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Eyes in the skies – what it’s like to be a spotter pilot

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Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (WA) (DBCA), April 2023

Helping spot fires is the job of dreams for Parks and Wildlife Service Senior Spotter Pilot Bronwen Prinsloo. This Manjimup-based pilot loves taking to the skies to spot and report on fires, monitor prescribed burns and do her bit to help keep our communities safe.

The aerial spotter fleet is now into its 51st year of operations and when Bronwen is in the cockpit, she reckons she’s got the world’s best office.

How did you get to be a spotter pilot, Bronwen?

“I learnt to fly at the Royal Aero Club of Western Australia (RACWA) and Western Australian Aviation College (WAAC) in Jandakot. I acheived my Commercial Pilot Licence in December 2016. I worked in the Operations Department at RACWA during 2017 to save enough money to do my Tailwheel Undercarriage Endorsement so that I could apply for the fire spotting job with Parks and Wildlife. I applied and was successful in getting the job in 2017. I was made Senior Base Pilot at Manjimup in 2021.

I live in Manjimup during the fire season then I move back to Perth, where I grew up, for the winter.”

Tell us about your job, what do you do and what’s the best part?

“Getting to fly the plane all the time. The sights we see, the people that we work with, and you feel like you’re making a difference because especially when you find a fire early and even though it can be sort of anticlimactic because nothing happens, it’s good that nothing happened because you found it early and everyone got to deal with it.

Take off
Photo: DBCA

“It’s magical the moment that like your wheels lift off and you’re up in the air and it’s just you. On days it’s bumpy, it’s not as fun, but it’s still just it’s magical. It’s wonderful. You show up every day, we check on prescribed burns, check that everything is where it’s meant to be. It’s all within the boundaries.

“Will give feedback to the ground crews if they’re there. How the fire’s progressing, flame height, rate of spread, if that’s what’s required, just any information that they’re looking for. And then once we get into the hot part of summer, we’ll be making sure that there’s no fires where there’s not meant to be, basically. After we get like a lightning storm come through, we’ll be checking for lightning strikes.

“We’ll be up early at like 7:00 in the morning, making sure that nothing sparked up overnight. Lightning fire days can tend to be the big ones because we’ll be chasing them all over the place, looking for them. And we can fly anywhere from sort of 1 to 4 times a day. It depends on the conditions. If it’s really windy and really hot, we’ll fly more often.

“I worked on the Stirling Range fire in 2019 and watching the fire was fascinating and terrifying. And kudos to the ground crews because I wouldn’t want to be where they are. They’re super brave. Even though it is a traditionally male-dominated industry, both aviation and fire, everyone that we work with is absolutely wonderful. Everyone has been super welcoming and super accommodating. I started when I was 19, so I was pretty young and I was a little bit worried about being a young female pilot coming into this, but I had nothing to worry about whatsoever.”

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