Heli Logging in Northern BC
Helicopter-supported timber falling for remote blocks and steep slopes across Northern BC and Alberta since 2017.
Some timber can't be reached on the ground. When the block is remote, the slope is too steep, or the value of the wood justifies it, we run helicopter-supported falling and heli logging, coordinating falling crews on ground that conventional access can't reach. Working across Northern BC and Alberta, we plan aircraft interfaces and material movement around the agreed scope.
Heli falling is a coordination job as much as a falling job. We plan the drop zones, sequence the work to the aircraft, and keep the crew and the pilot working to one plan. The work is planned around steep and broken terrain, aircraft interfaces, and the safety requirements provided for the project.
Who hires us for heli falling: forest licensees with remote or steep blocks, mining and exploration companies working ground without road access, and utilities with corridor spans conventional crews can't reach.
Planning a remote block? Our heli-falling project planning guide lists the access, terrain, timing, and material-handling details that make a quote easier to scope.
When helicopter logging is the right approach
Heli falling coordinates falling crews, pilots, drop zones, and aircraft operations for remote blocks and steep slopes across Northern BC and Alberta.
Remote and steep-slope access
Falling crews coordinated with aircraft for ground conventional access can't reach, from remote blocks to slopes too steep for ground crews.
Aircraft-sequenced planning
Drop zones planned and work sequenced to the aircraft, so the crew and pilot work to one plan and one schedule.
High-value timber recovery
A method to review when aircraft support fits the access, timber, hazards, and project requirements.
Coordinated from Iskut, across the North
We work across Northern BC and into Alberta, from our base in Iskut, in direct partnership with the Tahltan and Nisga'a Nations. Whether a block is cut off by terrain or simply too far from a road to crew conventionally, we will tell you straight whether heli falling is the right approach.
How a heli logging project is planned
Heli logging depends on the work around the aircraft as much as the lift itself. Each scope starts with the block, terrain, access, landing plan, timber conditions, and the responsibilities of every crew involved.
- Review the block and terrain. Confirm slope, timber conditions, access limitations, and why conventional extraction may not fit.
- Define landing and staging constraints. Identify suitable work areas, travel routes, and ground-support needs.
- Coordinate the operation. Align falling crews, ground crews, aircraft operators, communications, and the timber-movement sequence.
- Plan for changing conditions. Establish weather, emergency, and communication requirements before field work begins.
- Confirm the handoff. Define how recovered timber moves into processing, loading, hauling, or the next contracted phase.
What changes a heli-falling plan
A helicopter-supported plan is shaped by more than block size. Review the aircraft lift and hook or longline arrangement, flight distance, landing or loading zones, fuel and support logistics, weather window, timber handling, and ground-crew interfaces. The responsible aviation provider confirms aircraft suitability and flight controls for the site.
Lift, distance, and turn time
Production depends on payload, distance to the drop or landing zone, elevation, wind, visibility, fueling, and time spent repositioning. A small remote block can require more support than a larger block with short turns.
Longline and hook work
Longline work keeps the load below the aircraft on a line; hook or grapple arrangements differ by aircraft and handling plan. The method, load size, drop zone, and ground interface must be selected together rather than assumed from the word heli.
When heli may beat ground access
Heli-falling is worth comparing when road building, ground equipment, or slope access creates a larger constraint than aircraft support. Compare complete mobilization, access preparation, flight time, timber handling, weather downtime, and restoration before selecting the method.
Heli falling questions
When does heli falling make sense over conventional falling?
When a block is inaccessible by road, the slope is too steep for safe ground work, or the timber value justifies the cost of aircraft support. We will give you a straight answer on which approach fits your block.
Where do you provide heli falling?
Across Northern BC and into Alberta, coordinated from our base in Iskut. We confirm aircraft and operator arrangements as part of planning each program.
How do you keep heli falling safe?
Every shift runs to one plan: we sequence the work to the aircraft, plan the drop zones, and keep falling crews and the pilot working to the agreed plan, with safety requirements, production, and quality considered in the work plan.
Explore related work
Have a block that ground
crews can't reach?
Send us the location and scope and we will tell you whether heli falling is the right approach, usually within two business days.