Anyone catch the first segment? (We "had" to watch something else.)

The trailers look pretty good.

I thought it aired on the 14th?

i love the clip of the woman on the fork truck saying "Ice road truckers are a bunch of puzzys"... cracks me up every time...

Yep, you're right I guess. I was sure I had seen something about the first show on Wednesday the 5th. Glad I haven't missed any of them. These guys are the real deal. I've seen the cameras around for the past several months. I hope Discovery didn't screw things up too bad.



That's Ferno. She's one tough little cookie, and does so much so well... and with a friendly greeting always.

Kotzebue is a hub for more than a dozen villages. You would not believe the air traffic, or the kind of crap those shuttle guys fly in routinely. Well, yes you would, being where you are, I guess.

The Alaska Airline pilots bringing in the 737's from Anchorage ain't any slouches either. Well, there's the newbies slumming from Seattle who get a little spooked at landing on a relatively short lagoon-strip with ground drift.....

I didn't say this, but it appears to me that sometimes those guys - the experienced ones - jet-jockies and shuttle-line pilots alike - think that "below minimums" is for puzzies.....but then I'm not a pilot and my eyes are only 6 feet off the ground.

Maybe it appears better from the air than the ground.....?

I should also note that I have not seen one instance of the jet jockeys pushing the envelope beyond a single "marginal' condition (I get to read the computer print-outs in the AA ops room if I wish, which non-bush rampers probably don't). If more than one condition (runway braking conditions, wind direction, fuel, load for length, etc is marginal, the most we get is a low fly-by, maybe a few minutes of weather hold, or just a bye-bye, depending on fuel load and the Cap's judgment.

Raises hell with the statistics.....

I saw a complete show one night this week by accident, happened to walk by and it was coming on so watched.

I'm sure its scripted and such too, but I"ve been a number of places that they dealt with and it was nice to watch again.

Jeff

It was on Tuesday night, we watched a couple of episodes and thought it was pretty good. Gives you pretty good insight into what it takes to fly in the Alaskan bush.

I saw the first segment tonite and I'm liking it so far.

Daughter is fairly hot

Ya, I did seem to notice her..

her spunky attitude is what grabs me..

Yep. And dad is fairly big, with a gentle demeanor.........and the history of playing hockey on a college scholarship. (I guess that might explain why getting one's neck broken in a plane wreck is simply "[getting] hurt a little bit".) But yeah, the Tweto girls are quite attractive, for sure.

It's obvious that she hasn't been around the business much, given she doesn't know how to marshall in a plane..

Oh yeah, nothing is hotter than a hot Eskimo woman. Wish their was more of em!

It took a chlorine shot to make that.

Was watching that part thinking, "Yeah, right. I guess they (Discovery) needed to "script" the family learning aspect somehow. Who better to sacrifice than a pretty one. Perhaps they are forgiven more easily." She might not be accustomed to the terminology, but I think she probably has more of a clue about the technical aspect than they made it look. Or perhaps not. It never hurts to have them at the ticket counter inside, if nothing else than for the scenery. And actually, that aspect of the business is, aside from the 1900s and similar sized planes which are not daily occurrences, a relatively new thing with the smaller planes out in these parts. It just hasn't been that crowded out on the fringes.

If you check out her bio she's been on TV before and living in CA.

Yep. The girls, though 100% village raised (well, they did do some urban secondary schooling I guess), have done alright in terms of being able to function successfully in a variety of settings.

Just google her name..


Steelhead, find her myspace page and find the "undie run" pics. Thank me later..

It's amazing what people put online these days..

http://c1.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images02/8/l_6ece13a0eb2b4f2381ba69a27671c634.jpg

the other sister is way hotter.

I bet dad is so proud...................laffin

No sh*t! Most of them have the dreaded muffin top, no teeth and 5 kids from different fathers. However, some are down right gorgeous!!! Would like to share an igloo with a few of them. lol

Now thats some funny chit right there...LMAO

It' all about the attitude, and she seems to have her share well under control. Ha Ha

Lotsa people would be better off had they gotten a "shot" of carmel or chocolate to temper the "chlorine" just a bit. And you don't have to look at the infamous WalMart "beauty model shots" to figure that out.

It was pretty cool to see Heimo Korth and family get dropped off at their cabin in ANWR. That 5 minute blip made the show worth watching for me.

agreed. I have read a book not long ago about the Korth family, sounds pretty cool to live there year round!

Those "WalMart beauty model shots" exhibit plenty of shots chocolate and caramel. ugh That's what makes them so photogenic! Otherwise they'd be unremarkable.

anyone still watching and have comments?

Wife hates it, I do to, when the rehash the last minute of the show after every break... and like normal, too much drama, but I'm still watching.

I DVR it so skip the commercials.

I'm enjoying it, but I know one of the pilots so that makes it more fun.

I flew with the one from Aniak too... makes it a hair more fun... but only saw him once... he was a "rookie" when I was up there...

But yep we DVR it...but you never know when they'll repeat and when not... regardless I still like it.... makes me wish I was up in one right now....

Jeff

Jeff you are right about the over-drama that TV brings.

Carolyn just starts saying... drama queens again.....They'd really poop themselves if they got in a real crash...

Beats the hell out the stupid "Gold Rush". Talk about bunch of idiots.

Toby Joe

I wish the producers of these shows wouldn't play things up like they do. I've flown with several of the pilots many times and know the family well enough that they recognize my voice, so I think I know them reasonably well. Drama is not something that needs to be invented like they do for TV. The real thing has plenty of it all its own. The trick that only really good producers can manage is to capture the real drama without needing to resort to the contrived stuff. Discovery was out here for several weeks or months to make this show so I would have thought they would have gotten the real thing, but who knows? I'm no producer. It is a, mostly, good show based on what I know of things.

DVR it . Really like this program. Makes me wish I would have continued with flying lessons. Not to mention the Tweto gal on the show is fairly cute!

ML

I just wish our state funds were not going to subsidize these movies. Those folks depending on tourism for a living should spend their own advertising funds if they think its a good deal.

I wasn't aware that the state was kicking anything into this but I guess it doesn't surprise me. It would appear that shows like "Wild Alaska" are a win for the state and its tourism however. And while it might grate competitive commuters like Bering Air to see this show on TV perhaps, I hardly doubt either of them will suddenly be seeing a whole bunch of tourism dollars. That simply isn't where the vast majority of their income comes from.

Perhaps the state would like to see this part of the state benefit more from tourism, but the truth is that for many folks the Alaska they envision is the trees, mountains, and ice. Much of Alaska is all about tundra, but selling tundra to many folks is about as easy as selling ice to Eskimos.

I didn't know that about state funds either. Interesting and I don't know how I'd feel if I were Alaskan.

I do think though, but could be very wrong.. most touristy types want to stay on the main roads if driving at all, and or due cruise ship tours. Thats not our cup of tea at all.. close as a cruise is the state ferry system hopping around which we have enjoyed but not often enough.

But I think the folks that want to see rural Alaska will or are seeing it regardless of the show.

Just my thoughts, worth about nothing really. Though I hope I'm right... more folks out rural, makes rural, not so.

I would imagine southeast and the road system: Fairbanks, Anchorage, Homer, etc and points in between will benefit more from shows like this one than other places in the state, including ours. Even so, assuming that's true, I'm okay with it. It won't happen in my lifetime, but there is some effort and expense being invested in seeking a road out to Nome. If and when that happens, things will surely change. Like you suggest, it is an obvious two edged sword.

I love the show. If one could just decompress the one hour segments, and spread them over a more realistic time frame, you'd experience - as much as you can through TV- what life is like in many respects out here. Overall I think Discovery has done a pretty good job of portraying many of the elements of life, not just the flying operation, but the people who depend on them as well, out in this part of the world.

Its always amazed me that when you hang around for a flight, tons of "normal" stuff gets on bush planes. Then you realize why gatorade is 5 bucks or whatever and so on. Maybe a barge at times... but mostly its flown in or out...

Personally, I wish the road doesn't go to Nome, and that at least the wild part of AK stays that way. But then I'm not happy since we had a neighbor build close enough for us to see here now too....

Of course I could live in some hell hole 3rd world country so I"ll take what I have. You enjoy what you have.

Their was nothing produced on that episode where they were flying out the casket/suicide. Tough to watch, as they are right. Happens way to often in the villages.

Alaska bush pilots fly as reality-TV stars

GOING 'WILD': Series focuses on Unalakleet flight service.

By KYLE HOPKINS
[email protected]

Who is the tiny woman in the ads on Discovery Channel for "Flying Wild Alaska," a new series about bush pilots? The one driving heavy equipment and telling the camera that ice road truckers -- heroes of a rival reality show -- are a bunch of sissies?

I've heard that a lot from AK friends... that has to suck big time as often as it happens. Nothing can say about it. Damn allergies acted up when I watched that one....

Haven't seen "Pilots gone wild". Is it similar to "Girls gone wild"?