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cf s blondin speaks out pg 24 · good vibrations pg 28 canada s national rotary-wing magazine may/june 2011 $6.00 in the line of managing b.c s firefighting resources fire

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your mission you didn t get to where you are by compromising neither did bell helicopter which is why there are no compromises in a 429 luxurious spacious and adaptable it was designed precisely for your fast-paced high-stakes world with impressive range and speed plus an astonishingly smooth and quiet ride the 429 gets you where you need to go in comfort and style on a mission ©2011 bell helicopter textron inc all rights reserved call 800-fly-bell or visit www.bellhelicopter.com to find the solution that s best for your mission-specific needs.

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may/june 2011 volume 32 issue 3 cover story in the line of fire pg 16 departments 4 6 the knowledge quotient editorial on the fly macdonald dixon 10 12 14 15 38 clarifying negligence the great debate size shouldn t matter facilitating your rescue randy mains cover bellamy survival guest column an erickson air-crane fights a b.c blaze features effectively managing b.c s firefighting resources is a huge undertaking here s how it s done by paul dixon 16 in the line of fire the griffons return home pg 20 20 the bell ch-146 griffon has a new role now that its tour of afghanistan has ended by peter pigott farewell to dustballs and rhino snot 24 canadian forces maj gen yvan blondin discusses the rotary fleet and the forces role here and abroad by paul dixon commanding force 28 this year s version of heli expo didn t disappoint here s a look at the highlights by matt nicholls publication mail agreement 40065710 return undeliverable canadian address to circulation dept p.o box 530 simcoe on n3y 4n5 e-mail ncuerrier@annexweb.com good vibrations commanding force pg 24 a spark neglected makes a mighty fire ­ robert herrick may/june 2011 helicoptersmagazine.com 3

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editorial the knowledge quotient matt nicholls editor spring shows offer chance for enlightenment two members of its enhanced rotary-wing aircraft lineup new agreements for 68 bookings came from operators in the united states canada europe and russia for more on heli expo see good vibrations pg 28 while heli expo 2011 offered plenty of glitz and a glimpse into where the industry is headed hac s annual event took a more cerebral approach ­ an expanded educational program covering important issues that will shape the canadian industry for years to come this year s gathering featured a bevy of new programs for operators including pre and post educational opportunities on risk management a mountain flying ground school and a flying the wires course other top educational sessions included an hour with transport canada director general martin eley and hac president fred jones and an update from the international helicopter safety team ihst on helicopter safety and incident rates from canadian helicopters sylvain seguin helicopters magazine jumped into the fray hosting its first-ever industry roundtable ­ an exclusive invite-only town hall meeting featuring hac president jones and several top canadian operators discussion topics included strategies for dealing with tough economic realities controversies over flight and duty times the ongoing challenges of working with transport canada pilot shortages worker retention and more look for our roundtable report in the july/august issue and on the web at www.helicoptersmagazine.com attendees i spoke with at this year s event were pleased with the variety of content offered and re-affirmed the importance of staying abreast of so many critical industry issues n a time of turbulence and change it is more true than ever that knowledge is power ­ john f kennedy if america s most iconic president is correct in his assessment that knowledge in times of change is power then those attending three superb industry shows this spring must be feeling enlightened empowered and eager to conquer all challenges march featured three must attend industry events offering very different perspectives heli expo march 5-8 in orlando the helicopter association of canada s 15th annual conference and trade show at vancouver s beautiful pan pacific hotel march 25-27 and the rapidly growing chc safety quality summit march 28-30 at the westin bayshore said one industry colleague who attended all three events it s been a whirlwind it seems like i ve been living out of a suitcase all month but what a month what a month indeed the busy show season kicked off in orlando with arguably the industry s most important event the 63rd annual heli expo trade show featuring a record 625 exhibitors more than 20,000 attendees up from 596 exhibitors and 15,243 attendees a year ago 65 helicopters on the floor countless new products and a variety of top-notch educational opportunities the show offered attendees an excellent chance to assess the state of the industry and a glimpse into what lies ahead i it s been a whirlwind it seems like i ve been living out of a suitcase all month but what a month all about quality it s been a very positive event there are real signs we re headed in the right direction said standardaero vice president of helicopter programs tom roche standardaero used the event to draw attention to its 100th anniversary for us it s been a great show on many levels eurocopter canada s laura senecal echoed roche s sentiments and is optimistic the market is ready for a turnaround it was a big week for us and we ve got a lot of good things coming up a big week for eurocopter indeed new business concluded during heli expo involved eight of eurocopter s helicopter types including the dramatic introduction of the next-generation ec-145 t2 along with the chc safety quality summit is fast becoming one of the industries must-attend events and this year s version didn t disappoint with impressive keynote speakers arguably the most diverse educational lineup of any industry event and impeccable organization it more than delivered on its theme corporate responsibility vs personal accountability two sides of the same coin it was a fast-paced well-executed three days of thoughtprovoking analysis ironing home the incredible commitment to safety that must be made at all levels of an organization for more on the summit see the great debate pg 12 heli expo hac and the chc safety quality summit ­ three very different conferences each offering unique perspectives and value in times of great change after all jfk is right knowledge is power 4 helicoptersmagazine.com may/june 2011

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helijet lifts off on b.c s north coast ichmond-based helijet international has opened the doors at its prince rupert base in seal cove and is now expanding helicopter charter and air ambulance services along british columbia s north coast overseeing the air medical operations at the base steve morrow will work with andrew scott who will be responsible for developing helijet s general charter business helijet s air medical service will operate a twin-engine sikorsky s-76 helicopter under an exclusive eight-year contract to the b.c ambulance service 24 hours a day seven days a week a team of 12 highly-trained flight crew and maintenance engineers will be r helijet is expanding its helicopter charter and air ambulance services along b.c s north coast photo courtesy of helijet integral in keeping the helicopter mission ready to fly at a moment s notice helijet has been under contract with the b.c ambulance service operating two dedicated helicopters based in vancouver for more than 12 years and for more than five years has also provided lear-31 fixed-wing jet aircraft helijet president and ceo danny sitnam says the organization is looking forward to becoming an integral part of the city s business and tourism community helijet will also offer general charter helicopter air services for the numerous business sectors in the surrounding community as well as sightseeing tours for the local residents and tourists night flight concepts tracks north at the recent helicopter association of canada annual convention and trade show night flight concepts nfc announced plans to expand operations into canada timed with the unveiling of a new strategic partnership with helicopter transport services canada inc htsc night flight concepts is no stranger to the canadian market in recent years it has helped numerous government and industry organizations across the country plan implement and maintain night-vision goggle nvg capabilities to support night-vision imaging system nvis programs including the rcmp york regional police cougar and helicopter transport services the company maintains nvgs are increasingly transforming night operations for the better operators that have received exemptions to fly with night-vision technology in canada confirm they are experiencing significant advantages including higher safety standards operational benefits and added value to the bottom line htsc president luc pilon says this is an important time in canada the canadian nvg market is poised for explosive growth htsc extends the nfc partner network to help support this growth htsc and nfc will co-locate in carp ont at the htsc corporate headquarters facility in the national capital region to provide government industry and the aerospace research communities with nvg solutions services will include pilot and instructor nvg training nvg maintenance training nvg 180-inspection and repair services nvg aircraft lighting modification nvg equipment acquisition solutions and nvg program management consulting 6 helicoptersmagazine.com may/june 2011

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a hot win for denendeh denendeh helicopters ltd has been awarded a five-year contract to provide firefighting support and suppression services out of hay river denendeh helicopters will provide fire support and suppression services out of hay river n.w.t for n.w.t a majority aboriginal-owned partnership the next five years photo courtesy of of great slave helicopters denendeh denendeh helicopters helicopters brings together the investment arms of k atlodeeche first nation of the hay river reserve and the deh gah gotie first nation of fort providence the five-year deal valued in excess of $2 million if the expected hours are flown will see denendeh helicopters supply one firefighting purpose-built astar 350 b2 helicopter and the related flight and maintenance crew to the northwest territories department of environment and natural resources in addition to the northwest territories great slave helicopters its subsidiaries and its aboriginal partners currently service forest fire contracts in alberta manitoba and ontario and provide back-up support in b.c and the yukon denendeh helicopters also owns two helicopters that are servicing the mineral exploration industry this summer helicopters magazine p.o box 530 105 donly drive south simcoe on n3y 4n5 tel 519-428-3471 fax 519-429-3094 toll free 1-888-599-2228 website www.helicoptersmagazine.com editor matt nicholls e-mail mnicholls@annexweb.com 416-725-5637 associate editor andrea kwasnik e-mail akwasnik@annexweb.com 519-429-5181 · 1-888-599-2228 ext 238 production artist krista misener contributing writers michael bellamy paul dixon dan gibson neil macdonald james marasa mike minnich peter pigott blair watson associate publisher alison de groot e-mail adegroot@annexweb.com 519-429-5191 · 1-888-599-2228 ext 246 account manager ryan culver e-mail rculver@annexweb.com 519-429-5182 · 1-888-599-2228 ext 273 group publisher/editorial director scott jamieson e-mail sjamieson@annexweb.com president mike fredericks e-mail mfredericks@annexweb.com return undeliverable canadian addresses to annex publishing printing inc p.o box 530 simcoe on n3y 4n5 canada email ncuerrier@annexweb.com published five times a year by annex publishing printing inc printed in canada issn 0227-3161 circulation e-mail ncuerrier@annexweb.com tel 866-790-6070 ext 208 fax 877-624-1940 mail p.o box 530 simcoe on n3y 4n5 subscription rates canada ­ 1 year $25.00 includes gst #867172652rt0001 usa ­ 1 year $35.00 foreign ­ 1 year $45.00 occasionally helicopters magazine will mail information on behalf of industry-related groups whose products and services we believe may be of interest to you if you prefer not to receive this information please contact our circulation department in any of the four ways listed above no part of the editorial content of this publication may be reprinted without the publisher s written permission ©2011 annex publishing printing inc all rights reserved opinions expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the editor or the publisher no liability is assumed for errors or omissions all advertising is subject to the publisher s approval such approval does not imply any endorsement of the products or services advertised publisher reserves the right to refuse advertising that does not meet the standards of the publication helicopters magazine is a corporate member of the helicopter association of canada two visionaries honoured at hac canadian helicopter he helicopter industry and to the association of hac canada honoured ough who was two distinguished visionintegral in the formaaries at its recent annual tion of the hac has convention and tradebeen an enthusiastic show in vancouver supporter of the neil j armstrong industry his entire deceased was honoured career i highly with the carl agar/alf appreciate the hac stringer award for his award because of the outstanding contribution work with barry to the helicopter industry robert ough accepts the honorary life member hewko during the the award is named after award from teri northcott hac chair and fred early stages of hac two trail blazing icons jones hac president and ceo thanks to barry who founded okanagan for helping make it helicopters happen said ough exploration and forestry in born in alvinston ont ough commenced his flyparticular he endorsed armstrong joined the air force ing career in the rcaf in helicopter use in seismic work when the second world war 1958 flight operations in the and was a pioneer in early began and learned to fly in the helicopter industry began in magnetometry development tiger moth he became 1970 and over his career ough inducted to the canadian extremely interested in the flew with many outfits includaviation hall of fame in 1974 application of helicopters for ing skyrotors great lakes armstrong was dedicated to a geological work while working helicopters instructor unified helicopter industry and as a geologist in the early dominion-pegasus/okanagan the promotion of safety at age 1950s and later earned his and sept-iles helicopter all 74 armstrong and his son helicopter licence at spartan part of the chc group in corky were killed in an unusal air services in ottawa 1981 he moved into the martwin otter crash on an iceberg armstrong worked as a keting side of the business in antarctica his contribution geologist/pilot in many major with hughes helicopters to canadian aviation and in exploration projects in the mcdonnell douglas particular the helicopter indusnorth and is generally helicopters ough also spent try will always be remembered considered to be canada s first time as general manager of the hac also bestowed helicopter pilot/geologist canadian air-crane before robert a ough with an throughout his career moving back to a marketing honorary life member award he was an avid promoter of role with eurocopter canada the award recognizes ough s helicopter use in the oil and limited in 1995 significant contribution to the gas industry geological t helicopters magazine is an associate member of the following canadian aviation associations canadian owners pilots association air transport association of canada may/june 2011 helicoptersmagazine.com 7

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calendar of events letter failure to heed the call elicopters received the following letter in response to paul dixon s column a shrinking pool ­ what will come with the demographic dips of tomorrow in the march april 2011 issue i was quite sad to read [paul dixon s column i am a former avionics instructor with bcit during the 90 s and up to 2005 i spent a lot of time at meetings h with industry camc and other aviation organizations other instructors and i tried constantly to get industry to plan ahead for the baby boomer syndrome and hire our students to fill the future gap we were confronted with apprentices are too expensive we want fully trained people with endorsements and experience etc etc the sad thing is that here in b.c there are a number of ex-avionics students who eventually left the aviation industry and are now working for translink and other organizations because of better salaries and conditions and more secure employment ­ something that the aviation industry could not offer them douglas grant retired avionics instructor bcit may may 17-19 ebace european business aviation convention exhibition geneva switzerland www.ebace.aero may 28-29 wings and wheels heritage festival toronto ont www.wingsandwheelsfestival com june june 20-26 49th international paris air show le bourget france www.paris-air-show.com june 24-26 copa national fly-in and agm langely b.c copacon2011.ca june 24-26 the great lakes international air show st thomas ont www.greatlakesinter nationalairshow.ca a harrowing rescue t he harrowing rescue of two inuit hunters from the icy waters of frobisher bay was cause to celebrate at great slave helicopters and discovery mining services in mid-march the pair was polar bear hunting when one of them fell through some soft ice great slave helicopters had part of its fleet in iqaluit and after obtaining a release from its customer peregrine diamonds dispatched a eurocopter astar 350 b2 registration c-gfhn to locate and rescue the men discovery mining services logistics manager jennifer burry got the call in iqaluit and quickly made all the arrangements to initiate the search-and-rescue mission said john curran discovery air marketing manager ­ northern services the hunters were roughly 120 nautical miles from iqaluit nearing the mouth of frobisher bay when our flight great slave helicopters pilot james kitchen and ame will ward saved two iqaluit hunters from the icy waters of frobisher bay in mid-march photo courtesy of great slave helicopters crew spotted them ­ one of the hunters was floating on his komatik and the other was on the ice pilot james kitchen then manoeuvred the helicopter in close while ame will ward plucked the two men one-byone into the warmth and security of the hovering helicopter it was about an hour and 25 minute flight to get them back into iqaluit and all the while our assistant operations manager louis trottier was monitoring the helicopter s progress from yellowknife using our gps satellite tracking system added curran he was able to stay in contact with the search-and-rescue coordinators and provide realtime updates to the emergency medical services staff standing by to meet the helicopter upon its return to iqaluit discovery air s subsidiaries annually assist in approximately a half-dozen search-and-rescue missions in the north july july 6-7 cbaa annual convention and trade show calgary alta www.cbaa.ca october oct 2-4 airport management council of ontario amco convention and trade show brantford ont www.amco.on.ca oct 5-6 international winter operations conference montreal que www.winterops.ca correction notice on pages 33 and 34 of the march/april issue of helicopters in the article bcit leads the way we erroneously identified a bell 206 as a bell 212 in two photo captions we apologize for the errors and thank our loyal readers who pointed them out 8 helicoptersmagazine.com may/june 2011

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column clarifying negligence always consider the end user neil macdonald n january 2010 i wrote about how a waiver of liability can be an effective method of protecting your company from customers who get injured while engaging in challenging activities i said that your waiver should include language stating the customer waives his/her right to sue you should things go wrong and i suggested that if you intend to include negligence you should clearly state that i thought it might be a good idea to look a little more closely at the law of negligence for this column the classic definition of negligence is the omission to do something which a reasonable man guided upon those considerations which ordinarily regulate the conduct of human affairs would do or doing something which a prudent and reasonable man would not do we have all seen people do things that do not seem reasonable to us and most of us with spouses can safely say we have done things that do not seem reasonable to others the courts came up with their own measure of reasonableness and created this concept of a reasonable man then either through political correctness or oxymoronic construction they changed it to reasonable person which now applies to all of us equally the reasonable person is of normal intelligence and without any unusual powers of foresight the person is not extraordinary nor unusual but will act in accordance with generally approved practices i we need to be as careful as reasonably possible when conducting our affairs and so should we in order to have a finding of negligence against us we must first have or owe a duty of care towards someone we must then breach that duty of care finally there must be some measurable damage flowing from or caused by that breach of the duty duty of care is a legal obligation requiring us to take reasonable steps to avoid conduct that entails an unreasonable risk of harm to others the duty is not something you owe to everyone in the world but only to those who can be characterized as your neighbour those who are close enough to you to be affected by what you do or don t do reasonable foreseeability is the key issue here ­ was it reasonable that the person harmed should have been in your thoughts prior to the act or omission the case that started this movement called donoghue v stevenson came out of the united kingdom in 1932 it involved a woman who sued a drink manufacturer because she found a decomposed snail in a bottle of ginger beer after she drank from it she fell ill and sued for damages the law at the time was that you could only sue if the parties contracted directly with each other since the woman did not buy the drink directly from the manufacturer it was customary that she should not have a case against it the court found that the manufacturer should have had the end user in mind at the time of bottling therefore it was reasonably foreseeable that its actions would affect ms donoghue this proposition still stands 80 years later if your conduct has been found not to have conformed to that of the reasonable person then you have breached the duty of care this is an all-or-nothing proposition once established the injured party must prove that he or she has suffered damages and that those damages were caused by your actions or inactions this is called causation causation is generally established using the but for test what this means is the damages would not have been sustained but for the conduct of the negligent party that party does not have to be solely responsible for all the damages suffered but the principle just means that some of the damages would not have occurred but for his/her actions an injured party also can be found to have contributed to the injuries he suffered contributory negligence used to be a complete defence to a negligence charge today however it simply affects the damages awarded if the injured party is found to be 25 per cent responsible for his/her own injuries his award would be reduced by that same 25 per cent margin while this is only a brief look into the law of negligence it serves as a reminder that we are all in this together and that our actions and omissions can affect those around us we need to be as careful as reasonably possible when conducting our affairs ­ both in our business lives and our private lives and always look at the bottom of the bottle neil macdonald is an aviation lawyer practising in b.c he has completed an iso 9001:2008 qms lead auditor course holds an atpl-h and flies as an ifr off-shore captain neil.j.macdonald@gmail.com this is not a legal opinion readers should not act on the basis of this article without first consulting a lawyer for analysis and advice on a specific matter 10 helicoptersmagazine.com may/june 2011

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our mission platinum award winners your initial purchase of a bell helicopter is just the beginning of our relationship that s because your ownership experience is important to us from every angle with more than 120 customer service facilities across 34 countries you ll get the best support in the industry that includes the bell genuine parts inventory bell trained technicians and the highest service facility quality in fact each year all bell-approved customer service facilities undergo a comprehensive audit please join us in recognizing this year s select group of 14 service facilities that achieved platinum status for 2011 on a mission air asia company ltd alpine aerotech ltd arrow aviation co llc avialta helicopter maintenance ltd eagle copters maintenance ltd fuji heavy industries ltd helipark taxi aereo e manutencao aeronautica ltda motorflug baden-baden gmbh northwest helicopters llc patria helicopters ab rotorcraft support inc sikorsky aircraft australia ltd dba sikorsky helitech servicio tecnico aereo de mexico stam uniflight llc ©2011 bell helicopter textron inc all rights reserved call 800-fly-bell or visit www.bellhelicopter.com to find the solution that s best for your mission-specific needs.

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column the great debate paul dixon deciphering both sides of the responsibility issue warning system as well as hundreds of tsunami sensors ringing the country it s moot at this point to wonder what the death toll might have been if all these steps had not been implemented but the reality is that the largest earthquake in japan s history followed by a massive tsunami has devastated a large portion of the country killed tens of thousands and lefts hundreds of thousands homeless the triple whammy for japan is the ongoing fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant situation japan is the personal/corporate accountability/responsibility question at a macro level at the hac luncheon march 26 veteran ems pilot and this month s helicopters guest columnist randy mains see lessons learned pg 38 spoke with great passion about the pressure placed on ems pilots in a for-profit health care system to fly in sub-marginal conditions and about decisions being made for the wrong reasons it s the perfect analysis of responsibility and accountability at the micro level and it of course begs the question can you make good decisions at the personal level if the corporate model is skewed when i interviewed maj gen yvan blondin coo of the canadian air force earlier this year see a commanding force pg 24 he spoke about key missions that our military is tasked with by our government and the challenges in fulfilling these missions with personnel and equipment that are stretched micro-thin these are dangerous missions search-and-rescue in the high arctic long-range maritime surveillance patrols humanitarian flights into rudimentary airfields around the world anti-piracy missions and supply and support missions in afghanistan everything the canadian forces does is at the edge of the envelope and often goes beyond but as the general says ­ if we don t do these missions who will canadians are in the middle of the federal election campaign as this column goes to press the electoral process in this country is our personal exercise in accountability ­ accountability as in count me in the voter turnout in the previous federal election was an all time low at 58 per cent it s a record i hope we don t break this time it s not a chicken or egg question if you make a conscious decision not to vote then you ve abdicated your personal accountability and there can never be any corporate responsibility here s hoping the corporate entities in the aviation industry continue to analyze and measure both sides of the responsibility coin ­ and continue to strive for the ultimate standards in safety and customer satisfaction paul dixon is freelance writer and photojournalist living in vancouver t was an important week in vancouver for members of the helicopter industry to herald the arrival of spring 2011 with the helicopter association of canada s annual convention trade show march 25-27 followed immediately thereafter by the chc safety quality summit both conferences covered many critical issues and topics and another common thread connected them the overall theme of the chc s annual gathering corporate responsibility vs personal accountability ­ two sides of the same coin the brainchild of chc s vice-president safety and quality greg wyght this year s chc event got off to a rousing start with three heavyweights debating both sides of the issue tony kern phd ceo of convergent performance llc took the personal side while john nance an aviation analyst with john nance productions rode the corporate pony with animated scott shappell phd co-founder of htacs inc as moderator instigator and enigmatic graham braithwaite phd head of the department of air transport at cranfield university working both sides of the border it was like watching the 3-d chess game in the first star wars looking back over the past decade we ve had far too many examples where corporate responsibility and personal accountability were required does one have to come before the other and can either exist in the absence of the other is it the chicken or is it the egg what was i can you make good decisions at the personal level if the corporate model is skewed 12 enron ­ personal or corporate the crash of the colgan q-400 in buffalo just before last year s chc summit ­ was that personal or corporate look at what has happened in japan with an earthquake followed by a tsunami topped with the threat of a nuclear disaster that could make chernobyl look like a burned out light bulb by comparison the japanese live in constant awareness of earthquakes for the past 50 years japan has marked sept 1st the anniversary of the 1923 tokyo earthquake that killed more than 100,000 as disaster prevention day evacuation drills are a staple at schools businesses and public offices across the country japan has the world s most extensive earthquake helicoptersmagazine.com may/june 2011

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column size shouldn t matter light maybe but heavy on skill michael bellamy here is a tendency among aircrew to equate helicopter size with pilot competency and experience the same can be said for customer perception the assumption goes the bigger the helicopter the greater the accumulation of pilot expertise at the controls and because of this pilots of heavier machines usually receive a greater amount of respect from other aircrew and customers pilot evolution from lights to intermediates and then on to mediums in a customer-oriented industry is a necessity for a successful charter operation however pilots don t always follow this sequence as quickly as they may like the unique skills and expertise they gain in light machines is invaluable though and perhaps it is time to adjust pay scales and attitudes to reflect this usually a candidate for medium training will have to accumulate in the neighbourhood of 3,000 incident-free hours and have a solid reputation with the operator s clientele before being considered for the endorsement easy to understand then why some jet ranger and astar pilots unfortunately regard their current endeavour as a rite of passage to that coveted seat in a bigger helicopter during a recent after-hours there i was session an acquaintance who is an ex-military pilot remarked that he went from 200 hours on a bell 206 right into a bell 212 not unusual for a military pilot as there is nothing in the military roster to fill the gap t retiring military pilots leaving civilian pilots who have worked long and hard polishing bush skills and customer relations feeling a bit snubbed the reality is you may be flying a light or intermediate but the skills you ve developed are of immeasurable value to your customers and your employer the charter pilot has to be able to adapt safely to tacit pressures without compromising his or her best judgment and expertise at the controls customers can be very disparaging if they feel the pilot is deliberating too long when assessing a confined area or even worse wasting money on a protracted slow approach management does not relieve the pilot of responsibility even when the machine is on the ground expecting decisions that satisfy not only safety but also the bottom line for example overreacting to a malfunction by landing a machine in an inaccessible location compounding the return-to-service costs does not gain you points not to be discounted i once witnessed a jet ranger pilot quietly join a group of relaxing medium drivers at a fire camp when asked what he was flying he selfeffacingly nodded towards his jet ranger just a jet box he replied i was perturbed by his deference here was a pilot tasked with transporting fire services personnel in and out of unprepared sites to survey new staging areas and pumping sources what he accomplished day after day at the controls of that 206 needn t have taken a back seat to any of the medium drivers in the group management expected him to fly as many hours as possible provide the client with safe transportation and on top of that keep his machine clean and presentable at all times yet he still felt that he had to apologize for the fact that he was only flying a light light and intermediate helicopters are the most prevalent charter machines in the country yet because of the connotation of size pilots and engineers dismiss them as befitting a pilot with novice skills in reality the reverse holds more truth and in the helicopter world size shouldn t matter for that ifr multi-engine and medium endorsement there is always a bank card but those light to intermediate flying skills in a charter operation ­ priceless the expertise pilots gain in light machines is invaluable perhaps it is time to adjust attitudes however missing from the pilot equation is the invaluable customer liaison experience that charter pilots gain civilian operators understandably capitalize on the singular experience of these ex-military pilots and slot them into mediums tasked for vfr or ifr point-topoint passenger flights i am not insinuating that military pilots are capable of nothing else however their training and experience took them down different avenues and once in the civilian job market they are reminded very quickly of their experience levels when looking for a job many of the medium seats out there are being grabbed up by a native of spruce grove alta michael bellamy has been flying fixedand rotary-wing aircraft in a variety of capacities since 1971 and is an accomplished author of several books including crosswinds 14 helicoptersmagazine.com may/june 2011

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survival facilitating your rescue dan gibson n parts 1 and 2 of our survival series we drew up a dire crash scenario then discussed the psychology of surviving setting priorities how to build an emergency shelter and the numerous benefits of fire continuing from where we left off it is early dawn as you emerge from your make-shift refuge and assess your situation despite being warm and dry your crude shelter was hastily constructed and uncomfortable so sleep did not come easy without fire the darkness made matters worse and every scurry and snap echoed and amplified ominously in your imagination now exhausted and wrought with anxiety you find yourself cold and alone trying to piece together some mosaic of understanding you are safe and protected you made sure of that last night but you had no fire and that situation must change you are hungry but that can wait you are definitely thirsty and that can t wait long but does anyone out there know where the hell you are yesterday s flights were long at low altitude and to several random destinations so pinpointing your location will be difficult the narrow knowing the proper signalling techniques is key gorge where you crashed is surely impeding your elt signal and the last time you looked your cockpit was spewing sparks and smoke ­ who knows the extent of the damage to your electronics one thing is for sure ­ you have to find a way to let somebody know where you are and that you are alive i road to recovery following an aviation mishap priorities are never clear or chronological instead they overlap and leapfrog each other in our hypothetical scenario you are uninjured but night fell quickly preventing you from establishing anything beyond a rudimentary shelter your once clear priorities are now blurred by fatigue and anguish to counteract this congratulate yourself on your monumental feats of surviving the crash and your first night alone use the daylight and your ability to distinguish your surroundings to buoy your spirits strengthening your resolve and lowering your expectations protects you from being discouraged so start by presuming that all is lost and your radio and supplies have been destroyed the reasoning behind this is if a few things are in working order and some of your survival kit is salvageable they become windfalls and you feel better not worse most missing hikers are found within three days ­ aviators much sooner but don t expect to be rescued instead do everything possible to facilitate your own rescue by placing yourself in charge you will find more creative and unique ways to signal for help search-and-rescue sar aircraft will be looking for any visible signs of the crash site from the air such as smoke from a signal fire or any of the international ground signals for help ­ sos a large v or x or a large triangle use tree bows peeled logs sod stones branches bright clothing flags parachutes etc to create colours that contrast your surroundings and make your signals as large as possible ­ ideally 40 feet in length and 10 feet between each letter you can also signal an aircraft with anything reflective such as broken glass metal mirrors or lenses with your outstretched arm in front of you simply hold your fingers open in the shape of an upwards v position the distant aircraft between your fingers inside the v and hold your reflector close to your face to catch the angle of the sun s reflection so that it centres within the v the intensity of the flickering light will align with the sar aircraft making it easier for you to catch their eye a signal fire is very effective but use everything at your disposal and several methods simultaneously to increase your chances of being rescued survival and rescue is part 3 in a series aimed at providing pilots with critical wilderness survival skills and insight the next instalment will highlight how to effectively stock a flight survival kit building a signal fire · · · · · · · · in a clearing lay a framework of alternating dry and green sticks in a large square in the centre loosely assemble into a mound such combustibles as birch bark strips dry grasses and pine needles entwined with narrow dry kindling build up your structure into a pyramid shape by alternating your firewood ensuring plenty of ventilation from below occasionally crisscross your square with dry sticks placing plenty of dry grass birch bark and small dry kindling on the lower tiers from knee to waist level top your tiers with a mix of dry kindling birch and fresh evergreen boughs switching solely to fresh evergreen on the upper levels continue this process until your structure is eye height and the upper two thirds are dominated by fresh evergreen once lit a roaring inferno will funnel upwards like a chimney flue rapidly igniting your greenery and resulting in copious amounts of thick yellow/white smoke billowing into the sky keep an ample source of greenery on hand and ensure your structure is kept dry and ready to ignite on the first attempt upon seeing or hearing sar may/june 2011 helicoptersmagazine.com 15

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