40 Years Topdressing!

Brian Casey from Gore New Zealand celebrates 40 years of flying.

After 40 years of flying, Gore pilot Brian Casey has gone partly deaf from the noise, but he has no plans for retirement.

Yesterday he celebrated his 40th year of flying by sharing an afternoon tea with workmates at Phoenix Aviation, the Gore company he has flown agriculture aeroplanes for since June 7, 1973.

He has clocked about 28,000 hours in the air and spread almost 336,000 tonnes of fertiliser.

Mr Casey, 62, said he had no plans to retire, as long as he kept passing the medicals. He said he had heart troubles a few years ago, but as soon as he was well again he was back in the air.

"I was grounded for 12 months a couple of years ago when I had stents put in my arteries."

Mr Casey said he thought his chosen career in aviation had inspired his son, who now flew helicopters for the air force in England. "He would sit down here [at the hangar] and take it all in."

Mr Casey said the best thing about working as a pilot was the independence.

"When you're in a plane, you're your own boss.

"You make the decisions about when and where not to fly, especially when it comes to weather.

"No one can tell you to go up if you don't think it's safe."

When asked if he had any hairy moments in his 40-year career, he recalled a few forced landings. Two were because fuel ran out, and one was a mechanical failure.

"I've had no accidents though," he said.

The reason he had stayed with Phoenix Aviation for so long was because his colleagues were a "great bunch of guys to work with", Mr Casey said.
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The last two or so minutes are best - sliding an aeroplane on wet grass!

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YBmgRBw9xMs&list=FLriDCJBRonan4Ht1OKW1Pew&index=52]Fletchers at Mt Linton - YouTube[/ame]

 

Not sure, but there seems to be a skip is the loading shots. Turbine landing & piston engined taking off?