It's now been almost 2-1/2 years since my son took out some high voltage
lines near Jamestown, NY with a New York State Police helicopter.
Despite being at an elevation of 205 feet he and his passenger both
survived. He has been trying to regain his health and flight status
ever since but has been unsuccessful due to occasional (maybe once or
twice a week) fleeting bouts of vertigo that last for about 1-2
seconds. It's a long way from the room spinning stuff that plagued him
for the first six months following the accident but it's not 100 0one.
Anyhow, the FAA finally decided this past week that they will not renew
his Class 2 license until he has been 100 0.000000ree of all symptoms for at
least one year. So, the State Police had to decide whether to place him
on permanent disability or (a surprise to me) put him back to work on
road patrol. They chose the latter and, of course, that also meant that
he was demoted from his technical sergeant's flight position and salary
to that of an ordinary trooper. He did that job briefly before assuming
his pilot's position but it has been 13 years ago. So, if you're
inclined to drive above the speed limit near Niagara Falls in the next
couple of weeks you may be safe for awhile. He tells me he hasn't a
clue about how to operate a modern radar gun.
Since he's also a New York National Guard helicopter pilot his flight
status there is still up in the air. The flight surgeon has recommended
he be re-instated with a restriction to two-pilot aircraft. However,
that's really not a restriction since the army only flies two-pilot
aircraft. Still waiting on that one. As you might guess we're all a
bit down at the moment. Flying was what he lived to do.
Sorry for the long OT. If you never saw the full story search the 1999
archives on "helicopter" and go back to September 27, 1999.
Chuck Norcutt
Woburn, Massachusetts, USA
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