Firearms

[BigSkyHeli]

Not sure which is more of a hassle: Gun or bear spray. Carrying bearspray involves your company having a specific exemption for it (it's not covered in limited access, but I hear it will be shortly).

 

As far as bearspray effectiveness, it'll work on small black bears and on other critters like foxes and raccoons, but if you're hoping to intimidate a large black, grizz or polar bear, you'll probably do it more harm by throwing the can and hitting it on the nose than by actually discharging it.

 

The risk of you forgetting to remove it from your belt prior to flight and it going off in the cockpit represents a far greater risk in my view.

 

I've found that just cranking the engine a couple of seconds will scare most black bears away instantly. Never been close to the other kinds on the ground to measure effectiveness...

 

Reminds me of a story told to me by an old forestry employee many years ago. During our safety briefing the problem of bears comes up and how best to handle the situation.

Old fella said while walking in the bush it was helpful to be able to identify the different types of bears in the area by knowing the different characteristics in their dumps. Black bears he says have dumps which are full of berry seeds. Of course we are all most interested in how to identify a Grizzly dump. Well he says thats even easier as a Grizzly's dump is full of bells and smells like pepper!!

 

BSH

[Skidz]

Reminds me of a story told to me by an old forestry employee many years ago. During our safety briefing the problem of bears comes up and how best to handle the situation.

Old fella said while walking in the bush it was helpful to be able to identify the different types of bears in the area by knowing the different characteristics in their dumps. Black bears he says have dumps which are full of berry seeds. Of course we are all most interested in how to identify a Grizzly dump. Well he says thats even easier as a Grizzly's dump is full of bells and smells like pepper!!

 

BSH

 

There's actually a very official-looking sign with that story on the importance of bear spray and bear bells (aka dinner bells) at the entrance to one of the national parks along the AB-BC border. Can't remember which, but it's worded in such a way that you read through the whole thing before you get to the punchline and go D-OH !

[DaedalusX]

I would never ever ever carry bear spray inside an helicopter. If you can't figure out why maybe you should re-consider you career choice.

[That's not good]

Bear Spray isn't designed to scare off a bear, its made to buy you some time, to help you get to your machine, cottage, whatever.

 

I also wouldn't fly with it in my lap either...That's what baggage compartments are for.

[Hazy]

I would never ever ever carry bear spray inside an helicopter. If you can't figure out why maybe you should re-consider you career choice.

 

Could mean working or not working for some customers. Some "companies" have containers to store and transport this item in a helicopter. You have to be smart about where you put it.

 

H

[Skidz]

Like I said earlier, your company needs a special exemption to carry any sort of pepper spray. When I fly cops, game wardens or forestry officers, the pepper spray stays in their trucks. They still get to keep their firearms though...

 

From what a TC TDG inspector told me two years ago, when an operator gets an exemption to transport pepper spray, they have to have some sort of special sealed or filtered cannister in which the spray is kept. Apparently, in some aircraft (mainly stiff wing), if a can of pepper spray goes off in flight in certain cargo compartments, the spray can make it's way into the cabin and/or cockpit... :shock:

[Icewind]

Some serious research on bears and pepper spray = http://www.absc.usgs.gov/research/brownbea...pepperspray.htm

 

And don't forget to read the flipside, about bears that are attracted :shock: to peper spray = http://www.absc.usgs.gov/research/brownbea...rspray/news.htm

There is a 5 sec clip of a bear rolling in the stuff = http://www.absc.usgs.gov/research/brownbea...mages/bears.mpg