RPMN: What do you enjoy doing on your days off?
My wife and I have a little hobby farm and I enjoy riding my John Deere tractor while trying not to kill myself. I am much more dangerous on that tractor than I have ever been in an aircraft. That is just my opinion.
RPMN: What is your greatest career accomplishment to date?
Well, unfortunately I am no Chuck Yeager, nor have I won any air races at Reno in a P-51 Mustang. What gives me the most satisfaction, personally at this moment in my life, is to be a positive influence. By that I mean, I enjoy being involved with a flight school, seeing that the students are striving towards their goals. These students become flight instructors who, in the end, gain productive employment as a pilot. Seeing the progression is very rewarding to me. The fact that we are still flying R22 SN 011, which I worked on at the factory in 1979, is also important to me. I am never going to sell her. When my flying days are done, Alison and I are
going to donate her to the Evergreen Museum here in McMinnville. But for now, she is still a working girl with 13,305 hours under her belt.
RPMN: Have you ever had an “Oh, crap” moment in a helicopter? Can you summarize what happened?
The classic line that “Flying is hours upon hours of sheer boredom separated by moments of sheer terror” is somewhat close to the mark, however I don’t view most flying as boring. There have been some exciting moments. You can only hope your training takes over and you make good decisions. Hopefully, that adrenaline rush with the shaky hands after you’re safely on the ground doesn’t give you a heart attack. I have been to the ground with two helicopter emergencies and one airplane emergency. I’ve made many precautionary landings due to weather or maintenance issues. As far as helicopters are concerned, I like to quote a former Air Crane pilot from Evergreen Helicopters, Wade Green: “We are going to solve all of our inflight emergencies on the ground.”
RPMN: If you could give only one piece of advice to a new helicopter pilot or mechanic, what would it be?
I’ll put three in one sentence: make sure you have a passion for what you do, perform your duties to the best of your abilities, and if you don’t love aviation go find what you do love. RPMN: In your view, what is the greatest challenge for the helicopter industry now?
As an industry, we need to educate folks on all the value helicopters can bring to the average taxpayer – from fighting fires to EMS to supporting the energy sector. The helicopter is not just an expensive, noisy toy for the wealthy. HPMM – Helicopter Pilots and Mechanics Matter!
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
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