Professional Pilot, October 2016

While typically used for charter flights this Airbus EC120B Colibri can also be used in scenes requiring extra helos like the rest of Helimotions fleet the duration of the shoot Sunset on this cold April evening was 7 25 pm CDT and the work had to be completed by 10 00 pm Pedestrians and traffic would be in a lock up controlled by the Chicago Police Dept This included their Marine Unit which would keep boat traffic safely away Immediately after the meeting Franck walked around the Clark Street Bridge where much of the shooting would take place along with Ground Air Coordinator Jeff Brzeczek an employee of Helimotion who is not a pilot but is thoroughly familiar with every aspect of the operation For the shoot Brzeczek is on the ground acting as a type of forward air controller and a liaison between the director and Franck As is the case with all movie scenes radio coordination among 104 PROFESSIONAL PILOT October 2016 Airbus EC130s are popular for aerial touring but Helimotion also uses this helicopter for charter operations and executive transport all concerned is a must Things like altitude approach path in relation to the buildings and timing must all be planned As is the case for all filming coordination among everyone in the shot is necessary so that when action is called everyone knows when theyre supposed to move Airshow type flying to make the movie exciting Franck returned to Vertiport to wait for the call to takeoff There was still time prior to darkness For this scene Franck had to approach the partially opened Clark Street Bridge from the north at approx 50 ft AGL then climbing up the bridge Scenes are normally shot several times so that the director will get the very best possible footage so after many takes Franck returned to Vertiport to wait for the next scene In the next scene several of the bridges were raised to their full open position Franck flew from west to east just above the bridges as they were opening When they were fully opened he turned around and flew from east to west between the opened leafs of the bridge It was the type of flying that would make the straight and level autopilot types gasp in horror but its what others fantasize about doing It was more exciting than some airshows where you see the same thing that you have seen many times Of course there was some normal flying around the downtown area in order to get some shots of the Chicago skyline something that is seen in nearly every film where a helicopter is used Public announcements that helicopters will be used for such filming are usually not made because this would attract too many spectators who would not want to be told to stay behind barricades But if you ever learn that this will be done be sure to see it Office Christmas Party is scheduled to open in US theaters on Dec 9 2016 Location Mgr James McAllister reviews all aspects of the scenes that will be shot that evening in the safety briefing for Office Christmas Party Larry Nazimek was an aerospace engineer He holds an ATP license and has flown F4s T38s and B52s in the Air Force as well as Learjets and various light planes in the civilian sector Photo by Larry Nazimek