NHRA, and Formula 1 racing, and also spend time with family and friends, playing dominoes or cards.
RP: What is your greatest career accomplishment to date?
I just retired in September at the age of 74 after fl ying helicopters for 49 years. I logged 12,000 hours in helicopters, and I believe I was the oldest pilot fl ying active U.S. Army Hueys.
RP: Have you ever had an “Oh, crap” moment in a helicopter? Can you summarize what happened?
I was fl ying an EC135 on a checkride when part of the rotor control system came apart. Fortunately, we were less than 500 feet above the ground at Casa Grande Muncipal Airport in Arizona. The check pilot and I controlled the aircraft (sort of) to a crash landing, which destroyed the helicopter. We both walked away with
minor injuries. Neither one of us thought we would survive the extreme violent gyrations of the fl ight/crash.
Getting shot down in the jungle in Vietnam was equally as scary, just diff erent because of the wait for extraction.
RPMN: If you could give only one piece of advice to a new helicopter pilot, what would it be?
Be very safety conscious. Your pre-fl ight inspection can save your life. As the saying goes: “There are bold pilots and there are old pilots, but few—if any—old bold pilots.” That is a true statement.
RP: In your view, what is the greatest challenge for the helicopter industry at this moment in time?
Convincing the medical evacuation industry to insist on autopilots for all EMS aircraft. I believe that many loss-of-control
Do you know someone who would be a good subject for Meet a Rotorcraft Pro? Email your suggestion to the editor-in-chief :
lyn.burks@rotorcraftpro.com.
accidents and controlled-fl ight-into-terrain accidents could have been avoided with an autopilot. Also, the use of night vision devices needs to increase. I believe that most of the EMS industry is now using NVGs, but it needs to total, the same as autopilots need to be 100 percent.
rotorcraftpro.com
13
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56