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Winter storms blew us to a home and work routine. An occasional field trip would happen but sleeping in wooden floored hotels with no heat and no hot breakfast wasn’t a great option. Eating dinner in a restaurant with no heat and wearing coats is not fun.
Spring was melting the snow and ice in Yerevan. Gradually farmers would begin planting. Apricot trees would be pruned. Armenians have cultivated apricots for over 3,000 years. Early salad crops would sprout.
We were weary of survival. If you were clever, you planned your r/r during the winter linked to a warm spot. Aeroflot flew me to Mauritius. Turkish Airlines winged me to Bangkok.
Our German friend, Nicholas was a clever travel enthusiast. He collected airline safety placards and wallpapered his bathroom with them. Assorted airline toiletries gathered on the shelves.
He originated the idea of renting a helicopter to fly and party over Armenia. A group of us agreed over dinner. He used his connections with the Armenian Air Force. They agreed to rent us a twin turbine MI-8 helicopter for a Saturday.
Since helicopter’s range is 378 miles while Armenia is 300 miles long, we needed to arrange refueling. This entailed detailed work, but we obtained support from the Air Force. We organized their tanker truck to refuel us on the shores of Lake Van, a large freshwater lake covering 13% of Armenia.
We planned our refueling site chalking out white landing lines from caked flour. We searched the landing area to be clear of wires, poles, and electricity lines along with FOD (Foreign Object Debris) which could upturn from blade whirl.
We organized fire equipment from local firemen including foam retardant. My WFP training for clearing landing sites for food drops especially Sudan was most useful. We pounded down the soil and hosed it to compact soil dust. A lunch with a bar was catered at the lakeside refueling area. The firemen showed up with two fire trucks protecting our landing and takeoff.
Spring weather was stellar. He ascended quickly from Yerevan and buzzed over the cathedrals especially Echmiatsin Cathedral. We viewed the famous monasteries and churches. We climbed past churches going back to the 3rd century. Armenia adapted Christianity in 301. Ancient churches and monasteries dot the landscape.
We set up the cabin like a disco arranging a stereo system and coolers of wine, beer, soft drinks, Armenian brandy (Churchill’s favorite) and vodka. An Air Force stewardess served drinks and appetizers. We were dancing in the large cabin. We were a mixture from a blonde Russian lady scrap metal dealer to the deputy of the German Embassy.
We could open windows of the large cabin. Weather was clear. Fresh spring air entered the open cabin windows. The pilots started doing aerobics ups and downs and a half loop with the helicopter. We quickly stopped this aeronautical show.
Sadly, later in my career I learned about helicopter crashes. I was called to clean up after a MI-8 helicopter crash in Mongolia killing 9 people and injuring 14 people: Helping with forensic identification work; accompanying a burnt staff in a SOS jet (I discovered how fast a small plane can speed); counseling distraught staff; and transporting my staff member into a burn unit.
We guided our pilots into a regular flight mode. Music blared out. Drinks were circulating. Dancing was done in synch with the rotor blade noises. Photos were snapped.
Flying over the first century Garni pagan temple, a group of kids were waving and cheering. We hovered over them at 100 feet looking at this ancient site. The kids were yelling and waving over the noise. Someone decided to toss a Coke can to the kids. I advised not to do it, but they dropped it to a shouting kid. He caught the can perfectly. He didn’t break his hand, but he waved and smiled in possession of a cold can of Coca-Cola dropped from a helicopter.
Spring icy streams were flowing from the mountains. Farmers were ploughing their fields. Sheep flocks ran away scared from the rotor noise. People would exit from their house and look up at the loud sound. An old Russian helicopter makes lots of noise.
Local villagers crowded our landing site. As we landed, villagers cheered. We became the show. Lake fish was baked. A cook barbecued beef skewers. The tanker truck filled the copter with 977 gallons of fuel. Firemen remained on alert.
We toasted our exploration. Lake Sevan, 480 sq. miles (1,242 sq. kms.), is the largest body of water in Armenia at 6,234 feet (1,900 m.). We were settled in nicely, but our boarding call came. We didn’t want to fly home at night.
We took off in a whirl with dust kicking up and loud noise hitting the surrounding villagers. We made a circle around Lake Sevan. Fishing and recreational boats were cruising on a brisk early spring day. We viewed more ancient stone monasteries and churches, a ruined 7th century fortress, and monastery ruins up hillside gorges. Finally, we could view afar the 16,854 feet (5,137 m.) Mount Ararat which overlooks Yerevan from Turkey. We rotated to a soft landing at the Air Force base.
Armenia, a landlocked and mountainous country was grappling, from its post-Soviet breakup complications to a market economy. The economy was crawling from agrarian into light industries and IT sectors. The educational system struggled to educate. Government relied on their relationship with the large Armenian diaspora. Armenia was working to place itself in the nations of the world.
The energy minister looked at me and said he couldn’t shut the old nuclear plant down (Started in 1976).
You want my people to freeze!
The 1988 earthquake impacted people in the north and killed 25,000 people. Armenia skirmishes with Azerbaijan over the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
Our aerial adventure viewed challenges to build a nation. Individual will and determination steers a pathway. We worked hard to support the Armenians in their independence march from 23 September 1991. It was the beginning of their nationhood journey, but you could envision the light and landscape after their 71-year-old Soviet experiment.
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