Most pilots have a natural sense of the inherent risks involved with doing certain kinds of flight maneuvers. We all have a pretty good sense of what kinds of things ratchet up the risk, and we naturally approach such things with extreme caution and preparation, if we go there at all. We can’t help it. When the terms “helicopter,” “chain saw attached” and “power lines” live beside each other in the same sentence, we naturally take notice!
So, this video, which shows a light helicopter using a giant chainsaw attached by a solid pole to a helicopter that’s being hovered back and forth to trim tall vegetation growing up alongside power lines, seems crazy to most pilots. And it is.
But not so much to working helicopter pilots, many of whom regularly do high-risk kinds of flying such as powerline maintenance, logging, firefighting, and emergency medical transport.
Commenters on the original post, as is often the case online, are tough on those who ask questions about the safety of such operations. The truth is, there is risk, as evidenced by this news story about a tragic crash of a helicopter that had been engaged in tree trimming.
