SWMBO and I have been listening to the `mess' and discussing it ever since the C Springs people took over the Ops up this way and we've only been able to come up with one fairly `reasonable?' `explanation?'.
IE: "We are `civilized' and `know better' than you `yokels' and `our way' *is* the `way' we are going to be doing things and `the heck with you'. Besides that it's *our* eqiupment and if you don't like it we'll just take our `toys' and go home."
Yeah, I *know* that seems to be both kinda harsh and a bit `peckish' but, as SWMBO noted yesterday after listening to them trying to go through NCMC, on Med 3 / 463.050MHz, to try and find out what AirLife was doing still on the pad and when would they be lifting off *and* not seemingly being able to get anywhere "Things have gotten *completely* `FUBAR' since the change and, so far, it appears it isn't getting any better. There *was* a functional system in place that with only a few minor `glitches', like some ground units possibly not having a radio with Fire A or Fire B in it or not knowing where aforesaid `channels' / `freqs' were in the radio and such, that worked quite well. Then these `yahoos' took over and things went nuts."
We *will* admit that there is *some* good to having some more choppers around for `air-evac' for those cases where `ground' transport could be problematic. If we had been able to get a nickle for every time we heard calls for a chopper and they were all in use and wouldn't be `free' any time soon we'd not be worrying about when we could find a buyer for this place and would be moved already. We have been needing a couple more `med' choppers for quite some time.
Back on the `Con' side... There are days when we wonder if there may be too may choppers up this way. Some days the air space above us sounds like a `rush hour freeway' with flights crisscrossing overhead going every which way. Now, we do know, not *all* of the `traffic' are `med-choppers' but, since the change, things *have* become noticably changed. It seems that WCRs 17 & 19 have become the `corridor d'jour' for not only everyone else but, also, the `med-choppers', too. Amazingly enough, today, has been remarkably quite so far. We haven't had a single chopper or plane `buzz' us, yet. (Seems like everyone likes flying at around 500' - 1000' or so when they come through this stretch. [The military choppers seem to be the worst at it but the `med' choppers come in an awfully close second. Though aerial spraying hasn't gotten started and some of those boys, even when spraying fields several miles away, like to `hug' the ground a lot of the time. (We've never had any `problems' with the sprayers as we have been `clients' many times ourselves and know the `whys & wherefores' for the way and levels they fly. And they really are only out for a couple 1 - 3 week stretches a couple times during the `season'. [We suspect that, because of the growth of so-called `civilization' around here, we will be seeing, and hearing, them less and less while all the other traffic will just keep on increasing.{FROWN!}])])
Oh, well... Just a couple old farmer's / fogie's 2¢ worth. We only wish that "The Boys" would learn to `play together better'.