Bernie said the book's success was in part thanks to a clever marketing strategy, which saw the majority of the 1000 copies sold so far on pilot forums.
"I've had people who bought one come back and buy two or three more for gifts."
As well as censoring some of the stories, Bernie said children's books presented a number of other challenges.
"I went through nearly 20 different illustrators but none of them clicked."
When one finally did, there was another problem:
"I said 'can't you make me look more intelligent? You've make me look like a helicopter pilot'. Feed a monkey enough bananas and they will fly a helicopter," he said.
The children's book follows the story of Bernie and his loader driver Tumi at a time when their work load was so high they had to bring on Bernie's friend Murray and loader driver Hootie to lend a hand.
"We would get up at three in the morning and be up in the air by five and not stop before 9pm. You would never get away with that now."
One of the stories involving a pair of undies, Hootie's new camera, and a very surprised dark-room worker promises to be a child-pleaser.
"Hootie left his camera on the desk. In the children's book they take pictures of Tumi's green and pink spotted underwear, and back in the old days they would have to take the camera in to get the pictures developed.
"The pictures we took were more graphic in the adult book."
Bernie's other escapades include flying over the dump to dispose of rubbish to appease Tumi's wife after he forgot to put it out, and flying beneath "the banana bridge" between Taupo and Napier.
"No one had done it before because no one was stupid enough."
Bernie's experience with his beloved Cresco aircraft includes test flying, parachuting, and of course spraying, top dressing and fertilising.
"I was the original test pilot of the field trials for the Cresco aircraft, which is also built in Hamilton by Pacific Aerospace. I have dropped every mortal thing you can image from that plane since."
He said it was an impressive little plane, and had been his companion on a number of hunting trips.
"You could land it just about anywhere.
"That little bird will carry three tonnes. It was supposed to carry up to two tonnes but I had three tonnes of lime when it was overloaded. I was training a guy at the time, come to think about it."
He said luck had certainly played a part in his coming away unscathed.
"Because of who I am these escapades seemed natural."