What a difference a year can make.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
Twelve months ago, David Thiess was behind the controls of a Qantas A380 Airbus on his way to Dallas, Texas where he would spend Christmas.
But due to COVID-19 and the grounding of regular international travel, his 20-plus year career as a pilot came to a screeching halt in March.
"I never thought from my 30 years working in the airlines, 22 of them flying, I would be needing work in the country," he said.
"As a pilot you think you are set for life, but obviously things can change as we've all seen this year."
Mr Thiess had his first taste behind the wheel of a header at Walgett before heading to Urana to work for the Dowling farming.
The connection was helped by a Facebook page Pilots4Harvest2020 matching farmers in need of harvest workers and aviation industry personnel looking for work during the pandemic.
Mr Thiess is a Sydneysider, but he has some agricultural links with his grandfather a Mallee farmer near Sea Lake.
"I've flown over this part of the world, but never stood in the middle of a crop," he said.
"I've got photos of my grandfather in his crops and he kept a ledger of all the bags he did from the 1920s to the 1940s.
"I look back back at how hard he must have worked with 10 horses, but here I am driving a machine over 500 horsepower.
"I did put my son's L-plates on the side of the header for two weeks when I started.
"They are an amazing bit of machinery with some similar technologies to an aircraft, but very much slower."
IN OTHER NEWS
GPS technology is one of the obvious similarities between a large plane and header as is the time spent behind the controls.
"It is challenging work and long hours," he said.
"You've just got to keep going while there is sunshine and when there is a rain there is some downtime.
"Everyone is out to help and the boss has jumped in a few times.
"I've been welcomed with open arms because there are no backpackers or international arrivals here to help this year."
Tom Dowling, a fifth generation farmer in the area, said Mr Thiess was a welcome addition to the harvest team.
"He had already done between 300 and 400 hours on a header before he came here," he said.
"He was trained up and very capable as you would expect a pilot to be.
"But it's something pretty unusual."
The positives in a tumultuous year for Mr Thiess is he is working on a bumper harvest and he will be home for Christmas after spending the last three abroad.
"You've got to take the good with bad," he said.
"We need this vaccine to kick-in for international flying to return.
"All the countries in Europe and the US where people want to visit, also need to be COVID free and safe.
"I hope we are flying internationally again by the middle of next year, but who knows."
