Pro
Meet a otor
GREG RAYCHARD RPMN: WHAT IS YOUR CURRENT POSITION?
B206L-3 PILOT FOR JAARS IN PAPUA NEW GUINEA (SOUTH PACIFIC/OCEANIA)
RPMN: Tell me about your first experience with helicopters.
My first experience in helicopters was at Cairns Army Airfield in Daleville, Alabama. I remember it being a hot, humid, and sweaty day. I was an Army flight school student (warrant officer) going out for my first flight during the “contact” phase of initial training. My instructor easily picked up the orange and white TH-67 Creek (Bell Jet Ranger) to a hover and nudged through ETL. Next thing I knew he said, “You have the flight controls,” and I had them!
I had to work hard to keep the airspeed, altitude and heading anywhere close to the minimum standard on our way to our assigned heliport, but overall I thought, “This isn’t so hard! I think I’ll get the hang of this pretty quickly.”
I was immediately brought back to reality when I attempted my first “execute approach and terminate to a hover” sequence. I could feel the joy radiating out of my IP as we watched the helicopter easily put me and my proud self back in our rightful place. Hovering became a reality a few flight hours later, and it was very sweet indeed!
10 Sept/Oct 2025
RPMN: How did you get your start in the helicopter industry? The U.S. Army asked me to go to flight school.
RPMN: When and how did you choose the helicopter industry? Or did it choose you?
I started flight training early in 2009. The industry chose me. I was going to ETS (get out of the Army) after completing a six- year commitment as a heavy construction equipment mechanic (62B), but I received a letter of invitation to apply to the Warrant Officer Candidate/Army Flight School program. I’d always dreamed of learning to fly and becoming a bush pilot someday. Was this my chance? I applied and was accepted.
RPMN: Where did you get your start flying or maintaining professionally?
At Fort Rucker, Alabama.
RPMN: If you were not in the helicopter industry, what else would you see yourself doing?
I think I’d be a farmer, or somewhere in the trades, probably overseas.
RPMN: What do you enjoy doing on your days off?
Until recently, I lived on a small homestead in Maine. I enjoyed maintaining the family fleet of vehicles, knocking out projects around the farm, and running the sawmill. We heated with firewood, so I also enjoyed twitching logs out of the woods and turning them into fuel for upcoming cold weather.
RPMN: What is your greatest career accomplishment to date?
Flying medevac and rescue missions for the U.S. Army in Kuwait, Jordan, Afghanistan, and in the States – in some very unsavory environments – without destroying any helicopters! I can’t take credit for not being shot down (because sometimes there was no time to react to avoid the projectiles the steely eyed enemy sent our way). They just aimed poorly. I was able to get the machine to-and-fro on many missions, in all kinds of dust, snow, poor weather, and darkness — safely. That’s an accomplishment I’m proud of. Ultimately, I give all the credit for my success and survival to God above. He worked to preserve my life in many ways by providing good training, skilled and brave crew members, excellent maintenance personnel, and top-notch equipment (Sikorsky UH-60 A/A+/L/M). I’m humbled to have been a part in the work helicopters allowed me to do.
RPMN: Have you ever had an “oh, crap” moment involving helicopters? Can you summarize what happened?
Yes, by almost flying sideways into trees in self-induced whiteout conditions. My crew and I were practicing snow landings on a low-illumination night under NVGs. We were on our first approach
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