Hawaii's helicopter pilots—a moving dilemma
The majority of Hawaii's helicopter pilots are former military pilots. It's a challenging transition from being a professional warrior to living as a civilian in a community committed to living from aloha.
Pilots are confronted daily with the choice, to pursue a living in which each flight disturbs the serenity of their own community members, or to find a way to thrive in harmony. Military training, of living and communicating from adversary (us/them, win/lose), is difficult to transcend. The reasons for flying are logical and understandable but they conflict with each pilot's conscience, each knowing that living in harmony doesn't trigger upset nor does it require justification. Each pilot mentally cringes as they try to hummingbird hum over residential communities, feeling especially guilty when the rotor blade sounds bounce off of low clouds even more intrusively.
In other words, they know it is abusive.
The concept of personal space, though understood by pilots, is difficult to implement fully. They understand that one half the distance between their house and their neighbor's is their space for dog barking and TV volume. Their dilemma comes from having to choose between financial survival and respect for ones neighbors.
It could be said that honoring a neighbor, a senior and a disabled vet, represents the final step in a pilot's spiritual move to Hawaii. It represents a life-changing decision, to choose to live in harmony rather than succumb to the addiction of surviving at the expense of another's peace and quite.
The problem with consciously choosing to abuse ones neighbor is that when a crash takes place one can't be certain if it might be a consequence of ones integrity. Disrespectful arrogance always begs humility.
Note: It is understood that some civilian pilots are in service to the community, specifically those that support the maintenance of electric transmission wires, weather and volcano monitoring and medical evacuations. Other pilots, such as tour guides
* and marijuana search teams, live daily knowing others do not support their profession; they live oblivious of the power of unconscious hexes. The families of these pilots share the karma of such disrespect.
* Tourists are unconscious and have no idea that they have been enrolled in disturbing the serenity of Hawaii's residents; tour pilots take advantage of their ignorance.
I predict it's merely a matter of time when helicopter tour companies will pool their resources and engage the services of a 3D IMAX film production crew and create awe-inspiring videos of all the islands; it will save lives and fuel and honor Hawaii's residents.
Last edited 4/7/23
Update: 6/28/19Hi Lee:
Thank you for your stimulating 6/23/19 article about Santo's salt flat problem with a helicopter tour company.
Please forward the following to Kuulei and Frank Santos.
With aloha, Kerry
Kerrith H. (Kerry) King
President, Community Communications
=====================================================
Hi Kuulei and Frank,
From time to time my organization, Community Communications, offers free communication consulting/coaching for significant/important community projects. (Read about me)
* The Sunday article about the persistent disheartening problems you've been having with Maverick and the Hanapepe slat flat prompts me to write.
As you've discovered, it's usually uncomfortable and extremely difficult to have a mutually satisfying conversation with mainlanders using the way you learned to communicate (the communication model taught-used here on the islands).
** It's virtually impossible to have a mutually satisfying conversation with Maverick-type business people, specifically, to have them recreate your point of view. What I have found to be true is that a problem persists because there's something inaccurate about the way it's being defined/described. What will work is a truth you, and they, haven't verbally communicated yet; it's always about intention.
I write because silence is tantamount to thwarting you.
The premise: If one sees another about to walk into a wall the responsible thing to do is to warn them; thereafter it's their choice.
Frank and Kuulei, I don't have any sense that you will win with Maverick. You and yours are going to have to think differently, using some new words, if you wish to cause them to see, and respect, your point of view. Typically, locals don't seek out haole consultants; historically locals have become stuck as blaming "victims." I.e. None against the TMT (Thirty Meter Telescope) have acknowledged that their combined leadership-communication skills cause the outcomes they have been producing; it appears they are more interested in losing and in recreating/maintaining the legend of "victim." — "Look what they did, and are still doing, to us?" Ouch! Not to worry. Even if everything you've read here so far has triggered upsets and denial, it will still affect the outcome positively.
BTW: Most pilots are former military (warriors) from the mainland; they have become stuck using what's referred to as the Adversarial Communication Model (characterized by winning at another's expense, trash-talking, and irresponsible blaming). Pilots, and the people with Maverick, have a different set of values.
Every helicopter pilot knows, with absolute certainty, that their chosen profession disturbs the serenity of us below; it's referred to as premeditated abuse, for which there are always undesirable consequences. Few pilots are conscious enough to acknowledge the possible correlation between the large number of air crashes here in the islands and the karma of disrespecting ones neighbors.
The premise: "Accidents" are how we remind ourselves to restore our integrity.
I'm offering a free 3-hr coaching session for you and your supporters (any day or evening) —if there are more than five supporters we should allow six-hours, if more than ten, 12-hrs (9:00am - 9:00pm), also free. Together we will become clear as to our intentions so that our communications are consistent with the results we say we want. The format of the session will be similar to that of Ho'oponopono.
I would be honored if you accepted my invitation.
With aloha, Kerry
P.S. If my offer isn't something you want to do I suggest that you both do The Clearing Process for Professionals <
https://www.comcom121.org/proclearing/index.htm > — and then do the Clearing Process for Couples <
https://www.comcom121.org/clearing/couple.htm > —the processes are about restoring and maintaining ones integrity; the premise being, our integrity affects all outcomes, especially the consequences of a lifetime of unacknowledged, often unconscious, or "forgotten" perpetrations (thefts, deceits, lies, and abuses). If you lose we don't want it to be a consequence of, the karma of, a lie you told when you were ten, one that you have never acknowledged (admitted) to anyone. The mind likes to believe it got away with the seemingly insignificant white lies, yet it still doesn't consistently produce joy and happiness.
P.P.S. Feel free to pass this around.
* This octogenarian was born and raised in New England, home of the self-righteous missionaries that came to the island to change its "heathen" ways. As a career military officer I was med-evaced to Hawaii after being wounded in Vietnam. Since then I've been studying communication. I began teaching Speech-Communication part-time at the University of Hawaii but discovered that I didn't have the leadership-communication skills to transform the speech-communication department's curriculum for education majors.
** After I graduated, with both a B.A. and an M.A. degree in Speech-Communication (intercultural, interpersonal, intrapersonal), with an outrageous addiction of self-righteousness, I created a career as a Leadership-Relationship Communication-Skills Coach — 44+ years with zero advertising (all clients through referrals) read References.
** For several decades now, to this very day, 25% of Hawaii's college freshman require remedial comprehension and composition courses to learn what their K-12 teachers failed to communicate. Note: Education majors at all universities/colleges are only introduced to the principles and fundamentals of communication, mastery is up to them after they leave school—when they practice on others (but without coaching). In other words, we've all mastered talking, few continue on with the communication mastery curriculum. The majority of clients report that a coaching session transforms their experience of communication.
