by Marc Mullis
Larry G. Brown knows how to play the waiting game. You see, he has been playing it for quite some time...since 1969 to be exact. That is how long Larry has been flying Sikorsky CH-54A helicopters. Commonly called the Skycrane, the “fifty-fours” are the heavy hitters of the helicopter world, especially in their role as firefighter where they serve as the largest heli-tankers in the U.S. fleet.
Larry and his crew are playing the game today in San Bernardino, California, where they are on call to respond to fire calls from the San Bernardino Airtanker Base. They have been on duty since early April. It is now early September. Heli-Tanker 794 has already flown more than 300 hours this year and the real fire season is just beginning here. The sun is hot and the relative humidity is very low prompting fire officials to issue “Red Flag Warnings”. These prompts usually mean long days at the heli-tanker base. Sometimes the days start at seven a.m. and end at eight p.m. The Santa Ana winds usually start kicking up around mid-September bringing with them an extreme fire danger to Southern California. Last year during the month of October, more than 3,700 homes were destroyed and hundreds of thousands of acres were blackened by the wind-driven flames. There are a lot of variables to be factored into the game.
Heavy Lift Helicopters, Inc. is one of five companies that operate Skycranes in the United States. Owned by Wanda and Harry Rogers and under the guidance of General Manager, Pat Patterson and Chief Pilot, Mike Gilpin, the company has been a key player in the development and deployment of the Skycrane.
First built for the military in 1968, the” fifty-fours” were utilized as heavy lifters during the Vietnam War. Whether moving equipment or transporting troops in detachable passenger pods, the Skycranes soon became a living legend. With twin Pratt & Whitney engines producing 4,500 shaft horsepower apiece, the cranes are able to lift a 20,000 pound payload for a max gross weight of 42,000 pounds. This heavy-lift capability comes at the expense of approximately 500 gallons of jet fuel per hour.
As the Vietnam War ground to an end, some of the Skycranes were tagged as surplus by the United States Government and this raised the eyebrows of a few operators in the private sector. Along with the release of the choppers came a cadre of highly trained ex-military flight and maintenance crews. Heavy Lift Helicopters, Inc. realized the opportunity and was soon operating a fleet of three CH-54As.
After release from military duty, the 1950’s technology helicopters were redesigned and rebuilt utilizing Federal Aviation Administration Type Certificate Data Sheet (TCDS) # H16NM. This TCDS is exclusive to the aircraft operated by Heavy Lift Helicopters, Inc. Their facilities include an F.A.A. approved repair station where all component and engine overhauls take place. Of approximately 110 Skycranes manufactured, about 30 are now in civil service operating in the restricted category.
Fire suppression isn’t the only role that Heavy Lift’s helos fill. When not dropping wet stuff on wildland fires, the cranes can be found placing transmission line towers in remote areas or installing air conditioning units on high rises in bustling cities. In some cases, helicopter operations are safer and can be less expensive than conventional lift methods. Before the deployment of Skycranes as heavy heli-tankers, they were used in logging operations in Northern California, Oregon, Washington and Alaska. Most all Skycranes in service today are employed as Heli-Tankers.
It takes a tremendous amount of support to operate an aircraft of this size and complexity. At 88.5 feet long and with a rotor diameter of 72.5 feet, it casts an imposing presence while sitting on the ramp. Larry’s crew is well qualified to keep the ship in the air.
Ian Oliver is the Crew Chief. Ian joined the military in 1968, went to Vietnam and served as a crew chief on Hueys the last two years of his service. After leaving the Army, he wound up working with Skycranes in 1973. Thirty-one years later he is still at it. His mobile shop would make any maintenance facility green with envy.
“We can do all of our work right here in the field. Anything from main transmission to engines can be swapped out wherever we happen to be. Back in Fresno, we keep over seven million dollars worth of spare engines, parts, and components. We carry enough spares to fix just about anything. This thing was designed to move Howitzers around, but she does an even better job of putting out fires,” Ian stated.
“I couldn’t imagine having any other job. This is just too much fun! Outfitted with fire fighting tanks we have a capacity of 2,600 gallons of water, foam, or retardant. With the ten inch snorkel we can load 1,800 to 2,000 gallons in 45 seconds.”
As Ian talks about his ship, one can sense the pride and respect he feels for this grand piece of machinery. “She’s not much to look at...a few paint chips here and there, but she was never meant to be pretty. The real beauty is that you can get to everything, making her really easy to work on.”
Charlie Evans Jr. is the Second Crew Chief with Sal Padilla serving as Crew Member and Alan King as Fuel Engineer. Michael Fogerty keeps them all straight acting as their Heli-Tanker manager from the National Forest Service. Teamwork is essential for a mission as complex as the one these guys execute. Having observed them in action, it is evident that each member is confident and efficient in his role. No orders have to be given because everyone knows what is expected of them and gets it done. It has been an honor for me to fly on fires with this bunch of guys.
Larry has all the qualifications to lead this team of fire fighters. He went into the military in 1966 as an E1 (private) and by 1967 was flying scout helicopters as a warrant officer. By 1969 he had moved into the then brand new Sikorsky CH-54A Skycrane. During his service in Vietnam, Larry received a battle field commission. He continued his military career giving 20 years of duty and 30 years of service, the last six as a Colonel. He retired from the military in 1996 and continued his long love affair with the Skycrane, but now wearing a civilian helmet. He and his crew have done heli-logging and construction with the big helicopter, but it is the fire duty that they really enjoy.
“It’s really a kick when a big fire breaks. In October, 2003, the Grand Fire and the Old Fire (Waterman Canyon) burned together here just north of San Bernardino. We were mostly doing structure protection...actually fighting fires between houses...flying eight hours a day, timing out every day. Our water source was right off the end of the runway and airtankers were coming and going like mad! It was a real blast! Larry recounts the first day of the fire,
“We actually saw the fire start while we were out here on the ramp. By the time we got dispatched it was really ripping! We were just trying to save as many houses as possible. There was an inversion trapping the smoke in the valley and pretty soon the ceiling was only a coupla hundred feet. The heli-tankers were able to keep working down low, but the heavy airtankers could not land because of the visibility. Finally a hole opened in the east end of the valley and the tankers were able to land. It was quite a show around here for a few days!”
The shadows are getting long in the San Bernardino Mountains. Today’s waiting game is slowly coming to an end. It will most assuredly start again in the morning. As the aircrew of heavy heli-tanker 794 prepare to put the beast to bed and make their way to their hotel rooms they discuss the days to come.
“When the Santa Anas come, this valley will burn. It always has and it always will. When the fires get started, the waiting game will be over.”