[AT WORK]
Sub pilot TERRY KERBY >> "I've always been drawn toward submersibles, every since I was a kid. I served as a navigator in the Coast Guard, worked as a shark wrangler in a James Bond film and piloted a submarine for Maui Divers, and when the Hawaii Undersea Research Lab started deep-diving in the Makalii in 1980, I signed aboard and have been here ever since.
Getting a unique look at the
planet makes long hours worth itBy Burl Burlingame
bburlingame@starbulletin.com"A submarine pilot needs to not only know the systems, he needs a sense of spatial awareness. Some people never quite get it. Diving around a site like the Loi'i peaks, you've got black water, thermal vents, cliffs with overhangs that can snag you -- it can get nerve-wracking. You simply have to know your limits.
"There are fewer of these deep-divers every year. Here at the University we may be 15-20 percent of the world's deep-diving capability. It's a tremendous responsibility.
"We spend months getting the subs ready to go, and then you can get hung up on components not coming from the mainland on schedule. During dive season, at sea, we do the pre-dive check at 4:30 a.m., do breakfast and dive about 8 a.m., dive for about 10 hours and return about 5, have a science meeting at 7 p.m. and then work on the sub until 11 p.m. Depending on how cooperative the sub is, it can go around the clock. Our crews accomplished a miracle this year getting Pisces IV ready to go.
"But I can't imagine doing anything else. Every time that hatch clangs shut I get the same rush of excitement. You get a real sense of exploration, like getting into a spaceship every morning and going to another planet. There's nothing like it."
At Work is a weekly feature that shows and tells what people do for a living in their own words. It is compiled by Star-Bulletin reporter Burl Burlingame. Send comments and submissions to: business@starbulletin.com