Life of a helicopter pilot

Into the Ice

Tom A. Østrem Leave a comment

This March I had the pleasure of being the pilot for a research expedition to the ice just east of Greenland, led by the Institute of Marine Research.

We landed onboard the Norwegian Coast Guard icebreaker KV Svalbard in Tromsø, then steamed west for roughly 750nm to the West Ice. We were close enough to the coast of Greenland to see land in the distance most of the time.

Our objective was threefold.

1. Locate Harp and Hooded seal breeding patches.

2. Place GPS markers around the patches. This would make it easier for the fixed-wing asset responsible for aerial photography to locate the seals. The pictures from that is used to count the seal pups.

3. Staging. Flying transects through the patch where the researchers note the age of the pups. This is possible due to how fast the seals grow over a limited period of time. Harp pups are left to fend for themselves after 12 days, and Hood pups after 5.

We only had 6 days in the ice, so we were quite busy when the weather was on our side. Unfortunately the last round of staging had to be cancelled due to extremely poor visibility and low ceiling.

Though a short trip, it was a really nice experience, and I would like to thank all those who participated.

Article in Aug/Sept 2018 issue of Vertical Magazine: Into the Ice

A Couple of Weeks in Pictures

Tom A. Østrem Leave a comment

I am very busy these days with various work to get done, so I haven’t been able to post nearly as much as I want to. Today I’d like to share some random pictures taken by me or my loadmasters the last two weeks. My first day was spent doing an audit, so not much pictureworthy about that. The rest was much better though.

I really love flying the B2. Though not as powerful as the B3, it is a very smooth ride. And as far as internal load goes, it is sometimes better than the B3, seeing as some of them have a higher dry operating weight. This bird has more than 12 000hrs.

Later in the week I was given a B3 in order to carry out some heavier lifts and improve my range between refuelling. The most notable difference in the cockpit compared to the B2 is the inclusion of the VEMD screens. New B2s will have this as well, but none of ours do.

  Continue reading →

For the Right Reasons

Tom A. Østrem Leave a comment

There is no getting away from the fact that being a pilot looks very appealing to many. And judging by the pictures I share it looks like a dream job on the surface. What isn’t as apparent though is the hard work most of us put in to get where we are. Even less apparent is the large number of fellow flight school students who fail to achieve their perceived dream. They are no different from the rest of us, just as bright (or even brighter perhaps) and just as good. So why do they leave the industry before reaching their goal? Continue reading →