When it comes to human and animal interactions, this might be a first!
Videos by InspireMore
Pilot Dan Alpiner was flying a UH-1 Huey Helicopter over the enormous Creek Fire in central California when he had what can only be described as a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
He was using the aircraft to drop buckets of water onto the fire from about 200 feet up when the amazing incident occurred.
The first responder was intent on the job at hand when he caught a flash of movement in the cockpit. Imagine his surprise when he realized it came from an owl that had managed to fly through his 16-by-16-inch window! The majestic bird was perched just a few feet away from him, completely unbothered by the whole affair.
“I saw this flutter out of the corner of my eye,” Dan told The Dodo. “I looked over, a little spooked, and we locked eyes.” Incredulous, Dan snapped a picture of his new copilot.
Shockingly, the owl was quiet and didn’t seem at all distressed about being in a helicopter with a human by his side.
“He just kind of chilled out,” Dan explained. “I was really surprised. He was super friendly – like he just wanted to say hi.”
Dan rolled with the situation and continued dropping his water loads for another ten minutes before the bird decided he’d had enough and flew safely back out the window.
Usually, birds and helicopters don’t mix, but in this case, everything worked out perfectly! Experts are saying this experience was highly unlikely because the owl must have been flying at the exact same speed as the hovering aircraft. What are the chances of that? Slim!
Dan is still trying to process the wonderful surprise and said the interaction left him even more humbled by nature.
“I’m still trying to comprehend it. It was just unreal,” he said. “It was one of those once-in-a-lifetime kind of things.”
What an incredible encounter! We think this friendly owl just wanted to pop in and show his gratitude for Dan and all the firefighters working to save his habitat from fires.
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