Bush Pilots
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Bush flying refers to aircraft operations carried out in
the bush "The bush" is a term mostly used in the English vernacular of Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, where it is largely synonymous with hinterlands or backwoods. The fauna and flora contained within the bush is typically native to the regi ...
. Bush flying involves operations in rough terrain where there are often no prepared landing strips or runways, frequently necessitating that bush planes be equipped with abnormally large tires, skis, skids or any other equipment necessary for unpaved runway operation. It is the only viable way of delivering people and supplies into more difficult to reach, remote locations.


Etymology

This term ''bush'' has been used since the 19th century to describe remote wilderness area beyond clearings and settlements hence ''bush flying'' denotes flight operations carried out in such remote regions. In Australia, in particular, bush refers to areas that might be called forest or wilderness in other countries.


Purpose

Bush flying is the primary and sometimes the only method of access across
Northern Canada Northern Canada (), colloquially the North or the Territories, is the vast northernmost region of Canada, variously defined by geography and politics. Politically, the term refers to the three Provinces_and_territories_of_Canada#Territories, terr ...
,
Western Canada Western Canada, also referred to as the Western provinces, Canadian West, or Western provinces of Canada, and commonly known within Canada as the West, is a list of regions of Canada, Canadian region that includes the four western provinces and t ...
,
Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...
, the
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
n
Outback The Outback is a remote, vast, sparsely populated area of Australia. The Outback is more remote than Australian bush, the bush. While often envisaged as being arid, the Outback regions extend from the northern to southern Australian coastli ...
and many other parts of the world.


History

In Canada, the first real use of bush flying was for exploration and development, while in Alaska, transportation was the main purpose. Later, bush flying became important during rescue operations. Bush pilots are needed in rescue operations and are important for many different reasons.


Canada

After the 1918
Armistice with Germany {{Short description, none This is a list of armistices signed by the German Empire (1871–1918) or Nazi Germany (1933–1945). An armistice is a temporary agreement to cease hostilities. The period of an armistice may be used to negotiate a peace t ...
, Ellwood Wilson, a
Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...
forester A forester is a person who practises forest management and forestry, the science, art, and profession of managing forests. Foresters engage in a broad range of activities including ecological restoration and management of protected areas. Fores ...
employed by the Laurentide Company in
Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...
, realized that
airplanes An airplane (American English), or aeroplane (Commonwealth English), informally plane, is a fixed-wing aircraft that is propelled forward by thrust from a jet engine, propeller, or rocket engine. Airplanes come in a variety of sizes, shapes, ...
could be used to spot
forest fire A wildfire, forest fire, or a bushfire is an unplanned and uncontrolled fire in an area of combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire may be more specifically identified as a bushfire ( in Australia), dese ...
s and to
map A map is a symbolic depiction of interrelationships, commonly spatial, between things within a space. A map may be annotated with text and graphics. Like any graphic, a map may be fixed to paper or other durable media, or may be displayed on ...
forested areas. In early 1919, after Wilson discovered that the
U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest displacement, at 4.5 million tons in 2021. It has the world's largest aircraft ...
was giving Canada several war-surplus Curtiss HS-2L flying boats, he asked to borrow two. He then hired Captain Stuart Graham to fly the planes. Graham and his engineer, Walter Kahre, then flew the first HS-2L to Lac-à-la-Tortue on 4 June 1919, arriving on 8 June 1919. The flight had covered 645
miles The mile, sometimes the international mile or statute mile to distinguish it from other miles, is a British imperial unit and United States customary unit of length; both are based on the older English unit of length equal to 5,280 English f ...
, the longest cross-country flight executed in Canada at the time. He then delivered the other HS-2L to Lac-à-la-Tortue. Equipped with the aircraft, the first bush flights occurred when fire patrol and aerial photography began in the summer of 1919 in the St. Maurice River valley. Graham and Kahre continued this service for two more seasons, but it became so expensive that the Laurentide Company underwrote the operation. In response, it was split into a separate company called
Laurentide Air Services Bush flying refers to aircraft operations carried out in the bush. Bush flying involves operations in rough terrain where there are often no prepared landing strips or runways, frequently necessitating that Rough-field capability, bush planes be ...
Ltd. with Wilson as president and former
Royal Naval Air Service The Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) was the air arm of the Royal Navy, under the direction of the Admiralty (United Kingdom), Admiralty's Air Department, and existed formally from 1 July 1914 to 1 April 1918, when it was merged with the British ...
instructor and barnstormer William Roy Maxwell as vice president. These were the first bush flights in
Eastern Canada Eastern Canada (, also the Eastern provinces, Canadian East or the East) is generally considered to be the region of Canada south of Hudson Bay/ Hudson Strait and east of Manitoba, consisting of the following provinces (from east to west): Newf ...
. In
Western Canada Western Canada, also referred to as the Western provinces, Canadian West, or Western provinces of Canada, and commonly known within Canada as the West, is a list of regions of Canada, Canadian region that includes the four western provinces and t ...
, after Wilfrid May was discharged from the Royal Naval Air Service and moved to
Edmonton Edmonton is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta. It is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Central Alberta ...
, a
Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...
businessman A businessperson, also referred to as a businessman or businesswoman, is an individual who has founded, owns, or holds shares in (including as an angel investor) a private-sector company. A businessperson undertakes activities (commercial ...
offered the city of Edmonton a
Curtiss JN-4 The Curtiss JN "Jenny" is a series of biplanes built by the Glenn Curtiss Aeroplane Company of Hammondsport, New York, later the Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company. Although the Curtiss JN series was originally produced as a training aircraft ...
after he found success in the city's real estate. Mayor Joe Clarke and city council accepted the gift, prompting May to ask to rent the plane. City council and May agreed to a price of CA$25. May and his brother Court May completed the necessary paperwork and raised the required
capital Capital and its variations may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** Capital region, a metropolitan region containing the capital ** List of national capitals * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Econom ...
to form May Airplanes Ltd. George Gorman, a pilot, and Peter Derbyshire, a mechanic, joined the first commercial bush operations in Canada. May then asked the publisher of the ''
Edmonton Journal The ''Edmonton Journal'' is a daily newspaper published in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It is part of the Postmedia Network. History The ''Journal'' was founded in 1903 by three local businessmen — John Macpherson, Arthur Moore and J.W. Cunn ...
'' to fly copies of the paper to
Wetaskiwin Wetaskiwin ( ) is a city in the province of Alberta, Canada. The city is located south of the provincial capital of Edmonton. The city name comes from the Cree word , meaning "the hills where peace was made". Wetaskiwin is home to the Reyn ...
, south of Edmonton. He accepted and the next day, Gorman and Derbyshire flew the newspapers along with 2 sacks of advertising circulars, following the rail line to the city, announcing the service to communities along the way. Bush flying in Canada is commemorated by the
Canadian Bushplane Heritage Centre Canadian Bushplane Heritage Centre (CBHC), located on the north bank of the St. Marys River (Michigan–Ontario), St. Marys River in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada, is dedicated to preserving the history of bush flyin ...
in
Sault Ste Marie, Ontario Sault Ste. Marie ( ) is a city in northern Ontario, Canada, on the north shore of the St. Marys River (Michigan–Ontario), St. Mary's River directly across from its "twin city," Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, Sault Ste. Marie, in the state of Mich ...
as well as two
National Film Board of Canada The National Film Board of Canada (NFB; ) is a Canadian public film and digital media producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary films, animation, web documentaries, and altern ...
documentary films, '' Bush Pilot: Reflections on a Canadian Myth'' (1980) and ''Bush Pilot - Into the Wild Blue Yonder'' (2000).


Alaska

Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...
's first bush pilot was Carl Ben Eielson, a
North Dakota North Dakota ( ) is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota people, Dakota and Sioux peoples. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minneso ...
farm A farm (also called an agricultural holding) is an area of land that is devoted primarily to agricultural processes with the primary objective of producing food and other crops; it is the basic facility in food production. The name is used fo ...
boy of
Scandinavia Scandinavia is a subregion#Europe, subregion of northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. It can sometimes also ...
n descent who flew during
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
. After the war, he moved to Alaska as a
mathematics Mathematics is a field of study that discovers and organizes methods, Mathematical theory, theories and theorems that are developed and Mathematical proof, proved for the needs of empirical sciences and mathematics itself. There are many ar ...
and
science Science is a systematic discipline that builds and organises knowledge in the form of testable hypotheses and predictions about the universe. Modern science is typically divided into twoor threemajor branches: the natural sciences, which stu ...
teacher in Fairbanks. However, he soon persuaded several citizens to help him acquire a
Curtiss JN-4 The Curtiss JN "Jenny" is a series of biplanes built by the Glenn Curtiss Aeroplane Company of Hammondsport, New York, later the Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company. Although the Curtiss JN series was originally produced as a training aircraft ...
, flying passengers to nearby settlements. He then asked the
postal operator This is a list of postal entities by country. It includes: *The governmental authority responsible for postal matters. *The regulatory authority for the postal sector. Postal regulation may include the establishment of postal policies, postal r ...
for an
airmail Airmail (or air mail) is a mail transport service branded and sold on the basis of at least one leg of its journey being by air. Airmail items typically arrive more quickly than surface mail, and usually cost more to send. Airmail may be th ...
contract. The
post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letter (message), letters and parcel (package), parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post o ...
accepted the proposal and in 1924, Eielson received a de Havilland 4 that would be used to make eight mail runs to McGrath, away, before his contract was terminated after the third accident.
Noel Wien Noel Wien (June 8, 1899July 19, 1977) was an American pioneer aviator. He was the founder of Wien Alaska Airways. Biography Wien was born in Lake Nebagamon, Wisconsin, but the family moved to a homestead in 1905, to a place now called Cook, Min ...
made the first successful bush flight to Livengood, Alaska on 19 Aug. 1924. This flight demonstrated that the trip in support of mining operations could be made in under an hour, when the dog sled trail would take several days in winter. Wien made 34 flights that first summer in support of the approximately 250 men located at the camp, providing supplies and services. A woman by the name of Celia M. Hunter became one of the first to serve as a flight attendant for flights to both
Nome Nome may refer to: Country subdivision * Nome (Egypt), an administrative division within ancient Egypt * Nome (Greece), the administrative division immediately below the ''peripheries of Greece'' (, pl. ) Places United States * Nome, Alaska ...
, and
Kotzebue Kotzebue ( ) or Qikiqtaġruk ( , ) is a city in the Northwest Arctic Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. It is the borough's seat, by far its largest community and the economic and transportation hub of the subregion of Alaska encompassing ...
in the year 1947. These were the first tourist trips to be accomplished by flying in the Alaskan bush.


Aircraft used

Bush flying involves operations in rough terrain, necessitating
bush plane A bush plane is a general aviation aircraft used to provide both scheduled and unscheduled passenger and flight services to remote, undeveloped areas, such as the Canadian north or bush, Alaskan tundra, the African bush, or savanna, Amazon rainf ...
s to be equipped with
tundra tires A tundra tire (UK: ''tundra tyre'') is a large low-pressure tire used on light aircraft to allow operations on rough terrain. A common variant of tundra tire is the bushwheel brand. These tires include an integral inner tube with the valve man ...
, floats, or
ski Skis are runners, attached to the user's feet, designed to glide over snow. Typically employed in pairs, skis are attached to ski boots with ski bindings, with either a free, lockable, or partially secured heel. For climbing slopes, ski skins c ...
s. A bush plane should have good short take-off and landing capabilities. A typical bush plane will usually have high mounted wings on top of its
fuselage The fuselage (; from the French language, French ''fuselé'' "spindle-shaped") is an aircraft's main body section. It holds Aircrew, crew, passengers, or cargo. In single-engine aircraft, it will usually contain an Aircraft engine, engine as wel ...
to ensure adequate ground clearance from obstacles. They will normally have conventional "tail-dragger" landing gear as they offer lower drag and weight than
tricycle landing gear Tricycle gear is a type of aircraft undercarriage, or ''landing gear'', that is arranged in a tricycle fashion. The tricycle arrangement has one or more nose wheels in a single front undercarriage and two or more main wheels slightly aft of th ...
, and is more suited to rough surfaces. The greater upward angle of the taildragger configuration gives the propeller more ground clearance allowing it to avoid striking the ground, which would cause damage. Most types can be equipped with wheels, skis or floats, to operate from dry ground, snow, ice and protected waterways. Some commonly seen bushplanes include: *The
Grumman G-21 Goose The Grumman G-21 Goose is an amphibious aircraft, amphibious flying boat designed by Grumman to serve as an eight-seat "commuter" aircraft for businessmen in the Long Island area. The Goose was Grumman's first monoplane to fly, its first twin-en ...
amphibian, whose combination of both a flying boat hull and wheeled undercarriage endowed it with considerable versatility. *The
De Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver The de Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver is a single-engined high-wing Propeller (aircraft), propeller-driven STOL, short takeoff and landing (STOL) aircraft developed and manufactured by de Havilland Canada. It has been primarily operated as a b ...
designed and built in Canada in 1946 is widely used throughout Canada and Alaska. *The
De Havilland Canada DHC-3 Otter The de Havilland Canada DHC-3 Otter is a single-engined, high-wing, Propeller (aircraft), propeller-driven, short take-off and landing (STOL) aircraft developed by de Havilland Canada. It was conceived to be capable of performing the same role ...
(also from Canada) was widely used throughout the Canadian and Alaskan bush. The aircraft which began its service in 1952 was supplemented by a later twin engine version, the Twin Otter that remains in widespread service. *The
Cessna 185 Skywagon The Cessna 185 Skywagon is a six-seat, single-engined, general aviation light aircraft manufactured by Cessna. It first flew as a prototype in July 1960, with the first production model completed in March 1961. The Cessna 185 is a high-winge ...
is a popular light aircraft widely used in the bush. *The
Noorduyn Norseman The Noorduyn Norseman, also known as the C-64 Norseman, is a Canadian single-engine bush plane designed to operate from unimproved surfaces. Distinctive stubby landing gear protrusions from the lower fuselage make it easily recognizable. Intro ...
served intensely as a bush plane in its native Canada, and with the US military, equipped either with ski or floats or fixed-wheel landing gear *The
Piper PA-18 Super Cub The Piper PA-18 Super Cub is a two-seat, single-engine monoplane. Introduced in 1949 by Piper Aircraft, it was developed from the PA-11 Cub Special, and traces its lineage back through the J-3 Cub to the Taylor E-2 Cub of the 1930s. In close ...
is a two-seat airplane developed in 1949 and is fitted with a variety of engines of different sizes. The aircraft is capable of carrying a single passenger. *The Quest Kodiak is a high-wing, unpressurized, single-engined turboprop with fixed tricycle landing gear. Developed in 1999, passenger seats are track-mounted and removable, it has access doors for the pilots and the aft clamshell door, with automatic steps, allows cargo loading or eight passengers boarding. and is suitable for STOL operations from unimproved airfields.


See also


In general

*
Index of aviation articles Aviation is the design, development, production, operation, and use of aircraft, especially heavier-than-air aircraft. Articles related to aviation include: A Aviation accidents and incidents – Above Mean Sea Level (AMSL) – ADF – Acces ...


Notable bush pilots


Related articles

*
Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia The Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS), commonly known as the Flying Doctor, is an Aeromedical retrieval, aeromedical retrieval service in Australia and the largest of its kind in the world. It is a non-profit organisation that provides urgen ...
* Ontario Provincial Air Service


References


Notes


Bibliography

* * *


External links


Alaska Air Museum

Backcountry Pilot.Org

FAA Fly Alaska Safely

Tundra Pilot
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bush Flying Aviation in Canada Aviation in Australia Aviation in Alaska Alaska culture General aviation Rural culture in Oceania Rural society in Canada Australian outback