Tag Archives: Contract helicopter pilot

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

Posted in Flying Stories, helicopter firefighting, Helicopter Pilot, Random rantings, World Travel | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

The Start and Finish

Our S-64 Air Crane had been checked and made ready for the first fire call of the day, if it was ever to come. Time now, to get into the books, flight manuals, study guides, or maybe less demanding pursuits.  … Continue reading

Posted in Contract helicopter pilot, helicopter firefighting, Helicopter Pilot, Random rantings | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Following Along

The G.P.S. unit installed in our S-61 helicopter was state of the art. The company had spent a lot of money to make sure that we would always know where we were and for good reason. The mission was in … Continue reading

Posted in Contract helicopter pilot, Helicopter Pilot, Random rantings, World Travel | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

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

Posted in Contract helicopter pilot, Flying Stories, Random rantings, World Travel | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

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

Posted in Contract helicopter pilot, Flying Stories, helicopter firefighting, Helicopter Pilot, Random rantings, World Travel | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

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

Posted in Canada travel, Contract helicopter pilot, Flying Stories, helicopter firefighting, Helicopter Pilot, helicopter tours, Random rantings | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

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

Posted in Flying Stories, Helicopter Pilot, Random rantings | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

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

Posted in Contract helicopter pilot, Flying Stories, Helicopter Pilot | Tagged , , , | 6 Comments

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

Posted in Contract helicopter pilot, Flying Stories, Helicopter Pilot | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

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

Posted in Flying Stories, Friends and Family, Helicopter Pilot, U.S. Travel | Tagged , , , | 7 Comments