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November 5, 2007
Fall brings many challenges to flying in Northern Canada. While the air is quick to cool and bring winter to the land, the water in the many lakes and rivers keeps its summer warmth longer into the fall, creating dense fog on clear, chilly mornings. Pilots can't rush things this time of year; and even after the sun's rays have burnt off the fog later in the morning, many of the valleys followed by pilots to get to their destinations stay plugged with fog and mist. Most bush pilots work together this time of year, and one pilot may choose to fly in one direction as the fog clears, radioing the conditions back to both colleagues and competitors.
November 12, 2007
As the calendar creeps ever closer to winter, new demands face pilots wanting to fly their aircraft. Although the water eventually cools enough for the morning fogs to dwindle, mother nature throws another twist at the pilots when the lakes start to freeze. The water's edges freeze first locking docks and shorelines in a thin sheet of ice. To use the open water nearer the center of the lake as his runway, this pilot must break the ice by hand to clear a path to the center of the lake for takeoff. He also must make sure that there is absolutely no trace of frost or ice on the wings or the plane will struggle to fly.
November 19, 2007
Once the lakes finally freeze but before the bulk of the winter snows arrive, any flying must be done between runways and landing strips, so the floats used for water landings are removed and wheels or wheel-skiis installed. Some pilots aren't that comfortable flying "between seasons" in remote areas as there aren't many emergency landing areas available. Lakes haven't frozen enough yet to make landing on the thin ice safe or even possible, and river sandbars often have too much snow on them to land safely without skiis. It's usually close to Christmas when there is enough ice on the lakes to safely operate bush planes like this deHavilland DHC-3 Otter.
November 26, 2007
The NovaGold project at Galore Creek is the talk of the North. This $2 billion project to access massive gold and copper reserves is one of this area's biggest ever logistical challenges and is employing many Northerners in its immense construction project. As the mine is located many kilometers from the nearest road, everything has to be flown in by helicopter, including heavy equipment, fuel, and even the camps for workers to live in. Two Russian heavy-lift helicopters are among the many working here, with the Kamov KA-32 and its counter-rotating blades picking up a load as the Mi-26, the world's largest helicopiter, flies by to deliver its "on the hook" payload.
