Making the Tough Call

I am officially the bad guy. But before I get into that, I must say that the snow 'shore is purdee'! I know that I have been talking a lot about the snow, but we just don't get this much of it on the Oregon Coast...ever. The talking heads on the news are saying that we're in for a bunch more tomorrow. It may actually be a white Christmas in Seaside!

I almost went surfing in the snow today. Camille was having none of it, but I went and checked the surf anyway. I'm jonesin' for some surf, man! It didn't look that great when I looked at it, so I ran some errands and we went to the gym. On the way to the gym, our friend Hailey called and said that it was looking better and she wanted us to come out with her. I have to work tonight and by that time, it was too late for a surf session. Wild 'My Little Ponies' with fairies on their backs carrying ice cream cones and back-stage passes to the No Doubt reunion tour couldn't have convinced Camille to paddle out for a third year in a row in a snowstorm. But I'm not quite as smart as she is. So I was spared a mild case of hypothermia only because I have to work tonight.

So here I am at work and I am officially the 'Bad Guy'. A total jerk. At least that's what my customers think tonight. I had to make a hard decision and it made a lot of people mad. And probably saved a couple of lives. Or serious damage to the helicopter. It always amazes me just how much people hate to be told "No". No one cares about safety until it is too late, it seems. Oh sure, we love to give safety some awesome lip service, but in reality, we'll take the convenience of 'gettin' lucky' or 'getting away with that one' any day over being inconvenienced by making the safe call.

Did I mention that the snow is beautiful? It's also deadly. Or it can be in a helicopter with no anti-ice capability. The layer of soft Christmas-y whiteness that carpets the area is truly breathtaking. But it can also be life-taking when trying to land a multi-engine helicopter. All of that fluffy loveliness gets whipped into a cloud of white as the helicopter nears the ground and can cause the pilot to lose all visual cues in a whirlwind of colorlessness and...well, and crash. Flying in falling snow presents a whole new dilemma. Windshields and rotor blades can ice up, causing the helicopter to lose lift (and...well, and crash). Worse yet, the engine inlets can freeze up, causing the engines to fail and the helicopter to fall out of the sky (and...well, and crash).

For us though, the snow causes problems before we even get into the air. As I am sure is the case in your town, the tax money we pay here doesn't always make it to where it is really needed. The Port of Astoria, in it's infinite wisdom (Can you feel the sarcasm seeping from your computer screen?), has decided that the only airport on the north Oregon Coast with instrument landings and commercial-capable runways and services has no need of snow removal. This means that the flightline outside of our hangar is under a solid sheet of ice covered with several inches of snow as we speak. For a lot of reasons, you can't leave a multi-million dollar helicopter out in the snow. That would make about as much sense as letting your sixteen-year-old drag race with your brand new Ferarri Enzo...in the mud...while lighting sticks of dynamite...I'll stop there. So, we have to keep the aircraft in the hangar when we aren't flying. Which means (stick with me here, I know I'm moving kinda fast) that we have to pull the aircraft out of the hangar before we go fly.

Now, you're probably thinking, "Huh? What's the big deal? Pull the helicopter out, go fly. Pretty simple." It would be if it weren't for the wonderful Christmas present that the Port of Astoria left us by not plowing the snow off of the flightline. The towing setup for the Agusta 109 helicopter was designed by the 3 Stooges to begin with. Add ice and snow to the equation and you may as well just take a sledgehammer to the helicopter while it is still inside the hangar - something is gonna get broken and you'll save yourself from having to go out in the cold.

Now, considering how much our little 'toy' is worth, my boss has made it very clear to me that he will always support my decisions but that priority number one is to not damage the helicopter. OK, in case he's reading this, I'll add that he does agree that not getting anyone hurt or killed trumps not damaging the helicopter. But, that helicopter is our paycheck. If we break it, the company loses money, which can eventually lead to all of us losing money, or our jobs. If we break it because we were doing something stupid, we can skip straight to the part about us losing our jobs. Trying to tow that big, multi-million dollar piece of machinery out of the hangar onto a sheet of ice where the tow-bar can jack-knife, break and take out the nose or landing gear of the helicopter would be in the 'stupid' category. Oh, and did I mention the fact that there are a bunch of other planes outside our hangar that the helicopter could slide into and break as well? Basically, if my crew and I bust up the aircraft in the simple act of towing it out of the hangar, we had better just get in our cars and start driving...until we get to Peru.

Whew! That's a mighty long way to say that I have decided that we won't be flying in the snow or the icy conditions tonight. It all makes perfect sense to me. Unfortunately, not flying means that my customers will have to board ships tonight using their Pilot Boat. Several of them are extremely fond of flying to work rather than taking the boat. We only have two ships to work tonight, but unfortunately for us, the two marine pilots who will be bringing them in are of the flyin' kind. And they're not real happy to hear me tell them 'no'. I've already had one ear-full and I'm expecting another in about an hour.

My job is mostly about customer service. Over the years, I've developed a good rapport with my customers by being a safe, capable pilot and having a can-do attitude. That still doesn't change the fact that they are paying a lot of money for the use of a helicopter and they just don't like to be told what they can and can't do. I can't say that I blame them. But my number one job is to keep everyone and everything safe. Which means that sometimes, like tonight, I have to make a hard decision that I know no one will like. Sometimes I have to choose safety over popularity. It isn't fun, but that why I am paid to be a Captain here. Ultimately, the decisions a the Captain of an aircraft must make are much harder than the actual flying.

You know, that kinda extends to the rest of my life. And yours too. Making the correct decision...standing up for what is right...is often times the hard route. It is usually so much easier to compromise. Whether it be choosing to not risk lives and damage an aircraft or choosing to bite the bullet and be the first one to apologize to reconcile a broken friendship, doing what needs to be done is often a tough call. How much easier is it to get that extra few minutes of sleep in the morning than to force yourself out of bed and spend a few minutes with God? Ouch! That one hurt me! Chances are, right now you are thinking of a situation in your own life where you need to make that tough decision. Sometimes, doing the right thing can even threaten relationships or careers. But in the long run, the benefits of making those tough decisions will outweigh the momentary discomfort they may cause. I didn't kill anyone tonight. The helicopter is still in one piece and will be ready for service when the ice melts. Eventually, my customers will be grateful for that. Lord, please help me to swallow hard and choose do 'do the right thing' in every area of my life!