The best seat in the house
When it comes to the Navy, Leading Helicopter Loadmaster Steph Roberts has one of the best seats in the house.
Christchurch-born LHLM Roberts joined the Navy as a medic in 2013 straight after finishing at Papanui High School. “I was looking at the military, and I wasn’t really exposed to the air force. My recruiter was Navy. I liked the idea of fitness, travel and study.”
As a defence medic she completed a graduate diploma in para-medicine and completed a degree part-time. While serving on HMNZS Te Kaha, she met an Air Force friend who thought the Loadmaster trade would suit her. “I liked the idea of a faster pace, thinking and reacting quickly.”
Helicopter loadmasters undertake the planning for a flight, calculating weight and balancing, organising and briefing people to be winched, operating the winch while directing the pilot, or go down on the winch to rescue someone. The loadmaster handles photography, passenger supervision, fuelling and gunnery.
Her photo, taken above HMNZS Wellington, was taken less than a month after qualifying to the Seasprite SH2-G(I), embarked with Wellington to the Kermadec Islands. Later this year she’ll embark with HMNZS Otago for fisheries patrols in the Western Pacific.
“It’s a pretty diverse job,” she says. “One moment, I could be photographing fishing vessels. Or I could be coordinating loads to Raoul Island. And each ship is very different. It’s great being involved with flight operations. I tell people, just go for it. I did, and you never know until you try.”
