Relfy Posted July 13, 2011 Share Posted July 13, 2011 Here are a couple of short clips of some medivacs over the past week. The RFDS really do a fantastic job in all manner of conditions. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Jake.f Posted July 13, 2011 Share Posted July 13, 2011 Pretty much my dream job right there, they do brilliant work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
farri Posted July 13, 2011 Share Posted July 13, 2011 I had the privilage of instructing, in the Drifter, the son, ( Now flying 737 for QUANTAS ), of a guy who was the chief pilot for the RFDS in Cairns, at the time. ( Now retired ) On two ocasions,I had the privilage of the right hand seat, in the King Air, doing the clinic run, north of Cairns, around the Cape York area! Excellent experience! Yes, they realy do a mighty job!!!:thumb_up: Frank. PS, If you think I`m blowing my own trumper?......... Your probably right!!!..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Jake.f Posted July 14, 2011 Share Posted July 14, 2011 Do RFDS mainly do single pilot ops? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winsor68 Posted July 14, 2011 Share Posted July 14, 2011 Where was that taken Relfy? That is beautiful rough bush country. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
farri Posted July 14, 2011 Share Posted July 14, 2011 Jake, I`m not sure what they do today, but I remember thinking at the time! "Hey, there`s only one pilot, I wonder if I could fly this back to Cairns if I had to". Frank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Exadios Posted July 14, 2011 Share Posted July 14, 2011 Do RFDS mainly do single pilot ops? Most RFDS flights are single pilot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Relfy Posted July 14, 2011 Author Share Posted July 14, 2011 Taken out here near cunnamulla over the past week and a bit. One from a bad head on and one from a helo crash. All single pilot ops out here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
facthunter Posted July 14, 2011 Share Posted July 14, 2011 Yes , single pilot, even at night when the weather can be S***, as well . and you're tired. They do do a great job. Not all beer and skittles though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlyingVizsla Posted July 14, 2011 Share Posted July 14, 2011 Relfy, Springsure is sending out a local nurse to start on the Charleville RFDS - she has been acting Director of Nursing at Springsure until the real one decided unexpectedly to return after about 2 years away. Be nice to Tammy - she comes highly recommended and we will miss her here. I had a free flight on the RFDS about 3 years ago and the whole experience, including picking up a footy casualty in Moura, landing at Rocky, went seamlessly. Plane landed as the ambulance arrived and I was nodding off I was so comfortable. Lying in A&E waiting for a bed was longer than all the other things combined. The eerie thing was, I got evacuated the same day as his first wife, to the same hospital to the same bed (a floor below) and discharged the same day his first wife died. I put it this way. He put one in and got one out. RFDS gets our donation for an awesome job. Sue (the one who survived) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Relfy Posted July 14, 2011 Author Share Posted July 14, 2011 I'll be sure to keep an eye out for her. The take off clip actually shows my little jab in amongst the other vehicles. I was on my way back from getting a service in Charleville when I got the call about the prang. I flew over to talk to the ground crew and find out if i had to attend for the forensic crash examination when I saw the RFDS plane circling attempting to land on a road, which turned out to be unsuitable due clearance issues. The pilot spoke with me and asked me about that strip so I went and checked it out and after a few low passes to shoo a few wild pigs off it, I landed and guided the firies in to get rid of a few shrubs and gave the pilot a rundown of the strip and he landed successfully. The pilots love the mission based flying and the great diversity. Couple that with helping people in need and I think it's a fantastic job with some of the nicest pilots I've ever met. They all love talking shop and are very friendly. My LAME also does the maintenance on the PC12 and was telling me about the extensive inspections and wear on tear on the aircraft, which is substantial due to the type of work they are involved in. Any chance I get I donate to the RFDS! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rgmwa Posted July 14, 2011 Share Posted July 14, 2011 When I was doing my PPL, I was on a nav exercise with my very experienced instructor. The plan included a T&G on a gravel airstrip in a country town in WA. The single strip was narrow and carved out of the bush, and the crosswind was fierce - about 25kts, so my instructor changed the T&G to a strip inspection, saying that he would have had trouble himself getting in on the day. Prior to that we'd heard the RFDS PC12 report that he was heading for the same strip, and he called us up as we were departing to ask about the conditions. A little later, we heard him report his intended landing direction with obvious tension in his voice, then he changed his mind and came in from the opposite direction. I made a comment to my instructor, and he said "those guys do a great job. They HAVE to get in, we don't, but if I had my time over again, I'd love to have been an RFDS pilot ". I've often watched their PC12's come in at Jandakot and admired their consistently smooth touchdowns (like the one in the vid.). Every now and then I manage to pull off a `flying doctor landing', which is about as close as I'll ever get! rgmwa Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Jake.f Posted July 14, 2011 Share Posted July 14, 2011 If I manage to luck out and get accepted into medical school at the end of this year I will definitely be trying to set myself up to get a job with the RFDS, I think it would be an extremely rewarding job, and the fact that they are mainly single pilot ops means I'm sure I could talk my way into the right seat whenever a patient was not on board Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Howard Hughes Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 A tough day at the office.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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