The camaraderie between drone pilots David Bland, Andy Rose and Chris Thompson is clear as they chat about working in the Beaudesert RPAS (Remotely Piloted Aircraft System) team.
David is actually the Boonah Fire Captain, but he shares a special bond with his Beaudesert colleagues.
For starters, he is in a small but dedicated local team of RPAS (drone) pilots working out of Beaudesert, deployed across south east Queensland and further afield as required.
With his drone, David has been to Tara for a bushfire, Brisbane for a mission person search, Beaudesert during the floods and plenty of jobs in his own patch.
His Beaudesert colleagues also stood shoulder to shoulder with him as firefighters and friends when a devastating house fire engulfed his home in Boonah six and a half years ago.
This July, David will retire from the Queensland Fire and Rescue Service after 15 years.
He turns 65 on July 29, the mandatory age of retirement in QFES.
Beaudesert will miss him, not just for the important role he plays as a drone pilot and backing them up on callouts, but also for his infectious smile and cheery demeanour.
David said he felt a strong connection with Beaudesert.
“Generally, Beaudesert and Boonah will back each other up, especially on Boonah-Beaudesert Road, Wyaralong Dam, and on a sad note, Beaudesert came across to my house fire six and a half years ago,” he said.
“It’s been a huge partnership and I’ve loved working with QFES in that it’s given me opportunities to do weird and wonderful things, like flying drones on deployments. There’s only a handful of us drone pilots.”
Beaudesert Fire Captain Andy Rose said David would be missed.
“It’s been an absolute pleasure working with Dave. He’s always got a smile on his face and it’s always nice to know you’ve got Boonah coming across to support you,” he said.
Senior Remote Pilot Acting Lieutenant Chris Thompson, who manages drone pilots in the South East Region, said David had contributed well to the region’s drone capability and they would now train up more pilots from within their ranks.
