Sun Bird Inaugural Lift Smooth Sailing

Like clockwork. That’s the goal for precision lifting, setting and building of Sunrise Powerlink tower components because there is no room for error. On Jan. 31, the first full mobilization and tower lift for the Sun Bird and her ground support crew went very well, you might even say, like clockwork.

The Sun Bird lifted and relocated four tower sections at Rough Acres Ranch in Boulevard as part of the assembly process for some of the 16 towers currently in progress (see video below). The inaugural lift was a good training exercise and went quickly and smoothly, validating the stellar preparation and safety precautions made by the team in advance.

This flight is an important step toward the start of overhead tower construction, which will gear up in the field during the first quarter of 2011. The Sun Bird will play a pivotal role in moving and/or setting bridges, body extensions and legs from yards to construction sites on more than half of the 421 towers along the route. A few days after the inaugural flight, the Sun Bird lifted grading equipment at the Suncrest Substation site to prepare for radio equipment installation.

The Sun Bird is an integral part of the success of the Sunrise Powerlink and one portion of the helicopter operations strategy. There are three pilots and three ground crew on duty at all times supporting the Sun Bird, as well as an extended crew that provides maintenance and other support. In all, it takes 10 people each day to make sure the Sun Bird is prepared to fly.

“Effectively managing repairs and maintenance is the key—along with having a great team,” emphasizes Mike Manry, aviation and Sunrise Base manager. “This is a machine after all—one with 22,000 parts.” In addition to the maintenance provided at the hangar, there is a trailer that accompanies the Sun Bird while at fly yards to ensure spare equipment and parts are available at all times.

All these parts work together in an intricate balancing act to support the heaviest commercial lifting helicopter available in the U.S., boasting 10.5 tons, or 20,000 pounds of lift capability powered by twin turbines providing 9,600 horsepower. Just to put it in perspective, a typical car has about 400 horsepower. But what good would this miraculous machine be without a capable and seasoned crew?

“We have the best pilots in the world, they pay attention to every detail in mission planning and always make safety the top priority,” explains Mike Manry. Each pilot, contracted from Erickson, a world leader in air-crane aviation, has more than 9,000 hours of flight time in this type of aircraft.

In addition to Sun Bird activities, there is another portion of helicopter operations devoted exclusively to flying personnel to and from work sites. There are 262 planned work sites that are accessed only by helicopter to minimize environmental impacts. The Sunrise Powerlink will use helicopters to move between 30 and 50 employees and contractors each day between work sites. In other words, the helicopter operations team is responsible for a lot of moving parts that need to work like clockwork and they’re up to the challenge.