Tue, Apr 26, 2005
Tanker Pilot One Of Three Lost In Last Week's California
Mishap
Brian Bruns "was a serious, competent individual who focused on
his job and performed it to the best of his ability." That in
itself may be the highest praise one pilot has for another and
that's what pilots who knew him are saying. This, in the wake of
last week's firefighting tanker mishap in California's Lassen
National Forest. Bruns, 45, along with 52-year old Paul Cockrell
and 41-year old Thomas Lynch were lost in the accident.
NTSB investigators have now finished going over the crash site
and are formulating their report on Wednesday's crash. The Aero
Union Lockheed P-3 Orion went down during a firefighting practice
run.
Leonard Parker, owner of Minden Air at the Minden-Tahoe Airport
in Nevada, knew Bruns well and spoke highly of him in an interview
with Gardnerville Record-Courier.
"We would meet occasionally in the fire environment or he would
drop by just to talk," Parker said.
"I didn't know of a single person who had a derogatory comment
to make about him. I was honored to be his friend," said Mike
Kidwell, manager of the Stead Air Attack Base.
Bruns knew his aircraft. He'd spent his Navy career flying the
P-3. Sure, he could have stayed in the Reserves after his active
duty career. He could have continued flying Orions on
anti-submarine patrols. But Kidwell told the Reno Gazette-Journal
that wasn't what made Bruns' watch tick.
"When the bell goes off, theres the adrenaline and the
excitement of it," Kidwell said. "When you can get out there and
kick that fires butt and everybody come homes safe. Its a very
satisfying feeling. When it goes bad, it goes radically bad. People
die."
But that won't be a deterrent for fire attack pilots, said
Parker. "We're all professionals. We all believe in this business
and like to think of ourselves as firefighters here to do good for
people. That's what makes the difference."
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