Largest Helicopter in the U.S. to Deliver World’s Largest Christmas Tree

The largest helicopter in the United States will soon deliver the world’s biggest Christmas tree to Six Flags Discovery Kingdom in Vallejo, California.

The bright red and white Columbia Chinook has a rotor span covering nearly 5,000 square feet and is capable of lifting 26,000-pound loads. The giant tree, 125-feet tall, is a Douglas Fir from Oregon’s Willamette Valley.

The tree lift will take place on Friday, November 2. Because of its size, the tree is being delivered by truck in two sections and is wrapped to prevent damage during transportation. The airlift is necessary to actually bring the tree into the park, as it is being placed at the main entrance Dolphin Fountain area.

Once the tree is ready for flight, the helicopter crew will carry the sections over rides and buildings that will be closed during this operation. The helicopter crew will place the sections near the tree stand in the center of the park, where a conventional ground crane will reassemble the tree and set it upright.

The tree delivery is in preparation for Six Flags Discovery Kingdom’s “Holiday in the Park” event, the biggest holiday celebration in California, which will officially open to the public after Thanksgiving. The celebration, where many areas of the park have been transformed into grandiose holiday themes, promises festive fun for guests of all ages.

This Christmas tree project is similar to other work routinely performed by this helicopter. The helicopter is owned and operated by Columbia Helicopters of Portland, Oregon, which is active in selectively harvesting timber throughout North America. In the selective harvesting process, only a portion of the timber is removed from a forest, leaving the remaining trees to thrive with the additional resources of water, sunlight and soil nutrients. The remaining timber is also more resistant to fire, disease and insect infestations.

This particular aircraft spent most of the summer under contract to the U.S. Forest Service, helping to fight wildland forest fires across the Western United States. While Columbia Helicopters does have two aircraft assisting with the fires currently burning in Southern California, this aircraft was not available for these recent conflagrations.

Columbia Helicopters has the largest privately held fleet of heavy-lift helicopters in the world, second in size only to military fleets. The company’s aircraft are used for timber harvesting, construction projects, fighting forest fires and petroleum exploration support.