Gary Dahlen is the recipient of this year’s Appareo Pilot of the Year Award. Dahlen’s “quick thinking and actions almost certainly prevented the deaths” of firefighters during the King Fire last fall in northern California, according to the Helicopter Association International.

On September 15 a firefighting crew of 12, including 10 prison inmates, led by Cal Fire Capt. Kevin Fleming, was attempting to isolate a spot fire when the wind picked up, fanning a blaze that had been growing behind them and quickly cutting them off. The firefighters crawled into their foil-lined personal fire shelters, a measure of last resort.

Dahlen was working as a fire pilot with Helicopter Express of Atlanta. He was 10 miles away at Placerville Airport, waiting for his yellow-painted Bell 205A-1 to be refueled, when an unusual call came over the radio, something that Dahlen had never heard during three decades of aerial firefighting: “All available helicopters, prepare for an emergency launch.” Dahlen took off immediately with a Bambi bucket still dangling below the helicopter.

He quickly was able to locate the crew, sheltering inside their foil-lined protective tents, which, while they have saved hundreds of lives, are not designed to keep occupants safe from intense fire situations. As Dahlen flew over the beleaguered firefighters, he could see that they had very little time before a wall of flame overran their position, but his perch also afforded him a view of a possible narrow avenue of escape. Dahlen called the crew leader on the radio and, lining the helicopter up with the escape route, told him to tell the crewmembers to abandon their shelters and sprint toward his helicopter. Dahlen guided the firefighters as they ran up a dirt logging road and stayed in contact until they were completely clear of the flames.

The King Fire lasted into October and burned 97,717 acres, according to Cal Fire, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. The U.S. Forest Service awarded an “Airward” certificate to Dahlen that reads: “In recognition of your professional performance during an ‘Emergency Situation.’ Your quick, calm thinking and response during a fire shelter deployment was honorable and saved lives.”

The Appareo Pilot of the Year Award will be presented at Heli-Expo on March 4 at the Salute to Excellence dinner.