Severe Clear: Chronicles of A Canadian Bush Pilot

By James Buerge

Is an aviation term that depicts this book's Critical Insight into Aviation's
dangers and lessons learned. Remote living becomes dependent upon
astuteness, safety, and ingenuity. Although Northern Bush Flying is the primary subject of this fast paced book, associated living among the aboriginal First Nation Peoples projects additional stories and skills of Bush Life. Flying episodes range from Oregon to Georgia and from Mexico to The Arctic Ocean. There are two tutorials on constructing a
bush outhouse and natural Aboriginal Leather making. This unique book is a wealth of information and wisdom for the student as well as for the domestic private plot. Find over seventy pictures and fifteen of the author's personal Aviation Axioms. Many readers have said that they could not lay the book down until the nearly 400 pages had been entirely read.

• Language: English
• Publisher: James Buerge
• Release date: Nov 29, 2017
• ISBN: 9781773702889

Book preview

Preface

To ... SEVERE CLEAR

The title of this book, Severe Clear, may perhaps also pertain to the unusual aviation opportunities where I have experienced events that required keen astuteness. These tense climactic tests then extract from us a Severe awareness of these situations. Our acuteness may well provide Clear Insight into many meaningful life solutions. These opportune cloudless views often present to us a most perceptive and unrestricted vision whereby we may exercise keen discernment towards clearly safe conclusions.

In writing this book, I have sought words to express my thoughts and emotions adequately. However, they have been most elusive and retreating. But I have persevered, flying to and fro over remote byways, through deep valleys, and across tundra crested plateaus, seeking them out. I have gathered up many parcels of purposefully proper ones. Finally, for a particular need, I have selected the ones closest to my heart. Then, my hope has been to push, pull, and persuade them into a unique lineup that pleases me, and hopefully, you too.

After almost four decades of aviation life, it may seem that my deeply perceptive feelings would have diminished. But no, yet today, I still experience many of those long past sensations. Perhaps, you too may also feel some of these treasures and relive them along with me, as together, we read and write.

Severe Clear Postulations

1. Credo de Aviation

I shall Hold earth’s atmosphere in High Respect.

I must Grow into the place of Airborne Authority.

I will Consider my pilot’s license as an Earned Privilege.

I do Regard my ascent into the heavens to be a Valued Gift.

2. Pilot in Command

A Pilot who leaves his Post Directly Violates,

And contravened the aircraft’s Captain Responsibility.

A pilot is demanded to maintain Oversight of his Aircraft.

His mandate is to stand in control as Pilot in Command,

Maintaining full and safe superintendence At all Times.

3. A Pilot’s Character Growth

Danger lies in our Pathway.

Awareness holds a Keen Edge.

Relaxation must be Cultivated.

Resolute Resolve begs Firmness.

Peace is graciously granted as A Gift.

Vision embraces perseverance and Goals.

4. My Endeavor:

In all my pathways of life

That lay directly ahead of me,

I choose to embrace each testing.

5. Pilotage

Pilots input intentions into aircraft via Gentle Nudges.

Planes are certified to respond in Consistently-

Predictable Aerodynamic Responses.

6. Others

My several vocations have all contributed to who I am.

Please do not endeavor to do what I have done.

Persist in what you may do for others.

7. Motivated Satisfaction

My life is well worth living.

Yes, I have walked a long way.

I have yet groomed my pathways,

I have stepped lightly upon this earth,

I fix my gaze toward a way I now seek.

And In that, I find Motivated Satisfaction.

8. Crosswinds

The Crosswinds of life Do

Swerve us, pushing the Flank,

Intending to divert determination.

The Twilight of the day Does

Cut us short, pausing our Foray,

Infringing upon our accomplishments.

The Crises of any moment Deals

Fear and flight, projecting a Faltering,

Intruding without respect; yet finds no root.

9. Sustaining A Bush Pilot Title

A pilot must always maintain Alertness and Agility.

One must at all times be Assertive and Definitive.

If No is said: Then act without Delay or Adjudication.

Decisions require Immediate and Deliberate Action.

Possessing traits of Aptitude and Ability are valuable.

But, Ascendant to a bush pilot’s Legendary Life is Safety.

10. A Captain With Choices:

A Careless and Whimsical pilot in Casualness.

A Confused and Weary pilot Captive in Camp.

A Confident and Willing pilot in Certainty.

A Cautious and Wary pilot in Command.

11. The Beaufort Sea

I had just walked the unique terrain of Herschel Island’s

Spirit Bound Orb. Yes, that Whalers’ Domain remains

Severe. Now, liberated and released from that Land,

I found it to be a fine day, Cloudless and Clear.

12. Whisky

Where’s Joe? I asked. ... Listening carefully, I heard

Fred, in faltering, gasping lyrics, began faintly speaking

some faltering words: My partner .. Joe ... He’s dying.

Swig’d, … he just? He might be dead already.

Help me get him up ... Please? I couldn’t wake him.

I can’t get him up out of the snow. He only wants to

sleep. I think maybe. … Probably: He‘s Dead.

Whiskey. I don’t know … He might be stiff ... Hurry!

13. Gut Feelings

1. It is very easy to become confused. Our Reasoning and Natural Inclinations may steer us in the wrong direction.

2. Good instruments will never do that to us. This is why, We, as pilots, have learned that we must:

a) Never Yield to Analytical and Internal Gut Feelings.

They are our head’s Mental and Sensory Perceptions.

b) But Always Trust our External Navigational Devices.

They are based on immutable scientific physical Laws.

14. Today

I am now old and well worn. I ofttimes wonder why so many have gone on ahead of me. Albeit, may my continuing journey beckon other wayfarers toward an abiding hope for tomorrow. As I turn Life over in my mind, I Consider Invincibility versus Meekness.

15. My Life

To Survive and learn is Substantial.

To Fail in life’s implementation could be Fatal.

To Inhibit it from ever happening is yet Most Ideal.

16. Natures’ North

Have you ever shared a new year’s midnight deck party over Marsh Lake singing with a kilted bagpipe player blowing Auld Lang Syne beneath the Northern Aurora Lights? ~ How many have flown above a stampeding herd of Wood Bison Buffalo charging up a Canadian Rocky Mountain pass? ~ Who of you have ever waded the waters of the Arctic Ocean, skied its watery surface or trekked its frozen landscape?

Or, have you ever perhaps witnessed thousands of Barren-Ground Caribou moving over vast reaches of the Arctic Tundra like ants? And multitudes of the antlered ones then swimming the freezing waters of the Porcupine River at the Roadless Village of Old Crow? ~ Oh, to again observe a fortress of Musk Oxen circled around their young ones in protective posture.

Who has witnessed a pack of wolves dancing about a frightened group of Caribou upon an icy lake? ~ Have you positioned yourself to look upon a Ruffed Grouse perched upon a fallen log, proudly performing his spring Drumming Dance? Have you ever felt the astounding and mysterious resonance of a Pressure Ridge forming on a frozen lake?

These northern sights, sounds, and smells, I have sensed, touched, and reacted to. My heart has thumped, been pierced, and throbbed in wonder and amazement. Tears have formed, accumulated, and dropped down onto soft Tundra Moss ...

Now, as a young man with a newly acquired pilot’s license in my hand, I was presented with all of the vast reaches of

Aviation’s SEVERE CLEAR Skies.

From time immemorial, humans have dreamed of flight, longingly gazing into the heights above. Those wingless ones have long envisioned hanging upon the ebb and flow of another fluid where the birds effortlessly soar.

I held a warrant to enter that obscure and sacred realm. But, Has God granted me the bold authority to invade His mystical Heavenly Expanse? I asked myself. Lo, has my mere five hours of dual instruction qualified me to be a solo aviator? May I enter at will? I wondered.

Was it true that there were no second chances allotted to those who trespassed into those towering white fluffy cumuli granite clouds? Would this cramped and convoluted makeshift bush runway reward me with flight or failure? Would climbing up into a black overcast ceiling irrevocably relegate me to come spirallingB back out of that bleak unknown biosphere?

I deliberated. How many times, over the term of my career, would my engine shudder, sputter, and succumb to a somber silence? Does everyone who descends down through the top of this dark overcast always come crashing out of its hostile habitat? How far would the fumes of this last bit of fuel take me? Were my passengers noticing my growing nervousness and my sweating brow?

I knew that I could be hopelessly lost.

Yes, I did acknowledge my risks, understanding that this bold endeavor must be cautiously approached under a caveat of strict and severe reprobation. Indeed, I was fully aware that a single error of breaking this domain’s laws could savagely sting me with her vehement vengeance.

Old Pilots and a few Bold Pilots circle overhead,

Yet nary ever is found an Old Bold Pilot.

My Understanding:

Iclutched a piece of paper indicating that I had met a certain prescribed technical level of Aviation Proficiency. However, I also realized that a License in my hand did notdefine some exceptional capability that I may have innately possessed.

Most certainly, I would never look upon aviation as an entitlement that I may undeservedly grasp.

I recognized that aviation’s flight allowed me to leave earth’s clay and explore a place where eagles lived and where lightning was thundered out. I knew that I was not indigenous to that domain but remained a mere pilgrim to that lofty and vast firmament.

I must always respectfully hold my Aviation License as a privilege that was peradventure bestowed upon me. My flight through that celestial domain was truly a concession of favored freedom.

I Accept the: Postulation 1

Credo de Aviation

I shall Hold earth’s atmosphere in High Respect.

I must Grow into the place of Airborne Authority.

I will Consider my pilot’s license as an Earned Privilege.

I do Regard my ascent into the heavens to be a Valued Gift.

1. Table of Contents

A. The Chapters, in the table listing the book’s Contents, are separated by Six Named Intervals. These Time Periods include Section Names and Timespan Dates during that segment of time.

B. Then, throughout this book, these six individual Episodes are reinserted at the beginning of each of their respective sections with the author’s logged Flight Hours and a brief introduction to what the reader may expect during that time period. It shows two Chapter types.

A Storyis a recorded account of myAviationFightActivities.

AnEvent is an Associated PersonalLifeAccount.

2. Glossary of Aviation Terms

A Glossary of Aviation Terms may be found at the end of this book. That brief Aviation Glossary is intended for those readers who have an interest in understanding further information regarding a Numbered Word[0] that is found in the text of this book. It indicates that there is additional aviation information in the Glossary.

The terms are numbered and appear alphabetically in most cases. The page numbers are references to the first occurrence where the word is found in a particular chapter. A reference to a specific super-scripted glossary word does not suggest that every word is so noted. The total occurrences of a word in this book (00x) may be found in parentheses. Please carry out your own research for supplementary Aviation Topics.

3. Glossary of English/US Spelling Variations

A Glossary of Spelling Variations may be found at the end of this book. It lists the words that the author has chosen to retain their particular British/Canadian spellings.

The author’s preferences are shown by:

Superscripted letters that are capitalized/light B in the text indicates a British spelling origin. I.e., BritishB

Subscripted letters that are capitalized/light A in the manuscript denotes a word that is not British, but rather, judged to be of American spelling origin. I.e., AmericanA

4. Book Tenses, Past & Present

Past Tense writing has been chosen to be the writing style in this book. It is my story of what happened long ago. However, the present tense is sometimes necessary to be used in the Past depicted, then-present quotations. It is customary in this writing to place the past spoken actual words in Quotation Marks, but not italicized.

Present Tense. In a few book locations, the writer has chosen to include this Present Day position. It is done to give comparative current conditions and facts. In these limited cases, the present tense is used to comment on current feelings and convictions. In all of these places, the author elected to italicize these portions so that the reader may be alerted to a change of tense. Perhaps, so noting these indicated brief diversions will help keep you firmly planted in the context of the story. My desire, as your writer, is to hold you in the suspense and lore of my foregone story.

5. Formatting

The author has personally designed this book’s formatting. Margins are justified. Minimal hyphenated or emboldened words were allowed. Sentences are single-spaced after their periods. All of the pages terminate in a paragraph period. Header information is kept to a minimum and is in a smaller lighter weight font (Calibri Light). The layout was specifically chosen to minimize distractions from the storyline action.

1. Piper J-3 CUB, Draft

Begin Period One

2. Piper CUB, Early Logo

Period One - Early USA Aviation

Early USA Aviation | 1963-74 | 610 Hrs

Story 1 - Piper Cub Solo

Story 2 - Tri-Pacr Owner

Story 3 - Mooney Owner

Events 4 - Venturing Out

Introduction ... This section tells about my early personal aviation experiences wherein I will share with you, my long-ago first flying remembrances and the feelings of joy that captivated me as a new pilot. It was a little yellow Piper Cub¹⁵ that made an indelible impression upon my life. For years to come, I continually sought new vistas of wonder. I chose to seek an accomplished competence and skill as a Private Pilot²², and later as a Commercial Pilot³ in our Aviation Charter Company.

During this time, my vast travel distances seemed to be justification for upgrading my aircraft. I thought that faster travel speeds were better than the normal and conservative. A perfect performance was primary. The technology was captivating. Adventures that were taken into the western half of the US, down into Mexico, and North to Canada, were intriguing.

So come and follow me through my beginning years that built the foundation for a lifetime of privileged aviation involvements and opportunities that awaited me.

Sense with me the motivations that prompted my vocation and propelled me into thirty years of aviation fulfillmentA. Experience with me my thousands of flight hours that were yet to come as pilot-in-command.

Piper Cub Solo

The Dream to fly above the earth has ever been perpetuated by mortals’ long gaze into that ethereal dimension where the birds glide. Mankind has always imagined attaining entrance into that Mystical Kingdom. Now, this concept perhaps has been birthed in the hearts of many young ones. To them, flight might seem impossible. Yet, their pursuit lingered on as a continuing, far away dream. In my situation, that quest of flying remained elusive and unrealizedA for twenty-four years into my adulthood.

Then, following university, marriage, and two children, I stepped out and ventured a visit to my local airport. My intention was only to look around and see how small airplanes were built. But then I strayed, beginning to inquire about the requirements for becoming a pilot. My desire to fly was being kindled. I sensed the freedom of moving freely through heaven’s far-reaching sphere at my will and call.

I met a flight teacher named Don who was an instructor and trained students in a Piper J-3 Cub¹⁵. It was, as I had imagined, a yellow Piper Cub. It had a Continental 65 HP engine with its black cylinder heads and spark plug wires boldly exposed, sticking out from the frontal sides of a metal cowling⁴. The propeller²³ was made out of nicely laminated wood with little pieces of silver metal that were recessed into the leading edges of the two blades. The fuselage and wings both had a covering of cotton fabric⁷. The body was constructed from aircraft welded steel tubing. The wings were fabricated as beautiful wooden creations. I considered the Piper Cub to be a well-crafted airplane of the period.

I asked Don to make an appointment for my first lesson on Saturday, June 8, 1963. He called this initial exercise a Familiarization Ride. Over the next nine days, he gave me four additional flight training sessions. I learned to do stalls³⁴, slow flight³², S-turns, and 720-degree circles. We practiced takeoffs and approaches that included short field³⁰, forced⁸, and crosswind landings⁵.

Then, on a sunny June 21st, Don instructed me to practice touch and go landings with him. I still remember the sequence: The gliding descendent’s quietness of an idling engine on final approach, the feel of the main wheels touching the runway, and then, while rolling, a special Go-Around-Sound that yet lingers in my memory.

Still today, I can hear that pulsing resonance of the motor at its transition forward from No power to Full power, eagerly boosting one back up into one’s rank high up in the sky.

For the next landing, Don told me to come to a Full Stop on the runway. And then, to my puzzlement, and with no forewarning, he asked me to hold the brakes. I immediately heard the unsnapping of harness buckles and Don moving around behind me. Then, without explanation, He opened the door, and just like that, clambered out of the airplane. And stepping back, he motioned for me to go ahead as he waved to me: "Have a good flight."

I began to comprehend that he was telling me to Fly Solo³³ without him. Turning, I gave Don a puzzled look with a raised shoulder and an uplifted palm. Again, Don gave a sharp forward throw of his hand as he turned his back on me and walked off of the runway. So, continuing on as a compliant student, I promptly added power and took off, transitioning into a climb.

At a few thousand feet above the ground, I began to comprehend that I was on my own. Sinking in, even more, I realizedA that I was flying solo³³, alone in an airborne aircraft that was entirely under my personal care and control.

I hadn’t been instructed where to go or what to do. So, I headed counter-clockwise outside of the periphery of the airport zone. Then, descending back into the landing sequence, I very accurately intersected the downwind pattern-leg at a 45-degree angle.

And, as before, in the crosswind leg, I estimated the precise moment to turn into the final approach path. In resolve, I exactly lined up my glide position with the runway’s centerlineA.

Now, while managing my left-hand throttle lever, I was looking for the correct approach power to meet the end of the runway accurately. I was continually evaluating the diminishing distance to the threshold. The decreasing altitude gave me the illusion of an ever opening and widening runway angle.

I was sliding downward, back to the earth and it was not frightening in any way. I was the pilot in command, and I well understood how this little gull glided. It was a gentle alighting and a soft touch upon the asphalt strip. As I taxied to the end of the runway, I saw Don waving to me as he strolled toward the airport office.

In my first logbook¹⁶ that I still have, my penned Solo Entry:

Donald E. Wright, Certified, Flight Instructor

#----82 Friday, 21 June 1963

1st Supervised Solo, OK.

Bravo! I had just Flown Solo.

Before that time, I had logged 4.9 hours of dual instruction, over a period of about a week. With today’s time, my total flight training added up to 5.1 hours.

The next Saturday, following that solo³³, I got up before daylight and drove to the airport. It was twilight when I arrived. I could see the outline of the J-3 in the tie-down line. The morning air was cool but pleasant. I was dressed in a light jacket and wore thin gloves and a scarf around my neck. As I was walking alone across the tarmac to my Cub, the feeling of anticipation surged through my being. I was experiencing my longstanding personal dream of singularly and freely soaring in the celestial skies above.

Now, the setting was materializing right before me. It was pleasantly packaged in that quiet moment. I was edging near to the fulfillmentA of my quest to fly as an aviator.

The air was frost-free that morning, and stepping up to the yellow Cub¹⁵, I confirmed that there was no ice on the wing surfaces. My preflight had become very familiar to me. I checked the engine oil²⁰ level, tapped the spark plug wires and ran my hand along the leading edge of the prop blades. Then I bobbed the fuel tank’s cork float-wire rising up through the fuel cap, indicating that it was registering correctly. I kneeled under the cowling and checked for water in the fuel sump. A walk around of the Cub found the control surfaces to be free and movable. A tap on the fabric produced a taut drum-like response.

I untied the wing ropes and pulled the wheel chocks away from the tires. Then, lifting the tail, I pushed the Cub forward from its parked position, out toward the taxiway, locating the rear of the aircraft over the tie-down cable.

Again I chocked the wheels. There was no parking brake on the J-3. So, I took my long safety rope and tied it off, just inside the cabin door. Then I took it back to the parking tie-down cable and threaded the tether around it and back to the wing strut where I knotted a quick-release stay.

But, before starting the motor, I had to prime it. And, leaning inside, I looked, confirming that both magneto¹⁷ switches were turned to their OFF position. Now, with the Mags validated to be inoperative, I carefully addressed the prop from the front left and pulled it counter-clockwise through four compression strokes, ending just before the next firing position. This rotation primed the cylinders with small injections of fuel and mixed the oil in the engine’s crankcase.

Outside, the dawn’s first glow contrasted the skyline edges of the magnificent Cascade Mountains to the east. The next step was a part of this pilot’s early, very sobering and strict personal protocols: To safely hand-prop¹³ an aircraft power plant and to do it without a mishap. I was alone, and one must eliminate the risk of injury from a prop strike²⁴. However, it was not dangerous if it was addressed correctly and cautiously.

Here was that morning’s procedure: I checked the wheel blocks around the tires and stepped back to the cockpit. There I switched the magnetos to BOTH ON and pulled the throttle all the way back to the minimum idle position.

Now, with my Pre-start²¹ completed, I had a poised Hot Prop¹² that was eagerly waiting to fire up and to come to life. I carefully paced a wide circle to the front of the craft. Then, after glancing at the ground, and looking up, I cautiously moved to within arm’s length of the prop blade that was to my left.

Finally, with both hands on the top of the propeller, I confirmed that it was the sharp trailing edge of the blade. No adjustment or repositioning of the propeller blade was permissible¹². Vigilance was demanded because ...

It Could Fire at any Moment¹².

Then, I called out loudly: "Clear Area²."

Taking a deep breath and in one fluid motion, I lifted one knee slightly and took a step backward while pulling down firmly and smartly. But I did not overdo it. Then, with a carry through, I continued back the second pace away from the prop.

That morning, I stood there … enjoying the reverberation that followed. The blades were slowly whirling, and the motor was providing an appealing put-put harmony. I was enjoying seeing the little white puffs of tepid exhaust condensation in the chilly morning air. I inhaled it, savoringA the mixed aroma of fuel, combustion exhaust, and hot residual oil on the engine as it warmed. I looked up and mouthed out loud; It’s time to go. The sun will soon be up. Now throw the yellow wheel blocks back onto your tie-down spot and jump into your aircraft. ... Survey the traffic area around you.

Continuing to speak to