http://www.saflyermag.com
and this is what they look for as they need
someone reliable who will enjoy the rough
nature of the work.
SOUNDS LIKE A CLASSIC CASE
OF RIGHT TIME, RIGHT PLACE
AND RIGHT CONTACT. WHAT DO
OPERATORS LOOK FOR IN TERMS OF
QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE?
I am not 100% sure and it varies from
area to area and operation to operation, but
I think it is safe to say that generally they
prefer a minimum of 500 hours flying time
as the flying is often on hot, windy days and
you fly into bush airstrips surrounded by tall
trees. A rating on the Cessna 206 and/or
182 helps as well.
They also look for people who are not
whiling away the time building hours trying
for the airlines – this kind of work needs a
different mentality. You have to be happy
getting dirty and cold while sitting out on
standby at some remote airstrip, and you
must be totally committed for the whole
season.
WHAT IS THE PAY LIKE IN AN AVERAGE
SPOTTING JOB?
As far as first flying jobs go the pay
is probably one of the best, because you
fill much more than a pilot’s position.
When you are overhead a fire you take
up a managerial position and have to
make decisions for much more than just
yourself. A wrong decision can have huge
ramifications, the least of which can be
huge destruction to forestry, veld and
private property. The worst case being that
your bad decisions could get someone
hurt or killed. Although the pay is good, the
contracts generally only run for five months
of the year.
WHAT ARE THE PERKS OF THE JOB?
I enjoy the different challenges that
each fire brings. Every fire is unique and
has its own constraints, challenges and
character. When the siren sounds you never
quite know what you will be facing. I also
really enjoy flying with some great pilots
who are always happy to give advice. There
is a great sense of achievement when we
effectively extinguish a fire, saving property
and sometimes lives.
AND THE NEGATIVES?
Being stuck near or on the base seven
days a week for five months non-stop gives
you a serious case of cabin fever. You are
on call most of the time so you need to be
no more than 30 minutes from the base at
all times. Often you are on five minute call
and so spend the entire day sitting around
on the base waiting for the siren to blast.
I CAN IMAGINE THAT BY THE END
OF THE SEASON YOU ARE GLAD IT’S
OVER. HOW MUCH FIRE-SPOTTING
FLYING DO YOU DO ANNUALLY?
It changes from year to year depending
on the weather and the forester’s
willingness to call in aerial assets. In the
past six years it ranged between 20 and 80
hours a season. Not much, but definitely
some of the most interesting flying I have
done.
COULD YOU ELABORATE ON THE
ACTUAL FIRE SPOTTING?
Flying the aircraft is the least of the
work. There is much more that goes into
spotting a fire than just flying around
and passing on messages. You need to
take pictures of the fire as you arrive and
thereafter periodically to capture how the
fire behaves.
For communication we monitor
three radios: a ground radio to the fire
boss, a separate frequency for air to air
communication with the bombers, and then
the local general aviation frequency. We
also take notes for reports and feedback.
Then there are the bombers. You
constantly have to plan the next target drop
on the fire and because the bombers often
come in close together, you need to be able
to describe the target and identify dangers
to the bombers such as power lines, widow
makers (lone dead trees standing above
the surrounds), cell phone masts and so
on. Often the bombers’ view is obscured by
smoke so talking them onto the target and
warning of hazards is critical.
You also have to keep an eye on the
weather at all times, as sudden changes will
Fire spotting requires landing and spending
many hours on remote bush strips.
You have to manage the bombers, helicopters
and ground crews while fire spotting.
SPOTTING
