One of the most important tasks that the helicopters undertake is fire fighting- not fire fighting in residential area, but in huge areas like in the case of forest fires and terrorist attacks. The destruction is on a large scale and efficient and quick management of crisis is required. A lot depends on the competency of the pilot as well, because gadgets are of no use in ignorant hands.

Techniques: One of the simplest and the most effective methods that the chopper uses is the water bucket. It is actually a portable bucket-like structure, hung externally below the helicopter using cargo hooks. The mechanism is not very complicated, and once emptied, it can be refilled very quickly from nearby lakes and ponds, making it very efficient and quick in times of crisis.

Another such tool is the Bambi Bucket, which is a slightly advanced version of the water bucket and can be carried in distant regions as well, making fire fighting possible even in those remote regions where there are hardly any facilities for such severe possibilities.

Fire Extinguishers: Apart from water, the helicopter also uses chemicals and water enhancers like foams, gels and specially formulated fire retardants. The helicopter is also used for Foam System Operations. The manufacturers produce foam of different chemical densities to suit the requirements of different aircraft.

The foam is added to the water buckets in concentration levels of 0.5% to 1.0%, though they may differ according to circumstances. Foam tanks are almost similar in use to water tanks but they require power pumps to operate.

Advantages: The helicopter is also an excellent way to survey the entire area and keep a contact with the ground personnel regarding the current situation. The standard method of controlling fire is to start at the “heel” or the starting point of the fire and to continue along the “flanks” or the side, towards the area where it is headed. This gives the added advantage of checking whether the fire has changed course and affected other area or not. Moreover, a fire spreads more rapidly if it is moving uphill, because of the wind and other driving factors, and such situations are most efficiently controlled from the air.

These techniques that can be performed with helicopters make them a boon during rescue operations.

Getting a pilot’s license with the intent on learning to fly a helicopter is a very ambitious goal. But of all of the aircraft, the helicopter is probably one of the most versatile and useful kinds of flying in society.

You don’t have to look far to find ways that helicopter pilots are getting great jobs in all segments of society. Every local news team has at least one if not several traffic or weather helicopters to help report the news. Every day these pilots whisk a news team off to the heart of a fast breaking story, often a story that is filmed directly from the cockpit of their helicopter.

The need for helicopters to assist law enforcement is easy to witness by just watching any cop or detective show on television or in the movies. But the way the pilot of the helicopter becomes a big part of many police situations is not overstated. For law enforcement, the need to get right to the heart of a crime situation is nothing short of critical. Time makes a big difference when it comes to solving a crime or stopping a dangerous situation from spiraling out of control.

Helicopter pilots can find great employment giving rides around the city during the holidays, flying busy executives to high stakes business meetings from the top of skyscrapers, whisking rock stars away from overly adoring fans or working for hospitals getting remote patients to medical care quickly and saving lives in the process. This means that the chances are your life as a helicopter pilot will be exciting, fast paced and always doing something urgent taking you to the most interesting of places.

But of the many ways that helicopter pilots find great jobs helping others in society, rescue missions may be the most meaningful. During the hurricane Katrina disaster, it was a common thing to see helicopter pilots going in and plucking people off of rooftops to take them to safety and to be reunited with their grateful families. In forest fire situations, helicopters are what are used to dump water or chemicals on the fire to try and stop the burning.

You should know the demands that will be put on you when you start on your course to learn to fly a helicopter and get a pilot’s license that says you can be counted on to handle this important vehicle with skill. Unlike a conventional airplane, the helicopter and maneuver straight up and side to side with phenomenal flexibility. It can hover over a location virtually in one place and be landed with nothing more needed than a small plot of ground to place it down on rather than a long landing field. The skill to be able to actually do these maneuvers with this precision flying machine take time and money to gain.