49....my gripe is not with the individual pilots....but rather more with the system....look at the problems the guys have doing IFR flights....getting clearances....the problems of lack of radar flight following...weather reporting.....that is why lots of scud running goes on when IFR would be safer. I agree wholeheartedly about the excellence of the pilots and mechanics...but the sad thing is they are granted the respect and treatment they deserve. Crawl yourself up into the crew shack on some of those platforms for your week away from home......
There are real problems in the Gulf that could be addressed that would greatly enhance safety.....afterall....helicopters kill more people in the GOM oil patch than any other cause. That is not the claim to fame I would like to have.
How many pilots die in the Gulf Of Mexico each year? How many have died on the North Sea since operations began there?