Helicopter Fertilising at Strathbraan
The photograph is courtesy of the family of George Dey. George took many forestry photographs in his forestry career and many of those are now shown on this web site. Check under ‘Groups’ and George Dey Collection.
The helicopter G-BBOR is flying over Strathbraan Forest (Part of Torrachilty?) delivering unground rock phosphate from an under slung hopper. Can anyone name the company that had the contract at this time?
The attached PDF picture show the Unimog with hydraulic hoist lifting bags into a hopper and delivery chute. The advantage of this system is the chute stores the correct load amount and once the helicopter delivers the empty bucket below the chute it is immediately filled up and ready to fly off again. There is no time wasted changing buckets.
Bill Rayner adds ' This could be spreading out near the "Marquise's" to the west of the Grudie power station on the Garve to Achnasheen road. Same place as you have the images from 1978(?), of the two men planting LP in peat ridges. I think the 'chopper' may have belonged to Tilhill/EFG at the time and they carried out fertiliser spreading contracts in competition with Dollar and on their own management areas.
This site was also where the introduction of Sika deer occurred into the country, as 'parkland' deer, before the First World War and when the estate workforce went to war, the deer escaped. Getting those trees away was an onerous task that was never successful to my knowledge, due to the Sika!'
Download Large Version (403kB)
Groups: Aircraft in Forestry Work, Forestry Areas, Forestry in Action, George Dey Forestry Collection