GA pilots mobilize following Texas flooding

Texas is no stranger to natural disasters. In the past 20 years, the state has endured historic hurricanes, wildfires, and flash flooding events. But the flash floods that hit over the Fourth of July weekend were on a scale few could have imagined. With more than 100 people confirmed killed and more than 160 still missing, it is one of the deadliest flood events in recent U.S. history.

If you’ve never been there, Kerr County—where most of the deaths have occurred—is nestled in the beautiful Texas Hill Country. Kerrville is the longtime home of Mooney International Corp. It's also the hometown of H-E-B, the Texas grocery store with a fiercely loyal following. The rolling hills around it are dotted with summer camps offering incredible experiences. But it is also known for being part of "Flash Flood Alley," and the Guadalupe River is one of the three most dangerous regions of the United States for flash flooding.

Beginning on the morning of July 4, that danger became very real, as torrential rain caused historic flooding along the Guadalupe.

'These are people helping their neighbors'

Operation Airdrop, founded after Hurricane Harvey ravaged Texas as a Category 4 storm in 2017, mobilized July 5, the day after the Hill Country floods began. Dozens of volunteer pilots responded. They collected chainsaws, shovels, bug spray, water, and much more, at Burnet Municipal/Kate Craddock Field and Addison Airport. From Addison, supplies were flown to Burnet for distribution across the 21-county disaster area.

“We had pilots from all over the country load their planes with chainsaws, protective equipment, and cleaning supplies—they answered the call,” said Tara Winter, communications director of Operation Airdrop.

This was Operation Airdrop’s first deployment that did not follow a hurricane, forcing them to change tactics.

“Normally when we deploy supplies are driven in and flown out,” said Russ Keith, executive director of Operation Airdrop. “This time, the supplies were flown in and driven out. We absolutely flipped our model.”

Operation Airdrop organized dozens of daily flights until the list of needed items began to dwindle on July 8, and the group announced on Facebook that it was closing its Addison operation. The group planned to continue ferrying supplies to Burnet through July 10. Volunteers planned to remain on the ground to support relief efforts in other ways.

“These are people helping their neighbors and it’s a love and an outpouring that comes from being able to share their passion with other people as far as their ability to fly things in and get things there quickly,” Winter said.

'This line of work is a calling'

With many SAR operations focused on Kerrville, volunteers with Operation Helo played a critical role in Burnet County, where five people died, and one more person—the chief of the Marble Falls Volunteer Fire Department—remained missing.

Operation Helo conducted all of the airborne operations needed to support first responders. Their missions included search and rescue and ferrying first responders to areas that needed to be searched.

“A lot of the areas were closed off,” said Eric Robinson, executive director of Operation Helo. “Helicopters are great for missions like this. When there's water, when there's terrain, when there's stuff that we need to get around and drop people in quick, we're able to do so. The agility that we offer via helicopter can literally be the difference between life and death.”

Between July 5 and 6, Operation Helo flew 101 missions using six helicopters from local pilots. They recovered the bodies of two of those killed and located the missing fire chief’s truck.

In another heartbreaking mission, a pilot flew a father and son to the site where their car had been swept away—his daughter still trapped inside. Robinson said Natasha Rodriguez, the organization's deputy director, attempted to comfort the grieving survivors.

“She was hugging this guy, and he's just crying on her shoulder, thanking us so much for at least giving him that closure,” Robinson said.

Operation Helo wrapped up its operations in Burnet County on July 7, missions that won’t soon be forgotten.

“That's the hard part when you get back and you finally have a chance to catch your breath, unfortunately, those are the memories you take with you,” Robinson said. “There is definitely an emotional toll. This line of work is a calling, like you have to be called to this because it's not easy.”

'I can't just sit here and do nothing'

Rock Solid Aviation, a flight school with locations at Jack Brooks Regional Airport in Beaumont and Orange County Airport in Orange, offered free flights to affected families to get to Kerrville.

“This is something that is local and I can't just sit here and do nothing… and it's like, we've got a fleet of airplanes that we have at our disposal. It's the least we can do,” said Lane Cherry, branch manager for Rock Solid Aviation.

Five days after the flood, Cherry said, there had been no takers—though the offer would stand.

“We’re willing to help out wherever the need arises. Even people in the Houston area, we don’t mind traveling to pick them up and get them wherever they need to go.”

Cherry knows the toll natural disasters can take on families and communities. He was a police officer in Port Arthur, when it was one of the cities hit hardest by Hurricane Harvey in 2017.

“People don’t realize that even after the water goes down. We were working every single day, 12-hour shifts, no days off. People really don’t understand what those first responders are going through,” Cherry said. “It was tough. It was brutal. It was months. And that’s the same thing that these people in Kerrville and surrounding areas are going to go through.”

Airlines move responders

In addition to the GA response, organizations like Airlink—which provides free airfare and shipping to disaster areas through a worldwide network of airlines and logistics organizations—is helping fly SAR crews and volunteers into central Texas.

“Airlink still sends crews to areas affected by Hurricanes Helene and Milton on a weekly or monthly basis," according to a statement. The group "foresees Texas as turning into a long-term recovery effort.”

Other operations

Government agencies and other organizations have utilized helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft to conduct both SAR and recovery missions. A temporary flight restriction covering much of the Guadalupe River, including areas downstream from Kerrville, was put in place shortly after the storm and was scheduled to be active through July 13.