By Derek Royal
To be a professional helicopter pilot takes a ton of passion, devotion, time and money. Indeed, to be successful in this gig, pilots need to love to fly. But how tough is rotary pilot training? Why do some prefer rotary flying to fixed wing? What do they remember about their first solo? And are they surprised by their professional journey? Derek Royal spoke to four chopper pilots: American aircrane fire fighter Ryan van Dyck; Careflight Queensland's Adrian Park; Scott Bowers of the NSW national parks and wildlife service; and Helipro (New Zealand) Chief Pilot Tim Barrow, and came away with an appreciation of a special, tight knit club.
WHY DID YOU PURSUE A CAREER IN ROTARY AVIATION RATHER THAN FIXED WING?
RYAN VAN DYCK: I initially wanted to fly for the US Air Force, until I had my first helicopter ride during US Army Basic training. Then I was hooked, I had to fly helicopters, like the old saying “To fly is heavenly, but to hover is divine”. There is nothing like it in the world, you can come to a hover, pedal turn and reverse course, or even just fly backwards. You fly at lower altitudes and you get to see everything up very close, as opposed to flying at altitude and speed, where everything goes by in a blur.
ADRIAN PARK: I’m tempted to say it was a personality thing: that compromising one’s way into the air in a negotiation of speed and plank dynamics didn’t suit, but bashing into the air on the back of barely-constrained, super-rotating blades, did. But that would be a lie. I began my career in the military, and being in Australian Army Aviation, after initial training on aeroplanes, all of my courses were put on helicopters. After six months of plank-driving and aerobatics-induced dry retching, I realised that as an aeroplane driver I made a pretty good rotary wing pilot.
SCOTT BOWERS: Truth be told I always wanted to be a chef but I had a TIF (Trial Introductory Flight) in an R22 on my 16th birthday and that pretty much decided what I wanted to do. No more Master Chef dream.
TIM BARROW: I was brought up in the industry with a father and brother involved and have wanted to be a pilot for as long as I can remember.
WHAT WAS YOUR FLYING AMBITION WHEN YOU STARTED TRAINING?
RYAN: Fly, fly, fly. I wanted to do something unique, helpful and meaningful but not in an office cubicle.
ADRIAN: My ambition was to get through the next flight. Every flight was a test with essentially a two strikes and you’re out rule: fail one, get a remedial, and if you failed again you were out. Same for all the ground school exams which were always loaded with a 70 or 80 per cent pass mark. I really didn’t have time to think about what my ambitions were, I just wanted to pass. I remember at the start of course, being told I was duty officer in week seven or thereabouts and thinking ‘oh well, at least I won’t have to do that as I’ll be scrubbed by then’. Nonetheless I was determined that if I did get scrubbed I would know that I had given it every bit I could. Surprisingly, I didn’t get scrubbed although it wasn’t without a lot of tense moments and prayer to a higher power.
SCOTT: Didn’t really have one. At the age of 18 I just wanted to finish my CPL(H) and fly whatever helicopters I could.
WHAT DO YOU REMEMBER ABOUT YOUR FIRST SOLO?
RYAN: The most exciting, exhilirating, and one of the most scared times of my life. Getting turned loose with an aircraft that you barely know, you’re thinking “what if this or that happens?”, or “will I be able to complete the task?” “Can I do this all alone?” “Am I ready?” But on the other hand, it is a great feeling and sign of accomplishment. It’s hard to explain.
ADRIAN: On pilot’s course we had two solos: one on the CT4B Aerotrainer (FW) at Qurindi, NSW and the other on the AS350B Squirrel (RW) at Canberra Airport. Both were memorable but for different reasons. My solo on the CT4B was memorable because every time I tried to land, under the watchful eyes of my orange-suited, ground-bound but still intimidating instructor, there seemed to be at least two or three of the go-around criteria I had breached. Not lined up by 500 ft: tick. S turns on final: tick, general discomfort and sweating: tick. ‘All traffic Qurindi, this is CT4B YCE going around!’ (for the fourth time) dramatic silence ensued. Then a single word radio call came... ‘Again…’ So around I went. Anyway, I finally landed. Thankfully all landings except one were optional.
The second solo, the helicopter solo, was a much happier occasion. Going solo in a turbine helicopter has got to be the coolest thing. I still remember two key moments in the flight, two moments which I still enjoy on every flight even to this day: the turbine lighting off and winding up, and the first lift off. I loved then, and still do, the distinctive and increasing whine of the turbine as the starter spools up and then the ‘clack clack’ of the ignitors and then the sudden surges and peaks in exhaust gas temperature and compressor speeds. There’s something exciting even in the initial sound of the wind up, as though the increasing revs and temps and pressures are the prologue to some as yet unwritten flight adventure. The first lift is cool. The effortlessness of the hover is anything but. Thousands of spinning bits and pieces, many at crazy and contra angles, all conspire to produce a hovering miracle. The machine then sits gracefully on a 100 km/h tornado of air rushing blindly at the ground below. I still remember being at the centre of all that as a first time PIC and wondering how this could be me somehow controllng it all.
SCOTT: Unexpected! I had just completed a training flight with my instructor, Mark Gaudin, and we were going to return to Bankstown Airport when we diverted across to Hoxton Park to conduct a few circuits. After a few circuits we were on the ground and Mark then proceeded to step out of the aircraft and before pulling his headset out, basically said: “Off you go, three circuits and I’ll see you back on the ground“. It was exciting and absolutely nerve racking all at the same time. There’s not many flights where you’re extremely happy to be flying by yourself “and” in control of an aircraft for the first time and then extremely happy to be back on the ground and your instructor jumping back in with you. But it’s a step all pilots have to take and it’s a moment I’ve never forgotten.
TIM: First solo is probably one of the most engrained recollections I have, particularly the score boards coming out to judge the landing back at the old marine hangar!
WHAT ARE YOUR MOST CHERISHED MEMORIES FROM YOUR EARLY FLYING DAYS?
RYAN: Flying my family. Letting them experience the freedom, excitement, and the views that we aviators experience on a daily basis. Letting them experience at first hand the stories that they hear at the end of the day and wonder what it would be like to fly.
ADRIAN: Glorious, early morning flights going across the middle of Australia and the sense, at least in a small way, of being a pioneer and adventurer. Also the magnificence of some of the scenes and vistas that unless you’re a pilot, you never get to see: spectacular sunsets and sunrises, the amazing diversity of expansive beaches, snowy mountains, tropical islands, jungles and empty deserts all viewed from the ‘office’.
My first operational aircraft was the venerable Huey which is a great pilots machine and a great machine to learn on. It really was the Harley Davidson of the skies with super cool features like an ash tray (we weren’t allowed to use it of course), wooden throttle and big beefy pedals with ‘Bell’ on the left and ‘Huey’ on the right. It was the only aircraft where, when the other guy was flying, you could stick your elbow out the window like an Aussie ute driver.
We often did flying displays for Anzac Day and war memorial openings and I remember Vietnam vets telling me that it was the best of sounds and the worst of sounds: the best when the sound was coming to get you and the worst when it had just left you behind. I also remember without fail that most vets would tear up when we roared overhead in a ‘V’ formation – something they always told us about in the post flight Anzac drinks.
SCOTT: I was very lucky, right place right time sort of stuff. I had met a few people whilst I was training who at the time had no idea just how much they would help me accumulate my hours and get into the industry. I had just finished my licence and was faced with the possibility of heading north to hopefully find mustering or tourism work, starting as a hangar rat or working with aircraft on the ground trying to build hours. But I was contacted by a Childflight pilot I’d met during training and he gave me the phone number of Patrick Soars, owner of Australian Native Landscapes in Sydney. To cut a long story short, Pat owned a Bell 206 Jetranger and offered me a job, not just as a pilot but within his landscape supply company. Over the next three years I put on just under 300 hours and they would be the best 300 hours I’ve ever logged. I was a very lucky boy.
TIM: Probably revolves around some of the characters I have worked with. There was always good humour and the job was fun.
ARE YOU SURPRISED BY WHERE YOUR AVIATION JOURNEY HAS LED YOU?
RYAN: Not really, I have pretty much set myself up for my career path. In the past, I had spoken with senior pilots or management throughout the helicopter community. When I was a Junior Birdman, I listened to what they said, and how to get to where I needed to go. As an example one company said, “To work here you need 4000 hours PIC, 1000 hours long line, and a fire, utility background.” So I tailored my career to obtain those numbers and qualifications and got the job. I have had great mentors throughout my career who have guided me down the right paths, and the doors opened at the right times.
ADRIAN: You often zig when you think you are going to zag in life. One such ‘zig’ was when my family and I were posted to Fort Rucker, Alabama, USA, on an exchange program to complete my Huey Instructor Pilot Course. After a bunch of admin hassles getting there I had managed to get through half the course when the US Army grounded the whole Huey fleet for maintenance reasons and told my family and I that we would have to return to Australia.
This of course caused no small amount of consternation but evidently someone was looking after us when I managed to secure an interview with the officer commanding the flight training company. He at first offered me a swap to Kiowa’s (Militarised Bell 206s) which I wasn’t keen on for a number of reasons: change of role (recon), small (I’m in the hundred kilo club) and no ash tray or cool pedals.
Anyway, feeling bold probably because I had nothing to lose, tongue in cheek I asked if I could transfer to Black Hawks. I was surprised when he didn’t laugh in my face as I had zero time on the Black Hawk. He told me he would look into it and suprisingly, only a few days later, he said the US Army had okayed it all on the proviso that the Australian Army pay for it. “Well, that’s the end of that idea,” I thought, knowing that the chances of my organisation paying for such a thing were buckleys and none. Another surprise though, they did. Like I said, someone was looking after me.
A few days later I was doing Black Hawk academics. I did the qualification course followed by the instructor pilot course back-to-back and then spent a happy twelve months instructing Americans, Saudi Arabians and Israelis on the machine and telling people I wasn’t good enough for Hueys, which is why I ended up on Black Hawks. I noted curiously that Huey guys seemed to find it funny while Black Hawk guys did not.
If that was the zig, then the zag came when I returned home and was told by the Australian Army that because I had learned to fly the Black Hawk in the US and they were concerned about ‘standardisation’ issues I would have to do the whole Black Hawk course again. So there I was on course again with all the pilot newbies.
Once successfully ‘standardised’ which involved learning such things as the 17 ‘before landing’ checks for the Australian Black Hawk instead of the three ‘before landing’ checks on the US Black Hawk, I was sent to an operational unit for a year, which included a tour of East Timor and then, after some instructor standardisation training, I was finally allowed to instruct again. I did this until the next twist in the tale, in which I left the Army to do youth work for a few years. It was during that time I was asked to fly as a casual pilot for CareFlight in Toowoomba, which was good for two reasons: one, it allowed me to fly again and two, it helped pay some bills.
After being a casual for a year or so, I was asked to come on in a full time capacity and one thing led to another and I am now the base manager in Toowoomba.
SCOTT: No not really. Especially with helicopter pilots it’s a long road to build hours up and there are so many different applications for the use of helicopters that it’s only when you start to build some good hours up that all these different applications start to become available to you. And I guess after a while flying, pilots generally start to know what they like to do, whether its utility work or flying IFR as examples. From my early days at Australian Native Landscapes to now with National Parks its just been a great ride. Who know’s what I might want to do in years to come? But that’s the good thing about our industry, there’s a lot of variety and a lot of places around the world where you can go and fly.
WHAT GIVES YOU THE BIGGEST THRILL WHEN YOU’RE ON THE JOB FLYING?
RYAN: I still get the little tingling feeling in my stomach as I did the first time I flew. It is in my blood and soul. I don’t know or want to know what it will be like when I take my last flight.
ADRIAN: Two things: knowing that when I am in the sky I am part of something far bigger than myself and that when I fly I fly to help people.
SCOTT: For me pretty much all of it. The variety we have here at National Parks is fantastic. We can go from fire flighting to aerial shooting, to aerial spraying, to precision lifting. From the planning to the flying to achieving the desired outcome is what makes my job pretty cool.
TIM: This is hard to nail down. Over the years my favourite jobs have rated for different reasons and the thrills are all different. Filming the World Rally Championship with one of the top Wescam operators in the world for more than 12 seasons definitely rates as a highlight. I also really enjoy lifting and in particular our live line work or fires. Flying in New Zealand we are blessed with spectacular scenery everywhere and it’s hard no matter how often you see it not to be impressed. I also think that one of the great thrills in this industry is the reaction to giving someone new the novel experience of helicopter flight.
RYAN VAN DYCK
Age: 39
Flying Hours: 6,500-plus
Current Employment: Senior Pilot, Erickson Aircrane, USA
Previous Employment: US Army and various others, including law enforcement, tourism, EMS, offshore oil and gas support, construction, powerline patrol, long line, aerial application, frost control, animal herding, and logging.
Notes: A former US Army pilot who served in Desert Storm and Desert Shield, Ryan has worked in virtually every role possible in rotary aviation. Now a fire fighter who works all year round, Ryan flies the massive S-64 Aircrane to combat blazes in environments as diverse as Australia, Europe and North America.
ADRIAN PARK
Age: 39
Flying Hours: 4,000-plus
Current Employment: Base Manager, CareFlight Toowoomba
Previous Employment: Australian Army
Notes: A former Australian Army pilot, Adrian flew in Huey and Black Hawk squadrons and served in Timor before ultimately accepting an offer to work fulltime with CareFlight, Toowoomba.
SCOTT BOWERS
Age: 31
Flying Hours: 5,400-plus
Current Employment: Line Pilot, NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service
Previous Employment: Australian Native Landscapes, Heli-Aust, McIver Aviation
Notes: Scott struck gold when he earned a three year gig flying a Bell 206 Jetranger on a freshly inked CPL and now he enjoys the variety offered flying for the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service.
TIM BARROW
Age: 42
Current Employment: Chief Pilot HELiPRO (New Zealand)
Previous Employment: Marine Helicopters (Agricultural Pilot)
Notes: Kiwi Tim Barrow has been employed in the aviation industry for 26 years. In his role as Operations Manager (Chief Pilot) for HELiPRO in New Zealand, Tim flies a variety of rotor birds, including the BK117, AS355, AS350, H369 and the R44.
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