Australian Penthouse

Some of the world’s most dangerous jobs are carried out right here in Australia. Denise Mooney meets the men who risk everything at their 9 to 5

Around the world, aircraft pilots feature prominently in fatality statistics. Last year, 30 people died while carrying out aerial work, flight training or working on private flights, according to the Australian Transport Safety Bureau.

Fergus Ponder is a flight instructor with Becker Helicopters on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, but during the summer season he’ll be fighting bushfires in Queensland and New South Wales. Up until last year, the pilot was based in the US city of Chicago, where he spent most of the year fighting fires from Florida all the way to Montana. The former stockman became a helicopter pilot 13 years ago, after a visit to America. “From the first moment we got translational lift, I knew it was exactly the right fit,” he says. The 42-year-old has since flown Agusta A-109s, R22s and, his favourite, the Sikorsky S-58T.

When you’re fighting fires, the dangers include strong winds and downdraughts, and low flying near treetops. “You put yourself in these situations,” Ponder tells us. “If you think too much about it, you’re in the wrong job.”

But some days you have no choice, like the day he was preparing to make a drop in the Sawtooth Mountains in Montana. “I messed it up,” he says plainly. “I started to descend too quickly. I did a fast turn and the next thing you know, down it comes.” The helicopter dropped about 15 metres, but luckily not all the way to the trees. “Your stomach comes up into your mouth. In the moments following it, you start thinking about family and whether it’s really worth it. As fun as it is, there is that inherent danger.”

There are always pilots who don’t make it home from work: “A few years ago in northern California, the guys on the next helipad to us got tasked with a mission. We could have got it, but they did. They were delivering cargo to some crew on the hill. He put his load down in a clearing, but he drifted and bumped into a tree. It can happen.”

Dealing with events like this can be difficult. Ponder always calls his wife. “She knows when I’m going through a tough time, and she’ll talk me through it.” To be a good pilot, you need to be a glass-half-full type of guy who doesn’t think too much about what can go wrong. “I just get a buzz from flying,” smiles Ponder. “I always start singing. I get a lot of satisfaction from it.”

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