10 questions with Nicole Brooke
Flight Lieutenant Nicole Brooke has been involved as a Land Search and Rescue volunteer since she was a teenager, and now flies search and rescue missions for the New Zealand Defence Force in their NH90 helicopters.
How did you first get involved in search and rescue?
My dad (Police Sergeant Andy Brooke QSM) has been involved with SAR since I was a teenager. I was 13 when I had my first chance to be involved, as one of the ‘lost party’ in a SAR exercise that dad was organ- ising. As a teenager, I got more involved, going to training, exercises and callouts under the wing of family friends within the SAR group.
What got you interested in aviation as a career?
As a kid, flying had always interested me, but being exposed to rescue helicopters through SAR made me think about flying for a job. It was a flight in the back of a Huey (Air Force Iroquois Helicopter) on a SAREX that made me want to pursue a career as an Air Force pilot.
It was through SAR that you met your husband, is that right?
He was already in the Air Force, and joined the Palmerston North SAR team when he moved to Air Force Base Ohakea to train as a pilot. It took about six months before we got together, but my dad tells me he knew it was going to be a long-term thing pretty early on! Today we both fly the NH90 helicopter for 3 Squadron, Royal New Zealand Air Force.
What is your role during a SAR call out?
I’m an A-category NH90 Captain, which means I’m responsible for the helicopter, crew and any military supporting staff during a call out. We get activated by Headquarters Joint Forces New Zealand, and deploy on search tasks day or night. The NH90 can operate in some pretty severe weather conditions, searching for and winching personnel in or out of the field.
What else does 3 Squadron do in a broader SAR context?
SAR response is just one of the tasks we can be called to do by the government, as part of the ‘National Contingency' response. We need to be airborne in two hours, to respond to things like the Kaikoura earthquake and Canterbury floods as well as SAR tasks. We even sent NH90’s to help with Australian bush fires in recent times.
What do you like most about your role?
There’s a lot of things! I love the wide variety of tasks that we get to do and being part of a tight-knit and highly professional team within the military. Also it’s pretty sweet to fly the NH90! We can transit around the country on autopilot the same way as Air New Zealand jets and then operate with night vision goggles in tough conditions in the mountains at night; she’s a great helicopter!
What is your most memorable SAR operation flying the NH90?
On a local SAR job, I was able to fly around my Land Search and Rescue team mates, and operate alongside the civilian helicopters that I’d been a passen- ger in during my youth. This was the first overlap of my volunteer and professional involvement with SAR, which was hugely satisfying.
Do you still go on Land Search and Rescue searches as a volunteer?
Occasionally; having Dad for inside knowledge helps. Because I’m on standby with the Air Force a lot of the time, I can only say yes when my duties allow, and for the shorter volunteer jobs such as urban searches.
What has been the biggest challenge getting to where you are today?
The initial pilot training (‘Wings’ course) was extremely tough. Nearly two years of relentless hard work, but it was for something I was deeply passionate about, and the effort has really paid off with the reward of a flying career.
Any advice you’d offer to others who’d like to follow a similar path to yours?
Don’t be put off by what you think you know about something, whether it's Land Search and Rescue or the Air Force. Seek out information, take opportunities to see what it is really like and if you’re passionate about it you can achieve way more than you ever thought you could.
This article was originally published in the September 2022 issue of Link Magazine.