Terry Halifax
Northern News Services

NORMAN WELLS (Nov 01/99) - Born and raised in the Delta, Norman Wells helicopter pilot Kevin Hickling always seems to fly his way back North.

At age 18, Hickling soon found working the rigs in the oil patch was not for him.

"I got tired of playing in the mud," recalled Hickling with a smile.

"Spinning chain out in the middle of nowhere just wasn't for me."

"These helicopters would fly in and out all the time, and I thought to myself, 'Hey that seems like a pretty good job.'"

"So I saved my loonies and went back to school."

Hickling enrolled in helicopter training at St. Andrew, just outside of Winnipeg, Man.

"I started out on the Bell 47 and pretty soon I was endorsed on turbines, so I started flying the Bell 206," he said.

He went back to the oil patch, but this time he stayed out of the mud and instead of spinning chain he was spinning the rotor of a jet-powered chopper. He flew mostly in and around Alberta and Inuvik.

"I worked for Sunrise, Continental and Great Slave Helicopters," he said.

Seeking adventure and a change of scenery, Hickling flew his talents overseas, where he flew for rigs around Madagascar, Kenya and Ethiopia.

He ended his African adventure following a tour through Somalia.

"We were in the jungle about 50 miles south of Mogadishu when things really started to get hot," he recalled.

The rebel forces had begun ethnic cleansing in surrounding villages and Hickling and his co-workers had to flee the country.

"A few of our drivers got shot and me and 20 other ex-pats boarded an old fishing boat," he said.

"In a nearby village, there were a bunch of Philippine girls who were working for UNICEF. The rebels were going in there and raping the women, so we got them out on our boat."

Back in the North, he's led a more quiet life, but not without a few close calls.

"About 40 miles south of Paulatuk I flew into a complete whiteout and had to put down," he said.

"Myself and two surveyors spent the night out there."

Bad weather is something pilots deal with all the time, but loss of power is something every pilot fears -- especially helicopter pilots, because these birds can't coast.

"I had engine failure and the helicopter started to auto-rotate," he said.

"I managed to land safely, phoned my boss, built a fire, had a cup of tea and by that time, another helicopter arrived to take us home."

Hickling has settled in at Norman Wells where he works once again for Great Slave Helicopters. Married with two young daughters, Mackenzie and Alexandra, he says they're the priority now.

"School is going to determine our next move," he said. "But if the work is up here, we'll just have to see."