Originally Posted by joepilot

Just curious.

In pipeline patrol, exactly what are you looking for? That is, how do you tell if something is wrong?

Joe

Originally Posted by USMCFLYR

Is technology slowly taking the place of the pipeline pilot? With the use of sensors and video monitoring I would think that they could get much more real time assesstment of the condition of the machinery. Or is pipeline patrol just the last in a series of measures to ensure system integrity?

USMCFLYR

Originally Posted by LastTraintoMEM

I was told in an interview I had for an oil company that did their own patrols that it was federally mandated they had to patrol their pipelines so many times a month. The frequency depended on the product. I think oil had to be patrolled more often than gas. So it's a law.

Originally Posted by USMCFLYR

Well there was a day when you actually had to have EYES OF TARGET before releasing weapons too That definition has changed in recent years; I wonder if that law will change in the near future too.
About how many miles of pipeline is a pilot checking in a day?

USMCFLYR

Originally Posted by USMCFLYR

Is technology slowly taking the place of the pipeline pilot? With the use of sensors and video monitoring I would think that they could get much more real time assesstment of the condition of the machinery. Or is pipeline patrol just the last in a series of measures to ensure system integrity?

USMCFLYR

Originally Posted by VAviator

I flew for Underwood for about five months a couple years back on a line up the east coast - NC/SC border to about Newark, NJ. They weren't the best run outfit, but I've heard about worse. But I also heard they were sold about a year after I left, but retained the name Underwood from what I understand. Here is the website: Home Page

The reason I left was I was moving out of the country for a year. Even though it was only five months, it helped drop about 500hrs into my logbook. I thought it might be something I'd get into when I returned, but looking back it just seems a bit too risky for me. Flying all day every day at 500ft in a C172 is just waiting for something to happen. I never had any major problems, but the 400hr pilot who took my place must have inherited the bad luck that never got to me. In his first month he lost a cylinder over Philly in a very urban area and managed to make it to an airport shortly after. The plane was well beyond TBO, which is completely legal, but after a certain point becomes stupid. I had asked and asked for Underwood give me another plane and have the engine rebuilt. It finally happened after that incident. Then, about a week after this guy had the cylinder drop out, he hit a turkey buzzard with his new plane. He was fine, but put a whopping dent in the wing. So he was on to his third plane in under two months. I don't think he lasted more than six months with them.

So for me it's just easier to find another niche of aviation to fit into. Underwood was full of some great people, and I really enjoyed the independence of the job. The decision to fly was up to me, and only me, every day. All I did was call the office each morning to let them know what I was doing that day. No questions asked.

My time with them and in pipeline patrol was short, but if you have any questions, feel free to PM me. Best of luck!

Originally Posted by ERJF15

Went around those buzzards alot. I've even had to climb over cows! There was a time when I saw the wing of another PLP airplane fly under mine. You spend about 70% of the flying looking out your left window.