Pilot, author, teacher
Patty RamusArticle Photos
When flight instructor Jeff Welch authored a book to help pilots learn how to fly the Aviat Husky, he never imagined his book would have international reach.
Welch, an Alpena resident and a certified flight instructor since 1971, wrote "Husky 101 Flying the Husky" which was published in 2008. He first thought of the idea to write a book about the Husky after he joined the Aviat Aircraft Inc. factory in 2005. He began teaching in the Husky while he was selling them for the company.
Over time he began to discover other instructors he talked to had different methods of teaching people how to pilot the craft. Every time he trained someone to safely operate the plane, known as checking out, he wrote himself notes and read the approved Federal Aviation Administration information.
"It didn't take me long to understand there was no standards for the airplane," he said.
Welch said the company assumed he didn't need much of a checkout when he flew his first Husky from the factory because of his level of flying time. Even at his level the plane was a handful.
The plane has been difficult for others to learn because of its unique features. Huskys are a popular bush plane and have the ability to take off from a 200-foot air strip. It has a lot of power and lift and with that are certain issues the pilot must learn to deal with, Welch said.
Many people's problems occur because they try to pilot the plane the same as other types and this isn't possible to operate it safely. Some are so scared after their first time flying it that they don't want to do use again, Welch said.
"There's no reason to be scared if you're trained properly," he said.
Welch researched various accidents involving the Husky during the process of writing his book. He uses the accidents as training tools to tell people what they need to avoid in certain situations. The book also includes information about the plane's systems, what to do before takeoff, how to takeoff and different types of landings.
"What this book evolved from was my training notes and for three years I set through 3,000 landings a year in the back seat teaching people how to fly the airplane. So I got pretty familiar with ... number one, the method of how to teach people and the information that they needed to know about the airplane to keep them safe," he said.
Welch said he had help editing the book from family and other people he knew in the community. The book was printed through Model Printing and published by Sarge Publications. It debuted during the AirVenture Air Show in Oshkosh, Wis., in July 2008. With it, he's trying to maximize the performance out of the airplane and teach people to be safe at the same time.
The book began finding its way to other countries not long after it was published. International pilots began contacting Welch for assistance on how to fly Huskys. Many of them received books through planes Welch sold to them. Other people have found out through word of mouth, he said.
Welch said he ordered about 1,500 books and about 900 of those are in circulation. To his knowledge the book has made it to 21 countries including Belgium, Germany, India, France, United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, Mexico and several countries in South America. His book also is being used as a training tool by the Kenya Wildlife Service, as it teaches pilots to use Huskys for patrolling the lands for poachers.
His most recent trainee is a Portuguese man who was scheduled to arrive in Alpena on Friday to train with Welch for a few days on a 1992 Husky A-1 before it's sold. Many of the people Welch has given instruction to keep in touch with him and share their experiences as they use their Husky, he said.
"People that are interested will track me down," he said. "There's a thread out there about this airplane and most people will get to that thread and through that thread will find me."
Welch said he plans to write a series of books with the same theme about other types of bush planes similar to the Husky.
Patty Ramus can be reached via e-mail at pramus@thealpenanews.com or by phone at 358-5687.
