The Aviators Thread

People may fly low .... but there is always room for a Buccaneer......

.

Big Lady Big Lady ... Chopper 1 Chopper1

Big Lady ... State your intentions.

Chopper1 ... Requesting urgent landing clearance, we're on bingo and Maddog is puking.

Big Lady ... Can you return to your own vessel?

Chopper1 ... Our Flight Deck Crew have stood down, something about the weather.



Big Lady ... No problem Chopper1, we have a FWD pad.

(pic of Big Lady)



Big Lady ... Chopper1 ... just hold for a minute, OOF ... will advise ...OOF.....



Chopper1 ... Just a minute .... nearly there ... OOF....



Chopper1 ... Won't ... EEEEEE UP ... be long now.......



Chopper1 ... OK, ready when you are, FWD Flight Deck is clear for landing, just let it dry off.

Contractor: "We need a load delivered in Prudhoe Bay".

Helo Driver : "Can do".

Contractor: "Dream on rotorhead, it weighs 200 tons, a helo ain't gunna do it!".

Helo Driver : "Hold my beer".

I may have posted ^^^ before, but it's always good to educate people on the capabilities of woka woka aircraft.

Background reading.

https://www.reddit.com/r/aviation/comments/52tleq/columbia_helicopters_vertol_107ii_towing_a_hover/

https://www.reddit.com/r/Helicopter...ld_photo_of_one_our_boeing_107s_pulling_a_20/

I need one of those!

I just put a bid in on one on EBay

What a great thread!

I have been loitering here on the Forum for a few years now. I don't remember ever introducing myself and @Jones in LA mentioned this thread to me recently. It has taken me a bit to read through it all. I have thoroughly enjoyed all of the posts. Let me see if I can tell you a bit about myself:

I started out my working life when I graduated as a Quantity Surveyor way back in 1985. It served me well and afforded me opportunities to work on interesting civil engineering and building projects in South Africa, England and Australia. I even worked on parts of the London Underground refurbishment and ticketing installation project, back in the late 80's. I have since worked in the Scuba Diving Industry, Cruise and Expedition Travel and the Safari business. I was made redundant right after 9/11. It was then that I decided to complete my Helicopter Flight training while I was waiting for the travel industry to recover. In June 2023 I became a CFII and spent the next couple of years hour building in Florida and Oklahoma. Mostly teaching students at the flight school and working with some interesting corporate clients, along the way.

In January of 2006 I joined PHI Inc. It was here that I graduated from pistons to turbines. Initially I flew offshore support in the Gulf of Mexico, in the BH206 and BH407. That was very busy time working seven day / 35 flight hour work weeks flying men and equipment to and from the oil platforms.

In January of 2007 I got a lucky break when an EMS position opened up in McKinney, Tx. I say lucky because we had built a house in Dallas a few years earlier. Now I was 25 miles from the house and not having to be way for seven days at a time. I transitioned into the EC135 and have been flying the same aircraft since.

For the first 11 years I flew 911 in the Dallas area. Primary aircraft was the EC135 with the BH407 as backup. Flying with a nurse and paramedic crew, no two shifts are ever the same. We covered everything from traffic, industrial and domestic accidents plus interfacility patient transports within 100 mile radius of our base.



BH 407 with Scott and Jason

In late 2018 I followed the aircraft when PHI entered into a contract with Medical City Hospitals in Dallas. For the last 5 years I have been flying the Medical City Specialty Transport Teams. There are three teams at our base, on any given day. The Neonate, Pediatric and Maternal teams have us flying longer distance flights to bring premature babies, young children and expecting mothers back into Dallas for specialist treatments and procedures. Occasionally we transport children out to Houston, Austin, San Antonio, Shreveport or Oklahoma City. It all depends on the season and availability of patient beds.



EC 135 with Lacey and Scott (plus a 16750) at Medical City Heart and Spine, Dallas




Neonate Team Kristin and Stacy @ Medical City Dallas





Jason and Scott and the Isolette @ Cooks Childrens Ft Worth

In 2015 we graduated to flying Single Pilot IFR. Our network of PINS (instrument approaches) into our hospitals, has added another level to our operations. In the picture below we are on and IFR flight plan @ 3000ft over Dallas. We had been out to West Texas VFR NVG to pick up the patient. On the way back the ceilings and visibility were deteriorating so we picked up an IFR clearance, got on top to enjoy the sunrise going home.




I have been collecting watches ever since I received my first real paycheck. There is no telling which watch I will wear at work on any given day. I find that my GMT or my Seiko Divers appear in most of my pictures. I am guilty of using the aircrafts instrument panel as a background for a lot of pictures I take.




Fly Safe!

Glad I got to give you the first Like! Just love these images and all the backstories. Looking forward to more!

Hi @Charlie3755! It's on my list to add rotor to my existing certificate. I'm finally located in a place with some helicopters to train in, just gotta get the funds up.

Speaking of which, it sounds like I've just landed a contract to haul jumpers in a C208 this season. Should get me to ATP mins quickly as I only need a couple hundred hours. Once I get into a more stable flying job and things settle down on the home front I should be able to start in the helos! I would surmise, however, the lady will be pissed if I did that before she gets a ring on her dainty little finger...😟

Concorde.
The watch looks to be a chrono of unknown make.