Bush Pilots of Alaska

ah an exactor pretty good dude ready [Music] you should come on a break sky's waving goodbye [Applause] just trying to free [Music] he's trying to be a slide a bush pilot yeah what is it bush pilot some pay lands in the bushes no we do a very unique type of flying in that it is we never land anywhere that would be considered a real runway we land in mountaintops River bottoms sandbars beaches and anywhere basically and it takes a different type of training for that you have to be a fly bite by feeling instead of by numbers and it takes a long time a lot of experience there are a few people that do it very well we do here [Music] yeah but sponsor people that love exploring they love getting out there love really really explore on earth with aviation and exploring the edges of aviation safely and true Bush flying you are picking the spot you are analyzing the spot whether it's suitable the land and whether you're going to take off again and that's kind of Bush flank and landing someplace where nobody has ever landed before when somebody lands there now the mystery is gone you know [Music] I'd say growing up it seemed very normal to be in a family of bush pilots but that was since I was like five days old I've been in and around bush planes so for me it's like hey Dad can I borrow the plane instead of the car [Music] a super Cubs amazing device it was built in the mid 50's and they have not been able to make anything better they're still doing it there are people that do experimental type aircraft the credit try to compete with these airplanes and mr. Piper who piper who designed the Super Cub did a near-perfect deal and I tell everybody that if I could only have one airplane in the entire world from a 747 to a star helicopter it'd be a supercut because they're there they're simple they perform amazingly well in a lot of ways it's like strapping on wings and become a bird well this the Super Cub is it's a super sturdy airplane kind of the Jeep of the sky you know they're very durable and can do some amazing things the super Cubs in particular they always feel like a magic carpet to me because it's kind of like their transport tool they get you to where you want to be and that's the biggest thing for me I love the sheer joy of flying itself but for me it's the access and then a land where you can spend days and days or weeks trying to get somewhere on foot and then you hop in one of these little guys and you're there in an hour so it's this this time machine there's been modifications to the Super Cub over the years and one of the best ones is the big tires that we use and that they actually enable us to do things that in my dad's era they weren't able to do it make it a lot safer if you misjudge an area and it's a little bit rougher rocks are bigger than you thought they were those tires make it a much safer operation where are we we are in the part of the Wrangell st. Elias National Park which is the largest protected landmass on the planet it's a spectacular place over 13 million acres of wilderness true wilderness and what is true wilderness oh man that's a horrible question haha what is true wilderness well there's not much of it left to me true wilderness has to be places that ideally no one's ever been and so you're the pioneer you're the Explorer you're the person that is seeing it for the first time and that means it's unpredictable you don't know for sure what's around the next corner you don't know what you're gonna run into [Music] but it still has to be a bit unknown to be true wilderness well this is a Glock 45 ato for various most important thing is a Snickers bar throwing people get hangry on hikes that's the Snickers bar and skin cancers real killer everybody use a sunblock it's important yeah it's a big thing on safety sunblock Snickers in the occasional 45 ATO grizzly bears [Music] what do I love about Bush flying to me the airplane is a tool an airplane is a tool to get into the wilderness I love wilderness or leveled places I love exploring [Music] to be able to land and get into someplace that maybe no one's ever been and explore true wilderness that's what really what I enjoy the type of flying we do is very free I'd say that's the biggest benefit is just the freedom we have to go wherever we want it's good question I honestly what I love flying the most is access to remote places you can't get through otherwise I love to be able to get a different perspective on the world kind of a bird's-eye view see what's going on there's no boundaries so you can go up down sideways circles whatever you want to do [Music] freedom total freedom you know there's north south east and west and you can go any direction and every day you find new places to go to new things just because it's always changing you know the landscape here changes on a daily basis with the ice and the water and some place you landed last week doesn't even exist this week [Music] I just feel really privileged to have a job like this a lot of people tell me that I got the best job in the world and I agree so I get to go out everyday I meet people from all over the world and explore new places and for me it's I have as much fun as they do [Music] [Music] [Music]

Channel: Matador Network

Views: 166,162

Keywords: Travelstoke, matador network, travel, adventure, culture, wanderlust, travelers, travel advice, travel inspiration, travel tips, travelstoke app, Bush Pilot, Airplane, Ultima Thule Lodge, Alaska, USA, North America, wilderness, Wrangell, St. Elias National Park, National Parks, Matador Originals, remote, Scott Sporleder

Id: wjewa9o3nzY

Length: 9min 11sec (551 seconds)

Published: Wed Jan 24 2018