Rocky Mountain Helicopters RMH

[Phil Kemp]

Sadly, Bryan Burr was killed in an accident back in October last year. Bryan ran the Aerologging side of the business, and I had some great adventures with him and some of the others in the Company. I always liked Bryan and his Father, Jim, and got on very well with both of them - some amazing experiences up in Alaska.

http://www.thespectrum.com/story/news/local/cedar-city/2017/10/08/alpine-man-dies-debris-dropped-brian-head-fire-burn-scar/744771001/

[Brad Bailey]

Rocky Mountain Helicopters early 80's

I was with company out of Provo then Rialto as mechanic. I think I worked full time for four years starting on the 47-soloy, and G3b. We laid fence posts across miles of Nevada cattle range land for BLM. Then had sharp shooters pick off wild wolfs by the hundreds to let cattle barrons be happy. My Bell 47's were a bloody mess. It was a sad use of my machines. Then a few years of laying Jug lines and explosives for seismic testing. Next I was called on the shortwave radio (yes) and Hans H asked me to urgently move my tools to Alaska due to another mechanic changed his mind. A Piper Seneca came in from Provo to pick me up. We had a abort take off and overrun into the tumble weed due to nose baggage door popped open on rotation and loose luggage went into left propeller. Anyway made it to Vegas for transfers up to Alaska (with all my desert clothing). Alaska contracts another three or four years. The first couple of years was for Houston oil and minerals. There was come core drilling rigs set up around Nome and Kotsubue and Bettles. Helicopters mobilized all the parts in sling nets and hauled out to drilling sites. It was 24-7. Good cooks in the large hoop tents and we ate quite good. Lots of bears coming into camp then going off again. One camp was set up in a river bed (flood plain). It rained and you guessed it flooded our camp tents etc. Another season we tagged Muskox heard. Another season we put floats on the Hughes 500D and using a massive early Global position computer that must have been the size of a microwave we dipped into nearly every pond on the north slope to bag and tag mud samples for mineral analysis (uranium search). My last season was border control to Canada. Yes a bunch of grunts with chainsaws clearcutting a swath to mark Alaska/Canada border. My pilots I recall were Bruce something, and Dirk Vanderhorn and a few others. .When I was based in Provo my next door neighbor was Marie Osmond. She kept her Personal Hughes 500 in the Provo Hangar. Also I recall one icy foggy morning an emergency call came in for a boater in distress not far from the hangar. It was a real quick prep and the Bell 206 was in air and off into the soup. Somehow our pilot picked up the boater and came back to ramp. The rotor blades and Tail blades were fully loaded with Rime Ice so lucky he made it back....

[Fris B. Fairing]

I hope everyone will forgive me for reposting my message from 5 years ago:

Please forgive me for crashing your thread but I thought you guys would like to know that a piece of your history has turned up in Australia. The Queensland Air Museum at Caloundra recently acquired SA315B Lama s/n 2575 which once served with Rocky Mountain Helicopters as N3597D.

We have the RMH log books from Oct 91 to Dec 93 but there are many gaps in the history so we will be very pleased to receive any anecdotes about her time with RMH. It seems that she did a lot of geophysical survey ranging as far afield as Alaska and Mexico. Above all does anyone have a photo of N3597D?

Does anyone have photos or anecdotes relating to this Lama?

[scottyjtm]

Hello to All RMH Alumni....
I started @ the 'Rock' in 81', was with them on and off thru to the end in 2003....
Someone mentioned Ted Cash.. I worked w/ Ted in Wyo with a 206 in 83'. Ted in a 206 if you believe that... I have picts to prove
ran into Doug Farfel several years ago (4 or 5) @ end of fire season in Boise .. he looked great. ran into some Siller guys this fire season 18' ( I took from our conversation
that Doug may have retired)...
Regarding N3597D... we took that to the arctic (ANWR) back in 88'... I do have several picts of that operation...
Larry Boyer ran the maintenance floor and later training in Provo... had some great laughs with him... I do not forget Him..
great times...
scott

[Fris B. Fairing]

scottyjtm
Photos of N3597D would be greatly appreciated please.
Rgds

[RMH80to84]

I started with RMH in 80 in Afton Wy. Spent the summer there then went to Bear River Service in the High Unitas and worked with Walt Tausch, Doug Farfel Skip Fisk and Bob Peterson -40 degrees many days. Moved down to Heber where several helicopter crews were working out of for the winter. Ted Cash was there Joe Moss was the manager of the pilots and Frank Harney was manager of the mechanics. A lot of good memories like flying with Doug Farfel NOE while he was rolling a cigarette. Sorry to hear about Skip Fisk he was a good friend and a great pilot. We were in Moab flying siesmic crews in the La Salles with the 205. Went out to picking up the juggies and the afternoon was a little warm and we couldn't get enough lite to get in the air. Skip said to tell the folks in the back to hang on and we hopped a coulple of times to get to the edge of a cliff then hopped once more over the side nosed it down and away we went. Great times with guys like Jack Buckley and many of the others already mentioned.

Jeff Marcroft

[BradRotorhead]

Long time no talky! Howdy Jeff!

[BradRotorhead]

Hello there! Brad Warren here. Great to read about some names of years past. Anyone still active on here? I did the seismic days all over Utah, Wyoming, Dakotas, Montana and more. Up in Alaska too. Some names I'm wondering about: Brad Larson, Jeff Alexander, Dale Sade, Bill Jahn, Dave McCoy, Clyde DeBell, Paul Banish, Bill Rodgers, Richard Just, Wayne Nielsen, Russ Bays, Doug Bays, Bill Ford. Cheers All

[RMH80to84]

Hi Brad. Yes it's been a long time what are up to now?

Jeff

[BradRotorhead]

I've been flying for Erickson for the last 28 years, currently construction department, some fires, and a lot of logging years ago. How about you?

[RMH80to84]

Went to work for Hughes Helicopters who got bought out by McDonnell Douglas who merged with Boeing in 97. Worked the Apache from the beginning until I retired in AZ.. Dan Woodcock and Scott Johnson are both down here. Doug Bays worked for Hughes for 4 or 5 years then he went back up north.

[nomorehelosforme]

Brad/Jeff, it’s great that you guys have reconnected but might suggest that you carry on your reconciliation via PM’s or exchange email addresses rather than on a public forum... just saying

[pants on fire...]

Really? Really, Mr., nomorehelosforme? Who put you in charge of this forum? If you don't like the content of the thread, then just don't read it rather than sitting here dispensing your personal opinion as it were some policy around here. Maybe if you stopped posting this kind of wasteful opinion on a public forum... just saying

[Steve Osborn]

Larry Boyer

Originally Posted by boyerkid

Sorry to piggy back on this, but I am looking for anyone who may have any stories about working with my dad, Larry Boyer. He worked for Rocky Mountain Helicopters from the mid 1970's through his death in December of 2000. If you have any stories, please let me know.

Thanks

like many of us at Rocky that worked with Larry he was a great person to work with. He was very knowledgeable and had a great sense of humor. That was a big help on those really busy days and made them far better for all of us. I, like many others had high respect for him. And he is truly missed.

[RMH80to84]

Originally Posted by nomorehelosforme

Brad/Jeff, it’s great that you guys have reconnected but might suggest that you carry on your reconciliation via PM’s or exchange email addresses rather than on a public forum... just saying

I only found this network by accident a couple of years ago and I don't get on it very often. Many of the names mentioned in this forum I knew and worked with over thirty years ago. When I first read the start of this forum it said

"I start this Thread to talk with you guys about RMH Helicopters. It would be great if we could share pictures, good memories and some stories."

I didn't see any thing about not reconnecting with others who you had worked with and are still around.

[RMH80to84]

Originally Posted by boyerkid

Sorry to piggy back on this, but I am looking for anyone who may have any stories about working with my dad, Larry Boyer. He worked for Rocky Mountain Helicopters from the mid 1970's through his death in December of 2000. If you have any stories, please let me know.

Thanks

I knew your father in the early 80's. I was in the field a lot but I would get back to Provo for brief periods. Your father was a true professional and I truly enjoyed talking with him. He like many others were what made Rocky a great place to work.

Jeff Marcroft

[SkyCh0ppers1]

Hello. I worked for Sky Choppers in 1976. I was support for a 206B in Grand Junction, CO that was on lease to BLM that summer, providing firefighting support - Helitac team. I knew a lot of the guys there. I remember a pilot named Bruce White who was sadly lost that summer, flew into a wire in a Bell 47. I've been trying to find out what happened to the pilot that I worked with that summer, Bob Scarborough. He was a pilot in Nam and I've searched a number of databases for him. Any info about where he might be or might have gone would greatly appreciated. I'd love to reconnect if possible. Thanks for your help!

Bob Salyers

[Morris Scott]

Mechanic with RMH from 1980 to 1990

I think we had this ship on our sesmic crew we were based in Coalville UT and our crew was comprised of two lamas. Pilots Tim Norton, Pete Hendon, Tom Kupcho ( relief ) Sid King ( relief ) Mechanics were Jack Buckley, Richard Drazil, Dennis Bergy was swamper. we reported to Al Nowacki out of Provo.

It was a great company with three divisions, sesmic, heavy lift and EMS.

Originally Posted by Fris B. Fairing

Please forgive me for crashing your thread but I thought you guys would like to know that a piece of your history has turned up in Australia. The Queensland Air Museum at Caloundra recently acquired SA315B Lama s/n 2575 which once served with Rocky Mountain Helicopters as N3597D.

We have the RMH log books from Oct 91 to Dec 93 but there are many gaps in the history so we will be very pleased to receive any anecdotes about her time with RMH. It seems that she did a lot of geophysical survey ranging as far afield as Alaska and Mexico. Above all does anyone have a photo of N3597D?

[scottyjtm]

Fris B....
Somewhat untimely.. but nevertheless.
I've located (don't want to rush a good thing) those dozen pics of the arctic operation with N3597D.. If you are still interested in them let me know .. I have them on a micro sd card .. could send / mail to wherever... whatever is easiest.
I'm still running around pretty busy, but if you are still interested I can move on it...
scott still wandering / wondering just the mechanic

[Prok1979]

Originally Posted by scottyjtm

Hello to All RMH Alumni....
I started @ the 'Rock' in 81', was with them on and off thru to the end in 2003....
Someone mentioned Ted Cash.. I worked w/ Ted in Wyo with a 206 in 83'. Ted in a 206 if you believe that... I have picts to prove
ran into Doug Farfel several years ago (4 or 5) @ end of fire season in Boise .. he looked great. ran into some Siller guys this fire season 18' ( I took from our conversation
that Doug may have retired)...
Regarding N3597D... we took that to the arctic (ANWR) back in 88'... I do have several picts of that operation...
Larry Boyer ran the maintenance floor and later training in Provo... had some great laughs with him... I do not forget Him..
great times...
scott

I have an old picture of a downed RM helicopter with a mechanic in the pic. Picture is from 1981 if you would like for me to post?