05/23/2024
As an EMS helicopter pilot on the night shift in Moab, Utah, Dave Ballard likes the challenge of getting places that are hard to get. Heās flown on a lot of search-and-rescue missions since he started at Classic Air in 2013, but the most impactful was perhaps the one he didnāt fly ā when, after an accident in a Moab canyon, his team came to rescue him.
Here's his story:
"I was working nights, so during the day in Moab thereās plenty to explore and do. About two years ago I went out with my friend and coworker, whoās a medic at Classic and also works with Grand County Search and Rescue. We were just doing some canyoneering and he was teaching me some rope work in an area called Moon Flower, where we would rappel down into the canyon and then walk back out to his truck.
We had finished the rappel and were walking out, and there was an area where there was a little steeper incline, and I misstepped and slipped, and I kept on sliding and went off about a 30-foot cliff. I broke many bones, but mostly both my feet and ankles. Plus my back and some ribs.
I got pretty tore up, but I was with the exact person you want to be with when something goes wrong. Jake got to me and stabilized me. It was surreal, because, you know, how many times have we gone into that situation to pick up somebody whoād fallen. Now being in that situation, what helped me stay calm and present was running through the flight planning: Okay, we gotta get a call out, we gotta activate everybody. And then my team that I flew with the night before, and obviously the day pilot, came in and picked me up and took care of me. And that was really comforting, knowing your own people are taking care of you.
My work family and all of Classic were there through and through. There was a time where I didnāt think I would be able to get back to flying, and Classic was always very supportive and would tell me Iād always have a place to work at Classic. They took care of me."
Dave recovered and while he isn't able to do all the things he could before his accident, he continues to fly rescue flights for Classic Air!