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May
27
2025
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Posted 4 days ago ago by Admin
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RPMN: What is your current position?
I work as a utility helicopter pilot in Alaska, where a helicopter is often the only way to transport passengers and supplies to remote areas. Conducting aerial surveys, pipeline, and power-line inspections, slinging equipment to mountain tops or conducting crew changes for offshore platforms and container ships in the Bell 206 and 407 are just a few examples of my various tasks. The ever-changing weather can be a challenge: Besides extreme temperatures, we often deal with complex weather patterns that can shift rapidly and unpredictably.
RPMN: Tell me about your first experience with helicopters.
Growing up near an army base in Germany, I fell in love with the sound of an approaching helicopter as a child. At the age of 14 I participated in a student exchange to Rouen, a city in North France. The father of my exchange student happened to be a helicopter pilot, and he surprised me with a flight in – I think – a Bell Jet Ranger. To this day, I remember the adrenaline rush of the vertical takeoff and being airborne for the first time in my life. After that I was hooked and became a regular visitor at a local airport for short helicopter sightseeing flights.
RPMN: How did you get your start in the helicopter industry?
I found myself at a crossroad in my personal and professional life and took some time to reevaluate my life goals. I came back to my childhood dream of flying, and to satisfy my ongoing wanderlust, I began researching flight schools all over the world. After comparing training costs, visa requirements and work permits, I settled on a flight school near Portland, Oregon, known for their international program including a two-year work experience.
RPMN: When and how did you choose the helicopter industry? Or did it choose you?
I chose it when I set my mind on becoming a helicopter pilot in 2013. The decision to pursue a drastically different career was a major change in my life, which opened up many unexpected opportunities, but also came with substantial struggles: I had to pay out of pocket for my training, and the road to finally make a living as a pilot was long and hard. I can’t thank my family and many fantastic friends enough for their incredible support.
RPMN: Where did you get your start flying or maintaining professionally?
After finishing flight school, I moved to Orlando, Florida, where I conducted “flightseeing” tours over the Disney attractions, the Daytona 500 race track, and even the Space Shuttle runway at Cape Canaveral, before I relocated to the Florida Panhandle to fly customers over the famous white sandy beaches. Once I had gained the required flight experience, I was fortunate enough to be hired by Papillon Helicopters. For more than four years I took guests above the Grand Canyon, conducted VIP charter flights and was able to advance into the utility world. While mostly being a tour pilot for so many years might not be for everyone, I always found the sheer awe in my customers' eyes extremely rewarding.
RPMN: If you were not in the helicopter industry, what else would you see yourself doing?
I like to think that I would work a remote job while traveling and exploring this beautiful planet, or work at maybe an outdoor job like many of the customers I fly now – Fish and Wildlife, land surveyor, work in the field for the Division of Land, Water and Mining ... anything but sit in an office and stare out the window like I used to.
RPMN: What do you enjoy doing on your days off?
My work schedule takes me away from home for months at a time, and when I am at home, I try to have a somewhat normal lifestyle with activities like going to the gym, cooking or meeting friends. But I also love to head out on road trips to the many stunning National Parks in the Southwest, and I enjoy visiting old colleagues at the Grand Canyon. Once or twice a year I jump across the Atlantic to see my family and friends in Germany.
RPMN: What is your greatest career accomplishment to date?
There are many smaller milestones that led to the amazing job I have now: The first flight with passengers, the first turbine job, the first long-line experience, the first OAS checkride, the first flight across international borders – the list is long. Each one was the greatest accomplishment at the time, but every aviation accident reminds me that doing my best to be a safe pilot is my greatest ongoing accomplishment.
RPMN: Have you ever had an “oh, crap” moment in helicopters? Can you summarize what happened?
Nothing serious that resulted in an accident, incident or injury, thank God. But relatively small things like an almost bird strike, the occasional drone or even airplane out of nowhere (sadly many pilots in Alaska don´t make radio calls) or simply the helicopter shifting on uneven ground after setting down have gotten my heart rate going.
RPMN: If you could give only one piece of advice to new pilots, mechanics, or support personnel, what would it be?
Whether you do maintenance on a helicopter, are hot loading or refueling, whether you are a pilot doing your preflight, the route plan or are in the air: Don’t rush it.
RPMN: In your view, what is the greatest challenge for the helicopter industry at this moment in time?
The lack of young pilots. Chief pilots don´t have stacks of resumes sitting on their desks anymore. While it may seem like an advantage for pilots who are looking for employment, it is becoming more difficult for companies to fill spots with qualified applicants, and I think it will impact the industry in the long run – possibly until we see autonomous “helicopter drones” take over more and more pilot jobs.
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