LOCAL AVIATION

This page will chronicle some very extraordinary aircraft and the people who fly them.

Our first field trip took us to the MedStar headquarters in Spokane, WA where we met a most extraordinary pilot by the name of Lonnie Roth, who was our host to a most wonderful visit to their hangar and aircraft. Mr. Roth is just one of the over qualified pilots that command the areas air ambulance service. We all see their helicopters on a seemingly regular basis crossing our sky., but here is a little ditty even I didn't know, MedStar also commands many fixed wing aircraft too, or otherwise called airplanes, read on and please excuse the writing.

It's nice to start the new web site with whole new design and theme Our Valley, or as our younger locals call our hood is actually jam packed with some really great stuff that goes overlooked until it's in your face and even then, soon forgotten. One of these things is our large aviation community and the craft they command. As everyone knows now I have had varying interests while I have been on the road to recovery and one of these interests is my long time passion for things that fly. So while being laid up and of course, bored to tears, this passion came back to mind and on my now limited disability budget started dabbling with RC aircraft as a way to at least command something of my own, within budget of course. As I now know there are actually two types of RC craft, radio control and remote control. I know, what's the difference right? Well radio control is just that, using radio waves, now in the gigahertz range, and infra red control which is much like your electronics remote controls, tv, dvd etc. Radio control however, has a great advantage over infra red due to the fact that infra red works on a line of sight principal. In other words the craft has to be in total view of the transmitter without obstacles or signal is lost. Radio control however, has an ability to bypass or penetrate many obstacles in it's way. Something to keep in mind when purchasing remote control craft of any kind.

Building rc planes and flying rc helicopters has just fueled my interest in flight much like throwing gasoline on a fire and my interest in full sized aircraft in no way diminished with my toying with the toy versions (so to speak). So I am on a bit of a self quest to educate myself on the aviation industry and their aircraft and see if maybe it is not too late to get my fat, old ass up in the air myself sometime soon. It may not be too late to get the simplest of certifications but we will see. My hope jumped up a little while meeting and talking to a local professional pilot who you can read more about on the MedStar Fleet page who reinforced what I had heard about a class of extra light craft where FAA certification is not needed. However I am sure there are multiple rules and regulations governing where and how these craft are flown, at least I hope. My biggest worries are any health restrictions that may prevent me from flying or weight restrictions, (ahem). But the thought of being able to safely command my own small craft is enough to re-spark my hopes of getting some air so to speak.

Left click on photos for full size view

As we look at more specialized craft involved in aviation we cannot ignore the beautiful air ambulance aircraft that we see fly around the Inland Northwest and especially the Spokane area. We all see their helicopters fly in various directions overhead hoping wherever their headed means someone is going to be okay. In my quest to visit some of these aircraft lead me to their headquarters at Felts Field here in Spokane, WA on Saturday August 8, 2009. We easily found their secured offices and hangar at the airport and could see two beautiful Eurocopter EC-135 helicopters sitting on the tarmac in front of the hangar with it's doors ajar ready for immediate use. After a short search for their main entrance found an intercom call box at one of the entrances and gave the box button a push and was greeted with a voice saying "welcome, how can we help you". Wondering if they might think I am just some lost silly fat old man coming to bother them I almost said "oooops, wrong place" and ducked out. But not wanting to give up a chance to visit one of the worlds most specially modified Eurocopter helicopters and get a few photos up close I asked the voice if I could be allowed to get some photos of the helicopters. The voice came back immediately and said "someone will come meet me at the door and help you if they can". After a bit of a wait and feeling like we were being a bit too intrusive just showing up unannounced at their doorstep and bothering them on a weekend but just then a pilot came to the door and asked us just what it was about their aircraft we were interested in.

Standing at the door was a pilot named Lonnie Roth and I explained that I was hoping to get a few photos of their helicopters for a neighborhood web site I was putting together about the fascination I have with aircraft. The pilot then welcomed us to the areas air ambulance headquarters and proceeded to take Debbie and I on the most wonderful tour of the whole hangar and their many aircraft. Here is a little ditty no one told me about, they have just as many fixed wing aircraft as they do rotor craft and Lonnie Roth was in fact one of their airplane pilots. Just as we entered the building staring us right in the face were two absolutely beautiful polished King Air twin 200 turbo prop air ambulances proudly poised outward facing the hangar entrance ready to be pulled out, fired up and race the runway for take off to anywhere their needed. Also in the hangar with the two King Air craft was another standby helicopter in case all others are in use or in for maintenance.

Just as we were getting used to being next to such wonderful aircraft in the hangar a beautiful Pilatus PC-12 turbo prop came up to park next to the hangar. Just as it's two pilots got out Lonnie told me the aircraft was a new addition to their inventory of aircraft. The plane was so new it had not even been painted and labeled with Medstarâ€™s trademarks yet, it was pure white and gorgeous. One of the pilot's that flew the plane in started to refuel the plane to have it ready for instant use which gave me a chance to get a few photos of the plane and the pilot refueling it. I wanted to take a lot more photos of everything but I didn't want to be a nuisance flashing in everyone's faces so I held back some. Hopefully I was not so much of a bother so Lonnie might invite me back again some time just so I can fill my lungs with the perfume of jet fuel once again.

Lonnie Roth then took us over to another hangar and showed us one of his own aircraft he has in one of Felts Field's big hangars. He has a beautiful light aircraft with a custom red paint scheme, custom instrument panel cockpit. The craft has an incredible wingspan for a small plane and I can just imagine the hang time the plane must have in the air. I would imagine it could probably lift off at less than 60 mph. and land going even slower, what a perfect sight seeing craft to have in the beautiful Spokane area. Seeing Lonnie's plane solved the mystery of who it was that has been flying around the Spokane east valley in the nice red light craft, it was indeed Lonnie Roth. Every time I have seen it fly I have pointed it out to Debbie saying "there is one lucky SOB", lol.

Above is Lonnie Roth's light plane

I would love to meet the other two pilots of the Pilatus PC-12 again and get their names and ask a few more questions about their jobs and aircraft for you all. Lonnie told me how to find him in the phone book and said it was okay to give him a call sometime soon so one day soon I wont be able to help myself and I will call pleading for him to show and tell me more about the aircraft he flies and his important job. Lonnie told us this might be his last year of being a full time air ambulance pilot because he wants to go back to the mid west and fly crop dusters again for a while. I can't think of more dangerous flying but for him and his skills it's a dance through the flowers. There are not many pilots like Lonnie left in the world anymore and I would love to do a complete chronicle of his career for histories sake, but whether he would allow it or not is another story for the future. I will pause here while I get more info and photos to share.