event that ranges anywhere from completely normal to life ending. Fact is that some helicopters fly perfectly well without any hydraulic power to assist control inputs and some helicopters can not … Continue reading →
The Rules
Military trained helicopter pilots spend most of their careers flying with another military trained pilot sitting beside them. In the commercial civilian world where two pilots are not required by law, a second pilot is seldom used. Most commercial operators … Continue reading →
From Hot to Cold
Hot air blew on the backs of my legs as I flew my Bell 47 G3B-1 back to the airport that early morning. At 05:30 the hot air seeping into the cabin had been tolerable but now with the morning … Continue reading →
Can Do
One of my first bosses in the helicopter business was a can do kind of guy, but only in the sense that he never turned down a job. That left those of us that worked for him to figure out … Continue reading →
Could be good
When you fly your own family members around you take special care to make sure that they have a positive experience. I don’t really know how many times I have flown my children in a helicopter. My oldest boy Adam, … Continue reading →