THE EXPERIENCE OF FLATHEAD COUNTY SHERIFF`S OFFICE

THE EXPERIENCE OF FLATHEAD COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE SHOWS
THAT WHEN PUBLIC AND CIVIL SERVICES CAN’T PAY, PRIVATE
PHILANTHROPY CAN EMPOWER A SMALL COUNTY AND PROVIDE
THE ULTIMATE IN HELICOPTER LAW-ENFORCEMENT/SAR SERVICES.
STORY BY LEIGH NEIL / PHOTOS BY NED DAWSON
Flight crews transporting a patient from
the 429 to ALERT’s Bell 407.
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Regular hoist training is
important for keeping
the crew current.
60
Training in the
mountains with the
local SAR team.
A
lthough Montana’s
Flathead County Sheriff’s
office has a jurisdiction
of only 100,000 people
in 5,200 square miles, it has the latest,
most advanced law-enforcement/SAR
helicopter one can imagine; a brand
new Bell 429, kitted out with all the
latest and greatest in mission-specific
tools and hardware, and unbelievably,
not one cent of public tax money has
been required to set up or operate the
aircraft. In an example of generosity
and community spirit unprecedented
in the field of helicopter emergency
services, just one local man is
funding everything at a cost that
will be substantially above US$10
million. Wealth certainly does have its
advantages, and not just to its holder.
About six years ago Jordan White,
Flathead County’s Search and Rescue
Coordinator at the time, began to
research the feasibility of establishing a
dedicated, combined law-enforcement/
SAR aviation capability for the county.
The Sheriff’s office was averaging
about one significant search and rescue
mission every week, but he found that
there was effectively no state, national
or local government funding available to
offset the cost of the existing charteringon-demand arrangement, or to
eventually purchase a useful helicopter
capability. He recalled, “When I ran our
SAR I had a budget of just $10,000 a
year to pay for aircraft and it would
be possible to blow that in one full
day of searching, so I had to look very
carefully at which missions were most
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sensitive to benefitting from aviation
flight hours.” With an entire state
population of only one million residents
and an annual tourist count around
ten million, the predominantly tourismbased region suffers an inordinately
high, but understandable, demand for
emergency and SAR services. Popular
activities such as caving, ice-climbing,
skiing, snowshoeing, horsebackriding, whitewater rafting, hunting,
hiking, snowmobiling or snow-biking
understandably create a plethora
of accidents and mishaps among
participants, both tourists and residents.
Local volunteers have supported
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SAR members and the
Two Bear Air crew take
time out from training.
most SAR missions in Flathead County
Sheriff’s jurisdiction and advances in
recreational technology have made
it more common to have injured or
stranded victims in locations that
volunteers were finding harder and
harder to reach. This was purely due
to their not having the same expensive
new generation snowmobiles, for
example, as the tourists. The area is
prone to avalanches, with many tourists
arriving to ski or snowmobile without a
proper understanding of the dangers
and risks, leading to a steady increase
in the demand for SAR missions. This
eventually led White, who had been
promoted to undersheriff, to assemble a
‘brainstorming’ team of people familiar
with aviation and with skills or attributes
such as management or accounting. A
non-profit organization resulted and the
team continued discussions on how to
market themselves and source funding
for aviation resources, which certainly
doesn’t come cheaply. Even putting a
dedicated radio in a local operator’s
Jet-Ranger was going to cost from $30 $50,000 so the group faced a daunting
task. Even without buying a machine,
upgrades such as FLIR and Night-Sun
were going to incur a cost of about half
a million dollars. The Flathead Valley
and Whitefish do have many successful
business people as residents and the
group knew they could be the key to
a successful fundraising program, so
the campaign went public in December
2011. By the time that happened though,
White had already had his first meeting
with local resident Mike Goguen, who
expressed interest in the program. White
recalls, “Before any other donors got any
traction on it, Mike had recognized the
value of it. He told me, ‘If this program
can save one life that would otherwise
be lost, it’s worthy of contributing to and
being a part of.’” White’s own passion for
the proposed aviation asset was already
obvious; he and his wife had sold their
house to fund Jordan’s pilot’s license.
The rest of the team and the local SAR
volunteers had also all made substantial
contributions of personal time, funds
and assets to maintain the area’s SAR
operations over the years. “Mike saw
all that,” said White, “and I’m sure he
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The 429’s Trakkabeam
is a valuable piece of
equipment when on night
time search missions.
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saw the huge level of commitment. He
has a deep appreciation for people and
I believe it was the people involved,
plus the perceived benefit to countless
people living in or passing through the
region, that attracted him to the idea.”
Talks progressed and Goguen came
on board with the proposal, insisting
that it be designed as the best program
they could establish - to the extent that
it now involved a brand new 429, fully
kitted with the optimum SAR set-up
available. This was all to be paid for
exclusively by Goguen out of his own
pocket and White remembers that when
he questioned Goguen as to why he
was prepared to do this, he was told
that the venture capitalist had always
been looking for a single opportunity
to contribute to society in a meaningful
and substantial way; one that no one
else had been able or prepared to do.
Regarding his decision to assist after
his early meetings with White, Goguen
revealed “In my years of experience as
a venture capitalist I’ve learned that
it’s the person that’s important; drive,
determination, street-smarts, incredible
passion; these are the qualities that lead
to phenomenal success in any endeavor,
whether it’s creating a company or
making a real difference in a program
like this. With Jordan White I couldn’t
help but instantly recognize and be
impressed by the depth of his passion
for the project.”
Picking the 429 was not an easy
process according to White. “We
went through virtually every light twin
available. Category-A was a critical
element in the specification and so was
a skid configuration, as snow covers
the high country for nine months of the
year.” Also under consideration were
the MD Explorer, EC135 and EC145
but White considered that the 429
really stood out in terms of aircraft
performance and being the right aircraft
size. There is a long history of Bell
helicopters operating in the Flathead
Valley, with a private 429 already based
locally at Glacier International Airport,
so support and parts issues also leaned
towards the 429. White and the team
also sought advice and assistance
from other pilots and operators around
67
Searching a local
river and shoreline.
the country. Many of the pitfalls and
issues they were warned of related
to budget and White is thankful that
they were able to select an aircraft and
its equipment based purely on what
was best for the purpose, rather than
what could be afforded. He is still very
conscious that he is spending someone
else’s money though. “Don’t get me
wrong,” he cautioned, “We have cost
LOCAL VOLUNTEERS HAVE SUPPORTED MOST SAR
MISSIONS IN FLATHEAD COUNTY SHERIFF’S JURISDICTION
AND ADVANCES IN RECREATIONAL TECHNOLOGY HAVE
MADE IT MORE COMMON TO HAVE INJURED OR STRANDED
VICTIMS IN LOCATIONS THAT VOLUNTEERS WERE FINDING
68
HARDER AND HARDER TO REACH.
constantly on our mind and have to be
disciplined and responsible about it. It’s
good to be able to buy what we need
though, as long as it can be justified.” An
example of this principle is the decision
to omit air-ambulance life-support
equipment from the 429’s extensive fitout. White is careful to point out that
there is already a highly equipped Bell
407 air ambulance (ALERT) operated
by the local hospital, and Two Bear
does not wish to carry out their mission.
“What we will do,” he explained, “is get
to patients they can’t reach. We’ll deliver
emergency aid and evacuate patients
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to where we can swap them into the
ALERT helicopter so they can provide
that intensive life support if required
and transfer them to hospital.” It is quite
clear from his explanations that White is
very specific about the program’s role.
It exists to add previously unavailable or
difficult to access aid and service, not to
impinge on existing services.
A benefit of this complimentary,
rather than competitive, approach is
that the omission of full air-ambulance
life-support equipment frees up payload
capacity and space, enabling the 429
to operate at Category-A and conduct
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all the missions required. This is a major
benefit to an operation that works in
mountainous terrain, with a floor of
3,000ft and high mountain peaks of
10-11,000ft, at temperatures that can
vary from 20°F or 30°F below to over
100°F. The team has yet to experience
a summer with the new machine, but
White is highly complimentary of its
performance to date and the team is
working closely with the FAA to provide
the best services possible.
The new multi-mission Bell equipped with the 429-certified
Goodrich hoist, NVG, Night-Sun,
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The Two Bear Air Bell 429 is one of the
most distinctive helicopters out there73and
one of the most well equipped.
Wescam and Aero-Computers 3D
moving map display - is privately
owned by Two Bear Air 1, LLC. This
company was specifically set up for the
program and is officially leased to the
Sheriff’s office, which puts it under their
operational control. The lease, however,
costs the Sheriff’s office nothing! Two
Bear Air took delivery of the new Bell
in October 2013 and after a month of
training commenced mission flying.
This is only the genesis of the program
however, and as could be expected for
any program in its infancy, there are still
many details to be altered or fine-tuned.
Training and staffing in particular are
THE AREA IS PRONE TO AVALANCHES, WITH MANY
TOURISTS ARRIVING TO SKI OR SNOWMOBILE WITHOUT
A PROPER UNDERSTANDING OF THE DANGERS AND
RISKS, LEADING TO A STEADY INCREASE IN THE
DEMAND FOR SAR MISSIONS.
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matters that will be subject to a great
deal of study while the operation is
developing. Issues such as proficiency,
hoist –training and staffing levels for
various positions are very much on
Jordan White’s mind, as he balances his
two hats – Mike Goguen’s staff member
with budget responsibility and Two
Bear pilot/manager with responsibility
for safety and effectiveness. White
reports that, fortunately, there has
proved to be virtually no conflict
between the two roles thanks to
Goguen’s attitude. “If I ever have to ask
a question about whether we should be
spending a particular sum of money on
a specific item or service,” said White,
“Mike’s answer will always be, ‘If it’s the
right decision that will increase safety
Glacier National Park
mountains provide an
impressive backdrop
during hoist training.
75
then we spend the money and do it.’”
So what are the missions and roles
that the Two Bear 429 will be fulfilling?
“Its primary purpose is search and
rescue,” affirms White. “That’s what
it’s configured for and is the role that
was the catalyst for the entire program,
although right from the outset it was
proposed that other law-enforcement
missions would also be served. It was
always envisioned as an asset that
would be targeted at a whole range
of community needs.” The onboard
equipment such as the Wescam camera
make it suitable for law-enforcement
mission support and the Two Bear team
will continue to explore opportunities in
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that role. “It is an asset of the Flathead
County Sheriff’s Office and if the Sheriff
thinks it’s the right tool to use for a
given task, he gets to use it,” explained
White. He foresees possible tasks such
as cliff searches, water rescues and
even long-line work becoming a part
of the Bell’s repertoire. Wildfires are
a regularly occurring problem in the
Flathead jurisdiction and while both the
429 and their back-up MD500 will be
valuable assets to the Sheriff in more
rapidly carrying out his duties regarding
evacuation and public safety in the
event of a wildfire, the state and the
forest service have a very active fire
suppression program so White does
Two Bear Air and ALERT work hand in
hand for the benefit of the residents
and visitors of Flathead County.
not think it is likely that either of Two
Bear’s aircraft will be used to actively
fight fires. At a federal level, the Sheriff’s
functions mean that the air asset will
also be available to assist the Parks
Service, the Forest Service and CBP
(customs and border patrol).
Prior to the arrival of the 429, it
became apparent that delivery was
going to be subject to a considerable
build delay, while the need to commence
aviation safety training and provide
service as soon as possible was equally
apparent. To fill this gap a Bell 407 was
purchased and served as the platform to
develop much of the new organization’s
structure and systems. The subsequent
loss of that aircraft - written off in a
forced landing in mountainous terrain
– itself served as an object lesson in
structuring the operation to not only
maximize safety but also optimize
protection for the agencies and people
involved. To his great credit, Goguen’s
immediate response upon being
informed of the crash was to ask after
the well-being of everyone on board.
When satisfied on that count, his next
comment was to re-affirm his deep
commitment to the program and to
reassure White that everything would
be taken care of and the program
progressed forward. Goguen and the
Two Bear team considered the demand
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As part of their community outreach program the
429 is regularly seen at public events, in this case
with the local high school basketball team.
for ongoing work on repeater sites
for county radio facilities and the new
trunked digital state radio network,
aircraft training, monitoring avalanche
conditions and assorted Sheriff and
public duties before determining that
there was still sufficient continuing
demand for a light single-engine
machine after the 429 was delivered.
Something smaller than the 407 made
sense, as the hoist and camera would
not be required and accordingly, an
MD500 was selected as the optimum
choice. A machine was obtained and
White is highly complimentary of the
support offered by both Corporate
Helicopters and MD Helicopters. He
told us, “Understanding its mission,
they were both keen on the program
and each took losses of their own to be
involved with it.”
The pairing of Goguen and White
is incredibly serendipitous. Goguen
is a managing partner in Sequoia
Capital - the venture capital company
that has been behind such start-ups
and expansions as Google, Yahoo,
OpenDNS. Perhaps more importantly
though, Goguen has a keen desire
to continue with philanthropic works
that will not only benefit his local
“IN MY YEARS OF EXPERIENCE AS A VENTURE CAPITALIST
I’VE LEARNED THAT IT’S THE PERSON THAT’S IMPORTANT;
DRIVE, DETERMINATION, STREET-SMARTS, INCREDIBLE PASSION;
THESE ARE THE QUALITIES THAT LEAD TO PHENOMENAL SUCCESS IN ANY
ENDEAVOR, WHETHER IT’S CREATING A COMPANY OR MAKING A REAL
DIFFERENCE IN A PROGRAM LIKE THIS. WITH JORDAN WHITE I COULDN’T
HELP BUT INSTANTLY RECOGNIZE AND BE IMPRESSED BY THE DEPTH OF HIS
PASSION FOR THE PROJECT.” MIKE GOGUEN
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Jordan White, the man behind the idea,
and who oversees its progress.
ALERT’s 407 and Two
Bear Airs 429 on a joint
training exercise.
community, but also hopefully inspire
others to engage in similar works and
programs that tie private philanthropy
with public benefit. He recognized that
White has a lifetime of experience in
the local area; its geography, people
and even politics so requested that
he bring those attributes to a full-time
position setting up and running the
new aviation program, working for
Goguen. White’s undersheriff duties
involved the day-to-day operational
control of the sheriff’s office, discipline
issues, SAR budget management, policy
issues, public relations, media liaison
82
and major incident management; an
ideal background for stepping into
the running of Two Bear Air, the newly
established aviation organization.
This employment position did come
as somewhat of a surprise to White,
who admitted, “I was the undersheriff
and I didn’t expect that career path to
change. I was well into a very successful
career and it’s not uncommon for an
undersheriff to run for Sheriff.” The
pull of the program and the prospect
of working with Goguen won out,
however, and White resigned from the
undersheriff position to take on his role
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at Two Bear. He is still a deputy with
the Sheriff’s office, however, but as
an unpaid volunteer whose role is the
co-ordination of the air unit.
Although it’s obviously an incredible
asset to the community, the program’s
introduction has not been without a
little controversy. White explained that
there was some degree of cynicism or
skepticism. “We’ve found the crawl –
walk – run process to be what’s best.
Some people remain to be unconvinced
that there aren’t any catches. They can’t
understand why anyone would put that
amount of money into a community
asset without personal gain, but they’re
starting to come around.” What those
people fail to appreciate is that there
is a huge personal benefit to Goguen.
Goguen has a more basic need that is
being met by the success of Two Bear
Air; it makes him feel good to be giving
something that is changing and saving
people’s lives. Everyone knows the
saying “money can’t buy happiness,”
but what they often fail to understand is
that, used wisely, it can fund important
things that do give satisfaction and joy.
When Mike Goguen talks about this
program it is abundantly clear that he
feels he is getting incredible value for
money. He told HeliOps that he decided
it would be worth every cent if even one
life were saved that would not have been
without this helicopter, enthusing “but
we had no idea that it would benefit
dozens of people in just the first few
months!” White elaborated further, “A
certain number of people also thought
that we had managed alright before this,
so we didn’t really need it. I hope they
come to realize that the whole course
of a community can be dramatically
changed for the better by the saving
of just a few lives. When someone has
faced death and been saved, their whole
outlook and decision-making changes.
They can gradually change the whole
culture within the community.” Some
people have also commented in White’s
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hearing that they felt that amount of
money could be better spent elsewhere.
As White observed though, other
agencies and funds deal with other
issues but, despite extensive efforts, no
other public funding was available to
provide the service that Two Bear Air
offers, via the generosity of Goguen.
Perhaps when those people who have
doubts find that someone they know
is alive only as a direct result of this
program, their minds will open and their
attitudes will change.
Luckily for the community, Two Bear
is not where Goguen’s philanthropy
starts or finishes. For some time he has
been heavily involved in environmental
works, with the local food-bank and with
countless individual cases of specific
need. It is quickly evident when listening
to Mike Goguen that he loves Montana,
he loves Whitefish, he loves
his community and he loves feeling
that he can add something of genuine
86
value to his home community and
society in general.
It is an interesting observation that
before the new project took shape,
Goguen also supported the local ALERT
program – the oldest rural EMS program
in the USA - with cash donations, so
the establishment of this new law
enforcement and rescue service means
he now supports both the oldest and
the newest rural EMS services in the
country; both of which are in the same
Montana town. Goguen explained how
the program has enamored him with
the advantages of aviation utilized as
a public service, “Seeing first hand the
impact that helicopters can have in such
a wide variety of public safety related
applications has made me realize what a
phenomenal tool they are.”
Something that frustrates both
Goguen and White is one of the things
that separate Two Bear Air’s service
from the typical cash-strapped SAR
operator. Because the service is in
a position to put quality and service
foremost above financial considerations,
they want to be involved wherever
possible with other emergency and
rescue services so that they maximize
the opportunities to make a positive
difference. This, unfortunately, is not
yet fully understood by many of the
agencies and services that Two Bear is
in a position to assist. A tragic incident,
illustrating just why they find this so
frustrating, occurred during HeliOps’
visit. A SAR member was killed relatively
nearby while engaged on an avalanche
training exercise and despite Two Bear
and the local ALERT machine being
called to respond, there was nothing
that could be done to save the SAR
member’s life. “If only they had called
us to participate in the exercise,” White
bemoaned, “we would already have
been there onsite. We would have made
it our priority to attend, even though it
was only training, because the closer
we work with all agencies, the more
we can add to each other’s strengths
and capabilities. Plus, we all know that
accidents can and do happen, even in
training”. White and Goguen are both
keen to have all agencies understand
that Two Bear is right there, both willing
and able to assist the community and all
its emergency services, if they will just
pick up the phone and ask.
It is clear that Mike Goguen has a
sharp eye for choosing great, talented
and motivated people. He is also
studiously humble in placing almost
all the credit for Two Bear at the feet
of White – whom he speaks of with
warmth and glowing praise - and his
original team. White speaks of Goguen
with equal respect and affection but
the truth is that they are each unique
individuals with remarkable drive, skills
and resources; that they met and found
the common ground necessary to bring
this extraordinary project to fruition is
something for which the communities of
the Flathead Valley should be eternally
thankful. This article is not about a
helicopter search and rescue facility. It is
about the people, beliefs and attitudes
that led to its creation. Michael Goguen,
Jordan White, everyone involved with
Two Bear Air and with this publication,
all hold the sincere hope that the words
and thoughts on these pages might
inspire other communities, agencies and
philanthropic individuals to emulate this
example, taking personal responsibility
for making a positive difference with
whatever resources they have available.
Goguen and White have both stated
that one of their great hopes is that this
program might serve as a template for
future similar endeavors. We at HeliOps
unreservedly concur! HO
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