Very upsetting......
 

In the Puget Sound region (Seattle area), we have a medical airlift service called Northwest Airlift. The landing pad that services 2 hospitals in only a few blocks from my house. My daugher is 2, and she loves to go look at choppers when they land.

One day about a month ago, we came by on our bike (kid in trailer), and we stopped to look. There was a pilot sitting in the chopper waiting. He invited us over and let my daughter sit in the cockpit. He gave us pins that have the helicopter on them. He was so nice to my daugher and I.

His name was Steve Smith.

The chopper he was flying went down Friday, and he and his flight crew did not survive.

I'm guess I am an overly sensitive idiot, but this just tore my up. I knew about it yesterday, but I was afraid to look at the story because I feared it would be him....damn it......

Bummer. On a positive note, at least you felt some emotion. These days it is way too easy to just be numb to everything going on

At least he was helping people, and probably doing what he loved.

Wana talk about DEATH...A close frind of my neighbor, who I had several lengthy conversations with SUDDENLY passed away this week of an Aortic Anuerism....the funeral is today..Life is fragile...and bittersweet...the sweet is the beauty in a blade of grass and bitter is the knowledge that we only have a short time to enjoy it...

So Party down like it's 1999 cause ya never know when that shot of Bourbon will be your last...

It really hurts when bad things happen to good people.

Now you know why we GIs are upset when our brothers are killed in Iraq....then get the "boy were they stupid....they died for nothing"...or "the terrorists are modern minutemen bit."

At least he was (they are all) "helping people, and probably doing what he loved."

HD,

I flew medivac for many years. We usually fly in nice wonderful weather but unfortunately people do not always get sick or in an accident at good times.

The news reports say that they were flying in fog and mist with gusty winds and late at night returning from a patient flight when they went down. Not good but we do not have a lot of choice when the alarm goes off. The pilot was an old fart like me, and probably a Viet Nam vet, so lots of experience. The helo was an Agusta, twin engine and one of the best.

We lost a chopper here in Phoenix earlier this year. One paramedic did not make it out and the rest were injured. It happens but we try not to think about it much.

The only saving grace is that they were doing something that they love, trying to save someone's life. Say a prayer for them, hoist a toast for them and hope that its the last one for a long time...

Joe A

One of my best friends passed 3.5 years ago. 49 years old, did not drink, smoke or party, in excellent health. Felt funny that night and shrugged it off and went to bed. Got up early and still felt funny so they called 911. The wagon got there just as he crashed. They got him back up again and into the ambulance and he died again. Once more they get him going but the third time was the last.

He passed from a blood clot in his leg, that went to his heart and killed him. Left behind a 39 year old wife and 4 year old daughter and NO FRIGGING INSURANCE to help the family survive. We took care of them but its a shame all the way around.

We can and should learn from things like this.

JoeA

We grunts always give pilots a lot of crap about crew rest, and driving buses...the MEDEVAC guys, never. They are our Angels of Mercy...the call goes out, and they're there as soon as humanly possible. They are the Golden Hour saviors on the battlefield, along with a bunch of doctors and nurses who live in the same crappy circumstances we do.

Steve Smith was apparently one of those Angels...my thoughts are with him. Thanks for posting this and your experience meeting a good guy.

Rob

My first troops begin to rotate home tomorrow, we follow in 20 or so days. We'll drink a toast to this fallen pilot, and all our fallen soldiers on Halloween.

Rob,

We are allowed to go over duty time if its an emergency but its always the entire crew's call. If any one of them says that they are tired or just cannot do it, we stood down. When someone's life depends on it we usually pull out all the stops and make it work.

I have seen Doctors pull things our of thin air to save a patient and preform operations in-flight that you never would do otherwise, but whats the option?

Good luck and Godspeed in your mission and journey home. Remember that those of us in the air salute the you guys on the ground ourselves. I used to be one of them...

JoeA