RWS 111 – Rescue Helicopter Crew Duties to 4300km R22 Ferry Through Remote Australia w/ James Koens
Nov 21, 2022
James Koens is a Check and Training Aircrew Officer on very expensive rescue/aeromedical helicopters. He also finds time to be a helicopter charter pilot, Army Reserve aircrewman, volunteer rural firefighter and a podcast host.
This episode is being pushed out the door half cooked so that you can hear it sooner. Please forgive any short comings in the polish.
In this episode James talks about some of the challenges of operating complex missions in the world of helicopter rescue and ambulance services. We then change track and discuss what James has learnt from ferrying small helicopters across remote parts of Australia.
Important – please look at the link below to the GoFundMe page for the Fenton family discussed in the podcast episode.
4300Kms, 30hrs, 16 fuel stops, a Robinson R22, and a whole lot of nothingness – From James’ LinkedIn post comment
RWS 110 – Better Weather Situational Awareness with Matt Johnson
May 10, 2022
Matt Johnson heads up a weather training program for Metro Aviation. He is a Gold Seal FAA Flight Instructor and FAA Designated Pilot Examiner.
Have you applied the idea of situational awareness to weather before? Knowing what the weather was doing, what the weather is now and what it will be in the future. With access to the right weather products and knowing more about how they are developed you can level up your pre-flight weather assessment.
Weather is a contributing factor to a significant number of helicopter accidents. It is easy to see why looking at the photo below – even without considering flying into cloud, just the reduced visibility and the reducing ceiling that poor weather brings with it can up the work rate and concentration that it takes to get the task done.
For many aircrew we stop learning weather theory after qualification and only brush up on it before check rides. And we can get rusty at it. Same goes for making the most of the different weather forecast products that are available for reference before going flying.
In this podcast Matt Johnson walks us through some of the weather briefing considerations and useful briefing products that are covered in the weather training program that is run in-house for Metro Aviation’s several hundred staff pilots. Matt’s own experience covers flying for law enforcement and 12 years in the helicopter aeromedical sector.
Yuck! You can already feel the workload increase, taking away free mental cycles from other decision making tasks.
One of the things we talk about is the limitations of weather radars especially for lower level flights like many helicopter operations. Due to the curvature of the earth as you move away from the radar ground site the radar picture can fail to show rain areas up to several thousand feet above ground.
Below – This may only be a US aviation product but it is called the HEMS Tool and is avaliable directly off the National Weather Service’s Aviation landing page. It displays a range of information from low level weather forecasts.
Perhaps Matt’s first stop when looking at the weather before coming on shift is the Aviation Forecast Discussion product. This is an amplifying comments area where the forecaster can give additional context and editorial to the normal ‘coded’ style products such as TAFs or area forecasts. It can indicate the possibility of developing weather that wasn’t modelled strongly enough to make it into other forecasts and the forecaster’s thoughts about the upcoming period.
Matt Johnson has flown law enforcement and helicopter aero-medical sector roles. Along with his flight instructor and FAA Designated Pilot Examiner duties, Matt is active in promoting better weather knowledge and training amongst helicopter pilots.
What was your biggest takeaway from this episode? Help yourself remember and share it with others by making a comment about it here below.
RWS 109 – Going Beyond the Social Media Clip – Pasadena PD Accident (2012) with Dan Parsons
Apr 29, 2022
Dan Parsons is an airport safety professional where he tackles airport safety and regulatory issues all day long.
You have probably seen the video clip on social media multiple times – a OH-58 comes into land and as it touches down the blades contact another helicopter ground running beside it. Both aircraft are destroyed in spectacular manner but luckily there is no loss of life. In this episode we give a lot more context than you get from the seconds long clip.
There are a handful of helicopter videos that get recycled frequently on social media groups – yes we have all seen the BK117 toe into the steep snow slope to affect a rescue, there is no need to post it as if it is brand new
One of these video clips is of an accident that occured in 2012 between two Pasadena Police Department OH-58 (Bell 206 similar, in the episode I mistakenly refer to Bell 407) machines. The video clip is only a few seconds long and is a good example of just how quickly things can go wrong in a helicopter. Inevitably after the video is posted on social media the comments start to pile on fast and there are strong opinions thrown around.
Dan Parsons is an airport safety geek and works in the field. I saw his LinkedIn comment some time ago and his write up of the circumstances surrounding the accident and the steps taken afterwards to prevent a recurrence. In this episode Dan and I talk about some of the investigation findings and, very carefully, speculate on some of the factors. The goal here is to learn from others and to try and protect ourselves from getting into the same situation.
Source: aviation-safety.net – Aftermath of the collision and a good angle to see the positioning of the marked landing spots.
The photo above shows part of the aftermath of the accident and ground markings at the heliport at the time. Compare this to Google Earth imagery now to see the massive reworking of pad locations and marking that happened afterwards as a risk treatment.
Next time you see this clip on social media you will know a lot more of the context and if you can’t help but comment on it, then we can improve the quality of conversation and lessons learnt for all of us.
Case Study Risk Identification – this is safety course assignment based on the Pasadena PD 2012 accident with a lot of background information and investigation findings.
Longer before and after video of the accident. I hadn’t seen this particular video at the time of recording the interview but again it gives additional context over the short clip normally shown on social media.
What was your biggest takeaway from this episode? Help yourself remember and share it with others by making a comment about it here below.
RWS 108 – Sharing an Apache Cockpit with a Burning Flare with Clive Richardson
Nov 14, 2021
Now a helicopter instructor in the UAE, Clive Richardson flew Apaches in the British Army and was part of the Blue Eagles helicopter display team.
As aircrew we spend a huge amount of time training for different circumstances and emergencies. Dealing with a burning flare in your cockpit fired from a wingman’s aircraft is not one of these circumstances!!
Add in the complications of being a few thousand feet in the air, over hostile controlled land and in a sealed Apache cockpit with your own personal weapon ammunition at risk of cooking off and you have a fun time ahead of you.
This is the situation Clive Richardson found himself in. Perhaps strangely enough his prior HUET experiences in the pool dunker kicked in to some degree.
Meanwhile in the front seat of the Apache, unable to see what is going on in the back other than a lot of smoke in the mirror and no comms (Clive’s intercom lead had become unplugged) and just after a large ‘bang’ , Clive’s co-pilot was trying to work out what the hell was happening.
10 Years ago today, marks the anniversary when I learned why you should always fly with your visor down. Having a 2000 degree magnesium spectral flare smash into your face at the speed of a low velocity round, while over Helmand Province with no landing options will usually focus you mind. After hitting my visor with such force I smashed my head off the opposite window the flare melted my chest rig before causing a fire in my navigation bag containing 150 rounds of ammunition. The fire persisted and filled the cockpit with black acrid smoke. I held my breath and was able to shake the still burning flare out of my nav bag to the floor. After burning my trousers and melting my boots it eventually burnt out. So glad the Apache was not equipped with a cockpit fire extinguisher…..but at least I had a visor! If you fly with a visor, use it! – Original LinkedIn Post
Entry point of the flare through the lefthand windscreen with burn marks.View from the inside of the Apache cockpit.“You will note in the photo how only the lower part of my face was affected by the fire due to the visor and the hole in the bottom of my nav bag where the flare exited.” – Clive
A slow motion look at the flares firing from an Apache. You can see the forward firing spread.Clive in the cockpit. In this photo you can see the bulky visor housing on the front of the helmet. Crews would remove this so that they could attach the ‘modified’ NVG mount with single tube. Clive’s desk at work. Left is the remains of the flare weight found in the nav bag. Right is a flare housing that would have been loaded into an Apache before missions. (Left) Clive Richardson (Middle) One of the ground support crew (Right) Phil – front seat pilot/gunner
What was your biggest takeaway from this episode? Help yourself remember and share it with others by making a comment about it here below.
RWS 107 – ATSB Request for Information with Robert Chopin
Oct 06, 2021
Outside of the ATSB, Rob is a Technical Councillor and Safety Officer for the Sport Aircraft Association of Australia (SAAA), is currently building an experimental kitplane (‘Van’s RV8’), and is the Deputy Wing Aviation Safety Officer with the Australian Air Force Cadets.
Halfway through 2021, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) put out a call for assistance for information from the aviation community.
What they are looking for is feedback or more information about any ground handling incidents on Robinson type helicopters, especially focused on the aft tail cone bulkhead or tail rotor gearbox areas
If you think back to whenever you have taken someone for their first helicopter ride, especially in smaller machines – there is an amount of trepidation in their eyes – “are you sure this thing is safe?” has to be going through their mind even if they aren’t one of the ones to ask that out loud.
And when you look at a helicopter as a collection of parts, it still amazes me that it all works together correctly even today.
A part of the reason that helicopters are so safe and that anyone would actually insure them is because of the rigur that has gone into investigating previous accidents and incidents. Organisations such as the ATSB, NTSB, AAIB and others have built up decades of experience retracing the events that lead up to an accident.
Over time those lessons have been incorporated back into designs and regulations. Rob Chopin has been fixing helicopters since 1988 and for the last 14 years has worked at the Australian Transport Safety Bureau.
In today’s episode Rob gives some background into the ATSB’s current request for information about helicopter ground handling damage and then we chat a bit about the accident investigation process that results in a report and how that comes together.
Source: ATSB, R44 accident Broome Airport, Western Australia
RWS 106 – Mustering with Sam Chisholm
Aug 31, 2021
Sam Chisholm grew up on cattle properties and got into helicopter flying early. He has spent the last 16 years flying and mustering in rural Australia.
Cattle are big business in Australia. Rough round numbers has us at 25 million head of cattle and the industry employs somewhere around 200,000 people. Australia is the 3rd largest beef exporter in the world.
The cattle industry also contributes a sizable chunk of the annual helicopter hours flown in Australia.
One set of figures I had from 2004 was that 62% of all Robinson R22 flight hours in Australia were conducted in aerial mustering. I’d have to assume that holds true today if not a higher number.
I know helicopters are used for mustering a little bit in the US in Texas, a little bit in new zealand and I have to assume in Brazil also but when I look online – and this partly could be a factor of Google’s filtering because I’m here in Australia – but helicopter mustering is well and truly over represented in search results as a chiefly australian type of flying.
All photos – supplied Sam Chisholm
Mustering hasn’t always had the best reputation – it has sometimes been characterised as being a bit loose.
A lot of it happens hundreds of km’s away from any regulatory oversight and you could argue that because they are rarely carrying any passengers that CASA and other regulators aren’t particularly interested. The flip side of that is that CASA has on occasion come out with regulation changes without much consultation with the mustering part of the aviation community.
Mustering has also had its share of casualties and incidents. These can happen a long way from any emergency services. I’ve seen a documentary on one particular accident where the rescue AW139 had to stop and refuel enroute just to get on scene.
CASA’s 2015 sector risk profile of the industry summarised the danger. ‘Mustering, by definition involves low-level flying and is a hazard rich activity with the inherent danger of being only a few seconds away from impact in the case of an emergency or pilot distraction.’
Having said all that I have no personal experience with mustering at all, everything has been second hand. A big thanks to David Logan who is a listener and Patreon supporter that has just starting out on his helicopter licence and is tackling the theory exams. Dave put me in contact with today’s guest and its well overdue for us to jump in and learn more about mustering.
Sam Chisholm grew up on cattle properties and got into helicopter flying early. He has spent the last 16 years flying and mustering in rural Australia getting to see a good cross section of not only the industry but also the country. Sam paints a picture of a sector that has been maturing for a while now and that is using the helicopter as an incredibly important tool for station owners and beef production.
RWS 105 – Enroute Decision Point with Miles Dunagan
Aug 10, 2021
Miles Dunagan is the President of the National EMS Pilots Association (USA) with a goal of promoting safety in the industry.
Chatter in the cabin starts to die down, you have reduced power and started to bleed back the airspeed. Outside your world is starting to shrink as the conditions start to deteriorate. You lean forward in your seat to try and see a little further ahead. The VSI is showing a descent as you keep visual contact with the ground. What do you do next?
Enroute Decision Point is a tool that you can use to shift your mindset into a deliberate decision making mode when you find yourself in deteriorating conditions. It aims to avoid the situation where the helicopter gradually gets into a worse and worse situation before a decision is forced upon us and risk has greatly increased.
Miles Dunagan is the President of the National EMS Pilots Association (NEMSPA) in the US. In this episode Miles talks about the history of the organisation and the origins of Enroute Decision Point as a safety tool.
Different from Point-of-no-return (PNR) or Equal Time point (EPT) which are calculated using a formula to define a point on the route leg – Enroute Decision Point is more a trigger to make a flight decision that could occur anywhere on the flight.
“Down by 30” – the first aspect relates to airspeed. If you have slowed down by 30kts or more from your cruise speed due to conditions.
Minimum enroute height – If you have already descended to the minimum enroute height for that leg. (May depend on the area you fly)
If either of these occur then it triggers an Enroute Decision Point. You can turn around to better conditions, land or transition to IFR recovery at a suitable airfield.
RWS 104 – Virtual Reality Simulators 2021 Revisit with Chris Ryan
Aug 03, 2021
Chris Ryan is the owner of Ryan Aerospace – a company building virtual reality flight simulators that are changing the way pilots train.
How would you like to have been holding a steady hover and taking off and landing at 3 hours of helicopter flight time? Chris Ryan couldn’t afford helicopter lessons so he built himself a simulator to practice at home. His instructor was so impressed at his progress that he encouraged Chris to turn the simulator into a business.
From a humble PVC pipe contraption to now selling hundreds of virtual reality helicopter flight simulators into the military market, Chris Ryan (Ryan Aerospace) has taken a long road to get to where he is today.
Back in 2017, in episode 61, I spoke with Sérgio Costa from helisimmer.com where we covered a lot of information about virtual reality (VR) and how it applies to flight simulators.
There are almost 9000 members of Sérgio’s facebook group now and it is a very active place for people interested in helicopter simulators. To the point where he’s been able to influence the development of big name consumer sims to make them more helicopter friendly.
In this episode we revisit VR sims and see where they are up to. This gear has the potential to reduce in-aircraft training time by up to 40% – which given the cost of helicopters, is going to grab anyone’s attention.
US Army pilots training in virtual reality on the HELIMOD Mark III Helicopter simulators
Chris talks about what it takes to turn an idea into reality and some of the journey that this technology has taken to get to point where it is standard for pilots training at Fort Rucker.
Along with the simulators the goal is to develop a learning management system which will allow a student to move through sequences with a simulated instructor and features such as being able to see and follow the path for a demonstrated circuit.
We also cover:
sim sickness and how it affects some people
new technology that is coming out in mixed reality and hand tracking, and
what gear you should be looking for if you want to make your own home VR setup for training
Links from this week’s episode: Support the podcast on Patreon Ryan Aerospace – This is Chris’s company based on the Gold Coast, Australia and building simulators for customers around the world including the US Army and US Air Force.
Chris had his first helicopter ride while in the Australian Army Reserves. His Dad owned planes growing up so Chris was on the controls from an early age.
What was your biggest takeaway from this episode? Help yourself remember and share it with others by making a comment about it here below.
RWS 103 – Robinson Governor Operation with Richard Mornington-Sanford
Jul 01, 2021
Richard Mornington-Sandford – flight instructor and engineering trainer has a long history working with the Robinson brand.
Before this episode if you told me that there was more than an hour conversation that you could get out of talking about the governor in Robinson type helicopters I would have been dubious. I was wrong!
Today we have back on the show pilot and engineer Richard Mornington-Sanford.
Richard Mornington-Sanford was an engineer in the RAF before branching out into the roles of a civilian flight instructor, licensed helicopter engineer and air accident investigator. A photo on his website has an endorsement from Frank Robinson in 1998 with at that point, 18 years of association with the Robinson Helicopter Company and its products. Richard is still conducting Robinson Pilot Flight Safety Courses around the world today. You can do the maths on the years of experience there.
Richard was last on in episode 93 where he provides probably the best coverage of carburetor icing for helicopters that I’ve ever come across. There was a lot of good feedback in emails from that episode and I’m sure this one will be similar.
We do chiefly talk about the Robinsons – R22 and R44 but there is plenty of generic governor operation content here that you can adapt to other types. If you are solely a turbine driver then I think this is good background info too and hopefully entertaining.
Richard is living in rural Malaysia so the call connection was a little spotty in places but hopefully I’ve tidied it up ok.
In this podcast we cover:
Robinson R22 and R44 engine correlator
Where the governor gets its signal inputs from
Operation of the governor and its inputs at different RPM ranges
Inter-action between turbulent conditions, the governor and carb icing
Links from this week’s episode: Support the podcast on Patreon Mornington Sanford Aviation – Richard runs a number of safety and engineering courses. You can find out more on his website and there is a good collection there of blog posts that are well worth reading.
What was your biggest takeaway from this episode? Help yourself remember and share it with others by making a comment about it here below.
RWS 102 – Helicopter Lessons in 10 Minutes or Less with Jacob
Jun 21, 2021
Jacob has a busy schedule as an Apache instructor and standards officer but has been chipping away at videos on YouTube for some time.
If the images and text on the page of your aerodynamic textbook are starting to blur together then it might be time to take a break and try to ingest the information using another format. Jacob from the YouTube channel Helicopter Lessons in 10 Minutes or Less is an Apache instructor and standards officer who has a great ability to simplify and layout out aerodynamic topics in his videos.
I conducted a number of job interviews for pilots positions when I was heading up the flying school at my past job. To try and keep everything fair and repeatable I had the same list of questions to take all the applicants through.
There was the normal behavioural style interview questions you would expect for any job. And then there were the aviation professional knowledge questions depending on the role we were hiring for.
It surprised me but those professional knowledge questions really split the field and made applicants stand out either for good or bad. People are getting through flight school or have been out on the job flying for a little and are just paying off and ignoring the study that got them the licence in the first place.
The first question that would trip up people would be on VFR alternate weather requirements. Some people would mix up the numbers from VMC criteria with those of alternate minimums. And then there was some confusion at times between minimas when you are able to use Helicopter VMC at the destination and times when you couldn’t for – example in controlled airspace.
And I get it – I know interviews are pretty stressful and artificial. Normally if you weren’t sure of the answer or the number during pre-flight planning you could look it up if you had to.
But that is a pretty fair question for a job interview and you want to be able to nail it and similar air law questions because its going to elevate you above the pack if others aren’t putting in the time to study and keep on top of the regs.
The other one that surprised me was the ability or lack of it for pilot job applicants to be able to draw and label a basic rotor vector diagram on a blank sheet of paper or a whiteboard. For some pilots that looked like something that they just hadn’t done or looked at in a while and they couldn’t do it or could only get parts of it out.
Again I think being able to draw a vector diagram is a pretty low bar for commercial pilots to be able to spit out without too much thought in a job interview scenario. But again asking people to do that really helped to split the pack.
And its tough as an interviewer – you’ve got make a decision in less than 60mins sometime with someone whether they can do the job and where they sit against other applicants. It can come down to few questions like those.
Let’s do a little bit of introspection here – if you are listening to this and the thought of walking up to a blank white board and drawing a basic vector diagram then using that to explain dissymmetry of lift, ground effect and autorotation – if that makes you sweat and feel a bit uncomfortable – Then thats great! We found an easy spot where you can put a bit of effort in and get yourself back up to a professional standard.
It shouldn’t matter if you are a commercial pilot or a private pilot – that professional standard and pride is something that we should hold ourselves to and each other too. We owe it to our families and to the people that trust us to fly them around.
And if you have to do it in your next job interview and you pull it off flawlessly and confidently – send me the cheque in the mail!
To turn you into an aerodynamics guru in the shortest amount of time, probably the best resource I can point you to is the youtube channel Helicopter Lessons in 10 Minutes or less.
Some of the videos from Jacob’s channel. If there is a topic you want covered then let him know.
To chat about the history of the channel and what goes into making the videos we’ve got the creator Jacob joining us today. Jacob is an Apache instructor and standards officer.
After a bit of a hiatus out doing what apache pilots do – Jacob is back online and has started releasing some new videos and has several more topics in the queue.
RWS 101 – Air to Air Photography with Mark Watterson
Jun 12, 2021
Mark Watterson specialises in helicopter air-to-air photography and is based in South East Queensland.
Helicopters make fantastic photo subjects! There is still something special about flying that captures the human spirit and the intrinsic movement and energy in a helicopter especially so. Mark Watterson has been photographing helicopters professionally since 2014. He shares some tips for how best to work with aerial photographers for a great product.
Mark has kindly provided the photos you see in this blog post. They provide some great inspiration if you are looking to stage and capture photos for your own marketing.
Mark is based in Brisbane on the Australian east coast but can frequently be found on the road travelling for gigs. He is a familiar face for many of the operators here in South East Queensland.
Shooting air to air can be likened to wedding photography in some ways, Mark says. It can be high pressure as you may only have the one chance to nail that perfect picture. With at least the running costs of two helicopters ticking over, needing to reset and reposition for another opportunity can be expensive even if calculated at internal company costs.
Photo: Mark Watterson – Leonardo A109 Trekker along the coast of New Zealand Photo: Mark Watterson – Mark talks about some of the logistics of air-to-air shooting in this episode.Photo: Mark Watterson – Airbus AS350 over the wrecks at Moreton Island, SE Queensland
Mark will be one of the exhibitors at the Rotortech conference in June being held in Brisbane. A crop of the floor plan is included below with Mark’s booth – if you are attending drop in and say hi to him.
The Rotortech Exhibition is on 15-17 June 2021 in Brisbane, Australia. You can find Mark at stall 1D5 to say hello.
Photo: Mark Watterson – Elite Helicopters out of Archerfield lining up for a group shot. Multi-ship photos add to the complexity of getting the right shot.Photo: Mark Watterson – Robinson R66 passing Point Cartwright on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland Photo: Mark WattersonPhoto: Mark Watterson – SeaWorld AS350 over the Gold Coast hinterland
Be part of the conversation! What was your biggest takeaway from this episode?
RWS 100 – Degraded Visibility Training with Tyson Phillips and Andre Lavallee
May 14, 2021
US Army National Guard pilots Andre(left) and Tyson(right) have developed a training device for degraded visual environments.
Two US National Guard pilots are developing a new training tool to reduce the risk of and improve the fidelity of reduced visual environment training. IIMC, dust landings and white outs have all been the causes of both training mishaps and real world accidents and deaths. We talk about what it missing in the current training and how a new device and training method can replicate the sensations and challenges of degraded visual environments.
Tyson Phillips and Andre Lavallee make up the team at AT Systems a US company bringing a new training device to the market. Tyson and Andre are both instructor pilots with the US Army National Guard – Tyson in Oklahoma and Andre in Texas.
Between the two of them they have flown almost every rotary wing type in the US Army stable including stints in civil flying gigs.
The Challenge!
ICAO publishes a list of 35 aviation occurrence categories – so when there is an accident or an incident the investigators will tag it against one or more of those categories.
Categories are things like icing, aerodrome, turbulence, wind shear, security related, low altitude operations, bike strike, fuel and includes unintended flight into IMC.
That last one we more generally call inadvertent IMC – or inadvertent instrument met conditions. This is when visual conditions looking outside have degraded to the point that we have to use flight instruments to control the aircraft.
So crashing aircraft due to Inadvertent IMC is nothing new and happens frequently that it has its own ICAO occurrence category.
The easy association here is entering into cloud – and that’s fairly obvious. But by definition any time we are below VMC or visual met conditions we are technically in IMC. You have to be in one or the other.
If you are flying in rain or smog and the visibility drops below 5000m and you haven’t planned for it and you can’t use special VFR or helicopter VMC then you are now IMC, even if not actually in cloud.
The bigger machines out there can have some amazing instrument capability fitted to them. But in many cases if you find yourself going IIMC in a helicopter
You are already likely to be Low level near hills and obstacles as you’ve probably been scud running to get to that point
You are going to have a very basic instrument fitout
The helicopter is most likely not going to have stability assist or any autopilot functions
And in terms of pilot skill – how likely are you to be instrument qual’ed and if you are, how current are you?
So it is not going to be a nice spot to be.
Flying at night has its own challenges with the lack of visual cues.
But the other scenario that can put us in that really uncomfortable situation where we can’t see as much as we’d like to – is landings in dust or snow. As that rotor wash kicks up the loose surface and the cloud catches up as we drop through ETL – you can find yourself scrambling for any visual reference you can – just feet off the ground.
Today’s guests have come up with a training solution to help us get better at reacting to that transition into IIMC and that takes a lot of the risk out of practicing for degraded visual landings.
RWS 99 – Helicopter Flying in Iceland with Tryggvi Helgason
Apr 28, 2021
Tryggvi Helgason has been a pilot with the Icelandic Coast Guard since 2016. Prior to this he flew helicopter tours out of Reykjavík.
It is not unusual for helicopter pilots to take a winding route to before they end up with a career in the cockpit. Tryggvi worked as a baggage handler, in flight operations and as a quality auditor before taking on a flying job. Now he is flying for the Icelandic Coast Guard on missions as varied as long distance maritime rescue, inflight refueling, film flying, HEMS and VIP transport.
In the middle of march this year a volcano in Iceland erupted and has been oozing out lava ever since. As you can imagine – any time ancient molten rock from the earth’s mantle starts to flow on to the surface it makes for quite an attention grabbing sight.
Not surprisingly the best place to catch a view is from the air. One of the photos I saw being passed around on social media was taken by Tryggvi.
That seemed like as good an excuse as any to find out more about flying in a corner of the world that not many of us get to. I reached out to Tryggvi to see if he would be keen to tell us more about it.
Now Iceland is a long, long way north. Picture if you would, for comparison, the very bottom of south america, as close as you can get to antarctica without swimming, that puts you at 56 degrees latitude south.
Well Iceland is 65 degrees latitude north – another 9 degs or 540nm again closer to the North Pole.
In this chat with Tryggvi we talk about helicopter aviation in Iceland, the coast guard service and about the current volcano action they have going on.
Active volcano in 2021. Photo taken by Tryggvi from the Coast Guard H225 (similar ~ Super Puma)
Photo of Tryggvi with lava flowing in the background. This was just 12 hours after the eruption.On scene at a traffic accident. The Coast Guard fleet serves double(/triple?) duty as the only HEMS capability in Iceland. Crews can be called out for a wide range of taskings and act as the Government air wing.
Be part of the conversation! What was your biggest takeaway from this episode?
RWS 98 – Wrong Deck Landings and Approach Detection with Jon Davis
Apr 01, 2021
Jon Davis heads up the team at Skynet Aviation, an Australian company that has developed an approach warning system that can be used for helipads.
Before a helicopter approaches to an oil rig there are checks and safety procedures to be followed on the rig in preparation – the deck is cleared, cranes are moved out of the way and gas venting is stopped. When the landing rig is misidentified and an approach flown to the wrong landing deck the above protections are not in place.
Jon Davis is CEO and Managing Director of Skynet Satellite Communications and their division Skynet Aviation. This is a technology / software company that has been supporting aviation ops for over 20 years. Including experience where they were heavily involved in helicopter operations in the Gulf of Mexico. These days Jon is based in Brisbane, here in Australia and the company website indicates they are supporting aviation operators in over 47 countries.
In this episode we discuss wrong deck landings, what some of the dangers are and contributing factors as to why they occur. Oil rigs can sometimes look very similar to each other and are not always signed in a way that assists pilots in adverse conditions. If you were flying an approach to the rig in the photo below think about how difficult it would be to confirm the rig identification when your mental model has you “in the right spot”. Also note the stowed cranes for the approach. If they weren’t expecting an arrival then the cranes could be impinging on the deck or the go-around area.
Photo from Wrong Deck Landings Research and Investigation Report, Dec 2015, Jarvis Bagshaw Ltd,
Skynet offers a number of ADS-B solutions with a mix of hardware and software. We refresh the operation of ADS-B for aircraft tracking and then look at the Landing Approach Surveillance and Warning (LASAW) system developed by Skynet. One of the applications of this technology is for use on oil platforms to monitor the surrounding airspace and detect helicopters commencing an approach. If this turns out to be an impending wrong deck landing then rig personnel are alerted or the system can automatically activate a number of warning lights and audio alarms on deck.
The video below gives an overview of how the LASAW system operates.
A number of links are provided below to investigation reports into wrong deck landings. The report commissioned by CHC on the topic has some wonderful human factors and CRM elements teased out. Actual wrong deck landings are a low occurrence event in actual reporting but it would seem that a number go unreported and near misses have been experienced by a sizeable percentage of those in the study group.
Below is a section from a company Operations Manual covering actions after the occurrence of a wrong deck landing. An immediate takeoff is not recommended as there is no assurance that the oil rig is in the proper configurations for aircraft operations. Cranes could be operating or gas being vented. Several aircraft crashes have been attributed to “the loss of engine power due to an engine compressor stall as a result of ingesting methane gas during takeoff” see NTSB Factual Aviation Report CEN11LA252 and NTSB Factual Aviation Report CEN13FA491.
An Operations Control Centre (OCC) developed by Skynet Aviation for fleet management and tracking. One of the technical/software solutions the company offers alongside their LASAW system.
Be part of the conversation! What was your biggest takeaway from this episode?
RWS 97 – A Possible Helicopter Career Plan B with Jerry Grayson
Mar 15, 2021
Jerry Grayson AFC progressed from SAR ops with the Royal Navy to aerial filming around the world and is now helping other aviators leverage their skills and knowledge in the operation of drones.
Jerry Grayson returns to the Rotary Wing Show with an update on his next adventure following a packed career in the cockpit as a SAR and film pilot. Now-a-days he keeps his feet on the ground but leverages his experience in the operation of drones – and he thinks it might be a good time for other helicopter aircrew to take another look at this space.
Flying a helicopter is an expensive and hard earned skillset. It is also pretty specialised and not something that you can do from anywhere. It is hard to ‘work-from-home’ during COVID, the work hours aren’t always family friendly, the job market can be very cyclic and a lot rests on your continued aviation medical passes.
So what do you do if you find yourself as a skilled aircrew member and find yourself out of work? In this episode we look at a possible Plan B where you can transfer a large amount of your existing knowledge and experience.
Jerry (right) spends part of his time now mentoring drone pilots on film techniques. A large part of what Jerry does is the post-production of captured imagery and data to produce different survey products.
Jerry Grayson had a distinguished career in the UK Royal Navy – he graduated pilot training at age 17, operated from carriers and was a SAR pilot. Jerry was recognised with the Air Force Cross (AFC) for his role in a number of dramatic rescues during the 1979 Fastnet yacht race in horrendous conditions. Post Navy career he then found himself travelling the world as a film pilot including gigs at NASA, Formula 1 and the Olympics.
You can find out a lot more about Jerry’s other stories in Episode 29 including a pretty challenging emergency situation in a A109 at night.
This time around we focusing on flying drones and leveraging their capabilities for different product outputs. Jerry lays out some compelling considerations for growth in this part of aviation and how it stacks up against the traditional helicopter design.
Above is an example of the type of product that can be generated for clients. Specialised software is used to use stitch imagery from a drone to generate these 3D models. Jerry runs periodic courses which walk people how to do this. Links to courses are below.
Jerry’s first book ‘Rescue Pilot’ was covered in detail in Episode 29. Since then he has released another book ‘Film Pilot’ which we touch on in this interview.
Jerry’s second book – this time covering his film flying after moving on from the Royal Navy and SAR operations. Download a chapter of the book below in the blog post.
In our conversation we touch on one filming project that Jerry flew in Kuwait covering the deliberate lighting of oil wells by withdrawing Iraqi forces. Lessons of Darkness was the documentary made and the full film can be found on YouTube. The clip below shows some of the flying scenes that Jerry and his team captured.
Jerry’s cockpit view of the 2010 Soccer World Cup in South Africa.Filming for James Bond – View to a Kill As at Jan 2020 – showing progress with drones moving into what was previously a manned application. If you were an Ag pilot and found yourself unable to continue in the cockpit (medical etc) then much of your industry knowledge could also be leveraged in this role. A possible Plan B to consider before you need it.
Be part of the conversation! What was your biggest takeaway from this episode?
RWS 96 – What I’ve Been Doing for the Last 60 Years with Richard Howell
Mar 02, 2021
Richard (Rick) Howell started spinning spanners on aircraft in 1960 as a QANTAS apprentice. Since then he has flown all through Australia and PNG including a 29 year run as a pilot for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
Rick and his twin brother John both started in aviation at the same time which presented a number of interesting scenarios as their careers intersected and they were mistaken for each other.
As an aircraft maintainer Rick worked on 6 week field tours throughout Australia before working in Bouganville where he spent 7 months initially. At this time the Bell 47 and its variants was the light utility workhorse of the Australian helicopter fleet. Rick gained his fixed wing licence and built up experience flying in PNG before cross training onto helicopters.
That fixed wing experience in PNG later proved useful flying Bell 47s at 12-13’000 feet resupplying radio sites and dealing with the challenge of operations in the PNG highlands.
ABC helicopter pilot Richard Howell and cameraman Erik Havnen stand next to the ABC helicopter in Sturt’s Stony Desert, near Innamincka on the SA/Qld border, September 2009.(ABC News)
Other roles came Rick’s way over time and he spent 1976 through to 1988 with NSW National Parks. Here Rick was constantly touring around New South Wales supporting scientists and rangers. Bush fire response also became a key role before Government started to use more and more civil machines.
The ABC news helicopter pilot position may well have been the most prized gig in the country and once there (or at many of the other station news pilot positions) turn over was very low. Rick landed the job and spent 29 years seeing all parts of Australia covering news, supporting documentaries and generally having a great time! Quite often he and the media team would cross-hire helicopters from the destination when the station helicopter couldn’t be spared for the length of time.
One of the big yearly events that the ABC covered and that Rick got to know well was the Sydney to Hobart yacht race. Launching out of Sydney harbour on Boxing Day the sailing fleet would be shadowed by the news helicopters down the coast to Tasmania. In the early days yachts would radio in their position to race coordinators and may have doctored their actual positions as a tactical advantage over competitors. That added an element of challenge for Rick and others locating them 50NM offshore in a single engine news helicopter
Unfortunately in recent years Australian TV stations have been winding back their helicopter investments and the ABC sold off their aircraft and closed the aerial support section down. Rick is still active flying in the Sydney area supporting aerial fire spotting and he filmed the 2020/21 night fireworks over Sydney Harbour.
RWS 95 – Adventures in Helicopter Media with Elan Head
Feb 03, 2021
Elan Head has been flying and writing about helicopters for over 15 years and is now Editorial Director at Vertical Magazine.
Working in the helicopter media part of the industry Elan Head gets to talk to a wide range of people and over time has had the opportunity to take the controls of a wide range of helicopters. This gives her a unique vantage point to talk about the many roles that helicopters perform and some of the upcoming impacts to the industry.
While working on a story as a travel writer in British Columbia Elan got to cover a heli-fishing tour. It was that encounter that really sparked her interest in seeing herself in the pilot seat as a do-able thing. With the challenge set it was in the sunny skies of Arizona that Elan knocked over her commercial, instrument and then instructor qualifications. In 2009 Elan joined the writing team that published Vertical Magazine and moved to Canada before later returning to the USA.
Elan fulfilling a long term goal of flying the Kaman K-MAX. Lifting a load during her 6 hours of type training. Photo: Kaman
The writing assignments for Vertical have seen Elan travel right around the world and to delve into a wide range of industry aspects. “I can usually find a helicopter angle for anything that I’m interested in writing about.”
She has flown over 30 different helicopter types but one that stands out for her was the time that she was able to conduct the Kaman factory course for the K-MAX.
The single seat Kaman K-MAX. After some training in a dual seat HH-43 Huskie it’s off solo in the K-MAX. Photo: Kaman
We talk about the experience of working up to a flight in the K-MAX (single seat so the first flight is solo) along with what its like to prepare to fly new and different helicopter types, some of the countries that Elan’s work has taken her to, tips for helicopter companies on PR (or Public relations) and how to possibly follow in her footsteps if you are a budding aviation writer.
Elan flying the HH-43 Huskie as part of lead up training for the Kaman K-MAXFront seat ride in a Mi-24 just one of the many helicopter types that Elan has been able to fly. Photo: Skip RobinsonElan Head under going vertical reference practice with Volo Mission for a Vertical story. Campbell, Texas. Photo: Will GrahamLooking down from a Robinson R44 during long-line training with Volo Mission. Photo: Will Graham
Be part of the conversation! What was your biggest takeaway from this episode?
RWS 94 – News Helicopter Ops Over Los Angeles with Larry Welk
Dec 22, 2020
For 24+ years Larry Welk has been flying news operations over Los Angeles and is President of Welk Aviation.
Electronic news gathering or ENG is the term that those in the helicopter news corner of the industry use to capture their operations. As a platform to provide real time on-scene video at short notice over a city nothing so far beats a helicopter.
As consumers of news media we have become pretty accustomed to streamed live aerial video these days. And if it’s not video itself then part of living in any sizeable city in the modern era is the experience of a radio station traffic report from an overhead helicopter.
For news stations it probably doesn’t hurt them to have a flying billboard decked out in their station colours and logo flying overhead too.
When it comes to big cities and news helicopters – Los Angeles in the USA probably has some of the most recognisable operations – in part from the co-location of Hollywood and the onscreen productions that come out of there.
AS350 over Los Angeles in the news role. Requires some thinking about where to head towards in the event of a critical emergency.
There are upward of 12 million people in the greater LA area and it is the 2nd largest city in the US after New York.
I couldn’t find a recent quoted figure but there is something crazy like 8 million vehicles registered in the city. You can imagine the popularity of the morning and afternoon traffic helicopter updates.
For the last 24 years Larry Welk has been involved in news coverage above LA. Larry is President of Welk Aviation based in California and which has a number of subsidiary helicopter operations.
I was introduced to Larry by show listener Tom Magill who reached out and suggested Larry as a guest. Tom is a Cinematographer who got his own helicopter licence in the early 2000’s and worked with Larry at times as an aerial camera operator. Thanks Tom!
Some snippets from Larry’s bio – he has over 17,000 flight hours, served 2 years as president of the Professional Helicopters Pilot Association which has just renamed to the Southern Californian Rotorcraft Association and has even been shot at on the job.
Larry has received two Emmy nominations, one Emmy award, a national Sports Emmy award, two commendations from the City of Los Angeles, recognition from the National Broadcast Pilots Association and the Greater Los Angeles Press Club.
Larry takes us through range of topics related to electronic news gathering. We chat about:
The Early days of news flying before video downlinks
Building flight time
The normal daily routine for traffic patrols and news aircrew
The transition from the pilot being the on air talent to a team and crew effort
Introduction to LA airspace
Training process to become a news pilot
Safety considerations for flying over the urban environment, and
The importance of learning everything to do with the mission or the role that the helicopter is being used for and to not just focus on the helicopter control or piloting.
Larry Welk flying a news configured H125 helicopter
Links from this week’s episode: Support the podcast on Patreon Welk Aviation – Larry’s company that includes Angel City Air, Western Helicopters and Summit Helicopter(Powerline Operations). You can find out more about the different operations they conduct on their site. Welk Aviation on Facebook. Tim Tucker’s Blog – Tim is the Chief Instructor at Robinson Helicopter Company. His blog has a number of very informative essays on helicopter topics.
News coverage extends into the night with crew shifts. The morning crews are in early to pre-flight before launching on the daily traffic reports. The job revolves around getting this bit of kit to where the customer news stations need it.
What was your biggest takeaway from this episode? Help yourself remember and share it with others by making a comment about it here below.
RWS 93 – Carburettor Icing in Helicopters with Richard Mornington-Sanford
Dec 15, 2020
Richard Mornington-Sandford – flight instructor and engineering trainer has a long history working with the Robinson brand.
Most piston engine pilots will be at least passingly familiar with the theory behind the formation of carburettor icing. However most textbooks lean towards the operation of the carburettor in a fixed wing mounted engine. Helicopter engines, predominately the Robinson helicopter types but applicable to others as well, have their own unique challenges when it comes to carburettor icing and the use of ‘carb heat’ warm air.
Richard Mornington-Sanford was an engineer in the RAF before branching out into the roles of a civilian flight instructor, licensed helicopter engineer and air accident investigator. A photo on his website has an endorsement from Frank Robinson in 1998 with at that point, 18 years of association with the Robinson Helicopter Company and its products. Richard is still conducting Robinson Pilot Flight Safety Courses around the world today. You can do the maths on the years of experience there.
From his website – “He is a Robinson Helicopters Accident/Technical Investigator and conducts the Robinson Factory Maintenance Course in the UK, Europe and Worldwide together with EASA Part 147 type training approval. With CAA engineering and flight instructor licences, he is credited with having unrivalled experience outside of the factory on the Robinson product.”
Anyway, all that to say that the guy knows a bit about the innards of the Robinson product. I stumbled upon a 2012 PDF guide that Richard had written about carburettor icing only in the last few months. What stood out to me was that it was the first time that I had seen the topic of carb icing covered from a purely helicopter engine and helicopter operation view point. It was fascinating stuff and somewhat humbling that I hadn’t previously been exposed to some of the ideas the guide had in it.
Fig 1 to the right is taken from Richard’s guide. You can download the full guide and see additional photos, drawings and graphs by clicking on the cover image immediately below.
Very briefly – the carburettor is designed to deliver a fuel/air mixture to the engine pistons for combustion. If that air mass is sufficiently blocked by icing then combustion stops. Not a good thing.
Even on a warm day the air moving through the carburettor can experience a significant temperature drop due to 1. the latent heat absorbed from the air as the fuel vaporises, and 2. the reduction in temperature and pressure as the air rushes through the venturi effect created by a less than full open butterfly valve.
Now a big difference between the textbooks (which are fixed wing centric) and what happens in a Robinson R22 or R44 is that the books say that during takeoff there is very little chance of carb icing due to the high power setting and full open butterfly valve. However! In the R22 and R44 because of the de-rated engine, at sea level at takeoff power the butterfly valve is a long way from being fully open. How far? Look at Richard’s charts in the document below to find out.
Links from this week’s episode: Support the podcast on Patreon Mornington Sanford Aviation – Richard runs a number of safety and engineering courses. You can find out more on his website and there is a good collection there of blog posts that are well worth reading.
Richard doubling up as pilot and engineer for this track and balance.This photo and one below – Richard in Thailand supervising assembly.
What was your biggest takeaway from this episode? Help yourself remember and share it with others by making a comment about it here below.
RWS 92 – Human External Cargo Helicopter Ops with Jeff Yarnold
Dec 11, 2020
Jeff Yarnold has 23 years experience working in the helicopter rescue field. He now operates a company that develops equipment and training for Human External Cargo operations.
As versatile as helicopters are there are still tight places where they just can’t land to get people in or out. For overwater flights, rescue teams and some utility operations that means using a hoist or under-slung line to reach someone. A hoist fitted helicopter is not always avaliable. Hence we have the considerations that go into Human External Cargo (HEC) where people are flown on the end of an extended line attached to the helicopter belly hook(s).
Jeff Yarnold is VP of Operations at Boost Human External Cargo Systems, a company that he co-founded in 2013. In the interview Jeff goes into the Transport Canada grounding of Human External Cargo equipment that was avaliable at the time and the search and eventual manufacture of a certified solution.
When conducting external load flights with underslung equipment or stores as pilots and crews we want the ability to quickly release the load should that be required to ensure the safety of the aircraft. As long as the released load does not hit someone on the ground then it may be expensive but is an accepted risk of that type of cargo carriage. The load is expendable. The release control is almost always located on the cyclic and requires minimal effort by the pilot. Inadvertent releases are rare however can occur. Either through human error or a failure of the hook system.
Now with people on the end of the line that could find themselves inadvertently fall free of the helicopter the acceptance of risk goes way down and additional measures are required. The previous solution (which is still used in different jurisdictions) was to fit a ‘belly band’ through and under the helicopter cabin to provide another backup anchor point to the line and its attached humans.
The advantage of the belly band solution was that it was extremely portable and could be fitted to a wide range of helicopters used in the external load role. It was this belly band solution that Transport Canada grounded due to concerns about its certification and fitness for purpose.
Second hook mount on a Bell 212 to allow Human External Cargo usage. The primary aircraft hook can be seen further back inline.
The North Shore Search and Rescue organisation in British Columbia that Jeff still works for, found themselves without a viable way to effect many of the mountain rescues in their area of responsibility. Necessity being the mother of all invention… Jeff and his business partner Derek set about designing a solution.
While Jeff goes into the sometimes bumpy road to market in the podcast the end product was a purpose designed 2nd hook system that is now approved for AS350/355, Bell 206L, 407, 212, 412 types and MD500.
In this podcast we go into:
Helicopters rescues in BC, Canada
Jeff’s experiences as a rescue technician then helicopter pilot
HEC vs hoist ops
Grounding of existing HEC equipment and impact on operators
Design and manufacture journey to bring a solution to market
HEC procedures
Insurance considerations for flying people suspended underneath a helicopter
RWS 91 – Helicopter Powerline Operations with David McColl
Aug 05, 2020
David McColl is Chief Pilot of Rotor Blade LLC and has flown a range of powerline industry roles using the MD500 helicopter.
The general line thrown out there is that most helicopter pilots try to spend their careers staying away from wires – the guys and girls flying in the powerline industry get right up close as part of their job. David McColl is a powerline pilot in the US and has built up experience in a number of the different types of operations that helicopters perform on the powerlines.
David switched careers from a ground soldier in the UK and as a security contractor across to helicopters – his first experience was in the back of a Chinook and figured this flying gig looked pretty good.
He trained on the H269 in Florida and after some hard work put into networking and going out to talk to companies resulted in a lucky break and two different job offers immediately on finishing training. David shares some advice on how to make your own luck around this too.
“It usually takes at least a year if I’ll time training to get from private to CFI. I did it in 9 months and then immediately started flying pipeline patrol.”
I treated flight school like a full-time job and I had some great instructors and encouragement from family and friends.
“I transitioned into the MD500 and Bell 206 very quickly in my career. It was a trial by fire. My MD500 training consisted of a 42 min flight. I had to make the best of it through YouTube videos, other pilots and reading up in the RFM.”
“I had an engine flame out in my first 7 hours which was my fault for not having my anti ice on and flying in snow. My engine flamed out about 8 ft above the ground while I was in the hover at an airport, the training kicked in and I carried out a hover auto, it was a non-event for the helicopter. Once on the ground the re-igniter kicked in and relit the engine. I have my initial instructor and my CFI instructor to thank for that.”
Human External Cargo (HEC) is used in the powerline industry to position lineworkers close to wires. Alternatively a special platform is fitted to the helicopter that the lineworker sits on the end of.
Like any specialised field once you dig into it there are all kinds of nuanced operations. A helicopter licence is only just the ticket to get in the door.
In this episode David walks us through powerline patrolling, LIDAR, insulator washing, marker ball placement, human external carriage (HEC), tower transfer, platform work, construction and stringing tasks.
This shot of David shows some of the modifications to the MD500 for powerline work. The large blue strap is the belly band used for Human External Cargo operations.Washing the insulator discs with de-ionised water to remove dirt build up. The helicopter has to come over the wires for the spray boom to reach the inside set.There are lots of videos on YouTube showing close up some of the operations we’ve talked about in this episode. Note the wire strand under the helicopter in this position. No pressure!
Do you have a question for David or tips from your own experience? Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 90 – Electronic Flight Bags (EFBs) with Andrew Boniface
Jul 15, 2020
Andrew Boniface is at the forefront of Electronic Flight Bag training solutions in Australia
The pace of consumer electronics development far outstrips that of aviation equipment and helicopter installed functionality. Electronic Flight Bags are becoming a fixture in cockpits throughout the industry. For about AUD$799 in 2020 you can bring a range of features with you into any legacy aircraft that would have previously either been impossible or would have been prohibitively expensive.
Electronic Flight Bags or EFBs are off the shelf consumer tablet devices running a range of aviation software with iOS hardware making up most of the market.
At their simplest they replaced having to carry a suite of hardcopy documents into the cabin but now provide to the ability to conduct or augment almost all aspects of flying administration.
Weather forecast downloads and plotting, flight planning, weight and balance, flight notification, moving map display, airborne access to weather radars, flight following, traffic situational awareness, debriefing and logbook recording can all be achieved without touching a piece of paper and in most cases without any modification to the helicopter flown.
Check the resource links below for EFB training videos that Andy has provided for listeners
Like any aviation tool though there is a need to know the regulations that apply to EFBs, their limitations, human factors involved in using them and training to get the most out of them.
Andy Boniface is a Grade 1 Instructor with Instrument and NVIS training endorsements who has been deeply immersed in EFB use and training for several years. Outside of his flying roles Andy now consults with companies to assist them to setup regulator approved EFB programs for their aircrew and fleets.
In this interview Andy takes us on a wide look at the development of EFBs up to their current evolution, tips and tricks for optimising their usage and where both aircrew and helicopter operators can come unstuck either from human factors impacts or through conflict with different country regulator requirements.
Andrew Boniface (right) first got heavily involved with the regulations and administration of Electronic Flight Bags when he developed the Becker Helicopters fleet EFB usage program. The company recognised Andy’s contribution by sending him to the US for the HAI Expo.
Do you have a top tip for using an electronic flight bag? Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below. What software do you run?
RWS 89 – Night Aerial Firefighting 2020 Update with Richard Butterworth
Jun 09, 2020
Photo: Richard Butterworth has lead a team from Kestral Aviation that now has two fire seasons of experience in night aerial firefighting.
We first looked at night aerial firefighting in episode 65 when the capability had just finished the first trials in Australia. Now with two more fire seasons of experience fighting fires at night, Richard Butterworth is back to give an update on the continuing road map and what as been achieved so far.
Richard Butterworth is Head of Training at Kestrel Aviation based in Mangalore, Victoria. It is about 1 1/2 hours drive north of Melbourne. Kestrel has been developing a night aerial firefighting capability and has put a significant amount of private investment behind Richard, their other staff and equipment to become one of the first Australian operators to gain CASA approval.
The benefits on a fire scene range from not just the extended hours avaliable (Richard also talks about the daylight hours lost on current fires due to morning briefing requirements) but also the generally calmer conditions and colder temperatures reducing the intensity and speed of fires. This ‘quietening’ of the fireground provides more of a chance to affect the outcome with water drops.
The big advance in approvals for the night capability has been the successful proving of and then approval to conduct hover refills from natural water sources at night. The initial trials were only conducting using stationary ground refills from a prepared position. This allows crews to find water sources at night close to the fire and refill as they would for day operations – a corresponding reduction in logistical support and an increase in flexibility is gained. This was considered by many to be a world first, with other countries initially preferring ground filling operations.
To date one restriction on their operations was a requirement for a day reconnaissance of the fire location prior to going back out and operating at night. This was in place as an early risk mitigation factor as part of the first approvals by CASA. The goal now is to move to a first attack capability where crews can be the first response on scene during night hours opening up additional flexibility and greater impact for the firefighters on the ground.
Crews so far have operated entirely under visual flight rules which places certain requirements for weather and visibility for the holding of alternate airfields. In the future having the ability to recover on instruments under IFR to suitable airfields is another way of increasing the operational availability. During the large, widespread fires of January 2020 there were occasions where visibility due to the smoke was so bad and over such an extent that it was impossible to hold an alternate airfield anywhere in the state of Victoria.
A Bell 412 fitted out for firefighting and NVIS operations
Fire ground at night through NVGsRosedale, Victoria – fire front visible from the air during night operationsOvens Airbase January 2020 – aircraft were grounded for several days due to wide spread thick smoke. At other times crews could not launch at night as there were no suitable alternate airfields anywhere in the state of Victoria.
Do you have a question for Richard and the Kestrel crews about night firefighting? Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 88 – First Solo Flights with Peter Holstein
Jun 01, 2020
Today’s topic is First Solo flights. If you are a student getting ready for your first helicopter solo this is the episode that you want to hear. If you are an instructor sending students solo then you will also definitely want to listen to this one.
For everyone else there are some good risk management considerations in here and it provides another opportunity to step back from the day to day tasks and think about some of the legal liability that we all have when performing our jobs in aviation.
That first solo flight is a milestone for all pilots and culturally it gets a bit of nostalgia or mysticism wrapped around it.
To help us break down the topic we are joined today by Peter Holstein – a highly regarded and in-demand flight examiner here in the Australian helicopter community.
Peter has training and testing approvals for most of the things we need in the GA helicopter world – sling, NVFR, instructor ratings, Low level, PPL, CPL etc
When I needed to complete my Grade 1 instructor training endorsement – Peter conducted the testing for that. We’ve also used Peter a number of times for qualifications for our other staff instructors.
In 1992 Peter opened his own flying school in the south Sydney area called Aerowasp Helicopters which traded all the way through to 2016 and he then moved to where he is now at Touchdown Helicopters at Wollongong Airport.
Peter is also a Member of the International Society of Air Safety Investigators.
There is a saying that experience is the best teacher. After 30 years of sending students solo and especially for today’s discussion – first solo – you can imagine that Peter has experienced a few lessons.
When it comes to aviation I would much prefer to learn something from someone else rather than have to learn it first hand. And with first solos there is not a huge amount of room there to make mistakes.
Not a helicopter one unfortunately but this is my favourite first solo certificate template
RWS 87 – Search and Rescue at AMSA with Luke Brandley
May 24, 2020
Luke Brandley is a Senior Search and Rescue Office with AMSA and used to fly Iroquois for the Australian Army.
We spend a lot of time training for emergencies in the air but how much do you know about what happens next or what kicks into gear if you go missing? Luke Brandley is an ex-Huey pilot now working as a Senior Search and Rescue Officer with the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA). He and the rest of the team co-ordinate the emergency search and response once an aircraft is in distress or missing.
Located in Canberra, ACT, the Joint Rescue Co-ordination Centre (JRCC) in manned 24 hours a day and is charged with looking after a vast portion of the Earth’s surface as you can see in the coverage map below. They respond to around 7000 incidents per year.
This episode covers what happens behind the scenes when something goes wrong. While it is Australian focused in content, the same types of procedures and assets will be applicable worldwide with other aviation rescue and response organisations. The more you know about this part of the aviation infrastructure the better prepared you can be if you ever have to be on the receiving end.
There are a number of different ways that AMSA get involved: when aircraft Emergency Locator Transmitter (ELT) are activated, an aircraft is overdue or there is concern for its safety, on declaration of a MAYDAY or alert by local authorities. They remain the chief agency up until the aircraft is found safe or until any survivors are delivered to primary care.
The massive area Australian search and rescue assets have responsibility for.
At their disposal is a fleet of 4 contracted Bombardier Challenger 604 jets located in Perth, Melbourne and Cairns on a 30 minutes (60 minutes by night) notice to move with a nominal endurance of 8 hours. The aircraft are fitted with homing equipment, electro-optical turret, multi-mode search radar, fixed staring three-camera array with anomaly detection software and have the ability to drop emergency equipment.
The Co-ordination Centre staff also have the ability to call on a wide range of mainly Government fixed and rotary wing assets in the different States to assist with search.
How can you help rescue agencies help you?
Luke’s advice for aircrew is to always let someone know where you are going and the times you are operating. This could be via submitted flight plan, company operations or a responsible person. The more information that AMSA is able to access, the quicker they are able to make decisions to get the right rescue assets on scene with the least amount of time spent searching
Don’t delay contacting AMSA. If the safety of a flight is in doubt don’t hold off from letting AMSA know. If the aircraft is contacted or arrives safely it is easy to stand down the alert. There are cases where people have held off contacting authorities after an aircraft has failed to show and then when AMSA was alerted there was now limited time before sunset to start a search.
Know your equipment. Know where to locate and how to use your aircraft’s ELT and other emergency equipment. Because we interact with it so infrequently our ability to operate emergency equipment at short notice and under pressure is degraded unless you refresh that knowledge.
Correct disposal of ELTs. False or inadvertent activation of old or disposed of ELTs can tie up expensive rescue assets that then may not be avaliable when you or other aircrew need them. Each beacon is coded and should be registered with the national database which speeds the contact of the registered owner and verification of an actual emergency or false activation. When a beacon is disposed of the owner should update the database.
Instructions for the disposal of ELTs and beacons can be found here and include the removal of the batteries. Environmental considerations also come into play for the disposal of the long life battery itself.
Every year, thousands of dollars are spent in Australia searching for beacons in rubbish dumps.
Have a comment or feedback about Episode 87? Have you ever had to activate an ELT – what happened? Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 86 – Going for Height and Film Flying with Fred North
May 11, 2020
Fred North built his early helicopter hours travelling from town to town in France selling joyflights. Now he works on some of the biggest films in the world.
Even if you are not an avid movie goer it is still very likely that you have seen some of Fred North’s work. Fred has been involved in many of the largest Hollywood Blockbusters in recent times either flying helicopter stunts or providing the aerial filming platform. There is a lot that goes into setting up a filming sequence. Fred talks about some of the challenges in this episode.
Fred North has one of the biggest followings on Instagram for a helicopter pilot. His short clips and still photos from behind the scenes of filming show helicopter action sequences that you just don’t otherwise see in normal ops.
Some of Fred’s film credits include:
Armageddon Gladiator Borne Identity Da Vinci Code The Incredible Hulk Tropic Thunder Inception Fast and Furious – several including Hobbs & Shaw Total Recall Mission Impossible Point Break Captain America : Winter Soldier All the Transformers films Pacific Rim Wolverine Bad Boys for Life Guardians of the Galaxy
The type of flying that Fred North does today is not something that helicopter pilots start out doing. Fred is no exception. He built his first hours quickly by travelling from town to town in France selling tickets for joyflights in a Bell 47 and then backing up and conducting the flights.
In the interview Fred also talks about his experiences as a support and film pilot for the Dakar Rally through Africa for a number of years. There is a good navigation tip in there for remote operations around purposely laying off heading so that when you hit a straight across track feature such as a road that you know which way to turn.
Helicopter pilot mothers the world over appear to share some similar concerns when their children decide on that particular career. Fred’s mother insisted that he wear a parachute when he went for the helicopter altitude record. If you want to know what goes into getting a helicopter to 42,500ft then you will also get to hear Fred talk about that campaign and some of the things unplanned events that happened on that flight.
Have a comment or feedback about Episode 86? Don’t forget Fred’s offer to answer your questions on a future episode. Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below or leave a question for Fred.
RWS 85 – Buying a Helicopter with Stephen Boyce
May 05, 2020
Stephen Boyce has been marketing and selling helicopters since 2011 leveraging his own wide industry experience in the process.
In the market for a helicopter or just want to know some of the ins and outs of the process? Stephen Boyce has been working in helicopter sales since 2011 and flying them since 1994. Helicopters are high cost purchases and almost always a case of buyer beware. Should you buy new or used? How do you determine what models hold their value? How does buying for private use differ from a commercial business case? Some of the things that Stephen talks about in this episode.
Stephen’s helicopter career has seen him collect commercial licenses under 5 different regulators, 18 different type ratings, 7500+ hrs, VFR, IFR, Multi-engine experience and time in the Arctic. You can see some more of Stephen’s background on his LinkedIn profile.
Growing up Stephen’s Dad was a fixed wing pilot and the family lived in PNG for a number of years with Stephen riding his bike on the local runway between flights.
One of the stories that Stephen talks about in this interview is how he came to land a job in the Arctic flying a Bell 214ST in support of US early warning radar bases pointed over the North pole towards Russia.
For most of the interview though we get into some depth on the different considerations and steps that go into buying a helicopter. This is a really good primer on the topic and includes discussion on foreign currency rates, different models, contracts, pre-purchase inspections, inclusions, finance gotcha’s for helicopters out of country, shipping and more.
Stephen Boyce with a Bell 214ST at Resolution Island – remote north east Canada
Heliskiing, off-shore, medivac, vertical reference, environmental surveys, fire ops, tourism – some of the operational experiences that Stephen has had in his career and allowed him to collect a number of different type ratings.
Have a comment or feedback about Episode 85? Maybe you have some great tips of your own that others can benefit from. Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 84 – Pilotage FLIR with Tony ‘Squid’ Norton
Apr 18, 2020
Tony Norton talks about some of the features and operating considerations of FLIR as a pilot vision system.
Forward Looking Infra-red (FLIR) systems have been around for a while and used in a search or surveillance function normally by an operator with a control panel. A small number of aircraft are now incorporating FLIR as a pilot vision tool, tracked to the pilots head, as another way of seeing at night or through obscurants such as smoke or dust.
Tony is currently the senior aviation instructor and and standards pilot for Australian Army Aviation. He is approaching 20 years of military instructing and 10 years as a graduate of the National Test Pilot School in the US.
In Episode 82 Tony shared some of his experiences going through test pilot school and his career in the Army. In this episode we concentrate on the capability that FLIR provides and its use as ‘pilotage FLIR’ for extending the vision cues available to helicopter crews.
We also look at the specifics of how that plays out for pilots of the MRH90 ‘Taipan’ which is the Australian Army variant of the NHIndustries NH90.
FLIR is probably most easily explained in comparison to night vision devices. Where NVD/NVGs amplify visible light in dark settings FLIR devices work by detecting the heat given off by objects and the variation between objects.
The wavelength of infrared that thermal imaging cameras detect is 3 to 12 μm and differs significantly from that of night vision, which operates in the visible light and near-infrared ranges (0.4 to 1.0 μm).
-Wikipedia
It’s surprisingly difficult to find good demonstration images for the FLIR output online however there are a number of videos here below on the page that give an idea of the capability.
Along with the FLIR pod, the other major difference for the MRH90 install is the TopOwl helmet. The aircraft can track the motion of the helmet to know where the pilot is looking. This is used to drive the FLIR pod to align with the pilots sight rather than a controller using a manual joystick. Integral to the TopOwl helmet is the projection system which allows NVD or the FLIR image to be superimposed in front of the pilot’s vision – allowing the pilot to look through the image and select between the different input as well as overlay HUD information.
One interesting effect of that is that the pilot can look ‘through’ the cockpit instrument panel or the floor to where the FLIR sensor is pointing as it has an unobstructed picture from outside the aircraft.
The technology brings with it a number of human factors considerations that crews need to train for and work through during a flight. Two quick examples are that only one pilot can steer the sensor and see the FLIR image on their visor at a time (different visual information between pilots and also crew in the rear) and that the eye point of the pilot is now no longer from their own head position but from the front of the aircraft.
FLIR pod out of the aircraft with aperture visible. Photo: Leonardo Company Elbit Brightnite FLIR Demo
Have a comment or feedback about Episode 84? Maybe you have some great tips of your own that others can benefit from. Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 83 – SH2 Sea Sprite with Jim Palmquist
Feb 11, 2020
Ditching a rapidly yawing helicopter into the open ocean is one of those experiences most of us would happily pass on. Jim Palmquist and his crew onboard a SH2 Sea Sprite survived just such an event during his time as an aircraft carrier search and rescue pilot. The Kaman Sea Sprite is a unique helicopter about which Jim goes into more detail.
‘Plane guard’ is the term used for the search and rescue role of embarked helicopters on a flat top aircraft carrier. The helicopter crews are there to be on the scene as soon as possible should one of the carrier aircraft or ship crew end up in the water. The idea is not to end up in the water themselves!
A left front view of a Helicopter Light Anti-submarine Squadron 30 (HSL-30) SH-2F Sea Sprite helicopter preparing to land on the helicopter pad of the destroyer USS NICHOLSON (DD-982).
After what was later found to be a crack tail rotor gearbox mounting plate the SH2 Sea Sprite that Jim was captain of experienced severe in-flight vibration followed by loss of yaw control. The crew and aircraft entered the water shortly after and thankfully all the crew were able to to the surface safely.
One of the unique features of the Sea Sprite was the design of a trailing flap on each of the main rotor blades. The blade was flown up and down by adjusting the angle of the flap rather than adjusting the pitch at the blade root as other helicopters do.
The SH-2 Sea Sprite also had a small part to play in the introduction of dedicated helicopter gunships to the US fleet during Vietnam. Jim also tells this story in the podcast and how the AH-1 Cobra ended up be selected.
Jim went on to fly the OH-6 with the Army National Guard and these days volunteers at the American Helicopter Museum.
American Helicopter Museum website. The American Helicopter Museum & Education Center’s mission is to Preserve rotary-wing aviation history, Educate society on helicopters and their missions & Inspire future generations.
Have a comment or feedback about Episode 83? Maybe you have some great tips of your own that others can benefit from. Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 82 – Test Flying and Lessons Learnt with Tony ‘Squid’ Norton
Jan 25, 2020
The bulk of Tony Norton’s career has been spent as a Qualified Flying Instructor and Test Pilot in the Australian Army.
If your perfect day sounds like flying a glider in the morning, testing the HV curve in a Kiowa at lunch and then jumping in a Swedish jet interceptor in the afternoon then Tony ‘Squid’ Norton can tell you what it’s like!
Tony is currently the senior aviation instructor and and standards pilot for Australian Army Aviation. He is approaching 20 years of military instructing and 10 years as a graduate of the National Test Pilot School in the US.
This is a good chance to not only find out about test pilot training but to get an instructor’s slant on it in terms of how some of the approaches that the test flying world takes can be incorporated into everyday helicopter training.
“This engine is going to fail on me. How am I going to get out of it? Then fly that departure or that approach.”
NTPS at Mojave Airport in California, very close to Edwards, AFB. Sonic booms are a daily event.
If, strangely, you have wondered how calculus can be applied to flying then Tony can tell you that too. The test pilot course syllabus is very math and engineering heavy more so than a place where pilots go to develop their flying skills.
Tony has extensive Blackhawk experience and has been the senior instructor for Army on the MRH90 type. He spent 3 ½ years posted as a test pilot for the RAAF’s Aircraft Research and Development Unit (ARDU) and has provided test flying support since then.
One of Tony’s test tasks at ARDU was MRH90 Dust ops techniques development, as well as NVG ops/formation flight for the type.
On the side Tony also lectures at Griffith University on their aviation degree program and is a professional fish farmer.
In this episode we cover:
Early military years and deployments
Test pilot course and why Tony specifically wanted to attend the NTPS
Risks faced in test flying and some history
Things that you learn on Test Pilots course that you don’t get exposed to in helicopter training
Test pilot lessons that can be incorporated into basic training
National Test Pilots School website. This is the only civil test pilot school in the US and was the first outside of the military in the world. It is located at Mojave Airport in California.
Example of FLIR improving visibility through smoke.
Have a comment or feedback about Episode 82? Maybe you have some great tips of your own that others can benefit from. Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 81 – Helicopter Job Market USA (2020), Visas and FAA License Conversion with Jared Friend
Jan 19, 2020
Jared Friend is GM of Hillsboro Aero Academy Helicopter Training. He tells of operators now reaching out to schools looking for pilot candidates such is demand growth in the US.
A few years can make a big difference and that is the case now in Jan 2020 for the helicopter pilot hiring market in the USA. For the first time in a while the minimum hours/experience for job adverts are starting to decrease and operators are looking for new hires.
Jared Friend is the General Manager of the helicopter school division of Hillsboro Aero Academy. Jared’s career has see him move from flying S-61 helicopters straight out of training to instructing, news and other flying roles before returning to flight instruction and leadership roles at Hillsboro where Jared first learn to fly himself.
The helicopter pilot job market is looking like it is starting to improve in the US with Jared now actually fielding calls from operators and chief pilots looking for suitable candidates around the 1000 hour mark with some operators even taking on pilots with reduced hours under placement programs that some schools such as Hillsboro have put in place.
Some of the market drivers are likely to be the fixed-wing airline pilot shortage starting to compete with those pilots that might have entered the helicopter market, some transfer of rotary to fixed-wing positions and the start of expansion in the oil and gas industry again after a very slow period.
Brand new CPL(H) holders still need to bridge that experience gap to get to that 1000 hour mark. The US market is setup that most helicopter pilots get these hours through instructing as their first job. Jared’s feedback is that because of the movement of instructors onto utility, oil and tour operators that there is ample opportunity for new pilots to pick up these instructing roles.
Internationally the helicopter pilot job market is still hit and miss but its promising to see the job growth in the US at least.
In this episode we cover:
Pilot hiring market in the US at Jan 2020
Skills in demand
Visa options for international pilots looking to work in the US
Conversion of overseas licenses to the FAA
Jared spent a number of years flying Bell 206 in the electronic news gathering role.
A young Jared in the S-61 (Civil version of Sea King). He went straight from training on the Robinson R22 into these large helicopters.
Have a comment or feedback about Episode 81? Maybe you have some great tips of your own that others can benefit from. Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 80 – Influencing a Positive Aviation Culture with Natalee Johnston
Dec 22, 2019
There are differing and some very academic definitions for what culture is. I like – “the way we do things around here”. This is a chat about organisational culture and how it impacts on aviation and specifically helicopter operations.
Natalee Johnston spent most of her time in the Royal Australian Navy as a Sea King pilot. A fatal crash of a RAN Sea King ‘Shark 02’ in 2005 brought with it an increased focus on culture within that Unit and the larger Navy Fleet Air Arm. As Natalee progressed in her career through pilot instructing positions, Flight Commander, Fleet Air Arm Flight Safety Officer and SQN Executive Officer roles she was observer many of the changes and the programs put in place from the findings of that accident investigation.
Now out of the Defence Forces Natalee is taking that knowledge and applying her background in the safety field for civilian organisations with a focus on human factors and the influence of culture on company or organisation performance.
Flight 2, 817 squadron on the flight deck of HMAS KANIMBLA with Seaking 10 and Seaking 22, on return to Australia from OPERATION PADANG ASSIST.
In this episode we cover:
Natalee’s Defence career and how she got a start flying helicopters
Culture – what is it / definitions / is it measurable
Why it is important and its impact on safety outcomes
What are the elements that make up culture
What individuals or leaders can do to influence a better culture
Culture as a competitive advantage
Women in Aviation organisation – goals / scholarships
2005 Sea King Crash Investigation – the executive summary from the Board of Inquiry highlights some of the causal themes that lead to an increased focus on ‘culture’ as a safety indicator/opportunity.
‘Just Culture’ concept is mentioned in the podcast. The video below is an expansion on that idea.
Life on the outside of Defence. Natalee trying her hand at plank driving. Natalee with MRH90 crew for a flight into Milton Public school March 2018
WAI Australian Chapter March 2019 at Women in Aviation International conference
Have a comment or feedback about Episode 80? Maybe you have some great tips of your own that others can benefit from. Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 79 – Tackling Helicopter Aircrew Distractions with Kimberly Hutchings
Nov 21, 2019
Kimberly Hutchings juggles flying helicopters, running a longline training school, family, being a physical trainer and speaking on safety for high risk industries.
Have you ever taken your eyes inside the cockpit to check a notification or had your preflight inspection interrupted by a phone call? Distractions of all kinds are increasingly a problem for aircrew and they are starting to show up in safety stats.
Picture for a moment – you are aircrew on a helicopter pre-1995 conducting a preflight on the ramp. For someone to distract you from your task they would have to come out onto the ramp and yell at you to get your attention. Chances are that unless something really important was up that your pre-flight would be uninterrupted.
In 2019 when you preflight you are likely to field calls from Mum asking why you haven’t called in a week, your wife/husband checking to see who is picking up the kids that afternoon and your boss wanting to know if you can work on Saturday. Then there are the social media post notifications, vibrations to let you know a new email has arrived and a recommendation from YouTube that PilotYellow has just posted a new video you might want to watch.
And that’s just on the ground. Bluetooth headsets, ipads and selfie taking passengers bring a new level of challenges to our ability to focus.
Distractions are enough of an aviation hazard now that the US NTSB include it as the first item on their Most Wanted List.
Kimberly Hutchings is a helicopter pilot, helicopter business CEO, speaker who holds a Bachelor of Psychology, a Masters of aeronautical science specialising in Human Factors and Safety systems and a Masters of Management w/ Organizational Behaviour and Leadership.
Kimberly regularly speaks to groups and companies around the dangers of loss of focus, distractions, emotional intelligence and mindfulness.
In this episode we look at what the problem is, how helicopters compare to other forms of transport and strategies to prevent our attention being pulled away from critical tasks.
NTSB Most Wanted List – more info on Distractions and the other top US aviation safety concerns.
Training at the Volomission ranch in Texas. Kimberly and her husband Andre run a dedicated external load and vertical reference school.Helicopters are more like cars than aeroplanes when it comes to distractions from passengers.
Have a comment or feedback about Episode 79? Maybe you have some great tips of your own that others can benefit from. Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 78 – Military to Civilian Transition for Helicopter Pilots with Tarryn Ryan
Oct 29, 2019
After gaining her Wings in South Africa Tarryn Ryan build up experience over a range of different roles both in the civilian market and in two different militaries.
For many military aviators their careers at some point end up being a case of ‘up’ or ‘out’ – either promoted to more non-flying roles or transitioning out into the civil industry.
Landing that first non-military position can sometimes be hard as you establish yourself again and reorient to the new environment and civil market.
Tarryn Ryan is a pilot who has made the transition twice – once from the South African Air Force and more recently from the Australian Army. Tarryn has some good advice for other aircrew looking to prepare for the transition out of the military.
In the South African Air Force Tarryn flew the Oryx(Puma variant) operationally including regular deployments to the Congo and anti-piracy support missions off the east coast of Africa. After 10 years and reaching Major, Tarryn pursued her flying career outside of the military and landed a role flying a single engined August A119 conducting aeromedical evacuation to rural communities.
Tarryn later moved into Marine Pilot Transfer ops out of Durban operating offshore to ships using A109s.
After a successful application to transfer to the Australian Army via their lateral transfer program Tarryn again found herself wearing green. There she trained on the MRH90 transport helicopter and was posted to 5 Avn Regt in Townsville, Queensland.
Some time later Tarryn again got to experience the transition process and its challenges to her current position, again conducting Marine Pilot Transfer ops but this time of the east coast of Australia.
Tarryn’s first job out of the South African Air Force was flying a A119 on aeromedical evacuation out of Durban.On deployment in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Never a dull moment!Short contract on the BK117 in Mali.Oryx commander and the first all female operational crew.
Have a comment or feedback about Episode 78? Maybe you have some great tips of your own that others can benefit from. Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 77 – Helicopter Hoist Operations with Rob Munday and David Callen
Aug 23, 2019
Rob Munday and David Callen have extensive experience in helicopter rescue and hoist operations. They provide training through the company SR3 Rescue Concepts.
Hoist operations open up a wide range of additional roles for helicopters. They allow us to get people and equipment into and out of locations which would otherwise be inaccessible or too dangerous to land. Rob Munday and David Callen from SR3 Rescue Concepts help talk us through some of the considerations.
The helicopter industry is so diverse that there will be aircrew that go their entire careers with conducting hoist operations and others where it is a regular activity.
This is a longer episode at over 90mins and provides a very good primer to anyone that has never worked with a helicopter hoist.
Hoisting does take time and exposes the helicopter, crew and people being hoisted to some level of risk. If there is the opportunity to land the helicopter then that is normally going to be the preference.
Examples of scenarios where a hoist is employed:
Water rescues
Transferring marine pilots to ships where the deck cannot support the weight of the helicopter or rigging is in the way
Lowering people or equipment through trees
Complex landing areas where obstacles or slope mean that a helicopter can not get low enough to land a skid or wheel
Offshore wind turbine maintenance
Powerline access
Dynamic Rollout is a term that we cover in the podcast. It relates to the ability for some D-shackles to interact with a hook such that they roll up and out of the hook gate allowing the person or load on the hoist to fall free. The video below explains in more detail. It has been the cause of a number of deaths and is believed to be what happened in the incident that lead to David Vanbuskirk losing his life while conducting a night mountain rescue in the US. A tribute video to David is at the end of this blog post.
SR3 Rescue Concepts website. Find out more about the company and the courses they deliver.
Have a comment or feedback about Episode 77? Have a particular question about helicopter hoist operations for Rob or Dave? Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 76 – Funding Helicopter Training Using VET Student Loans (Australia Only)
Aug 09, 2019
The Australian Government provides vocational training assistance programs that include coverage for commercial helicopter licences.
A bit of change of format for this episode of the Podcast. I’m re-sharing a recording made for the flight school website where I instruct. This one is all about some of the financial assistance that the Australian Government provides that can also be used towards the gaining of a commercial helicopter licence.
* This will likely only apply to Australian citizens. If you live outside of Australia then you might want to skip this particular episode *
VET Student Loans are a Government Loan to assist Australians to gain new skills and qualifications that will improve their employability in the workplace.
These are similar to other Australian Government training assistance programs such as HECS. If you are in the USA then it might be similar to the GI Bill funding that people have used towards helicopter training.
What the podcast covers:
2 biggest questions – employment chances and starting salary
What are VET Student Loans and how do they apply to Helicopter Training
Eligibility Criteria
Typical Diploma CPL(H) course structure and electives
105 hour course vs 150 hour course
Costs involved
Application process
Pros and Cons of using VET Student Loans for your helicopter training
How Aeropower has structured the training course
Lifetime loan amount – The majority of students have a lifetime limit of $104,440 to use for VSL (changing in 2020, have a look at study assist website for more information).
This is a loan that has to be paid back. Once your loan amount is drawn down it is passed to the Australian Tax Office for administration.
The loan amount is recovered from your tax return once you start to earn over a threshold amount. Min salary threshold 2019/2020 for repayment $45,881 Starts at Pay back 1 % of the loan amount.
Maximum loan amount – for Diploma of Aviation (Commercial Pilot Licence – Helicopter) is $77,571 (as at August 2019).
The loans can only be used on a Diploma course and not a straight CASA CPL(H) licence course. They are only available through approved VET Student Loan training providers.
Have a comment or feedback about Episode 76? Have a particular question about VET Student Loans for helicopter training? Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 75 – Adventures and Survival with Mike Atkinson
Jul 22, 2019
Mike Atkinson has taken skills and knowledge from his aviation background and puts them to the test in survival adventures.
As an ex-Kiowa helicopter pilot, survival instructor RAAF fixed wing instructor, jet and 737 pilot Mike Atkinson has had opportunities to experience a range of aviation operations. So what does he do in his spare time?
in 1932 two German seaplane pilots found themselves off course and out of supplies in the Kimberley region of northern Australia. This is still a fairly remote area of the world and it was much more so in the 1930s.
The two aviators attempted to make it back to a population centre and after a number of attempts and setbacks were discovered close to death by local Aboriginal hunters. It is a fascinating tale well known in that part of Australia.
Mike with a Kiowa from 161 SQN
Mike Atkinson isn’t a stranger to interesting adventures. In the podcast episode he shares some of the close calls and more interesting times of his posting as a reconnaissance helicopter pilot in the Australian Army in Darwin.
“I did crazy expeditions outside of work like taking my 4m tinny from Darwin to Derby [3000 km+] and the Squadron being on standby with bets taken as to where I’d pull the EPIRB”
Mike was also able to avail himself of a survival instructor course run by NORFORCE , an army reserve unit that patrols remote parts of northern Australia. Australian Aboriginal soldiers form 60 per cent of the unit and here Mike was able to learn a lot about ‘bush tucker’ that is relevant to our discussion.
After trekking across Iceland solo and living in the Middle East desert with only two camels (mother and calf so that he could drink the milk) for company Mike decided that it might be a good? idea to see if he could put himself in the same situation, with the same equipment as the German aviators and survive.
And for added difficulty he would carry with him cameras and drones to film it all.
The result is an amazing film called Surviving the Outback.
In the episode we talk about flying, adventures, risk management, drones and the comparisons between careers in rotary wing vs fixed wing.
An earlier adventure of Mike’s trekking solo across Iceland and some horrendous conditions. Mike’s camera work has come along way since then!
This footage below didn’t make the film but gives you an idea of the landscape and some of the unique filming/survival challenges on the trip.
Have a comment or feedback about Episode 75? Have a particular question for Mike about his trip or gear? Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 74 – Pete Gillies Talks About Tail Rotor Failures
Apr 21, 2019
Pete Gillies is a legendary, 18,000-hour helicopter pilot who has previously been honored as the Helicopter Association International’s instructor of the year.
Pete’s MD500 is in hilly terrain when a passenger’s hoodie departs the cabin and goes straight through the tail rotor. Listen to what happens next in this recording captured by Doug Williams at his house with Pete Gillies. Extra puppy noises included
In a machine that by design generates significant torque – losing helicopter tail rotor thrust is one of the less desirable airborne situations to find yourself in. Have your say or share an experience in the discussion below.
RWS 73 – Pete Gillies Talks About Teaching Autorotations
Apr 21, 2019
Pete Gillies is a legendary, 18,000-hour helicopter pilot who has previously been honored as the Helicopter Association International’s instructor of the year.
In this interview Doug Williams captures a conversation at his house with Pete Gillies about teaching autorotations. Pete shares a story that highlights the differences, especially in turbine helicopters, between touchdown autorotations with the engine idling and with an engine completely off.
Have you ever flown an auto with the engine completely off – be that on purpose in training or as a real emergency? What differences did you experience? Be part of the discussion below.
RWS 72 – AW609 Tiltrotor with Dan Wells
Oct 22, 2018
Dan Wells is an experimental test pilot at Leonardo who has been on the AW609 program since 2011.
Tiltrotor technology aims to push the envelope on helicopter top speeds while retaining the ability to land and take-off vertically. The Leonardo AW609 will be the first civilian tiltrotor design to undergo FAA certification and brings with it some unique mission profiles.
Dan Wells started his flying career on the AH-1 Cobra before transitioning to being a US Army fixed pilot flying the twin turboprop Grumman OV-1 Mohawk. After test pilot’s course Dan began to rack up experience on a number of programs – both rotary and fixed wing. They included UH1 Huey, MH-47G Chinook, S-70 Blackhawk, C-130 Hercules and Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey amongst others. Dan was also involved in the X-48 research project flying a blended wing remote piloted aircraft which he flew using the video feed from a camera in the scaled down cockpit.
In 2011 a test flying job for AgustaWestland was posted through the Society of Experimental Test Pilots looking for a tiltrotor test pilot. Dan got the job and has been test flying on the AW609 ever since.
In hover mode the AW609 flight computers provide helicopter-like control responses for the pilot.
In terms of the main numbers posted for the AW609 you are looking at 275kt VNE, 25,000ft ceiling (currently an engine limitation that may be extended) and range of 750NM. The AW609 is powered by two PT6C-67A engines with a whopping 1,940shp rating giving it flyaway performance at MAUW on one engine.
The biggest difference over other tiltrotors in service and currently being developed is the pressurised cabin allowing for a much higher operating altitude and the ability to fly above many areas of bad weather. There are also advantages in the EMS world that a pressurised cabin allows for patient care.
One of the more interesting test flight schedules that Dan was involved with on the AW609 called for the proving of the ability to transition the aircraft from a forward glide where the prop-rotors are windmilling due to forward incoming air, through to a stable autorotational state when the engine nacelles are rotated to the vertical position and the airflow drives the prop-rotors from rate of descent airflow.
For their work on this testing, Dan and his colleagues Pietro Venanzi and Paul Edwards were recognised in 2014 with the Society of Experimental Test Pilots’ Iven C. Kincheloe Award. This is an award that they share with the Apollo 11 astronauts, Mercury astronauts, B-1B, B-2, NOTAR and Concord test pilot amongsts many other amazing programs.
The AW609 will be the first civilian tiltrotor with an expected FAA certification in late 2019. Dan Wells was made a Fellow of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots in Sep 2018 in recognition of his contributions over this career and on the AW609 program.
This documentary recounts the story of Matt Gane, a helicopter pilot in the Northern Territory, Australia who required an airlift to hospital following a mustering crash. The film was produced by Aeromedical Innovation Australasia as part of their efforts to lobby for the AW609 as an EMS platform in Australia.
Have a question about the AW609 for Dan or insight into how it will fit into the current aviation market mix? Be part of the conversation around this episode by posting a comment below.
RWS 71 – Aircrew Mental Health with Kevin Humphreys – Part 2
Oct 03, 2018
Kevin Humphreys is an experienced military and EMS pilot who bounced back from a period of mental illness and is now an ambassador for a number of mental health organisations.
Part 2 of the interview with ex-Australian Army and current Search and Rescue pilot Kevin Humphreys looking at the topic of aircrew mental health. In this episode the focus shifts from Kevin’s military career to his personal experience with mental health challenges, the recovery process and what other aircrew can take away for their own careers and perhaps more importantly, for their long term wellbeing.
Mental health is just such an under-represented topic in crewrooms and hangars the world over that I’m really glad that we can cover it here and that Kevin is so open and willing to share his story and what he has learnt on the way through.
Kevin’s career at-a-glance: * Blackhawks, Chinooks – Australian Army Aviation * Deployments – East Timor, Iraq, Afghanistan * OC CH-47 Chinook Squadron, twice Detachment Commander of Australian Chinooks in Afghanistan * Search and Rescue – Bell 412, BK117, AW139 * Check and Training Captain, Chief Pilot, Director of Operations
There is an assumption here that you have listened to Episode 70 before starting into this particular podcast.
I’d recommend that you stop and go do that to get the entire context if you are not up to speed – as this interview launches straight back into where we left off – and this time around the discussion is much more focused on the aircrew mental health side of things – both Kevin’s person experience and a discussion for general aircrew applicability.
In the last episode Kev speaks about an air assault mission he flew in Afghanistan with 9 other Australian Army aircrew in 2 Chinooks to extract Canadian special forces soldiers which saw them involved in a fierce firefight at the extraction point. All done on NVGs with essentially zero illumination with RPGs being fired around the aircraft.
For the last 7 or so years Kevin has been flying in the civil search and rescue role and is currently a check and training captain on the AW139 type.
There is a lot more in that interview but that quickly gives you the bare bones to understand that Kev has been around the block a few times and is speaking to us with some solid experience behind him.
Kevin picks up the story talking about when things started to go off the rails for him.
A number of links are provided below to mental health resources for anyone looking to take advantage of them.
Australian Army CH47D Chinook releasing flares just outside Tarin Kowt, Afghanistan, 2006
GENERAL COMMUNITY Mental Health Support Phoenix Australia – Centre for Posttraumatic Mental Health R U OK? – suicide prevention charity that aims to start life-changing conversations Moodgym – online self-help program designed to help prevent and manage symptoms of depression and anxiety. Free for Australians. Beyond Blue – information and support to help everyone achieve their best possible mental health Be a Looper APP – App that keeps you in contact with up to 5 people for regular check-ins, peer support that is unique to you
AVIATION SPECIFIC Mental Health Support CASA Fact Sheet on Depression and Aviation Safety Australian Federation of Air Pilots – Welfare Services
A couple of points I’ve pulled out from my notes that might be worth summarising:
* Kevin points out it being important to talk about mental health – even if you don’t know how, or the words to use, just the act of talking about how you are feeling with someone starts the recovery.
* Kevin’s Cheeseburger and coke analogy – comparing mental fitness to physical fitness is an easy way to remember and visualise the whole concept.
* If you encounter a mental health episode that it is not flying career ending with the proper intervention and support – just like any other medical issue
* Statistically most of us are going to deal with periods of mental illness either ourselves or with close friends and family at some time in our life.
* It can afflict anyone and that there is no shame or guilt or personal failing attached to it. It is just a function of living in a homo sapien body with an organ called a brain, and that its probably actually amazing that our brain works as well as it does most of the time.
* And lastly – The longer you ignore it or suppress it – the more you’ll have to work through when it finally does catch up with you.
Kevin’s story especially, and I’m sure there are many more like his, illustrates that you just wouldn’t want to have to go through those years of mental anguish, perceived isolation and that pain if you knew it was normal just to talk to someone early and that it is something that so many other people are going through or have gone through.
Kevin Humphreys with a BK117 on top of a Sydney hospital pad
Chinooks at Sunset – Kevin was a Detachment Commander for two trips to Afghanistan
Sep, 2018 – Kevin (2nd from left) with King and Queen of the Netherlands for the awarding of the Military Order of William to Dutch Apache pilot Roy de Ruiter. Kevin and Roy struck up a friendship serving together in Afghanistan.
If there was a part of Kevin’s story that really resonated with you or if you wanted to provide some feedback or be part of the conversation around this episode in particular then please post a comment below
RWS 70 – Aircrew Mental Health with Kevin Humphreys – Part 1
Oct 01, 2018
Kevin Humphreys is an experienced military and EMS pilot who bounced back from a period of mental illness and is now an ambassador for a number of mental health organisations.
Kevin Humphreys is a veteran of a number of overseas military deployments on Blackhawk and Chinook, currently a check and training pilot on AW139 helicopters and an ambassador for a number of mental health charities. He joins us in the interview today to share some of his flying experiences and his personal story of struggling with and overcoming an episode of mental illness.
With almost half of Australian adults estimated to experience a mental disorder at some time in their life it would be ludicrous to suggest that it is not something that would impact on the helicopter aircrew population.
This is part one of a two part interview. I’ll update this blog post with a link to the second half once it is published. Part 1/this episode is more focused on Kevin’s career and deployments which establishes the context for much of the mental health discussion in part 2.
Kandahar, AFG – Ready for departure, CH-47D with AH-64 escort
Kevin graduated from the Australian Army’s officer training course at Duntroon in Canberra before being posted to Point Cook, Victoria for initial flying training. He flew with the Australian Army throughout the 90s and 2000s, flying Blackhawk and Chinook types and serving up until 2011.
Video Extract “From the Shadows: Australia’s Special Forces” where Kevin talks about flying in Afghanistan.
He discusses a number of deployments to East Timor, one to Iraq and then a number to Afghanistan with some of the lessons learnt from each along with some of the organisational and operational challenges at the time. Kevin also re-tells the events around OP NILE which was a multi-national, joint operation involving Australian Chinooks, Canadian special forces, Afghan forces, Dutch Apaches, a US AC-130 and predator UAVs.
They said a rocket propelled grenade passed under us and another RPG went over the top while we were on approach
C Sqn, 5 Avn Regt just prior to Afghanistan deployment 2006 – Kevin as Officer Commanding in front.
We don’t spend a lot of time talking about Kevin’s post military flying career in rescue and the medical transport roles but he has held job titles along the way of – check and training captain, director of operations and chief pilot roles. Additional aircraft types are BK117, Bell 412 and AW139.
Outside of flying and on the mental health side of things Kevin is a speaker for BeyondBlue and a community ambassador for both the Mates4Mates program and the RUOK charity.
Kevin Humphreys with a QLD Government Air Wing Bell 412 on top of the Mater Hospital, Brisbane
Kevin suffered from anxiety for many years, PTSD, turned to alcohol abuse and eventually reached a point of mental breakdown where he finally was given support. From here he started the long process of recovery and return to work. He is very open about his experiences and displays an incredible vulnerability and courage to talk about it in the second part of this interview (Episode 71) with the aim of helping anyone else that might be in the position he was and to help normalise the conversation.
One of Kevin’s messages is that mental health is a spectrum – no different from physical fitness – that there are times when we are very mentally fit and other times when we are mentally out of condition and need some more mental ‘pushups/exercise’ to get back into condition. The sooner the intervention and positive addressing of any issues the quicker the rebound is.
It is by no means a career ending event for aircrew and if we are trying to be professional aviators then it’s a topic that needs to be more widely discussed.
A number of links are provided below to mental health resources for anyone looking to take advantage of them.
GENERAL COMMUNITY Mental Health Support Phoenix Australia – Centre for Posttraumatic Mental Health R U OK? – suicide prevention charity that aims to start life-changing conversations Moodgym – online self-help program designed to help prevent and manage symptoms of depression and anxiety. Free for Australians. Beyond Blue – information and support to help everyone achieve their best possible mental health Be a Looper APP – App that keeps you in contact with up to 5 people for regular check-ins, peer support that is unique to you
AVIATION SPECIFIC Mental Health Support CASA Fact Sheet on Depression and Aviation Safety Australian Federation of Air Pilots – Welfare Services
Kevin unveiling the plaque to name the Australian base at Kandahar CAMP BAKER in honour of CPL Mick Baker who was the loadmaster killed in the Black Hawk crash (Townsville, Australia) in Jun 96
A15-104 was callsign Patriot 47 captained by Kevin on OP NILE – one of two Australian Army chinooks taking part in a special forces operation in Afghanistan
CH-47 Chinook dust landing examples in Afghanistan
Have a comment or feedback about Episode 70? A question for Kevin or a good resource to add to the list? Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 69 – Multi-Engine Helicopter Considerations with Jim Vince
Sep 23, 2018
Currently flying for the UK Police Air Service Jim Vince has a background with instruction on both multi- and single engine helicopters
Learn about multiengine helicopter operations in this episode. A great primer for those that have only flown single engine machines and hopefully a useful refresher others.
Putting this together has been a great refresher for me personally as it is just over 10 years since I last flew anything with a second engine. Thankfully though we’ve got someone with a lot more experience than me to help us cover the topic.
Jim Vince is currently a pilot for the UK National Police Air Service flying an Airbus EC135 over London and the surrounding areas. Jim has 25 years experience in the helicopter world. Before that he spent 10 years as an engineer in the New Zealand Army.
RAF Chinooks on exercise Northern England ANZAC Day 2013
His first helicopter role was as a reconnaissance pilot flying Kiowa (Bell 206) in the Australian Army then transferring onto CH-47 Chinooks where he was a troop commander, chief instructor and then Sqn commander and lead an Australian Chinook deployment to Iraq.
Jim then moved to the UK and served with the RAF first as an instructor on AS350 Squirrel on the UK Defence Squirrel Basic Course then on the Bell 412 for the Advanced course. He ended back up on Chinooks then got out of the services and did some consulting work before instructing on the UK Army Advanced course in AS350 Squirrels once again covering everything from formation to NVG to Instrument flying.
Hours wise Jim is sitting around 4200 hours helicopters at the time of recording and another 1100 fixed wing. He holds ATPL Helicopter and Aeroplane, CIR Multi Heli + Aeroplane, Flight Instructor and is endorsed on types – R22, R44, B206, AS350, AS355, EC135, Bell412, Chinook and Augusta 109.
That’s just the highlights and with Jim’s mixed background flying and instructing in both singles and multi engine types he made a good candidate to tackle the intro to multi engine operations which is the topic today.
UK Police Air Service H135 over London – Jim Vince flying.
Some of the things covered in this podcast episode:
Multi-engine power application to transmissions How power from engines mixed/transferred to single transmission How engine ECU/FCUs talk to each other
Engine start process APUs/starters Dual starts
Throttle control of two engines Locations – Overhead panels, collective levers General manipulation
Emergencies: primarily achieving a safe flight configuration Single Engine: enter autorotation… assess when you can… Multi-Engine: achieve OEI flight then assess
Departure & Arrivals: Single Engine: Avoid curve. Multi-Engine: Single engine profile ensuring safe landing with no injury to crew/pax or damage to aircraft/property. Risk balance – exposure time vs flight manoeuvre Flyaway – F1, F2, F3 External loads/external full tanks jettison Terms – Vtoss, Vy, CAT A, Performance Class PC1 vs PC2, PC2 limited exposure
En route planning and considerations. SE: safe point of landing. ME: drift down altitude & alternate landing. PNR, Critical Pt planning
CRM: Single / Multi Engine: Single Crew Multi Engine: Multi Crew Identify, Confirm, Select
Video showing gearbox arrangement for how power from two engines is mixed into the main transmission. [leadplayer_vid id=”5B9CCFAA465F4″]
Australian Army Chinook helicopter night landing in Iraq 2003 – Jim Vince was the detachment commander for the Australian Chinooks deployed.
Overnighting with a Squirrel helicopter after a tailrotor chip light during a UK Army training flight.
RAF Advanced Course Bell 412 after landing with a TXMN Oil Hot light. Jim on right. There are still single points of failure in a twin engined helicopter.
Pratt & Whitney PT6T Twin Pack used in Bell 412 models. Photo: pwc.ca
Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 68 – 2018 World Helicopter Day and Flying the Chinook with Paul Kennard
Aug 15, 2018
Paul Kennard, RAF Chinook driver
World Helicopter Day 2018 is this Sunday! Wishing everyone in the industry a fantastic day for it as we celebrate what we do and the machines we love.
A big thank you to Mike Young from aircrewinterview.tv for being kind enough to allow the syndication of this interview with RAF pilot Paul Kennard. The audio version is on the podcast feed along with more information about events lined up around the world for this Sunday.
The video below is the original interview with Paul.
2018 World Helicopter Day event locations:
Australia, Cairns – Nautilus Aviation Australia, Brisbane – Aeropower Flight School Australia, Newcastle – Skyline Aviation Group Australia, Perth – Corsaire Aviation Belgium, Wevelgem – Heli Business England, Leicestershire – Helicentre Aviation England, Somerset – The Helicopter Museum England, Ramsgate – Polar Helicopters England, Manchester – Flight Academy Ltd England, Chard – Historic Helicopters Germany, Munich – Sky Magic Hong Kong – Hong Kong Aviation Club Foundation Scotland, Fort William – Helisafari Scotland, Kinloss – Morayvia Science and Technology Centre Serbia, Belgrade – Balkan Helicopters Spain, Balearic Islands – Balearic Helicopters South Africa, Johannesburg – Henley Air USA, Pennsylvania – American Helicopter Museum USA, Hawaii – Blue Hawaiian Helicopters USA, Washington – Snohomish County Helicopter Rescue Team USA, California – Wings Over Camarillo USA, New York – Independent Helicopters USA, Arkansas – flyARH USA, Alabama – Wallace State Community College
RWS 67 – Falklands War from a Wessex Cockpit with Harry Benson
Jul 26, 2018
As a 21 yr old Harry Benson experienced the Falklands War from the cockpit of a Wessex helicopter. Years later he has caught up with squadron mates to bring together an amazing collection of stories from the helicopter side of the war.
6834 nautical miles south west of London in the South Atlantic some amazing helicopter stories were being lived out during the Falklands War. Many of these were even unknown to the other aircrew flying in the same operational area.
Harry Benson was there as a 21 yr old pilot and many years later has interviewed 45 of his fellow aircrew and pieced together the story of the helicopter side of that conflict. You can read the result in the book Scram!: The Gripping First-Hand Account of the Helicopter War in the Falklands.
Scram was the radio codeword for inbound Argentine jets and the ‘actions on’ for helicopter crews was to find a depression and land the helicopter as quickly as they could to minimise the chance of being sighted.
Logistically getting the UK forces down to the Falklands was an amazing feat as everything had to go by sea or be dropped into the ocean from the air. Helicopters were crammed onto vessels wherever they could fit. A requisitioned Cunard container ship ‘Atlantic Conveyor’ carried a cargo of six Wessex helicopters from 848 Naval Air Squadron and RAF Chinook HC.1s from No. 18 Squadron RAF. At Ascension Island, the halfway point, she picked up eight Fleet Air Arm Sea Harriers (809 Squadron) and six RAF Harrier GR.3 jump jets.
Atlantic Conveyor underway to Falklands with a Wessex on Spot 1.The Atlantic Conveyor was sunk by two Exocet missiles with the loss of 3 Chinooks, 6 Wessex and a Lynx. This had a big impact on the course of events as it only left 15 troop-carrying helicopters available for the ground force breakout from the landing area – 10 Seakings, 5 Wessex and a single 1 Chinook. The Chinook remained the only one in theatre for the rest of the war can could forward position 4 fuel blivets/’bollocks’ vs the Seaking’s one.
The harsh South Atlantic weather proved one of the biggest challenges for aircrew rather than enemy action. Harry tells the story of his port engine shutting down due to heavy snow blocking the intake. At times aircraft had to hover taxi next to cliffs above the waves due to poor visibility in fog.
Unloading a Wessex on a bleak Falkland hillside.
Just some of the stories in the book:
Going head to head with fast jets
Sneak single aircraft mission with missile strike on Argentine high command
Rescues of sailors off burning ships
One way Seaking flight to Argentina mainland to assault airbase
Radalts going from 30′ to 200′ flying over glaciers
SAS missions in 60kt winds
Getting low on fuel and shutting down one engine
Night unaided casualty evacuations from front line
HMS Fearless in San Carlos, during the Falklands War. Typical of the ships that the helicopter fleet was flying to and the barren terrain of the islands in the background.HMS Hermes was due to be decommissioned in 1982 after a 1981 defence review (that would have made the Royal Navy considerably smaller) by the British government, but when the Falklands War broke out, she was made the flagship of the British forces, setting sail for the South Atlantic just three days after the Argentine invasion of the Falkland Islands. She sailed for the Falklands with an airgroup of 12 Sea Harrier FRS1 attack aircraft of the Royal Navy’s Fleet Air Arm, and 18 Sea King helicopters.
Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 66 – Extreme Ownership Book Review with Adrian Park
Jun 25, 2018
Adrian Park is an experienced military and rescue helicopter pilot who is currently completing a phd thesis in aviation human factors and communication.
A podcast that I get a lot of value from is the Jocko Podcast which deals in leadership, mindsets, ju jitsu, military history and has nothing to do with helicopters… or does it. In this episode I chat with Adrian Park a former Australian army helicopter pilot and now EMS pilot who has a special interest in aviation safety and human factors about how some of the material Jocko Willink talks about relates to aviation.
Extreme Ownership is a book written by Leif Babin and Jocko Willink (host of podcast mentioned above) who are both ex-US Navy SEALs who held leadership roles during deployments in Iraq and later in SEAL training units.
The book details some of the leadership lessons they learnt that they see as applicable to leadership in any situation. Their examples start with a military example from their own experience and then apply that in a business setting.
Today I’m talking with Adrian Park and we break down some of the ideas in the book and discuss how they play out in an aviation context with examples from our own experiences.
Adrian Park (right) next to an Australian Army Huey in Bougainville. The bright orange paint scheme was part of the peace keeping role.
Adrian or ‘Parky’ has a background in Australian Army Huey and Blackhawk operations along with experience flying in the EMS sector. Along the way he has picked up a Bach. of English Literature and Communication (something he has in common with Jocko Willink) and is working towards his PhD.
Parky is a frequent article contributor to Flight Safety magazine here in Australia, runs crew resource management training, has been involved in youth leadership development and also hosts an aviation podcast. A busy guy! But someone with a lot of helicopter experience paired with some thoughtfulness on the application of leadership and human factors in how we go about our operations.
Some of the ideas we discuss are:
Extreme ownership – If mindset of victim of circumstance then you can’t have any input to fixing – accepting feedback – not blaming people / weather / aircraft – admitting to and owning mistakes/errors – opposite of ‘someone else’s problem’ – if someone tells you to do something that you know is a bad idea, and you do it and it turns out bad, you’re still responsible for the outcome. – implications for accident investigations / companies that have accidents / forum discussion
Detach – long term view rather than short term task pressure – viable company/career in 5 years over any single task – EMS operations and weather decisions – risk vs reward
Check Your Ego – proving your skill / pushing on – unnecessary risks – putting others down for mistakes – not seeking input – not accepting feedback and constructive criticism
Cover and Move (Teamwork) – crew, ops, atc – back others up – share information – help them do their job – mateship
We end up running out of time to cover everything that we had in our notes – look out for a part 2 sometime in the future.
Adrian during an exchange posting to the US working as a Blackhawk instructor
This is the first time both of us have discussed this topic/content as it relates to the book Extreme Ownership. If you are familiar with the book or with Jocko’s other ideas and can share aviation examples of your own we would love you to add to the comments section here on the blog post.
On the ramp in East Timor with a Blackhawk from B SQN, 5 Avn Regt. Hopefully these aircraft can continue in a flying role when retired from the Australian Army
Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 65 – Night Aerial Firefighting with Richard Butterworth
Jun 07, 2018
Richard Butterworth spent time in the military, instructing and EMS before taking up a role at Kestrel Aviation in support of a night firefighting capability.
Helicopters are amazing assets to have working in a bush firefighting role. Every year around the world they contribute to lives saved and property damage avoided. Now for the first time in Australia we are starting to see the move into night time firebombing operations.
Richard Butterworth is head of training at Kestrel Aviation based in Mangalore, Victoria. It is about 1 1/2 hours drive north of Melbourne. Kestrel has been developing a night aerial firefighting capability and has put a significant amount of private investment behind Richard, their other staff and equipment to become one of the first Australian operators to gain CASA approval.
Dropping water on a fire during trials – part of final approval from CASA to commence live, night-time aerial firefighting.
Internationally night firefighting with helicopters goes back a surprisingly long way.
“On June 16, 1974, the first night water drops were made on a wildfire on the Angeles National Forest with Los Angeles County Fire Department’s Bell 204B helicopter, equipped with a fixed tank”
“In 1977, an L.A. County Fire helicopter and the USFS Rose Valley helicopter collided while inbound to a heliport on the Angeles National Forest”
After this collision, night firefighting was essentially canned until 2005 when it again became an operational capability in the US. The quotes above have come from this article which gives a pretty good run down on the history. There is a ‘Part 2’ of the article too.
Dropping water low level at night on fires while flying on NVGs at first glance looks like ‘risky’ business. As you’ll hear from Richard in the interview they have taken a very slow step by step process to building the capability up and have done so using existing frameworks and procedures already in place that govern night flight and aerial firefighting. They have then just incorporated them together.
It is not an activity that just any company can turn around do. Aside from procedures and regulator legal instruments you also first need experienced NVD crews with extensive day firefighting time, access to goggles, NVG compatible aircraft modifications, an aerial platform with waterdrop equipment and supporting ground crews. So don’t expect this to come cheap for fire agencies and governments.
The benefits on a fire scene range from not just the extended hours avaliable (Richard also talks about the daylight hours lost on current fires due to morning briefing requirements) but also the generally calmer conditions and colder temperatures reducing the intensity and speed of fires. This ‘quietening’ of the fireground provides more of a chance to affect the outcome with water drops.
Ground filling of water tanks for night firefighting – provides aircrew a chance to catch a break.
Trials moved onto proving hover fill capability at night too.
Another shot inbound on fire at night for trials.
Richard Butterworth is one of the Kestrel Aviation pilots instrumental to the development of the night capability – here in front of the Bell 412 used during the trials.
(Photos supplied)
Do you have a question for Richard and the Kestrel crews about night firefighting? Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 64 – Lessons from an AH-64 Apache Refuel Fire with Skip Tackett
Mar 23, 2018
Skip Tackett has almost 4 decades of military and civil experience across a diverse range of operations. He is President of Utility Aviation, Inc
Imagine you are sitting in an apache cockpit during a refueling operation. Suddenly the world outside, in every direction you look, is one giant fireball. You can feel the heat cooking through through the windshield. What do you do next?
That is the situation that today’s guest Boyd ‘Skip’ Tackett found himself in. He received second and third degree burns over 42% of his body in his escape and credits the fire resistant clothing he was wearing with his life. Skip has been sharing his story with aircrew for the last 2 decades to drive home the message of the importance of wearing the right gear and being prepared because you never know if your next flight could be one that puts you in a life threatening situation. He hopes to avoid other aircrew avoid the recovery process he went through where “there is not enough morphine in the world” to treat the pain of such extensive burns.
Skip Tackett in the rear seat of an Apache helicopter with the door open. This is approx 8 feet off the ground and the same position Skip had to escape through the fire from.
In 1994 Skip was the rear seater of an AH-64A Apache that had just landed at a field hot refuel point. As they started to take on fuel, a fault in the hose pressure nozzle caused fuel to spray up into the rotors, splash against the cabin and into the inlet of the right hand engine. The accompanying vaporisation of the fuel along with the hot engine exhaust immediately caused a fireball to engulf the aircraft and continue to burn. Skip and his co-pilot had to exit the aircraft through the flames or be cooked inside. Skip covers the incident and the steps involved in the escape in the interview.
His story provides a big wake up call for all aircrew to revisit the clothing and equipment you fly with and have on your person. In a situation like this there was no time to reach for or put on other equipment. It also emphasises regular evacuation rehearsal as both Skip and his co-pilot in the rush to exit and confusion failed to properly release their shoulder straps, wasting precious seconds.
The smoldering remains of Apache 235.
What you should wear:
* NOMEX or similar flame resistant material outer layer. * Natural fiber (wool, cotton, silk) underwear covering as much of your body as practical. * Alternatively a flame resistant material clothing under flight suit. Skip recommends Massif and DriFire as places to start looking at these.
Stay away from synthetics (eg. polyester, nylon) unless they are especially designed for fire protection. When they burn they turn to liquid and can melt into the skin. The only way to remove the material then is to cut the skin off.
To their credit one popular manufacturer of tactical/sports wear clothing has this text on their website product listing:
“WARNING! This product will melt when exposed to extreme heat or open flames, posing a risk of serious injury where melted product comes into contact with skin! “
For those in white shirts and gold bars charter situations there is nothing readily available. From a quick internet search you will have to look like a roadside construction worker or rambo. Massif did prototype a white business-style flame resistant shirt but didn’t receive enough demand for it. If you know of any solutions for corporate work please get in contact.
Skip’s burn injuries. Note the lack of burns to chest and shoulders where two layers of clothing were. Not to be confused with the white of Skip’s face where the skin is completely burnt through where he had no covering at all. It took almost 3 years to return to flying medical fitness.
For even more information and photos on the events of the crash and Skip’s recovery take a look at this article –> AirBeat Article 2010 Tackett Fire
Skip is one of the rare pilots in the world to have considerable hours on both AH-64 Apache and Mi-17 helicopters – machines that are normally in very different national and ideological fleets.
Joining the US Army first as a Ranger, Skip moved into aviation in the Aero Scout mission flying OH-58 Kiowa (see Episode 22 for more information on the Kiowa helicopter type) and then into Apaches as soon as non-Cobra qualified pilot training slots became avaliable.
As an Apache driver Skip conducted deep strike missions against Iraqi armour units during the Gulf War. He became a Master Gunner and was involved in a number of unique capabilities with the introduction of the Apache Longbow into Army service including replicating the airborne fire control computer targeting data transmission into a laptop system for use on firing ranges, using a similar system to pass targeting data from Apaches to F-16s and developing procedures for mixed Apache/UAV hunter killer teams.
Kitted up ready to fly a Mi-17 in Afghanistan on Counter Narco-Terrorism mission.
Jumping forward in time we find Skip, now out of the Amy, piloting Mi-17s in Afghanistan in combat operations as Chief Pilot for Northrup Grumman on a Special Operations Counter Narco-Terrorism program. While we don’t go into these operations in detail in the interview, Skip had a number of close calls that he indicates the robust construction and massive power of the Mi-17 engines was what got them home safely. In that operating area and its high altitudes the Mi-17 was one of the most capable rotary wing assets in country.
Skip is currently President of Utility Aviation, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Brunner Aerospace which itself has an interesting crew of aviators with unique backgrounds. “Break glass in case of war” is how I would describe them.
Under that umbrella and with G and T Outfitters, Skip trains and flys customers on wild hog eradication flights in Texas, USA. Normally this involves either a Bell 206, MD530F or H125 helicopter with Skip in the pilot’s seat, an onboard safety observer and two client shooters operating over an approved aerial shooting range in the eradication area. The observer doubles as a professional shooter, “We are out there to kill pigs, not just shoot at them”. With 37 years of air gunnery and special operations experience Skip indicates this is a highly controlled activity and they work closely with local wildlife rangers.
Aerial gunnery and hog eradication in Texas
Skip somehow finds time to also be founder/CEO/Chief Pilot of an unmanned drone company focused on high end, professional services to the energy facilities market and law enforcement. Rather than an off-the-shelf consumer drone platform they have gone with one that has been used by special forces overseas and that with the advances in miniaturization of electronics now has many of the capabilities that Skip used to use in the Apache’s nose mounted TADS (Target Acquisition and Designation Sights).
The AO Flight truck and Skip next to a Aeryon Skyranger drone.
This photo shows the Afghanistan dust and huge cockpit windows of the Mi-17
More aerial gunnery. This time in a MD500. Skip was a Master Gunner on Apaches so was involved in all kinds of range template creation and fire control instruction and supervision.
Do you have a question for Skip about protective clothing or his experiences? Have a fire resistant clothing option for charter pilots? Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
Mark Turner was a rescue wireman during the 2011 Brisbane Floods
“On 9th and 10th of January 2011, heavy rainfall caused flash flooding to occur across parts of Queensland resulting in widespread damage to property and 35 fatalities. Grantham, Lockyer Valley and Toowoomba were severely impacted. Due to landslides caused by flooding, and water blocking the Warrego highway, the Lockyer Valley became isolated; police and emergency services were no longer able to access the area. Excessive fog and rain prevented helicopters flying overhead during the emergency.”
“Emergency services were overwhelmed during the disaster. Triple zero operators advised people to stay indoors to avoid being swept away. … on a typical Monday the 000 line in Toowoomba receives about 60 calls, on this day 883 such calls were received.” – Source
Mark Turner on one of the 28 rescues conducted by his crew over 2 hours on 10 Jan 2018
Despite what the extract above says helicopters did indeed fly in extremely poor weather and conducted a large number of rescues off house roofs and emergency evacuations of towns in the way of the flooding.
In this episode we hear from 3 of the aircrew involved and the different perspectives of each of their crews as the emergency unfolded.
Mark Turner was the rescue wireman in the Queensland Government AW139 Callsign Rescue 500 which was the first rescue machine on the scene in the afternoon of 10 January at the township of Grantham. “Horrendous” weather forced them to scud run at low level to reach the town they were greeted by streets awash with fast running flood waters and residents stranded on roof tops. Over 2 hours of hoisting operations 28 people and a cat were rescued and moved to dry land.
Next on the scene was Rescue 510, another AW139 with Brett Knowles onboard as a crewman. They relieved the Rescue 500 crew who landed with minimal fuel reserves. Brett’s crew then continued into the late afternoon and evening conducting winch operations by searchlight unaided. Another 15 people were rescued.
The next morning 2 Blackhawks departed Oakey to the west of the area under IFR conditions and managed to break visual near Amberley Air Force Base. Nathan Coyle was the Captain of the second Blackhawk and he talks about the experiences of his crew on the 2nd day including a harrowing rescue conducted on NVGs next to a live powerline.
All their operations would have been pretty heroic on any normal day but the weather they were operating in deserves special mention. The graph below shows rainfall on the days in question with many places receiving all time record breaking amounts. The videos below give some additional indication of the conditions encountered.
“I have been flying for 12 years and that’s the worst I have seen it – terrible visibility and for the pilots it was incredibly hard to navigate” – WO2 Tony Young
The pilots had to rely on their personal phones and Google maps to navigate in a number of cases due to the flood waters obscuring roads and landmarks.
MAJ Nathan Coyle was Aircraft Captain of a Blackhawk responding to the flood event.
Brett Knowles (second from right) with members of Emergency Management Queensland helicopter crew. Centre is Peter Row who was Brett’s pilot during the flood event.
Mark Turner at rear. Several survivors in front of the Rescue 500 helicopter that was first on the scene in Gratham.
Army Blackhawk crews with Prime Minister Julia Gillard
SeaKing in rain at Gatton on 11 Jan 2011
Do you have a question for Mark, Brett or Nathan? Were you flying during the flooding and want to share your experiences? Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 62 – Snohomish County Helicopter Rescue Team
Feb 22, 2018
HRT’s UH-1 helicopter at 8,000 feet and litter with patient on the wire after a 500ft fall on mountain side.
Nestled in the north west corner of the US, just north of Seattle is Snohomish County and the operating base of their Helicopter Rescue Team. The HRT conducts approximately 80 rescues a year, predominantly mountain rescues of hikers. Two of their team, Chris Moriarty and Bill Quistorf, took the time out for a chat about their setup, the operating area and its challenges and the skill sets within the organisation.
The Snohomish County Helicopter Rescue Team operates 2 helicopters.
SnoHawk 10 is a highly modified Vietnam era Bell UH-1H – Fast Fin and tailboom strake kit, Bell 205 tail boom, Bell 212 Tail rotor/gearboxes, more powerful Lycoming T53-L703, Garmin G500H’s, NVG-compatible cockpit – which is the main workhorse for rescue missions and training. It is a beautiful looking ship. A typical mission would include 5 crew and a range of role equipment operating up to 9000′ elevation. Depending on the nature of the site and casualties the crew may have to offload people and equipment and/or burn fuel for sufficient power margin.
Chris Moriarty is a Rescue Technician (or Tech) with HRT. And Bill Quistorf is the organisation Chief Pilot.
SnoHawk 1 is a Hughes 500-P (military NOH-6P) which flew in Vietnam with Alpha Troop, 3/17 Air Cavalry. It was a specially modified machine for covert CIA/Air America style missions with 4 bladed tail-rotor, an extra main rotor blade and (now removed) oversized engine exhaust muffler. SnoHawk 1 can provide law enforcement and missing persons support. It was used to fly more regular police patrols but budget reductions have curtailed the flying hours possible.
The HRT team itself is unusual in that it consists of only a few full time salaried members and then a pool of approximately 30 volunteers who man a roster. Skill sets of the volunteers include rescue technicians, flight medics, crew chiefs, pilots, and ground support personnel. These people have their own separate day jobs and interests that then come together to form the capability. On any particular day when the HRT is activated the rostered on team members will meet at the ‘Taylor’s Landing’ base and assess the callout mission.
Team training is conducted twice a week. A number of other agencies also use the base facility for training and there is a tower mounted Huey frame avaliable for rappelling drills.
Mountain rescue makes up most of the HRT callouts. Note the cloud ceiling on the hills in background.
RWS 61 – Virtual Reality Helicopter Sims with Sérgio Costa
Dec 13, 2017
Sérgio Costa has 25 years of experience with PC based flight simulators and heads up the Helisimmer website team. Helping others and bring the simulation hobby to those that don’t know it yet is something he loves to devote time to as well.
Virtual reality hardware and software have crossed a threshold where their use in supporting helicopter training and currency/recency provides an amazing experience. In this episode we break down what you can expect and what you will need to get started.
Hopefully you will never look at computer helicopter flight simulators the same after listening to this podcast episode. Sérgio Costa is the editor and founder of Helisimmer.com which focuses on the fairly niche market of – not surprisingly – PC based helicopter flight simulation. On the site you can read reviews of a number of different flight sim software solutions and add-ons from a helicopter perspective.
Until recently I have spent very little attention or interest on PC helicopter flight sims. Mainly due to poor experiences in the past with flight models and how they flew but also just due to access to the real thing. I did use a home flight simulator during instrument flight training on fixed wing and rotary which certainly helped (the Cessna 172 matches a Blackhawk close enough in performance for instrument approaches).
Virtual reality headsets – model shown is a HTC Vive. The technology is now good enough to impact how aviation training is conducted.
Then 3 months ago I discovered where virtual reality(VR) technology had got to. My perception of PC flight simulator software for helicopter simulation has changed forever. Given the high cost of operating a helicopter, the cost of traditional fixed simulators and the increasing adoption of VR by consumers – my call is that all student helicopter pilots will be using VR during their training faster than most people will think.
It is amazing!!!
Sérgio and I chat about our experiences of virtual reality, unpack the technology that makes it up and go into the hardware and software you will need to install effectively a full sized Huey in your living room just by putting on a VR headset. Then when you are done with the Huey you can swap it for a Bell 206, R22, R44, B412, H125…..
Cadets and students trying out virtual reality helicopter sim (DCS:Huey) in Brisbane, Nov 2017
When researching headsets you will come across a number of types. The ones that we are talking about today are PC (Windows 10) powered rather than standalone headsets such as those that use a phone or Playstation. The power of modern PC graphics cards are required to provide the level of experience to make this viable. You will also find reference to ‘Mixed Reality’ headsets. Mixed Reality is the term that microsoft has created to group their virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) technologies. AR references digital information overlayed on the outside world that you are looking at in much the same way that a HUD works.
The ‘best’ headset is subjective. If you are tempted to purchase in 2017/early 2018 then look at the HTC Vive (what Sérgio and I have), Oculus Rift which has been out for a while and is a proven product and the Samsung Odyssey. Each has different pros and cons – price, hand tracking resolution, screen brightness, field of view, resolution – but should all be suitable for flight sim needs and are the pick of the current offerings. A high resolution headset recently raised $4 million on Kickstarter but hasn’t been manufactured yet. Its final performance and successful delivery is still to be proven.
If you do not currently have a high performance gaming PC then you will unfortunately also need to factor that in your costs. And then the helicopter controls you need to purchase… Look it is not cheap but compared with the next best offerings in physical based simulators with multiple screens VR is a compelling business case.
Screenshot from the Dreamfoil AS350/H125 model in X-Plane 11
A good demonstration of the difference that head tracking provided by VR headsets makes to a helicopter flight sim experience
A pilot providing a detailed comparison of performance and flight model of DCS:Huey vs the real thing.
X-Plane and Robinson R66 model – more feedback and an opinion on the virtual reality experience of helicopter flight.
360 degree video example – wearing a VR headset allows you to look around inside this video tracked to the direction you are looking. This doesn’t have the 3D effect of software such as the flight sims but is still very immersive – putting you in the scene. Powerful tool for training or for capturing lessons and description of helicopter manoeuvres.
Sérgio demoing helicopter flight simulator (not virtual reality) and controls at a recent expo.
Chart showing relative performance of different graphics cards – virtual reality needs a beefy hardware setup especially when combined with flight sims.
Do you have a question about setup, hardware, software, training uses for virtual reality for helicopter simulation? Have feedback for others on how you found it or tips? Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 60 – 20 Crew Resource Management Diamonds with Randy Mains
Oct 17, 2017
Randy Mains has operated across many parts of the helicopter industry (military, mustering, instructing, EMS, VIP and more). He has a special interest in helicopter crew resource management.
As helicopter systems, engineering and processes continue to get safer, the human component becomes the focus to further improvements in accident rates. Randy Mains shares his 20 CRM Diamonds in this interview.
Randy Mains was 22 years old when he deployed to Vietnam to fly UH-1H Hueys. On return to the US with over 1000 combat flight hours and a Distinguished Flying Cross (Randy shares the story of this in the interview) he found the US helicopter market flooded with other returned aircrew.
A night with a friend over a shared case of Australian beer resulted with Randy flying in Australia on remote outback cattle stations before a stint in PNG.
Later, souring of Iranian international relationships saw Randy leaving a Bell instructor trainer position on the last civil flight out of Iran. Taking up an emergency medical services (EMS) pilot role in Texas then became the start of Randy’s long and continued focus in this part of the industry. It is where much of the focus of his books and CRM training efforts are focused.
In the US the EMS sector seems to have a high proportion of single engine, single pilot VFR/IFR operations compared with twin engine, two pilot IFR operations in other countries. He has had a number of close calls himself including inadvertent IMC (flying into cloud) and approaching to night flare lit sites with overhead wires.
Randy’s later experiences flying in the middle east and simulator check and training with pilots from around the world gave him the chance to see how EMS is done in other countries.
Since then Randy has returned to the US with a focus on reducing the EMS accident rate and with in the helicopter industry in general. Randy is a regular columnist with Rotorcraft Pro magazine, a speaker at medical and helicopter events, author and runs a Crew Resource Management Instructor course focused on helicopters.
“Antennas Up” – a visual prompt to remaining vigilant and looking for a link in the error chain forming
Do you have a question for Randy about helicopter crew resource management or about something mentioned in the episode that you want to ask? Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 59 – Himalayan Rescue Ops with Andrew Gutsell
Oct 02, 2017
Andrew Gutsell is a New Zealander who is part of the Alpine Rescue Service in the Everest region.
The elevation of the Himalayan mountains puts them at the extreme of human and helicopter performance. For climbers it can be a 2 week trek out or a 30 min helicopter flight to safety if they find themselves in trouble.
Andrew Gutsell is part of the Alpine Rescue Service run by Air Dynasty that services the region around Mt Everest. The team bases out of Lukla Airport (9,300ft) in order to maintain high altitude acclimatization and consists of a handful of aircrew, doctors, paramedics or nurses at any time. From here the service uses AS350B3 (H125) helicopters to reach Basecamp, the small camps higher up on Mt Everest and villages in the area.
[leadplayer_vid id=”59D185A1AE77C”]
Supplementary oxygen is standard mission equipment with flights right up to the 23,000ft legal limit for the aircraft. For some patient pickups the avaliable performance limits the number of people on board to just the pilot to allow for the weight of the climber. For rescues above this height a team of sherpas will have to recover the patient and bring them down to lower altitudes.
[Tweet “These are big boy mountains! #helicopter #nepal #rescue”]
At the higher camps the helicopters are always kept running rather than shutdown and risk any complications starting in the thin air. Any helicopter that gets stuck up there is unlikely to ever be recovered as there is nothing with the lift capacity at those altitudes to recover it.
Highest KFC? Helicopter Safety Briefing at Everest Base Camp 17000
Weather is also a significant constraint on operations. Flights are mainly done in the morning when the katabatic or downslope winds are smoother. Flying after 2pm is avoided to reduce the chance of being stuck in the mountains with fading light.
Andrew is a New Zealand pilot that started out flying in the mountains of New Zealand and operating to the south island glaciers. He is one of a handful of ex-pat pilots flying in Nepal. In this episode Andrew talks about the environment that you can expect to find in the Everest region and the challenges to operating a helicopter rescue service there.
Andrew and two other New Zealand Alpine Rescue Service team members, Andrew Roy (Paramedic) and Alyssa Lowe (Nurse) have just been awarded the Royal Humane Society (of NZ) Silver Medal for Rescue Services after their actions as first responders at a May 2017 aircraft crash at Lukla airstrip (video at the bottom of this page). The pilot died on impact, the co-pilot later that night and the hostess was flown out to Kathmandu in the morning when the weather cleared. The New Zealand Governor-General will present the awards at Government House, Wellington some time in mid 2018.
The Air Dynasty team and Andrew are featured in the TV series Everest Air.
Kongde Everest Mountain Flight breakfast location. View of Everest, Lhotse, Ama Dablam.
Andrew and Phunaru Sherpa of International Mountain Guides acclimatising pre Rescue Season. Solokhumbu region.
Oxygen system & looking like Heli Stig.
Injured climber rescue at 17000′
Some of the Air Dynasty Lukla team. Ashish Sundash (ops), Cpt Andrew Gutsell, Padma Lama (Lukla Ops Manager), Paramedic Andrew Roy and Nurse Alyssa Lowe. Proudly flying the NZ flag to represent the historical relationship between NZ and Nepal.
Flat light on Rescue ops at 22500″pa. Note Reference markers.
Lukla Airport, Nepal. One way airstrip! Photo credit: coldfeetadventure.com
Google Street View of Lukla Airport
2017 Aircraft crash at Lukla airfield where Andrew and co-workers were involved in first response.
Do you have a question for Andrew about flying ops in Nepal or about something mentioned in the episode that you want to ask? Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 58 – The Helicopter Page with Aaron Kenworthy
Sep 20, 2017
Aaron Kenworthy started The Helicopter Page as a way to learn more about the helicopter industry and to provide a place to share information from around the globe.
The Helicopter Page on Facebook has grown to over 400,000 followers and was started by Aaron Kenworthy
Today we go behind the scenes of the largest helicopter focused Facebook page and perhaps the largest helicopter online platform in the world. With a following of over 400,000 people The Helicopter Page has a huge reach in what is a fairly narrow industry.
Aaron started down the path of helicopter training here in Australia but had to stop due to financial constraints. Taking up a day job to pay the bills he kept up-to-date with the rotary wing world by starting his own Facebook page.
[Tweet “At that age I didn’t have enough money to afford #flying so I needed another outlet to show my passion #helicopter #ipullpitch”]
At first there wasn’t much to show for his efforts. The ‘overnight’ success came quite a while later as the page slowly started to get traction and a snowballing audience. In this interview Aaron talks about his journey and some of the insights that he has picked up from being tapped into such a large community of helicopter interested people.
In this episode: World Helicopter Day 2017 revisit Initial fixed wing and rotary wing training Starting The Helicopter Page Initial growth and marketing strategy Lessons about the industry for new entrants State of the industry Differences – Australia vs US Electric helicopters Personal branding
[Tweet “This is who I am, where I am, how do I get started in the #helicopter industry. Trying to point people in the right direction.”]
Example post from The Helicopter Page
Aaron helping out with joyflights next to a R44 in Brisbane, Australia where he completed some of his initial training.
Do you have a question for Aaron or about something mentioned in the episode that you want to ask? Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
Somewhere over Saudi Arabia on the around the world trip
In this episode: Getting into flying Group trip to Moscow Long range flights as charity fundraising Planning for Africa trip – route, fuel, airspace Flying over the Sahara Different types of sand and massive sand dunes Search and rescue considerations Live tracker to website and data connection Haze causing IMC Changes in equipment and gear carried going into around the world trip Route planning and timings 8 significant overwater legs Antipodes
Do you have a question for Peter or about something mentioned in the episode that you want to ask? Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 56 – The Chickenbone Story with Matthew Barker
Mar 17, 2017
Matt Barker flew the ARH Tiger for 11 years and wrote many of the manuals and procedures for its use in the Australian Army.
During 30 years of flying with the Australian Army Matt Barker has got to try his hand at a wide range of roles. He has picked up some tales of close calls and funny incidents along the way.
Episode 55 contains the first half of this interview which is also well worth listening too
In the 1980’s the RAAF was directed to transfer its helicopters to the Australian Army. This brought about an urgent need for the Army to increase their pilot recruiting numbers. At that time it would take 18 months of officer training and then another 12-18 months of flight training to get a new pilot to an operational unit. That was a lag time the Army couldn’t afford and the Special Service Officer (SSO) scheme was started which saw new recruits put through a 10 week abridged officer training course (commonly called a Knife, Fork and Spoon course) then straight into flight training.
Matt Barker was on this first SSO course through and shares some of the cultural interplay between these new officers and the rest of the Army. Going into the training he already had his commercial licence flown on R22, Bell 47 G2 and G4 models.
30 years later and Matt has flow Kiowa, Blackhawk, AS350 Squirrel, Tiger and MRH. He is an instructor, has flown Special Operations and was the Standards Officer in charge of developing the operating procedures for Tiger in Australian service from a blank piece of paper.
Flying between buildings while displaying Tiger at the Gold Coast Indy car Race
He has spent time flying over many parts of Australia, PNG, Timor and done stints in the UK, France and the US.
Thanks to Craig Bowman for the introduction to Matt and for feeding me some starting info to tease out the stories from Matt.
Parade to mark the changing of the guard from light horse cavalry to the ARH Tiger.
05 Oct 1987 – Joined Australian Army on Number 1 SSO Pilot course (46 Army Pilot course) Jan – Jun 1988 – Basic Pilot course on CT4 at No 1 Flying Training School at RAAF Base Point Cook Jul – Dec 1988 – Rotary wing course at SAA Oakey on B206 Kiowa Dec 88 – Jan 91- Posted to 161 Recce Sqn at Holsworthy as a pilot on B206 Kiowa Jan 91 – Oct 91 – Posted to Instructor training with US Army at Fort Rucker on OH58 Kiowa Oct 91 – Oct 94 – QFI at ADF Helicopter School on AS350 Squirrel Oct 94 – Jan 95 – S70 Blackhawk conversion course at SAA Feb 95 – Dec 97 – Pilot, troop commander and SQN QFI at A SQN, 5 Aviation Regiment at RAAF Townsville Jan 98 – Jun 2000 – QFI and troop commander at ADF Helicopter School on AS350 Squirrel Jul 00 – Dec 2002 – SQN QFI at 161 Recce SQN at RAAF Darwin. Two stints in East Timor as Troop Commander and Detachment Commander Jan 03 – Dec 09 – ARH Tiger Flying Standards Officer, posted to Eurocopter Marignane France 2004/05 and AAVNTC Oakey Jan 10 – Dec 11 – ARH Tiger Instructor Development Officer, Instructor Training Wing, AAVNTC Oakey Jan 12 – Dec 12 – Flying Standards Officer for ARH Tiger at 1 Aviation Regiment Darwin Jan 13 – Jul 14 – ARH Tiger QFI with KBR at SAA Oakey 31 Jan 2014 – Transferred from full time to active reserve in the Australian Army Jul 14 – Present – MRH90 Taipan QFI with Airbus at SAA Oakey.
In this episode: Heli-Expo 2017 recap The Chickenbone or Chicken Man story 1996 Blackhawk Crash – counterterrorism role Dealing with the aftermath of the crash Instructing East Timor flying for Category D pilots Tiger ARH introduction to Australian Army Huey gunship introduction to armed role Marine Weapons and Tactics Instructor Course – 160 Marines and 1 Aussie, 80 aircraft UK Apache Sqn for several months France to Airbus Tiger training school Writing procedures for Tiger standards manual Accidental jettison of 7-shot rocket launcher from Tiger Introduction to Service parade – risk management plan for helicopters and horses
Matt Barker and Eurocopter Instructor – Fabrice Bonne, back in Australia, November 2005, finishing ARH Conversion course
[leadplayer_vid id=”58C5F3763C9AD”] [Video] Marine Weapons and Tactics Instructor Course that Matt attended as preparation for writing the manuals for Tiger. He also spent some time in the UK with their Apache training school.
Site of the 1996 crash where two blackhawks collided on approach during counterterrorism training. 18 people were killed. Matt and his crew were directly behind the two aircraft when they hit.
Kiowas were used extensively to monitor the Indonesian – East Timor border. This photo was taken in 2002 of Matt while on a pairs reconnaissance mission.
“Last bush Trip – Leaving Woomera October 2012 on a RAAF Hercules”
Do you have a question for Matt or about something mentioned in the episode that you want to ask? Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 55 – Close Calls and Funny Stories with Matthew Barker
Mar 06, 2017
Matt Barker in front of an Australian Army Tiger which he helped develop the operating procedures for.
During 30 years of flying with the Australian Army Matt Barker has got to try his hand at a wide range of roles. He has picked up some tales of close calls and funny incidents along the way.
In the 1980’s the RAAF was directed to transfer its helicopters to the Australian Army. This brought about an urgent need for the Army to increase their pilot recruiting numbers. At that time it would take 18 months of officer training and then another 12-18 months of flight training to get a new pilot to an operational unit. That was a lag time the Army couldn’t afford and the Special Service Officer (SSO) scheme was started which saw new recruits put through a 10 week abridged officer training course (commonly called a Knife, Fork and Spoon course) then straight into flight training.
Matt Barker was on this first SSO course through and shares some of the cultural interplay between these new officers and the rest of the Army. Going into the training he already had his commercial licence flown on R22, Bell 47 G2 and G4 models.
30 years later and Matt has flow Kiowa, Blackhawk, AS350 Squirrel, Tiger and MRH. He is an instructor, has flown Special Operations and was the Standards Officer in charge of developing the operating procedures for Tiger in Australian service from a blank piece of paper.
He has spent time flying over many parts of Australia, PNG, Timor and done stints in the UK, France and the US.
Thanks to Craig Bowman for the introduction to Matt and for feeding me some starting info to tease out the stories from Matt.
SOURCE: Australian Aviation The ARH Tiger takes off with the Kiowa following close behind. Mid Caption: 1st Aviation Regiment, Northern Territory, bid a final farewell to the Kiowa on Monday 26 October 2009. A formation of Kiowas, escorted by the ARH Tiger, conducted a fly-over of Darwin. The farewell and flypast departed from 1st Aviation Regiment, Gaza Lines, Robertson Barracks. They flew to Lee Point and then followed the coast to Palmerston and then returned to Robertson Barracks. The B206B-1 Kiowa departed the 1st Aviation Regiment and Darwin for the last time on the 27th October 2009. The aircraft has operated in the Northern Territory since the early 1970s and have been based in Darwin since November 1994. The departure of the Kiowas from 1st Aviation Regiment is a significant milestone in the introduction of the ARH Tiger. 1st Aviation Regiment will now focus on the introduction into service of the ARH Tiger from its home base at Robertson Barracks.
05 Oct 1987 – Joined Australian Army on Number 1 SSO Pilot course (46 Army Pilot course) Jan – Jun 1988 – Basic Pilot course on CT4 at No 1 Flying Training School at RAAF Base Point Cook Jul – Dec 1988 – Rotary wing course at SAA Oakey on B206 Kiowa Dec 88 – Jan 91- Posted to 161 Recce Sqn at Holsworthy as a pilot on B206 Kiowa Jan 91 – Oct 91 – Posted to Instructor training with US Army at Fort Rucker on OH58 Kiowa Oct 91 – Oct 94 – QFI at ADF Helicopter School on AS350 Squirrel Oct 94 – Jan 95 – S70 Blackhawk conversion course at SAA Feb 95 – Dec 97 – Pilot, troop commander and SQN QFI at A SQN, 5 Aviation Regiment at RAAF Townsville Jan 98 – Jun 2000 – QFI and troop commander at ADF Helicopter School on AS350 Squirrel Jul 00 – Dec 2002 – SQN QFI at 161 Recce SQN at RAAF Darwin. Two stints in East Timor as Troop Commander and Detachment Commander Jan 03 – Dec 09 – ARH Tiger Flying Standards Officer, posted to Eurocopter Marignane France 2004/05 and AAVNTC Oakey Jan 10 – Dec 11 – ARH Tiger Instructor Development Officer, Instructor Training Wing, AAVNTC Oakey Jan 12 – Dec 12 – Flying Standards Officer for ARH Tiger at 1 Aviation Regiment Darwin Jan 13 – Jul 14 – ARH Tiger QFI with KBR at SAA Oakey 31 Jan 2014 – Transferred from full time to active reserve in the Australian Army Jul 14 – Present – MRH90 Taipan QFI with Airbus at SAA Oakey.
In this episode: Punching a nanna while on a joyflight Deer hunting in NZ using MD500’s ‘coolest thing ever seen’ – was initial reason for wanting to fly helicopters Special Service Officer (SSO) pilot course First SSO pilot to SQN Recruiting video for Royal Military College Chip light over Sydney nude Katherine Bachelors and Spinster’s Ball Passing out on approach to RAAF base Tindal Field promotion for maintainer T-aid night approaches Night flying training Introduction of NVGs – black tape and cyalume sticks Melbourne to Sydney Kiowa flight – IIMC, QANTAS jets, low fuel and lions
Matt Barker and Tiger HAP 004 – starting Tiger Conversion Course on the French HAP Tiger, Marignane France, Jan 2005
[leadplayer_vid id=”58BCBC7F475F7″] [Video] Australian Army Tiger and MRH that Matt Barker flies.
The African Lion Safari was a zoo in the western suburbs of Sydney that closed in 1991. It was still operating when Matt landed there in a Kiowa with no doors on during bad weather.
Matt and the mighty Kiowa, Suai East Timor 2002 with 161 Recce SQN
“Saying happy birthday to my daughter while in East Timor 2002, using a RNZAF 3 Squadron Huey (that’s me in the door).” – Matt
Do you have a question for Matt or about something mentioned in the episode that you want to ask? Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 54 – Huey Gunships with Jack Lynch Part 2
Dec 22, 2016
Wing Commander(Ret.) Jack Lynch flew Iroquois Gunships with 9 SQN RAAF in Vietnam
Jack Lynch was a ‘Bushranger’ pilot in Vietnam for the Royal Australian Air Force. These were Iroquois UH-1H helicopters fitted out as aerial gunships which provided close air support to Australian troops.
A pair of low flying Sabre jets over Jack Lynch’s childhood property was the seed for a 50+ year career in and around aviation.
After graduating from RAAF pilots course and being posted to helicopters, Jack found himself in Vietnam as one of the early pilots in the Australian version of an armed UH-1H gunship.
The configuration consisted of 2 x twin M-60 machine guns for the door gunners, 14 M158 rockets and 2 XM-21 fixed forward firing mini guns capable of 4000 rounds a minute. Armoured seats were scrounged and procured to provide some level of protection for the pilots.
Aiming of the rockets and mini-guns was conducted through an aiming reticle that could be swiveled down in front of either pilot. It was then up to the pilot to fly the helicopter to place the aiming point on the target. ‘Danger Close’ is the term used when aircraft are firing close to the line of friendly troops. Experienced crews would be able to lay down fire to within 25 metres and sometimes closer to ground troops in contact requiring incredibly precise flying skills.
The concept of operations was for 2 helicopters to conduct a racetrack pattern such that one helicopter was always on its target run. As the first aircraft broke away the door gunners would open up to suppress the target and at the same time the second aircraft would start its run. The first aircraft would then race at speed back to the start of the pattern ready to start its run as soon as the second aircraft commenced it’s break.
9 SQN RAAF conducted 237,424 missions with 16 Hueys (4 were converted to the Bushranger configuration).
Vietnam. An RAAF crewman fires his M60 at enemy positions whilst expended bullet casings pour from the minigun of RAAF Iroquois helicopter gunship (Bushranger) A2-773 as it sweeps into action.
[leadplayer_vid id=”585288D15FFA9″] The 9 SQN Iroquois were eventually transferred to the Australian Army which maintained the Bushranger capability almost unchanged right up until 2004.
Painted blades to help the overhead command and control aircraft to guide treetop helicopters on to landing areas.
9 SQN ‘Bushranger’ Huey with armament
Do you have a question about the Bushrangers or something mentioned in the episode that you want to ask? Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 53 – Huey Gunships with Jack Lynch
Dec 16, 2016
Wing Commander(Ret.) Jack Lynch flew Iroquois Gunships with 9 SQN RAAF in Vietnam
Jack Lynch was a ‘Bushranger’ pilot in Vietnam for the Royal Australian Air Force. These were Iroquois UH-1H helicopters fitted out as aerial gunships which provided close air support to Australian troops.
A pair of low flying Sabre jets over Jack Lynch’s childhood property was the seed for a 50+ year career in and around aviation.
After graduating from RAAF pilots course and being posted to helicopters, Jack found himself in Vietnam as one of the early pilots in the Australian version of an armed UH-1H gunship.
The configuration consisted of 2 x twin M-60 machine guns for the door gunners, 14 M158 rockets and 2 XM-21 fixed forward firing mini guns capable of 4000 rounds a minute. Armoured seats were scrounged and procured to provide some level of protection for the pilots.
Aiming of the rockets and mini-guns was conducted through an aiming reticle that could be swiveled down in front of either pilot. It was then up to the pilot to fly the helicopter to place the aiming point on the target. ‘Danger Close’ is the term used when aircraft are firing close to the line of friendly troops. Experienced crews would be able to lay down fire to within 25 metres and sometimes closer to ground troops in contact requiring incredibly precise flying skills.
The concept of operations was for 2 helicopters to conduct a racetrack pattern such that one helicopter was always on its target run. As the first aircraft broke away the door gunners would open up to suppress the target and at the same time the second aircraft would start its run. The first aircraft would then race at speed back to the start of the pattern ready to start its run as soon as the second aircraft commenced it’s break.
9 SQN RAAF conducted 237,424 missions with 16 Hueys (4 were converted to the Bushranger configuration).
Vietnam. An RAAF crewman fires his M60 at enemy positions whilst expended bullet casings pour from the minigun of RAAF Iroquois helicopter gunship (Bushranger) A2-773 as it sweeps into action.
[leadplayer_vid id=”585288D15FFA9″] The 9 SQN Iroquois were eventually transferred to the Australian Army which maintained the Bushranger capability almost unchanged right up until 2004.
Painted blades to help the overhead command and control aircraft to guide treetop helicopters on to landing areas.
9 SQN ‘Bushranger’ Huey with armament
Do you have a question about the Bushrangers or something mentioned in the episode that you want to ask? Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 52 – Interview with Ken Vote Part 2
Dec 04, 2016
After a career in the Royal Australian Navy including time in Vietnam, instructing and anti-submarine roles Ken Vote was one of Australia’s early experienced EMS pilots.
Landing in the urban jungle of inner Sydney is a far cry from dropping off SAS troops in the jungles of Vietnam – Ken Vote has done both in his career as a Navy and EMS helicopter pilot.
Ken started his helicopter career with the Australian Navy, spent time in Vietnam, instructed in the military and had a career in the EMS world. He was one of the senior pilots during a counter terrorism readiness operation to oil rigs in Bass Strait, survived a live fire SAS killhouse training run where he played the role of a hostage and has also flown off Australia’s last aircraft carrier.
I was put in touch with Ken by Craig Bowman – Bowie is flying an EMS bird in Western Australia – which is possibly the largest EMS area of coverage in the world in terms of square kilometers – that might be a story for another time. In researching this interview I also got in touch with one of the volunteers at the Fleet Air Arm Association of Australia who knew Ken – he indicated that Ken is not known for being reticent in sharing memories!!
So I hope you enjoy this interview. I have cut it into 2 episodes for length so this is Part 2 that you are about to hear.
CareFlight pilots when the Dauphin arrived. “Bloke in dark suit is Ian Galt VICPOL who endorsed us.” Ken Vote on far right.
In one of Ken’s Sydney based roles he would often need to land in the street with co-ordination of local police and ambulance services. “Me blocking Pennant Hills Road for an hour or so HIRT A109 Power circa 2007”
Video – Wessex Helicopters Blade Unfolding on HMAS Melbourne [leadplayer_vid id=”583831FECDC4D”]
Ken and a T28 trainer. NAS Whiting Field Pensacola Florida 1966.
A clipping from the Navy News on 24 November 1967 showing Ken in front of a TH 13M Bell Helicopter after his first helicopter solo.
A Detachment of Wessex 31Bs at RAAF East Sale, having just completed a morning practice session (Op Bursa) Source: Fleet Air Arm of Association of Australia
In Darwin during a training contract with the Australian Army. Ken Vote (2nd from left) Craig Bowman (center) – Craig put me in touch with Ken for the interview
Do you have a question about Ken’s career or EMS flying that you want to ask? Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 51 – Australian Navy, Vietnam and EMS with Ken Vote
Nov 25, 2016
After a career in the Royal Australian Navy including time in Vietnam, instructing and anti-submarine roles Ken Vote was one of Australia’s early experienced EMS pilots.
Landing in the urban jungle of inner Sydney is a far cry from dropping off SAS troops in the jungles of Vietnam – Ken Vote has done both in his career as a Navy and EMS helicopter pilot.
Ken started his helicopter career with the Australian Navy, spent time in Vietnam, instructed in the military and had a career in the EMS world. He was one of the senior pilots during a counter terrorism readiness operation to oil rigs in Bass Strait, survived a live fire SAS killhouse training run where he played the role of a hostage and has also flown off Australia’s last aircraft carrier.
I was put in touch with Ken by Craig Bowman – Bowie is flying an EMS bird in Western Australia – which is possibly the largest EMS area of coverage in the world in terms of square kilometers – that might be a story for another time. In researching this interview I also got in touch with one of the volunteers at the Fleet Air Arm Association of Australia who knew Ken – he indicated that Ken is not known for being reticent in sharing memories!!
So I hope you enjoy this interview. I have cut it into 2 episodes for length so this is Part 1 that you are about to hear.
I started off by asking Ken about a routine at an airshow in 1973 that he used to perform and the occasion that things didn’t go to plan.
In one of Ken’s Sydney based roles he would often need to land in the street with co-ordination of local police and ambulance services. “Me blocking Pennant Hills Road for an hour or so HIRT A109 Power circa 2007”
Video – Wessex Helicopters Blade Unfolding on HMAS Melbourne [leadplayer_vid id=”583831FECDC4D”]
Ken and a T28 trainer. NAS Whiting Field Pensacola Florida 1966.
A clipping from the Navy News on 24 November 1967 showing Ken in front of a TH 13M Bell Helicopter after his first helicopter solo.
A Detachment of Wessex 31Bs at RAAF East Sale, having just completed a morning practice session (Op Bursa) Source: Fleet Air Arm of Association of Australia
In Darwin during a training contract with the Australian Army. Ken Vote (2nd from left) Craig Bowman (center) – Craig put me in touch with Ken for the interview
Do you have a question about Ken’s career or EMS flying that you want to ask? Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
RWS 50 – The God Machine with James Chiles (Helicopter History)
Oct 25, 2016
James R. Chiles has been writing about science and history since 1979.
The God Machine: From Boomerangs to Blackhawks, The Story of the Helicopter by James R. Chiles delves into the origins of the helicopter and the people that made them into the machines they are today.
It has been another long break between episodes but we are back this week with a stroll down memory lane looking at the early years of helicopter development and then stepping forward to some of the lesser known stories that James Chiles has captured in his book.
Of all birds, winged mammals, and insects, very few have mastered the skill of pausing in midair and going backward as well as forward, so anything capable of such flight is, ipso facto, a rare beast.
James has been writing about science and history since 1979. He is a member of Invention & Technology Magazine’s editorial advisory board. He has published features and columns in publications including Smithsonian, Aviation Week, The Boston Globe, Invention&Technology, Audubon, Harvard, New York Daily News, New York Post, Air&Space, Popular Science, Texas Monthly, Mechanical Engineering, and Science Digest.
James’ particular niche is as a science and technology writer and researcher – he has written about many aviation and engineering disasters and given safety-focused lectures at a Who’s Who of professional organisations including NASA, US National Society of Professional Engineers, US Defence Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, Lockheed Martin and the US Chemical Safety Board amongst others.
In researching the history of the helicopter James was able to get some flight instruction with Harrison Ford’s instructor, interview members of the 160th SOAR, ride along on a powerline maintenance flight and talk with some of the ‘best sticks’ in the history of the industry.
“Water rescue practice near Los Angeles, where we jumped from a Huey into a lake. The guy on the right looking at the camera is me.” ~ James Chiles
RWS 49 – Toronto Traffic Helicopter with Dini Petty
Jun 13, 2016
Dini Petty was tapped on the shoulder in a diner to train as a helicopter traffic reporter and pilot in Toronto.
Dini Petty forged her mother’s signature on a permission form for skydiving lessons when she was 17. By age 22, Dini Petty was flying above Toronto, Canada as the first female traffic helicopter pilot who was also giving traffic reports while flying.
Dini was tapped on the shoulder in a Toronto restaurant to fill a flying reporter role as part of the competition between Toronto radio stations at the time. Not only was she to report on the traffic but Dini was to be trained as a pilot and to do the job solo. Most of the other stations were using a 2 person crew – pilot and reporter.
Dini clocked up 5000 hours in a pink Hughes 300 in the traffic reporter role. In that time she had a number of scares which she talks about in the interview.
Dini posing at the controls of the helicopter that she flew as traffic reporter in Toronto.
After that much time over Toronto reporting on what would sometime be the same traffic build ups every day Dini made the career jump to a television news anchor and then host of her own daily talk show that ran on Canadian TV for 10 years.
As a young female pilot in the 1960s Dini faced some resistance to the status quo and perceptions at the time – from being taken seriously when reporting mechanical issues to regulator concerns about flying while pregnant. That she was a talented pilot and very persistent helped to change the opinions of those that she worked with.
Dini tells the story of a rescue search that she was involved in that makes for a great human factors and CRM case study when looking back at the chain of events.
The radio stations in Toronto were each operating their own helicopters to cover traffic news.
Video – Dini Petty interviewing Harrison Ford [leadplayer_vid id=”575DEAD30A14A”]
‘Be remarkable’ if you want people to talk about your company. A pink helicopter, pink flight suit and Dini Petty certainly achieves that.
Magazine article covering Dini’s flying role. This was the original blue colour of the helicopter before the radio station repainted it.
PR shots in between traffic reports. Dini leveraged her celebrity from the traffic role into a career in television after 5000 hrs of flying overhead Toronto.
Do you know anything to add to this interview by Dini Petty? Be part of the conversation by leaving a comment below.
Extra – Impromptu Session at Rotortech 2016 About AHIA and Regulation Progress
May 30, 2016
This is a recording from a session at the Rotortech 2016 expo on the Sunshine Coast. Vice President of the Australian Helicopter Industry Association (AHIA), Ray Cronin leads a discussion about regulation change and recent progress.
This audio is what you can call an extra from our normal interview series that I’m going to slip into the podcast feed and I’ll tell you why in a moment.
I’ll jump into a disclaimer right up front – the audio quality in parts is not great as I recorded it sitting in the audience but my suggestion is to persevere in the rough bits as there is some really interesting stuff in the discussion.
To set the scene, this is recorded on Sunday 29 May 2016, on the last day of the Rotortech Expo on the Sunshine Coast.
Johanna Osborne, Chief Pilot and Chief Flying Instructor (Rotary) at Airways Aviation speaking during the session prior.
Johanna Osborne, Chief Pilot and Chief Flying Instructor Rotary at Airways Aviation has just presented a talk titled “Global vision and an insight into the writing of our Part 142 application.” – about Airways Aviation’s approach to training and their experience in trying to conform with new regulatory requirements that are being rolled out in Australia that govern flying training, in particular the writing of an operations manual to meet the new CASA requirements.
So this will mainly be be of interest to Australian listeners, however those of you overseas I’m sure can take away some insights that you can apply closer to home in your own industries.
It is a really interesting insight into some of the background things that are happening at the industry representation level and at the regulator – if the discussion just stayed in the room and we didn’t share it further then there would be a lot more people in the dark about some of the things that are happening at the moment and perhaps some pessimism that things weren’t getting better when they do seem to be moving forward, if slowly, for the Australian industry.
Part of the aircraft parking area at Rotortech
The main voices you’ll hear, in order are:
Ray Cronin Vice President, Australian helicopter industry association Founder and managing director of Kestral Aviation
Rob Walker, Stakeholder Engagement Group Manager from CASA
and Rob Rich, AHIA secretary.
There are a couple of abbreviations or industry speak mentioned that I’ll give you a heads up on.
Part 141 and 142 are the regulations that cover flight training organisations – with the difference in very broad terms being the complexity of training offered – with Part 142 schools being able to provide additional ratings.
NPRMs – Notice of proposed rulemaking
MOS – Manual of Standards
Part 61 – Part of the Australian regulations that prescribes the requirements and standards for the issue of flight crew licences, ratings, authorisations, and rules for the logging of flight time.
So with all that out of the way, we pass over to Ray Cronin, Vice president AHIA as he takes the microphone for an impromptu session on regulation in the Australian flying industry.
A shoutout to the team at the Australian Helicopter Industry association though for what was a pretty good event running Rotortech 2016 this weekend. I had a great time and look forward to being able to get back for the next Rotortech expo in 2017.
The publication of this interview is with permission of the main speakers involved.
RWS 48 – The Case For Full Down Autos with Glen White
May 26, 2016
Glen White from Eurosafety talks about continuation training and emergency handling
Glen White has been providing recurrency and initial training to helicopter pilots around the world through his company Eurosafety since 2004. He is a strong proponent of the benefit of full touchdown autorotations in training.
Glen first learnt to fly in France in a Bell 47 before picking up roles in flight training, tours based in the Virgin Islands, ship operations, emergency services and as a factory pilot.
One of the things that struck him throughout his career was the lack of high quality post graduation check and training avaliable to many of the small to medium operators in the industry. Hence the idea for Eurosafety was born.
“I get to fly with the best pilots in the industry. It’s a privilege.” – Glen gets to conduct recurrency and initial training with pilots from law enforcement, EMS, utility and charter companies in a number of companies.
In this interview we chat about Glen’s early career, the case for full touchdown autorotations, tips for handling a range of emergencies and what you can do to improve your skills as a helicopter pilot.
[Tweet “AS350B3E helicopter is a monster, nothing better for utility work”]
In this week’s episode: 3:50 Timothy and Tabitha 5:20 Getting a start in aviation in France in a Bell 47 6:50 Flying tours in the Virgin Islands 8:40 Landing on Navy ships in support of the Aegis radar program 9:50 FlightSafety and Eurocopter factory pilot 11:20 EMS S-76 Children’s Hospital Dallas and Tri-state Careflight AS350B3 and BK119 11:50 Mountain rescue incident 14:00 Gap in market for post-graduation check and training 16:00 Overseas training locations and culture 19:00 Types of training and helicopters covered 20:40 Trained reaction to engine failure 21:50 Switching between clockwise / anti-clockwise rotor systems 24:30 Autorotational training – touchdowns vs power recoveries 32:00 Training to runway rather than grass, carbide skid shoes 33:50 Damage to runway surface from run-ons – none 35:50 A typical recurrency day format 38:30 AS350, H130, AS355, EC120, BO105CBS, BO105LS, EC135 Augusta 109E,C,F Bell 260L/F, Bell 205 Types covered (2016) 42:40 Prevalence of engine failures in statistics vs focus spent on in training 46:50 1000s of autos in a year, a very mild event 49:00 Auto method in the AS350 – 100’ flare height 50:00 Common errors during autos 53:20 Hydraulic failure and impact into highrise 54:20 Stuck pedals 58:10 How to be a good pilot and constantly get better 1:01:30 iSafety app for emergency training 59:45 Episode Sponsors trainmorepilots.com
RWS 47 – First Around the World Solo and Australian Regulations with Dick Smith
May 21, 2016
Dick Smith has set a number of records and world firsts in aviation
This is Episode 47 of The Rotary Wing Show and our main interview today is Dick Smith, the first person to fly a helicopter solo around the world plus a bunch of other aviation first and records.
For Australians, Dick Smith is someone that doesn’t need too much of an introduction. He is very active in a number of areas and for such a long time such that most people in Australia would at least know who he is but I’m sure don’t know many of his aviation feats.
For the sake of our international audience though I’ll give you a bit more of an extended version of Dick’s bio.
Dick and his wife Pip built up and sold two quite large businesses here in Australia – Dick Smith Electronics and Australian Geographic.
As you’ll hear about coming up Dick was the first person to fly solo around the world in a helicopter which included the first crossing of the Atlantic in a helicopter. Then later on the first person to fly a helicopter around the world from East to West against the prevailing winds.
He was the first person to fly a helicopter to the North pole and has also flown around the south pole in a fixed wing. In the hot-air balloon world he was first to complete a non-stop crossing of the Australian continent and to pilot a balloon from New Zealand to Australia.
The helicopter that Dick Smith flew around the world is now part of the Powerhouse Museum collection in Sydney.
[Tweet “If the cloud gets too low you just land and have a cup of tea”]
Some additional dot points…
1986 Australian of the Year
2015 Companion of the Order of Australia ‘community services and devotion to flying’ ‘awarded for eminent achievement and merit of the highest degree in service to Australia or humanity at large’ 2nd highest appointment in order of Australia honours system
1992 – United States’ (Charles) Lindbergh award. The Award, “is given annually to individuals whose work over many years has made significant contributions toward the Lindbergh’s concept of balancing technology and nature. http://lindberghfoundation.org/lindbergh-award Other notable awardees – Harrison Ford, Burt Rutan, David Suzuki, Neil Armstrong, Edmund Hillary, James Doolittle, Jacques Cousteau
1990 -1992 Chairman of the Board of the Civil Aviation Authority
1997 – 1999 Deputy-Chairman and Chairman of the Board CASA
At time we go to air in May 2016 – Dick has recently attended an industry meeting in Tamworth about the state of general aviation regulation and Part 61 here in Australia so we get to chat about that too.
[Tweet “The helicopter lanes in Sydney were copied from those in London”]
01:20 Goal of the Rotary Wing Show 02:20 iTunes review feedback 03:33 Dick Smith Bio 07:30 Getting into helicopters 08:30 Trying to learn to fly a helicopter 10:00 First solo circuit 11:20 Selecting the engine to take around the world 13:40 Australian helicopters had to operate as fixed wing traffic 15:40 Planning the around the world route 17:15 Ross Perot, Jr. and Jay Coburn, Spirit of Texas + Hercules support first around the world 18:30 Finding a container ship in the fog for refuel 22:50 Refueling on a rolling ship deck 25:00 Close calls and frights 27:40 Monsoons through Burma, beach landing 30:00 What was trying to achieve at CAA/CASA position 35:10 Average age of the Australian general aviation business owner 36:30 Part 61 reform process 37:50 Cost of doing aviation business in Australia 40:30 Biannual flight review requirements increased 42:20 Changes are not addressing any known safety issue 45:40 GA airfields sold off and being used for non-aviation activities for revenue streams 47:20 Dick’s current helicopters and flying 49:50 Hong Kong Peninsula Hotel – opening of the roof top helipad 52:00 Flying under the Sydney Harbour bridge 56:00 World Helicopter Day
BBC documentary with film that Dick Smith recorded during the first solo circumnavigation of the globe in a helicopter [leadplayer_vid id=”573E8B9CCFB06″]
Grabbing some ‘crew rest’ on way around the world.
[Tweet “Had to cut through Cold War Russian buffer zone due to fuel “]
Dick is still a frequent flyer getting behind the controls of several fixed and rotary wing types to get around Australia.
[Tweet “Atlantic crossing done without heater to save weight”]
Be part of the conversation about this interview by leaving a comment below. What would be the part of the world that you would most like to fly over?
RWS 46 – Chickenhawk with Robert Mason
May 07, 2016
The Vietnam war has been called the helicopter war. They were used as troop carriers, gunships, medevac, heavy lift, observation and aerial trucks. Chickenhawk author Robert Mason shares some of his memories of flying the Huey in this episode.
They fundamentally changed the way that war was fought. Probably nothing is more iconic from that period than the Bell UH-1 Huey. The Huey was the first turbine helicopter to enter production for the US military and brought a significant boost to capabilities over existing machines.
The first flight of the UH-1 was back in 1956 – October this year(2016) will mark 60 years of Huey models flying. So someone is going to have to organise a big party for that one!
If there is one book that people associate with helicopters in Vietnam and especially the Huey then it would most likely be ChickenHawk by Robert Mason. In fact it is probably one of the most recommended books on helicopters in general. If you look around the web wherever someone has asked for helicopter book recommendations then there is a high chance that Chickenhawk is mentioned.
A typical flight formation on the way back from an assault. Photo Credit: R.Mason
[Tweet “The helicopter bible – Chickenhawk by Robert Mason”]
It has 471 reviews just on Amazon with 85% of those being 5 star. And obviously amazon is a fairly recent invention given the book was published in 1983.
The author Bob Mason deployed to Vietnam with 1st Cavalry Division and their 450 Hueys at the opening of the Vietnam war.
In Chickenhawk he covers his helicopter training and his 12 month tour of Vietnam as a ‘slick’ pilot on Hueys where he flew over 1,000 air assault missions.
A big thanks to show listener Lee Rilea for prodding me for a long time now to track Bob down.
It is my very great honor to be able to introduce you to Bob Mason and to find out a bit more about his experiences.
[Tweet “22yrs old, aircraft captain of a Huey in Vietnam, flying into hot LZs and saved a bunch of people”]
In this week’s episode: 01:05 Vietnam the helicopter war and the Huey 03:50 Chickenhawk book reviews 05:35 Bob Mason interview 07:30 First time saw a helicopter hovering when doing fixed wing flying 10:30 Humans predestined to fly – no logical survival basis 11:45 Training helicopters – Hiller 12C, H-19 14:10 Vertol H-21 ‘Banana’ 21 seats but would never be able to carry that many 15:10 Hueys in 1st Cav Division 17:50 Never see that many helicopters flying again 18:30 A typical air mobile mission 22:31 30-45 min flights to get to assault locations 24:00 Chest protection wasn’t available for first months 25:20 Formation stories – lead ship had lost radio comms 28:05 9 SQN RAAF 28:35 Missed approach formation lead 31:10 Taking out a IVSI gauge with a pistol 32:25 Huey blades vs tree branches 34:15 Bullet holes 36:30 Jinking around to dodge bullets 38:00 Flying rate of effort and hours in a day 40:33 Casualty rates – WW2 vs Vietnam 43:30 Night flying – formation via cockpit lights, 4 ship formations, no moon 47:20 Overloaded departure with low RRPM downhill 49:10 CBS news clip – medevac of CBS president 50:20 Tail rotor impact on landing in dust cloud 55:10 Battle of Ia Drang 56:20 Advice with regards PSTD and dealing with stress reactions 59:35 TH-55A trainer and tuck under in autorotation crashes 1:02:30 Medals DFC 1:03:40 Getting back into a Huey after 47 years 1:12:15 Video of Jerry Towler talk to historical association 1:13:00 Reviews on iTune – thank you! 1:13:35 Episode Sponsors trainmorepilots.com
To have your copy of Chickenhawk signed: “To mail me a copy to sign, send a book with a prepaid return shipper envelope, to: Robert Mason P.O. Box 1517 High Springs, FL 32655”
[Tweet “For a bigger mission we might take 80 – 100 helicopters”]
Bong Son Valley, February 1966. Preacher Yellow flight is on final during an air assault in the valley. It’s exciting when you know you’re going to be landing where that smoke is. This was taken from the left cockpit seat of Yellow Two. Photo Credit: R.Mason
A forward base somewhere in the middle of no where. We’ve just dropped off a load of everyone’s favorite treat, good old C-rations. Photo Credit: R.Mason
Yankee Air Museum Historic Presentation Night Presents Jerry Towler
Bob Mason flying the Mosquito XET 2008
[Tweet “I can’t walk past a helicopter without acknowledging them – they are kind of magical.”]
Be part of the conversation on this interview by leaving a comment below. Let others know what you think of the book Chickenhawk.
RWS 45 – Rosemary Arnold – First Australian Female Helicopter Pilot – Part 2
Apr 06, 2016
Rosemary Arnold sporting a pink flight suit in a Hughes 500
In 1965 Rosemary Arnold became the first Australian female helicopter pilot, the first female helicopter pilot in the southern hemisphere and Whirly Girl No.99 In this episode listen in as Rosemary tells the story of her 50yr+ career in aviation.
In Part Two we continue to follow Rosemary’s career through all the way into her eighties where she is still very much involved in aviation as an author and marriage celebrant performing helicopter weddings over Sydney Harbour.
There is also some life advice tucked in there at the end for anyone feeling the crunch from the current oil and gas downturn or having difficulty cracking that next flying gig.
[Tweet “Keep your standards high – you are only competing against yourself.”]
Rosemary Arnold with Australian Astronaut Andy Thomas
In this week’s episode: 02:10 Campaigning for public use helipads – creation of Helicopter Association of Australia (HAA) 05:38 First Australian helicopter airshow 1977 06:20 First public helipad in Sydney at Piermont wharf 09:30 Gas pipeline inspections in a Hiller 12E using street directory 12:30 Intercepted by army helicopters 14:20 Running takeoff to get out of pad 15:30 Adventures in Indonesia 21:00 First Officer gig on DC-3 22:30 Tour leader Oshkosh airshow 24:20 Sold car and boat then went into debt to finance Bell 47 25:30 Job offer in US and down to last 90c and hunger pangs 29:30 Setup own company in the US 34:19 Helicopter weddings over Sydney Harbor 39:35 World’s longest blind date 42:01 Aviation degree at age 70 then lecturing a week later – Aviation History 45:50 First females above Australia encouragement awards 48:40 Mixing with aviation students starting their careers 52:30 What happened to original Bell-47 54:00 ‘Think Aviation’ book – careers in aviation other than pilot 59:40 Episode Sponsors trainmorepilots.com – Facebook advertising tip
RWS 44 – Rosemary Arnold – First Australian Female Helicopter Pilot – Part 1
Mar 30, 2016
Rosemary Arnold was the first and then only woman helicopter pilot in Australia for 12 years.
In 1965 Rosemary Arnold became the first Australian female helicopter pilot, the first female helicopter pilot in the southern hemisphere and Whirly Girl No.99 In this episode listen in as Rosemary tells the story of her 50yr+ career in aviation.
It is a career full of firsts – as well as the above, Rosemary was the first Australian woman to own her own helicopter charter company, be appointed a Chief Pilot, perform a helicopter air-display and be a consultant to rescue helicopter committees.
Rosemary also founded the Helicopter Association of Australia and organised the first helicopter airshow in Australia.
At age 70 she completed a Bachelor of Aviation and the next week was back at the university as a lecturer in Aviation History.
In 2012 Rosemary was awarded the Nancy-Bird Walton Memorial Trophy “for the woman who has achieved the most noteworthy contribution to aviation in Australasia”.
As you’ll hear in this interview – at almost every step of her career Rosemary had to overcome challenges and obstacles in her path. It is a story and example of incredible resilience and self belief.
Now 80-something years young, she is still full of life and operates her marriage celebrant business offering couples the chance to tie the knot in a helicopter over Sydney Harbor Bridge. Rosemary has authored several books about her career and pioneering Australian female aviators.
[Tweet “I didn’t know women could fly and especially someone that was a mother”]
Rosemary in a Hughes 500 during a trip across the US
In this week’s episode: 01:00 Helicopter Easter Egg Drops 01:50 World Helicopter Day 2016 – can you help? 03:11 Listener mailbag 05:10 Case of mistaken identity 05:50 Rosemary Arnold – first Australian female helicopter pilot 08:00 First flying experience in a Sunderland flying boat – Gordon Peter Taylor 12:30 Taking flying lessons (fixed wing)- in secret 15:10 My god a woman pilot we’ll all be killed 16:00 Bell 47 J2A – hot pink uniform and floral paint scheme ‘Triple Happy Helicopter’ 19:50 Following of joy ride passengers 21:00 Taking helicopter lessons – Licence no. 10 26:40 Media coverage and Whirly Girls 29:25 First commercial Hughes 500 helicopters and trip across USA 32:51 Gas turbine course 34:10 Denied endorsements by DAA (early version of CASA) 35:40 Solo’ing in the Bell 47 and CoG issues solved by carrying dog 38:35 Challenging weather and getting over the range 41:10 Hovering waiting for storm to pass 44:40 Other pilots and meteorologist backed up in court 47:50 Episode Sponsors trainmorepilots.com
RWS 43 – Bell 525 Relentless with Larry Thimmesch
Mar 02, 2016
Larry Thimmesch is Vice President, Bell 525 Relentless Sales for Bell Helicopter
Our guest today is Larry Thimmesch, Vice President Bell 525 Relentless Sales. Larry has been involved with the 525 for the last 5 years from the program’s very earliest days.
The 525 is Bell Helicopter’s largest helicopter to date and weighs in at 20,000lbs or 9000kg. It has been created off a completely clean sheet design and will be the world’s first commercial fly-by-wire helicopter. In this interview you’ll get to hear about the background to the design process and a run down of the technology and advances built into a whole range of the aircraft’s systems.
When Larry first started at Bell Helicopter as the VP of Commercial Programs there was a goal of growing the commercial side of the company in the face of decreasing defence budgets.
From the outset the program aimed to incorporate capabilities developed from recent Bell Helicopter military design experience and to include the best of current technologies avaliable.
A review of the most common causes of rotorcraft accidents was undertaken with a focus on identifying where technology could add value and safety – whether that was Bell internal technology or what was currently in the marketplace.
[Tweet “Fly-by-wire design – 3 completely independent electrical, hydraulic and actuation systems #bell525”]
Bell 525 Flight Test Vehicle 1 – hard to see in this smaller image but the signatures of the customer advisory group have been painted on the tailboom. Photo Credit: Bell Helicopter
A customer working group were invited into the design process and came up with a Christmas shopping list of features they wanted which included a <20,000lbs MTOW, more baggage volume, safety and a non-negotiable CAT A performance along with many more key requirements. 6 months later the Bell 525 program team were able to show this same customer group a full scale wooden mockup of the design.
With 10,000 all new designed parts, the Bell 525 Relentless is a helicopter that they are planning to last in the market for the next 10, 20 even 30 year period.
At the time of recording Flight Test Vehicle 2 (FTV2) is being shown at HeliExpo 2016 with a third aircraft to join the certification phase shortly.
[Tweet “Aircraft maintenance data can be passed via satellite connection back to base engineers while in flight. #bell525”]
01:45 HeliExpo 2016 02:15 Larry Thimmesch – Boeing, Bombardier, Bell Helicopters 05:20 Customer advisory panel 2011 – 85 different kits/layouts 08:00 Developing the value proposition and getting the message out 09:30 Coming up with the name and model number 11:10 Expected roles and industries 14:00 Clean sheet design – how you do that 18:25 Full scale wood mockup of the aircraft 6 months later 21:00 Size of the program staff – up to 500 people at peak – and cross specialty input 25:10 Early performance figures – range, loads, Vne 27:36 Engine powerpack and rationale 30:00 APU – customer design request to have cabin cooling without blades turning 31:10 Triple redundancy, voting fault tolerance, integrated maintenance recording system and fleet wide data 35:50 Cockpit design and IR field ‘touch’ screens 39:10 Philosophy for fly-by-wire control approach 41:50 Cat A departure engine failure self recovery by autopilot 43:33 Canted tailrotor design – hover attitude and CoG envelope 45:20 Flight controls/joysticks with force feedback 47:10 MFD / PFD layout and presentation 50:10 5 bladed rotor disc – large diameter to achieve Cat A performance 52:00 Gearboxes – 7 transmissions total, engine RPM is stepped down before main transmission, specialized materials 55:00 Lift assist tailboom patented design – extra 400lbs of hover capability 57:55 Crashworthiness and egress features 1:03:30 Maintenance and support planning 1:05:45 Training approach, simulators, courses 1:08:10 Standing up a capability from day one with operator 1:11:40 Future milestones over next few months and certification 1:18:15 Episode Sponsors trainmorepilots.com – LinkedIn tip about vanity URLs
[Tweet “It takes a while to design an aircraft from nothing. We have 10,000 parts on this aircraft & they are all brand new. It is a daunting task. #bell525”]
The ARC Horizon flight deck system and side positioned fly-by-wire controls make the 525 Relentless cockpit appear sparse. Photo: Bell Helicopter
RWS 42 – Spidertracks Real-Time Tracking with Dave Blackwell
Feb 29, 2016
Dave Blackwell, CEO of Spidertracks has a freight industry and engineering background. The company’s tracking units are installed in over 5000 aircraft around the world.
Spidertracks is a New Zealand company that produces a real time tracking solution for general aviation allowing owners and operators to know exactly where their aircraft are and to greatly increase the speed of rescue if something should go wrong.
Dave Blackwell is the CEO of Spidertracks. In this episode he talks about the technology behind real time tracking and Spidertracks including the Iridium satellite network. Dave was a managing director of a US freight business for 7 years before returning to New Zealand and formalising his qualifications with an engineering degree. He was hired on as the operations manager at Spidertracks, then chief operating officer and now CEO.
The event that triggered the idea and development of Spidertracks was a 2005 EC120 helicopter crash in New Zealand. The helicopter crashed mid-morning but the search was not started until that evening. An ELT was fitted but the antenna was broken in the crash. The SAR effort lasted 15 days and cost over NZ$1,000,000 before the wreckage was found.
[Tweet “With nightfall coming on & absolutely no idea of where to start the search the RCC launched a SAR effort”]
The company has clocked over 5 million flight hours of flight following since 2007 and have their products in 99 countries around the world.
Plug & play setup of a Spidertracks unit. The device needs 12V power from the aircraft and then can be mounted with adhesive strips in the cockpit. Once paired with the operator account through the website setup is complete.
01:00 Heliexpo 02:10 Listeners in 118 countries 03:00 Competition for custom aviation drawing 03:45 Dave Blackwell bio 04:32 Spidertracks real time tracking 05:45 Who is using it and market growth 09:10 2005 EC120 helicopter crash in New Zealand 11:40 Creation of the first product – GPS receiver and Iridium modem 12:40 Early take up of Spidertracks – first 100 units 14:10 Office locations and core team of 13 people 14:40 What Spidertracks looks like and installation 16:20 Iridium satellite constellation – 66 satellites 18:08 Alaska charter flight case study 20:10 Use of Spidertracks in accident investigations and ownership of the data/privacy 22:00 Aircrew interface on the units – 3 buttons – SOS, Watch, Mark 29:30 African parks use of mark feature 30:20 Web/phone app display dashboard 31:25 Insurance rebate possibility 32:50 3rd party integrations and data feeds 35:45 Future features planned 38:20 Real time tracking doesn’t have to be complicated 39:50 SpiderTxt new feature for messages through satellite update 40:40 Opensignal.com mobile phone coverage around the world 41:30 Kayla – winner of custom drawing, a Hiller 12C 42:45 Episode Sponsors trainmorepilots.com – Instagram tip 43:50 AHIA Rotortech2016, Sunshine Coast, Queensland May 2016
[Tweet “Pole to pole coverage, always a satellite within view, 100mins to orbit the earth”]
Video – Spidertracks unit sent into space. [leadplayer_vid id=”56D2E339B89A0″]
Dashtop screen showing flight tracks of paired spidertrack units.
Congratulations to Kayla Segerstrom Perez from Texas for winning the random draw from Episode 39. Her Dad is a dual rated CFI and taught Kayla’s 2 brothers to fly helicopters with Kayla to finish her training sometime soon too. Her first helicopter flight was in a Hiller 12C that her dad still owns. Kayla is the owner of an aviation industry marketing and airshow production company – Rotorwash Media
Kayla(Right) was the winner of the competition from Episode 39 and has won a custom drawing of a Hiller 12C owned by her Dad (Left)
Marc Veenendaal has drawn a Hiller 12C for Kayla and that will be in the mail to her shortly. Thank you to everyone that entered.
RWS 41 – ‘Cyclic Back’ in an Autorotation Entry with Pete Gillies
Feb 21, 2016
Pete Gillies is a legendary, 18,000-hour helicopter pilot who has previously been honored as the Helicopter Association International’s instructor of the year.
The difference between an expensive falling brick and a helicopter is rotor RPM. Pete Gillies talks about the importance of aft cyclic in autorotation entry to conserve rotor RPM in this episode.
Depending on where you did your training this might come across as ‘yeah, of course, doesn’t everyone do this’. If that’s you then fantastic and this interview will give you an in depth refresher on the ‘why’ behind it. If you’ve been out of regular autorotation practice for a while or didn’t have this emphasied then you’ll walk away with a new understanding to take on your next flight. There are a number of links further down the page that go on to show that this knowledge may not be as widely spread as it should be.
As with any flying advice you should discuss it with an instructor that you trust if unsure and apply some sense in how to use it – Pete is obviously not trying to say that aft cyclic must be used religiously for example in a hover engine failure.
[Tweet “A bad ending of an autorotation is usually survivable, but a bad beginning is usually not”]
“The Best Kept Secret in the helicopter industry is how critical it is to immediately apply aft cyclic the moment a loss of power to the rotor system is detected. I have been doing my best to spread this word since analyzing the cause of two law-enforcement helicopter accidents that occurred four months apart in 2002. I call it Cyclic Back.
Very few helicopter pilots realize that if, with a total engine failure, the rotor rpm is allowed to fall more than about 5% below low green, the flight is over. OVER. There is no recovery possible regardless of what actions the pilot may take or how high the helicopter is above ground. This fact is not mentioned in the sales literature for helicopters nor in the approved rotorcraft flight manuals. It is not mentioned in any of our FAA publications having to do with how helicopters fly and how to fly them. It is treated as a deep dark secret, unfortunately.
When power is lost to the rotor system, THE MOST IMPORTANT FLIGHT CONTROL IN THE COCKPIT IS THE CYCLIC! It must immediately be brought aft so that the flow of air is upwards through the rotor system. Bottoming the collective does only one thing: It reduces the rate that the rotor rpm is falling. That’s all! It NEVER stops the fall of rotor rpm.
Once the rotor rpm has dropped below the critical point, recovery is not possible. The helicopter continues to descend as the rotor rpm falls towards zero and may, in the case of free-turbine engines as used in the EC135, be seen to turn backwards. The rotor blades will show little if any damage when the wreckage is examined.
And as the rotor rpm slows towards zero during the descent, retreating blade stall enters the picture. The normal Vne chart does not mention rotor rpm; it is assumed it is normal for the standard mode of flight. But when rotor rpm falls, Vne falls with it, so Vne is very possible at airspeeds much below those computed via the chart.
This in turn means that as the rotor rpm is falling during the autorotation, the helicopter will roll in the direction of the retreating blades, or to the left in the case of the EC135. Any attempt by the pilot to correct this with opposite cyclic simply adds additional pitch to the blades that are already stalling, thereby increasing the amount of roll. When a helicopter pilot is faced with a sudden unannounced engine or drive-line failure, here is what must be done: 1. Cyclic back and pitch down, simultaneously or in that order. 2. Pick a place to land. 3. MAKE THAT SPOT!
What about indicated airspeed. At the beginning of the autorotation, the ONLY speed that matters is that over the wings, meaning, of course, the rotor blades, and this is a function of rotor rpm. Pitot tube airspeed (indicated airspeed) is not important at that time, but yes, once the rotor rpm is solidly in the green, indicated airspeed can be helpful in extending the glide or reducing the rate of descent. Finally, this: During a normal power-off autorotation, the helicopter will respond to all flight-control movements the same way it would if the helicopter is in a flat-pitch descent with the engine running. The only thing it won’t do is a sustained climb. But it will stop, back up, turn in any direction, etc. So when I say MAKE THAT SPOT, I’m saying use the maneuverability of the helicopter just as you would if the engine was running. There is more to life than straight-ins, 90s and 180s!” – extract from a post that Pete made on PPRuNe in 2013 (with a typically PPRuNe spirited debate that runs to 28 pages)
As for in Pete’s earlier interview back in Episode 39 we have Douglas Williams to thank for capturing this audio.
[Tweet “The pilots had not applied aft cyclic at the time the engine quit, they had gone for airspeed – Pete Gillies”]
In the episode: 02:04 Competition for a custom aviation drawing 03:00 Listener comment Andy, 28 SQN OCU 04:20 B206 engine start clip last episode 05:50 Old Bell Helicopters magazine article, 1975 – ‘Keep the rotor in the green’ – redundant? 09:20 Studying accident reports – LAPD Astar overrunning clutch failure 11:15 MD500D ran out of fuel then crash wreckage 15:40 1992 MD500E engine failure on takeoff with crash onto busy road 20:55 Sherif MD600 steep 180 turn following engine failure 25:10 Law enforcement recurrency training using crash photos – lightbulb moment! 28:40 “Immediately put the collective down and immediately nosed over to get airspeed” 30:20 The aircraft were turning left due to below green rotor RPM – retreating blade stall 33:00 Impact on Vne of low rotor RPM 35:00 Emphasis at the time on airspeed in RFM 36:30 Fixed wing comparison 38:45 Reaction time and immediate actions 41:00 Overrunning clutch – engine overspeed but rotor blades slowing 42:00 ‘Aft Cyclic’ 44:10 Autorotation training changes 48:15 Completely consumed with the mission and not thinking about engine failure 50:10 The helicopter is happiest in autorotation 51:30 Multiengine helicopters and applicability of ‘Cyclic Back’ 53:20 Engine off vs engine idling training autorotations 1:00:20 ‘Aft cyclic’ to be in print, training programs and RFM 1:02:30 Advice on a real world engine failure from Pete 1:08:50 Thanks to Doug Williams
Chapter 43 ‘Autorotation Concerns’ of Helicopter Aerodynamics Volume II by Ray Prouty also cites Pete Gillies when talking about the need to instigate airflow into the disc during autorotation entry in forward flight.
The following is an analogy penned by Randy Rowles, 2013 HAI Instructor of the Year, that provides another approach to discussing the application of aft cyclic in an autorotation entry. “First, I would like to add to Mr. Pete Gillie’s (Chief Pilot, Western Helicopters) comments regarding the importance of applying aft cyclic when entering an autorotation. As a longtime flight instructor, I couldn’t agree more with Pete as I’m sure most experienced instructors within the helicopter industry would as well. The key to getting the point across on such subjects is providing an example that is relevant to the topic.
I would suggest we provide an example taken from a baseball analogy. Applying aft cyclic when entering an autorotation is a key consideration because you want to present the rotor system to the changing relative wind. This is very similar to explaining HOW to catch a ball in a glove. In simple terms, you MUST present the open glove to the ball for the glove to function.
To properly catch a ball, the glove must be open and presented so that the ball will hit the glove in the pocket. If the glove is face down, the ball will hit the glove and be driven to the ground. If the glove is held upside down, the ball may roll up the glove and hit the person in the mouth, both non-desirable outcomes.
So you see…an analogy of catching a ball in a glove presents the reader with a basic fundamental principle of the interaction of the ball in flight, and how to properly engage the design of a glove to catch the ball. The rotor system works exactly the same way. No matter what the speed of the aircraft, the rotor system MUST immediately be presented to the airflow through the use of aft cyclic during all autorotative entries.”
Custom drawing competition – Final hours
Your chance to win a custom aviation drawing my Marc Veenendaal is almost gone. Leave a comment on Episode 39 about your first helicopter experience to go into the draw.
Do you have an opinion on ‘Cyclic Back’ or additional information to share? Perhaps you’ve had an engine failure and can share how it turned out. Join in the conversation below in the comments
RWS 40 – Cabri G2 Introduction with Joey Arena
Feb 15, 2016
Texas Rotorwing Academy operates 2 of the 8 Cabri G2 helicopters currently in the United States.
The Guimbal Cabri G2 helicopter has a lot going for it. One of the type’s biggest fans is Joey Arena of Texas Rotorwing Academy. Joey operates two Cabris with another two on order.
The Guimbal Cabri G2 is a two-seat light piston-engined helicopter designed by Bruno Guimbal, a former Eurocopter engineer. The aircraft are built in a factory just down the road from Airbus in France and incorporate many of the design features found in larger Airbus helicopters.
In this episode Joey talks us through some of the things that make the Cabri G2 different from other 2 seat training helicopters and the general anatomy of the design.
Joey got into the flying game in 2008 after working in other industries for a number of years and using the global financial slowdown as the push to make a change. Several years later he made the 2,300 mile trip from Texas to Precision Helicopters in Oregon to check out the first Cabri G2s in to the US and was hooked. He then put an order in for 4 of the machines at the next Heli-Expo.
[Tweet “I decided to be a helicopter pilot when I was 6 years old – Joey Arena”]
01:25 H-37 Mojave helicopter photo 02:45 Westpac Life Saving QLD BO105 live hoist training 03:10 Top 10 Helicopter books for helicopter aircrew 03:30 Competition to win a custom aviation drawing – episode 39 04:40 2 seat training helicopters increasing choices 05:20 Joey Arena is a big fan of the Cabri G2 05:50 Rotating the helicopter sound clip before the interview 07:05 Getting to a helicopter career 08:28 8 Cabri G2s in the United States 10:04 Visiting the factory in France and factory training 11:47 75 aircraft a year production rate, 3 construction bays 13:30 First time seeing a Cabri and overview 16:10 Relationship between Airbus and Guimbal 18:00 Maintenance requirements 19:11 Lycoming O360 Engine – 1 magneto and 1 Electro-plasma system 20:05 Automatic carb heat system 22:00 Engine governor, throttle detent and collective correlation, fuel burn 25:10 Fenestron tail rotor design – ducted fan 27:20 Main rotor system 30:26 Autorotative potential energy, rotor inertia 32:20 Straight in auto procedure 35:00 Availability of parts and support, back order 37:45 Cargo space and Weight&Balance – 611 lbs useful load 38:50 Cabin layout and control feel 43:20 Dashboard and instrumentation 46:10 Engine mount and rotor engagement hydraulic ram 47:35 Landing gear, attachment points to fuselage, slope landings, ground resonance 51:30 Fenestron fan safety features 53:05 Crash protection design of the seats – rated for 2200fpm impact and 95% chance of survivability 57:40 Build process video showing the factory process 58:05 Win a custom aviation drawing by commenting on episode 39 58:40 World Helicopter Day 59:28 Episode Sponsors trainmorepilots.com
[Tweet “If you look at a Cabri your jaw hits the ground because it is absolutely stunning”]
Video – Building a Cabri G2 at the Guimbal factory in France [leadplayer_vid id=”56C14837D8B57″]
Cockpit layout in the Cabri – you can smell the ‘newness’
[Tweet “The Cabri G2 is certified to hover in a crosswind of greater than 50 kts”]
Sling load training in the Cabri G2
This is another image from the Instagram account of aviation artist Marc Veenendaal. Leave a comment on the Episode 39 blog post to go into the random draw to win for your own custom image from Marc.
RWS 39 – Pete Gillies Talks About Learning to Fly Helicopters
Feb 08, 2016
Pete Gillies is a legendary, 18,000-hour helicopter pilot who has previously been honored as the Helicopter Association International’s instructor of the year.
Imagine the flying experience, tips and tricks that you would pick up in a helicopter career spanning 5 decades. Pete Gillies has just retired from full time work in the industry and in this episode he talks about his first experiences of learning to fly a helicopter in the 1960s and passing his commercial helicopter flight test.
Pete Gillies has been a long time Chief Pilot at Western Helicopters in California, USA. He is also a regular contributor to the industry’s leading helicopter publications and a distinguished speaker at events for airborne law enforcers, professional helicopter pilots and the industry at large. He is sought after as an expert witness and for challenging wire pulling, external load and mountain flying operations.
A big thank you to Douglas Williams for recording the audio that you hear in this episode and helping with the setup and photos you see here. Doug trained at Western Helicopters and obtained his PPL/Rotorcraft-Helicopter certificate in December of 2013. Western pushed him to also complete the certificate for Advanced Ground Instructor. Douglas is a past president of EAA Chapter 845 in Redlands, CA where he continues to serve as ground instructor for the Young Eagles events. Douglas is also currently building a Rotorway Jet Exec (turbine conversion) experimental helicopter, and hopes to be flying the skies soon!
Despite his Dad being the Vice-President of Flight Test Engineering at Grumman Aircraft and his Mother being a WASP[Women Airforce Service Pilots], Pete was more interested in a career in electronics initially. He did pick up fixed wing licences but it was 15 years as a technician before Pete showed any interest in helicopters.
The interview in this episode is the story that Pete tells of his first helicopter flight and the start of a distinguished career in the rotary wing world.
Doug Williams and Pete Gilies standing in front of a Sikorsky S-58T helicopter
Pete speaking at the 50th anniversary celebration of Western Helicopters at Angel City Air’s hangar, KWHP
Pete Gillies with Bob Spencer(Chief Instructor, Western Helicopters) and a Whirly-Girl scholarship winner
Fuel stop at KHMT during a flight that Doug did with Pete
In this episode we also mention the hobby Instagram account of aviation artist Marc Veenendaal. It is well worth checking out his drawings on his account. Leave a comment on this blog post to go into the random draw to win for your own custom image from Marc.
Do you know Pete or have flown with him? Use the comments below to leave a public tribute or thank you to Pete Gillies. Also don’t forget our competition for this week – leave a short story or comment about *your* first helicopter experience to win a custom drawing by Marc Veenendaal.
RWS 38 – Rotors ‘n Ribs Fly-In with Randy Sharkey
Feb 01, 2016
Randy Sharkey is the chief organiser of the Rotors ‘n Ribs Fly-in in Indiana.
Billed as the largest Helicopter Airshow in the US (possibly the world?), Rotors ‘n Ribs is in its 5th year running at Goshen Airport, Indiana. In this episode we chat with event president Randy Sharkey about what he and his team of directors have in store for attendees.
Randy is the Chief Pilot at Indiana Helicopters and serves as the president of the not-for-profit group that has run the Rotors ‘n Ribs Fly-in for the last 5 years. In the interview you’ll hear many of this other achievements/appointments and aviation interests.
In 2016 the event will be on 15,16 July and will host a wide range of activities and displays including: Shockwave Jet Truck, the original TV series Batcopter and Batmobile, Sky Soldiers Hueys and Cobra displays and joy flights, a 5km run on the runway, BBQ, safety seminars, helicopter manufacture displays and vendor ground sites.
The team will also be having a crack at the Guinness World Record for the Largest Helicopter Formation Flight which currently stands at 30 helicopters set over Baghdad in Jan 2016.
In this week’s episode: 01:30 Ice on UH-1B Rotor Hub – Facebook 02:10 Exploding Helicopter website and podcast 04:30 Helicopter events coming up in the first half of the year 05:20 Randy Sharkey and Rotors ‘n Ribs 07:25 Great Lakes area and climate 08:40 The first Rotors ‘n Ribs and getting the event started 10:52 Committee and Director responsibilities for fly-in 12:30 First day (Friday) schedule and events 14:20 Hoosier BBQ and Shockwave Jet truck 17:15 Bat Copter 17:40 Saturday main event schedule and exhibitors 20:10 Huey and Cobra joy flights / HAI Safety Seminar 23:30 World record attempt at the largest helicopter formation 26:30 Dropping a car from external load / longline 32:15 Listener question – Keith – Military to Civil industry transition 35:50 Movie trivia answer – most helicopters destroyed 36:20 Episode Sponsors trainmorepilots.com
Which movie has the most helicopter explosions? Take a look at the Exploding Helicopter blog for more exploding helicopter trivia and critical ‘reviews’ [leadplayer_vid id=”56AC8D1289CB1″]
Credit: Bell Aircraft Museum – Display parking at Rotor n’ Ribs 2015
Got a question for Randy about Rotors ‘n Ribs or do you have feedback for Keith around tips for transitioning from the Military to the Civil industry? Continue the conversation in the comments below.
RWS 37 – Tuna Helicopter Flying with Francis ‘Moggy’ Meyrick
Dec 19, 2015
Francis Meyrick has a wealth of knowledge about tuna flying to share.
Look online for information about helicopter operations in the tuna industry and it won’t be long before you see mention of Moggy’s Tuna Manual. Author of the manual Francis ‘Moggy’ Meyrick is our guest in this episode of the Rotary Wing Show.
Francis is Irish born and had a number of years helicopter flying experience including a stint in the North Sea before venturing out to the tuna fields in the Pacific. His first day on the job saw him get a quick check out in a Bell 47 before being told to fly out and find his boat that had already steamed out of port. The rest of the job he learnt as he went with some close calls along the way.
Tuna fishing is big business and a good net full of tuna can pay back weeks of helicopter hire cost in one go. A ship’s helicopter is used to scout for signs of tuna schools over a much larger area than would be possible otherwise. They are used for herding the fish during the netting operation and for general hash and trash flights.
Frequently the pilot may be the only english speaking person onboard the ship and the operations are remote from support and facilities. That small helideck on top of the bridge could well be the only dry landing spot with in fuel endurance and to make things even more exciting it might have moved a considerable way since you last saw it at takeoff.
There are lots of traps waiting for the unwary green pilot on their first trip out. For instance Francis spend a lot of time in the ‘Manual’ about tiedowns and as he puts it, ‘trying to external load a tuna trawler with an MD500 and a rear right tiedown strap’ and the predictable results on the attitude of the helicopter.
Before you ring [helicopter operator] read every word of “Moggy’s Tuna Boat Manual”. It should be compulsory reading for aspiring Tuna Boat pilots — apart from saving your life one day, the wisdom and experience it contains is presented in a very readable fashion. For sheer entertainment (some of the stories are hilarious) grab a cold one and enjoy “Blip on the Radar”. Moggy you have saved lives with “Manual”, and enriched lives with “Blip”.
– Hunter8 , 2012, bladeslapper.com
Once you get past some of these things then tuna boat flying just might be some of the most interesting that you get to do. Life onboard and steaming around Pacific with a mix of nationalities is also sure to give you bar stories for years to come.
Francis went on to be Chief Pilot for Tropic Helicopters and in this episode he shares this thoughts on the industry and ways that you can be more prepared.
01:30 Moggy Intro 02:20 Tuna boat flying is a thing 03:45 Prior flying experience – Puma’s in the North Sea, Instructing, A&P Mechanic license 05:00 First landing on a tuna boat 07:10 How do they pay for a helicopter to help with fishing 09:20 Herding fish with a helicopter 10:30 Conditions onboard the vessels 12:00 Operating areas and main companies 14:20 Licences required, maps / charts 15:00 Navigation at sea and keeping track of a moving boat 19:40 Zero accidents goal is possible – caution caution, don’t let people push you 21:15 A tuna boat helideck setup 24:10 Weather conditions and aircraft exposure 25:25 Underwater breathing bottle carried on you 27:20 Flying clothing and dress code 29:10 Key people onboard and getting on with the crew 34:10 Observer’s role 37:20 Dealing with pressure 41:10 Culture and asking for co-operation 43:30 Radio buoys and logs, autorotating over water 51:10 Caution the advice ‘just learn on the job’ 53:30 What makes a good log? 55:20 How to prepare for a tuna boat trip 1:01:50 Episode Sponsors trainmorepilots.com
Matilda & The Fox II – a youtube clip of tuna boat flying [leadplayer_vid id=”5673F69BE17DA”]
Got a question for Francis that we didn’t cover in the episode or have you read Moggy’s Tuna Manual and want to leave some feedback? Continue the conversation in the comments below.
RWS 36 – Survival and Rescue with John Hudson
Sep 25, 2015
John is the UK military’s chief instructor in Land, Sea and Extreme Environment Survival. In this episode he talks about the priorities of survival should you find yourself forced to land in a remote location.
How much attention do you pay to what you wear or carry on you when you go flying? For some of us our organisation or company might mandate what equipment is carried – and that can start to add up, personal location beacon, knife, pocket flares, first aid kit, mirror, pistol, HEEDs bottle, whistle etc if you are military.
For many of us though it’s a wallet, keys and mobile phone. This episode will challenge you to think about what you will do if you get forced down due to weather or mechanical problem in a remote area and need to wait for rescue or recovery.
[Tweet “Most important thing is to have a good #rescue beacon with you. #helicopter”]
John takes us through the key elements of survival and how that relates to helicopter aircrew. As an ex-Puma pilot and now someone that trains UK military personnel including aircrew on survival John is able to talk about specifics such as using parts of the aircraft to help out.
I probably wouldn’t have thought of using the aircraft battery to help getting a fire going for example. Another key lesson is don’t go anywhere without a 406Mhz beacon.
[Tweet “Stay with the airframe if you can. Much bigger footprint for search teams.”]
In this week’s episode:
01:43 John Hudson bio 03:20 Sergey Ananov rescue in the Arctic Circle Jul 2015 05:33 RAF helicopter training – Puma 06:40 Full time role as Defence survival instructor 08:35 Overseeing the training of other survival instructors 09:40 SERE (Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape) 11:30 Extreme survival environment training – deep snow, jungle 15:14 ‘Dude you’re screwed’ TV series on Discovery channel 18:16 Camera operators on the show while ‘surviving’ 21:15 Training around the world for groups 23:00 Mental preparedness is a key factor 25:00 Make a cup of tea, allows time to think, glucose, heat to boil water 26:30 Muscle memory training – fire on start, aircraft evacuation, emergency briefing 29:50 Protection, Location, Water, Food 30:30 Protection – first aid, clothing, shelter, fire (fire first in cold environment) 34:46 Location – 121.5MHz no longer satellite monitored, want a 406MHz beacon, big ground signals, flightplan before you go 39:10 Water – limiting factor in longer survival, must be clean but…. , ‘big bubbles, no troubles’, methods of sterilization 41:30 Food – glucose type sweets don’t require water to process 42:35 Practical equipment to take flying, cutting tool, grab bag, signal mirror, compass on your watch strap 46:30 Resources you can repurpose from airframe – radios if they still work, battery to start a fire, tires for black signal smoke, insulation fabric, fuel for fire and cooking, piping/ducting to carry or store water 50:30 Leadership and passengers – 75% chance that any individual will be stunned and bewildered. Panic is not that common but contagious. Give them tasks to keep busy. 55:10 Books – South: Sir Ernest Shackleton, Antarctic survival story from early 1900s, When I Fell From The Sky, Juliane Koepcke, survived 10,000’ fall into jungle, Royal Marines Survival Handbook by Colin Towell 58:40 Top take away ideas from the interview 1:00:00 Episode Sponsors trainmorepilots.com
Snippet from a Dude You’re Screwed episode – John making a cup of tea [leadplayer_vid id=”56052A5FAC8C2″]
John training in the snow with UK military
[Tweet “Make a cup of tea, allows time to think, glucose, heat to boil water @jhsurvival”] [Tweet “Survival is not one huge task, it’s a series of little tasks”]
Got a question for John that we didn’t cover in the episode or a survival tip? Continue the conversation in the comments below.
RWS 35 – Superyacht Helicopter Operations with Gareth Ross
Aug 29, 2015
In terms of wealth probably nothing says you’ve made it more than owning a superyacht – unless of course its owning a superyacht with helicopter landing facilities. In this episode we find out about the section of the helicopter industry that operates off these exclusive vessels.
Gareth Ross from Superyacht Aviation served 26 years in the UK Royal Navy before finding himself working with crews and owners of superyachts worldwide helping them to safely and efficiently operate helicopters from their floating mansions.
About 3% of superyachts have the ability to land a helicopter on them. The number of such vessels has been growing 10% per year for the last 10 years. Helicopters offer these high net worth owners a quick way to ferry pax and cargo from their yachts to maximise time aboard.
For the yacht crews it brings a range of new considerations now that they are involved in aviation. From the flying side of things it means operating at sometimes short notice, often operating away from fixed mantenance facilities and to a moving deck.
[Tweet “Superyachts over 100m long with 2-3 designated helidecks – possible tiltrotor platforms in the future”]
00:59 World Helicopter Day 2015 03:45 Brisbane Aviation Careers Expo 05:25 Listener correspondence 06:30 Gareth Ross – Superyacht Aviation 08:23 26 years in the UK Royal Navy including Flight Deck Officer on HMS Ark Royal 10:21 What are Superyachts? 11:34 3% of Superyachts have helidecks with market growth at 10% per year for last 10 years 12:15 Crewing arrangements 14:30 Types in the helicopter fleet 16:00 Qualifications required and training 20:10 Procedures and approach profiles 21:40 Helicopter storage onboard and tiedowns 23:17 Spare parts and handling equipment 24:20 Onboard refueling options 25:40 Non-flying tasks onboard and notice to move 27:00 Entry experience required 27:55 starspeed.co.uk example of helicopter management and pilot/crew placement agency 29:00 Getting a foot in the door 32:35 Top 10 helicopter books for helicopter aircrew 32:55 Episode Sponsors trainmorepilots.com 33:15 Competition – Photo with you, helicopter and Rotary Wing Show sign, post to Facebook to enter
Links from this week’s episode: Gareth’s company Superyacht Aviation Book:The Night Stalkers: Top Secret Missions of the U.S. Army’s Special Operations Aviation Regiment
[Tweet “(Superyachts) Sling loading quad bikes via #helicopter vs putting on to a tender”] [Tweet “Lots of starts/stops with short flights. Extra battery pack & generators good idea for spares. @yachtaviation”]
Helicopter landing on a superyacht in the Bahamas [leadplayer_vid id=”55E170F503AD3″]
[leadplayer_vid id=”55E170C5DA4D0″]
Have a question or comment on either this episode or helicopter ops on superyachts in general? Keep the conversation going in the comments below.
RWS 34 – Special Operations Aviation with Mike Durant
Aug 11, 2015
Flying long range assault missions at extremely low altitudes on NVGs with a cabin full of special forces soldiers is all in a days work for the men and women of the 160th Special Operations Regiment. Mike Durant was a Blackhawk element flight lead with the ‘Night Stalkers’ and in this interview talks about his flying career.
Mike Durant is the only surviving crew member of Super Six Four, a special operations blackhawk shot down by RPG fire in Mogadishu, Somalia in 1993. He was severely injured in the crash and then captured and held hostage for 11 days.
The events of the mission were later captured in the book and movie ‘Blackhawk Down’. Prior to 1993 the 160th organisation was almost completely unknown even within US Army Aviation circles.
MH-60 of the 160th SOAR (A) with a variety of mission equipment fitted.
You might not know that Mike returned to flying duties with the 160th after recovering from his injuries and continued to fly in the unit for a number of years after that.
His career leading up to joining the Night Stalkers and prior to 1993 is also fascinating stuff and an insight into the skills and attitudes that it takes to get right to the top of the rotary wing pecking order. He took part in the US invasion of Panama in 1989 and was the first helicopter to shoot at a SCUD missile launcher in Iraq. Mike was also instrumental in the development process of the Direct Action Penetrator armed Blackhawk.
These are an amazing group of aviators and their support teams.
Some of the currencies they need to keep up: Instrument flying, NVGs, Formation, Aerial gunnery, Rappelling, HALO, Suspended extraction, Air-to-air refueling, Deck landings, HUET + more
Mike recovered from his injuries to return to active service with the 160th SOAR (A) and served out several more years. He now heads up Pinnacle Solutions as the company CEO.
Books co-authored by Mike Durant about his experiences and those of the 160th SOAR
01:10 Back from Rockhampton and flight in 212 Single 01:50 World Helicopter Day update – now added Tanzania and Panama 02:33 Mike Durant intro 04:08 1993 Operations in Somalia – part of life that happened a long time ago 06:50 First introduction to flying 08:45 Soloing through Army flight school at 7 hours mark 11:41 Medivac posting in Korea – Hueys and Blackhawks 14:39 101st Aviation Regiment – multi-ship, NVGs, sling loads, tactical operations, air assault 16:25 Instructor Pilot course and formation lead 17:10 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment assessment – green platoon, physical requirements, ground nav, air nav without GPS -+30sec, terrain following radars, aerial refueling, IF 21:00 SERE training and stories from the book ‘In The Company of Heroes’ 22:10 Progression to Flight Lead 23:15 What it feels like to strap in 24:30 Operational experience prior to Somalia 29:10 Chip light in middle of mission 31:17 Direct Action Penetrator Blackhawks – Hellfire, 30mm cannons, rockets and miniguns, air-to-air missiles 36:35 Pet hate of the Blackhawk 38:55 Flight profiles in Somalia – 15-20 ship formations over the roof tops, 50/50 Day vs Night 43:45 Mission on the day of being shot down 48:56 Looking down at full left pedal but yawing right 51:12 Hit the ground still spinning 55:25 Ground battle and actions leading to posthumous Congressional Medal of Honor for Randy Shughart and Gary Gordon, Mike is only survivor and carried away by mob 59:45 Other aviation stories from the mission 1:06:30 Piracy in modern day Somalia 1:09:45 Transition back into civilian life 1:11:50 Pinnacle Solutions – Mike’s company pinnaclesolutionsinc.com/ 1:14:30 Flying advice to pass on 1:18:10 Episode Sponsors trainmorepilots.com
This is a recording of a talk that Mike gave to the US Army War College about the military background and lessons learnt from the operations in Somalia. They had requested a tank as the Search and Rescue vehicle but had been denied. [leadplayer_vid id=”55C96CF7436EC”]
00:25 into this video you can see the Littlebirds making an approach to the roads in Mogadishu and the dust being through up.
DAP Blackhawk Firepower Demonstration
If you’ve been inspired by Mike’s career or have a question about the episode then keep the conversation going in the comments below.
Helipaddy is a mobile app that gives you access to a database of helicopter landing sites around the globe.
As a private pilot Paddy Wills wanted to find new and interesting places to fly to and explore. This involved asking around, researching locations, trawling forums and poking around on Google Earth. He thought there must be a better way so he went and created one.
Helipaddy is a mobile app for helicopter pilots that crowdsources landing site location information from sites around the world. It makes it easy to find helicopter friendly places off the beaten track or to plan your next multi day tour.
Information you might find on a site includes: Lat Long, Owner, phone number, notes, fuel, landing fees, comments from other pilots and upcoming events. For registered sites you can request landing permission from the owner right from inside the app (that’s pretty cool).
[Tweet “We could probably create a list called ‘Places that charge Very High Landing Fees'”]
It’s designed to be easily used in the air and sports an arrange of different features. Paid up premium members can also draw on the Helipaddy staff skills to generate a trip itinerary with fuel and accommodation details.
In the interview Paddy talks about his own flying experience, the idea for the app and the journey of making Helipaddy a going concern with users from all corners of the helicopter world.
He is also in the process of planning a helicopter flight to the South Pole.
[Tweet “#Scotland is one of the best places to fly in the world – Paddy Wills @helipaddyapp”]
01:23 Episode Sponsors trainmorepilots.com 01:50 Paddy Wills – getting a start in flying helicopters 03:25 Highlights of last 8 years of flying 05:40 Flying in Scotland 06:50 Coming up with the name of the app 08:05 Creating the app and development 09:30 Filling a need for where to fly to for fun 11:15 Where the helipad location data comes from 12:30 User interface and how to use it 14:45 Using the Helipaddy data in SkyDemon/Foreflight/OzRunways etc 16:25 Word of mouth marketing – narrow market segment 19:32 CoPosition, cross platform ‘find my friends’ feature built in 20:50 Ability to upload private landing spots for personal use or friends list 22:00 Database sites are moderated by team on entry and periodic checks 24:20 Interesting places to look for in the app 26:16 Ability to produce curated trip guides for locations 27:40 How to get out of landing fees – clever tip! 30:00 How to add a new landing site to the database 31:20 Community building, loyalty program, venue incentives and gamification 33:50 Battery use footprint minimised and made for shaky data connection 35:50 Future flight to the South Pole and planning 39:30 Are you a lurker – challenge to leave a comment on your favorite episode shownotes. 40:25 World Helicopter Day update
RWS 32 – Helicopter Flight Paramedics with Bernie Walker
Jun 29, 2015
Bernie Walker has been a helicopter flight paramedic in Canada for over 16 years.
Bernie Walker is a Flight paramedic working with STARS – which is the Shock Trauma Air Rescue Service – an EMS organisation that covers most of Western Canada.
Bernie has been with STARS as a flight paramedic for over 16 years now and these days plays a big part in their educational programs. So he is someone again with heaps of experience in a helicopter role but this time from the back of the cabin.
I am guilty of making the interviews for the podcast very pilot centric which is just a factor of my own background and experience but I would love to represent a range of helicopter aircrew roles.
It just seems to be that loadmasters and aircrewmen keep ducking for cover when I try to corner them.
A STARS AW139 helicopter on the ramp. Photo: Calgary Sun
So I really enjoyed chatting to Bernie about the flight paramedic role as it stretches my knowledge of the industry. I’m not expecting to be in an EMS position any time soon but for those of you that might be then Bernie gives a really good insight into many of the considerations that the team in the back have to deal with.
If you listen between the lines so to speak I think you’ll also get value from the current best practice approach to critical patient care when its applied to how we tackle emergency or non-standard airborne situations.
We head into the interview with Bernie explaining the EMS coverage in Western Canada and the typical career progression into the helicopter flight paramedic role.
Video produced by STARS showing the different careers in the organisation [leadplayer_vid id=”5590B55F31C1A”]
A STARS BK117 decked out with medical equipment
Got a question for Bernie about the flight paramedic role or STARS? Be part of the conversation below. If you’ve listened to the episode then don’t forget to leave links to your favourite crew resource management / human factors resources below.
RWS 31 – AOPA Hover Power Blog with Ian Twombly and Markus Lavenson
Jun 07, 2015
The Hoverpower blog is updated by a team of helicopter pilots with a vast array of backgrounds. The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) is the largest general aviation body in the United States. Hover Power is the association’s helicopter themed blog covering a mix of news, stories and advice.
In today’s episode we cover a heap of ground as we talk about the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association in the US, loss of licence insurance, helicopter blogs, recommended ipad apps, inflight emergency handling and tuna boat flying.
[Tweet “Helicopters are the ultimate offroad vehicle, can do things no other machine can do.”]
Ian Twombly is editor of the AOPA monthly magazines AOPA Pilot and Flight Training. Ian has been a fixed wing instructor for some time and has recently also joined the helicopter fraternity.
Ian Twombly converted across to helicopters in 2014 and this is a photo after completing his checkride.
One of his other duties with AOPA is to head up the Hover Power blog. Ian has been busy building up the site and has managed to herd a team of experienced helicopter pilots together to contribute articles about all aspects of helicopter operations.
One of the blog contributors is Markus Lavenson. Markus is a AW139 captain in the Gulf of Mexico and is about to head off soon to convert across to the AW189. He has been flying since way back in 1984 and had a go at instructing, tuna boats, tourism, powerlines, EMS, offshore, check and training roles and a stint in Alaska.
Markus in an AW139 preparing for offshore flight in the Gulf of Mexico. Photo Credit: Alex Geacintov
AOPA is a not for profit group founded in 1939 to ensure that the early US general aviation community was able to be represented in the formation of new laws and to provide subject matter experts. Its role today is similar with effort put towards advocacy, safety education, training, representation at federal, state, local levels, social activities and legal advice.
Australia, England, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa, Greece and probably a bunch more countries also have their own AOPA groups. The Australian AOPA maintains a National Airfield Directory publication that we always bought for the Squadron Ops room as it listed many of the remote and out of the way country strips and contact details that would not be found in other normal AIP.
02:15 Episode Sponsors trainmorepilots.com 06:50 Number of pilots in the US 08:40 Working with governments at all levels to put forward aviation industry case 09:30 New York / New Hamptons helicopter noise restrictions 10:10 What does AOPA membership get you? 12:50 Loss of licence coverage and insurance coverage 16:35 Hoverpower blog articles and writing team 21:50 Markus’ flying background and experience 26:35 AOPA Live video blogging and news articles ‘Enstrom’ example 28:10 Reviewing aviation products that get sent in 29:10 Top flying iPad app recommendations 35:00 Visting helicopter industry events 36:20 New wave of helicopter designs hitting the market 39:30 Engine failure at night to hospital pad 45:10 Handling aircraft emergencies 46:50 Soloing in a Bell 47 with wooden blades 50:30 Tuna boat flying 53:10 Going out to dinner at restaurant in R22 57:30 EMS off airfield landings
This video gives you an idea of the video content that AOPA is producing. In it Ian Twombly talks about the training helicopter market during HeliExpo 2015. [leadplayer_vid id=”5574178019E86″]
[Tweet “I was able to pick up the phone and call AOPA and talk to an aviation legal professional immediately.”]
[Tweet “As a pilot in an emergency, your first priority is preservation of life.”]
Photos of Markus during his time flying off tuna boats in the Pacific.
[Tweet “You have 2 hours searching for fish to think about how the heck am I going to get this thing back on the boat.”]
[Tweet “In the event of an emergency we sink to the level of our training. We are only as good as our training.”]
What topics would you love to see the Hoverpower writing team cover on their blog. Leave a comment below and have a chance to get an AOPA cap sent out by Ian.
RWS 30 – Touchdown Autorotation Competition and more with Jerry Trimble
May 25, 2015
Jerry Trimble has been there and done that – now he focuses on the personal touch with helicopter training
With the ink still drying on his A&P licence Jerry landed a job at Robinson Helicopters and went flying on his first day on the job with Frank Robinson in R22 serial number 2. We cover several of the experiences from Jerry’s career in this episode.
Jerry Trimble is today’s guest and is the owner of Jerry Trimble Helicopters in McMinnville, Oregon.
Jerry’s experience includes fixed wing CFI, A&P mechanic (and still does his own maintenance), EMS, logging, fire contracts and instructing. He has several thousand hours on the R22 alone and a long association with the Robinson product having worked at Robinson Helicopters as a new A&P in the period leading up to FAA certification.
[Tweet “Once you get the bug, it never goes away. #helicopters”]
Along the way Jerry founded, built up and then sold Hillsboro Aviation which at the time had 40 staff and 25 aircraft.
Now along with his wife Alison, his focus is on training pilots in a smaller setting at Jerry Trimble Helicopters.
The school has a busy social calendar with different events. One of the events that has grown over time and built a following is the annual Touchdown Auto Competition. The 2015 event is on June 28th with $600 prize money (and bragging rights) going to the winner. The event is judged by a panel of well known industry names and looks to be a lot of fun. Full details on the competition here.
The Robert E. Trimble memorial award for mountain flying was given out by the Helicopter Foundation International for many years. There is an article about Jerry’s Dad further down the page that makes for some very interesting reading too. Robert was very much a pioneer of the helicopter industry.
In this week’s episode:
00:50 Cracking out the ugg boots for Queensland winter 01:30 ‘Train like you fly’ book – scenario based training 04:31 Robert Trimble, helicopter pioneer 07:15 Robert E. Trimble memorial award for mountain flying 08:55 Aeroplane rating out of high school 10:31 Bell 47 time in Jakarta, Indonesia 11:47 A&P mechanic licence 12:50 First day on the job at Robinson Helicopters – flying with Frank Robinson in R22 no.2 16:30 Struggle of certification and story about recovering R22 serial number 001 19:40 Pros and cons of the R22 22:59 Founding Hillsboro Aviation and growing it 40 employees and 25 aircraft 27:20 Jerry Trimble Helicopters 30:38 Alison – corporate Learjet pilot, fired Jerry as her instructor, runs the business 32:22 Children’s interest level in flying 33:55 Overseas students are a big market 35:50 Touchdown Autorotation Competition history 42:42 Tips on conducting autorotations 45:05 Tips on teaching autorotations 47:50 Poker run social event 50:15 EMS flight with boy’s mum in the front to hospital – made a difference 52:55 Low level engine failure over freeway 53:57 McMinnville, Oregon location – now Palm Springs, Texas and North Carolina 62:55 Episode Sponsors trainmorepilots.com
The Robert E. Trimble memorial award for mountain flying was given out by Helicopter Foundation International for many years. Jerry was only 6 when his father was killed in a helicopter crash.
Construction shot of the ‘Big Foot’ that Jerry Trimble Helicopters will use for longline training and as a local attraction.
Be part of the conversation and get involved in the comments section below. What questions do you have about flight training or the early days of the R22?
RWS 29 – Ocean Rescues and a Tail Rotor Failure with Jerry Grayson
May 14, 2015
Jerry Grayson was a RAN SAR pilot flying Wessex helicopters before starting his own company and later moving into film flying.
As a Royal Navy SAR pilot Jerry Grayson was involved in a number of high profile rescue missions along with the crews of the Wessex helicopters he piloted. He has written a book – Rescue Pilot – that captures many of the stories of this part of his career.
Jerry decided early on in life that he was going to fly. He ended up at a very young age in the Royal Navy flying Sea Kings, Whirlwinds and Wessex machines. In this interview we cover several of the tales from his Navy career including his time upon the aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal.
[Tweet “I’d had enough of school, its time to go flying”] [Tweet “The deck of a carrier is THE most exciting place on earth”]
This of course only gets as a few years into Jerry’s career. After leaving the Navy, Jerry started a commercial helicopter company which saw him involved in a wide range of operations and flying a variety of helicopters.
One incident that we spend a little time going into depth on is a tailrotor driveshaft failure that Jerry experienced in an Augusta 109. It’s our hope that listeners might be able to draw in some small way from this experience should they ever find themselves unlucky enough to be in a similar situation.
Jerry has since gone on to significant success and renown as a helicopter film pilot with contracts on several high profile films (including Blackhawk Down with past guest Dennis Kenyon), Formula 1, Soccer World Cup, Olympics, Commonwealth Games and even written, directed and flown for an IMAX film.
There is a lot more to Jerry’s career and achievements so you’ll just have to listen to find out.
00:52 Rescue Pilot – book by Jerry Grayson 02:40 Book background and media appearances 07:06 BBC Fast Net Yacht Race reunion radio show 09:38 Finding old Whirlwind/Wessex airframes – firefighting training props, paintball field targets 11:50 Air Force Cross – highest award for gallantry in the air (UK) – Greek Medal of Honour 15:47 Meeting the Queen 16:40 Selection board for Royal Navy at 16 18:30 Flying scholarship to civil PPL school and running errands for Micky Lauder, race driver 19:55 British aircraft carrier Ark Royal 20:50 PlaneGuard role to pick up fixed wing aircraft ditching off carriers 22:45 Seaking stranded on the surface with one engine at night 26:35 Navigating overwater before GPS 30:30 Losing map out the window 32:40 Flying the Whirlwind/Wessex 37:30 Film flying and division of cockpit duties 38:50 Tail rotor failure in an Augusta 109 48:15 Airborne external inspection of tail rotor by S76 50:55 The last mile to the runway down to 60kts run on 56:10 Some advice on flying 58:50 What is next for Jerry Grayson 1:01:36 Video of Jerry talking about the Wessex helicopter and the book 1:02:00 Feedback on the show, leave a comment
Jerry talks a little bit about the Wessex helicopter and rescues at sea in this promo video for his book. [leadplayer_vid id=”555079860B909″]
Jerry is flying in this photo of a Wessex at a base display day. A marine pulled a smoke grenade in the cabin putting the cockpit into IMC on departure.
[Tweet “The airflow in a helicopter is specifically designed to take your map out the window”] [Tweet “So macho to climb up the side and mount your trusty steed (Wessex Helicopter)”]
Be part of the conversation and get involved in the comments section below. What questions do you have about Jerry’s interview?
RWS 28 – Vietnam, Culture and Helicopter Company Management with David Earley
May 02, 2015
This photo of David Earley was taken during his Bell 47 time and features on the cover of his book ‘Beneath Blades’ From the outback of northern Australia, to the jungles of Vietnam and the mountains of Papua New Guinea and Nepal – plus much of the US, time in the Philippines, Columbia and Russia, David Earley is one well travelled helicopter pilot.
Along the way he has held almost every position from line pilot to a helicopter company CEO overseeing $47 million in annual revenue on some of the largest Australian government helicopter contracts. He is also a licensed A&P mechanic.
David started out flying the Bell 47 in the Australian Army during which time he spent 12 months at war in Vietnam as a scout pilot. Post-war David held a number of positions in the Army before moving to JAARS where he spent 15 years in PNG and the US.
His duties here not only included providing support to remote teams in the PNG highlands but the standing up of a helicopter training school and check and training.
From here David held a number of roles leading to the position of CEO of Reef Helicopters which became Australian Helicopters. All of which is covered in his book ‘Beneath Blades – Flying at the ends of the earth. A pilot’s journal‘.
Having read the book I can tell you that it’s a great collection of aviation tales and helicopter adventures. Aswell as being an entertaining read there is also a lot in it for the professional aviator in terms of safety culture, operational pressures and aviation management stressors.
01:40 Hosting Rotary Club for dinner in the Aeropower hanger 03:15 David Earley background 05:10 Nav training and mental arithmetic drilling 06:30 Book – ‘Beneath Blades’ http://dhearley.com/ 08:40 Tim Fisher, Deputy Prime Minister wrote the Forward 10:00 Night touchdown autorotations at RAAF Amberley 12:55 Survey work in Northern Territory + wife Nancy 15:50 Employee crash due to overloaded helicopter and spouse breakup 18:10 Companies addressing touring/home issues / critical manager skillset 21:30 Nancy’s flying experience 23:56 Vietnam and scout role in the Bell 47 Sioux 25:05 First Australian pilot to fly the Kiowa 25:30 Kangaroo vinyls stuck on US helicopters and helmets 30:15 Night flying under Porter flares 28:20 Grenade + drop toilet 33:13 JAARS – in-house aviation department for Wycliffe Bible translation service 34:30 Check and training for remote single pilot ops 37:45 Tackling a village elder to stop approaching tail rotor 39:25 Cultural training and differences 47:38 Aviation culture, within companies, people, impacts 51:53 Coming in to be unpopular in some roles to effect change 52:30 Conforming to the norm – can be good or bad 54:33 Importance of initial training as a foundation 59:10 Personal integrity 1:02:30 Engine overhauls and seeing pilot behaviour impact 1:05:20 What pilots need to know about company manager/executive priorities/limitations 1:08:35 Private equity ownership of helicopter companies 1:10:28 Book ordering details 1:11:10 Episode Sponsors trainmorepilots.com
RWS 26 – US Forest Service Helicopter Ops with John Harris
Apr 03, 2015
John Harris is one of 12 helicopter inspector pilots employed by the US Forest Service
Helicopters are uniquely suited to the demands of the US Forest Service. John Harris is one of the Service’s inspector pilots and in this episode talks about his career and his current role.
Based in Missoula, Montana, John is responsible for checking and qualifying contractor pilots for the US Inter-agency Helicopter Pilot Qualification Card. This qualification allows them to work on US Forest Service contracts.
His area of responsibility covers Montana, Idaho, Wyoming and North and South Dakota. In between flight check duties you can find inspector pilots providing helicopter subject matter expert input into operational planning and Service policies.
John was instrumental in bringing into service a water based heli-torch training device that, as the name suggests, uses water rather than dripping burning napalm for check and training missions.
Before starting his current role, John has had a career flying ‘heavies’ in military, logging, longlining, construction and firefighting operations.
[Tweet “If you are sitting in a helicopter fat, dumb and happy… then you are missing something.”]
John also shares some wisdom about the characteristics and work ethic you need to show to have the best chance of moving up in the industry. He also talks to the idea of mentorship and the responsibility on aircraft captains to develop their co-pilots from the point of view that they become a reflection of you. Podcast:Subscribe in iTunes | Play in new window | Download In this week’s episode:
01:05 Helicopter landing officer course – Dave, Martin, Reggie 02:35 Question of the week – how long was your CPL ground and air test? 03:36 Top helicopter books list download 04:00 John Harris – US Forest Service Helicopter Inspector Pilot 04:57 Where is Montana? 08:10 Geology major at Uni to motor pool truck mechanic 09:40 Warrant Officer candidate school, flight school Fort Rucker 10:30 Hueys and then Chinooks(1990) 12:20 Columbia helicopters logging operations 16:20 Longlining experience 18:15 Overseas jungle compounds – PNG, Ecuador 20:20 Flew the National Christmas tree 22:05 Carson Helicopters (2006) – S61 helicopters, Chief Pilot 26:50 Erickson Helicopters – E and F model skycranes 29:10 Flying skycrane from San Diego to Peru – maps, agents, fuel, visas, bullet hole 33:50 Skycrane 105-115kts cruise 35:10 US Forest Service – Region 1, carding contractors, subject matter experts, national programs 37:50 Water torch as a training aid for heli-torch operations 40:10 Only 12 helicopter pilots employed direct by Forest Service – not an operational role 42:25 Using Bell Cobra’s for fire scouting 43:10 Minimum experience requirements to be Forest Service qualified 45:50 Helicopter percentage of Forest Service budget 48:30 Utility tasks – stream enhancement, animal surveys, radio tower repair/resupply 50:00 Typical contractor machines – 206s, Astars, Hueys, 205s/++, 212, KMAX, BK117, Chinook, skycranes, S61s 51:14 Advice for breaking into the Forest Service contactor flying as a junior pilot 54:10 Professional development 55:22 Things wish had learnt earlier – risk management, don’t be afraid to stop, don’t push your limits, be patient, enjoy it! 58:55 Episode Sponsors trainmorepilots.com 59:20 Leave an iTunes review or on Stitcher 59:35 World Helicopter Day
RWS 25 – Aviation Vision Science with Warren de Haan
Mar 18, 2015
Dr Warren De Haan – Vision is a critical input to operating a helicopter but there is a lot to it.
Dr Warren De Haan has been an Aviation vision specialist for 48 years and is considered the world’s leading expert in the field.
In this episode we will be talking about vision science, tips on looking after your eyesight, better habits to help you detect obstacles, the effects of aging on sight and considerations for extending your flying career.
Big thanks to Bob Feerst and Lynette Sims from Utilities Aviation Specialists for introducing me to Warren.
[Tweet “Memory and past perception play an important part in how we see things”]
On the flying side Warren holds ratings on ATPL-Multi-engine, CPL helicopter, glider, lighter-than-air, and seaplanes.
He is an instructor on multiengine aeroplanes and gliders. One of his hobbies is collecting ratings and he has managed to fly a range of aircraft from 737s to Piper Cubs and R-22s.
Warren is the author of two books: Moving through the ratings: Passing from Private to Professional Pilot The Optometrist’s and Ophthalmologist’s Guide to Pilot’s Vision
In this week’s episode: 01:30 Dr Warren De Haan Bio 02:15 Episode Sponsors trainmorepilots.com 03:10 What is vision science 04:25 Start of flying experience and collecting ratings 07:20 Medical training and eye care career 08:30 Vision research studies – contact lenses and pilots 11:30 Expert witness and consulting on legal cases – midair collisions, wire strike 13:50 Misconception that pilots will see the wire all the time 15:10 Importance of a recon to support vision processing 18:20 Vision processing/coding on the retina 21:40 Binocular vision 24:07 Visual angle and blossoming and visual discrimination 27:20 VFR look out and visual scanning techniques 31:30 Most important thing for helicopters pilots – won’t see things in time 32:45 Most common eye diseases 37:30 Lasik surgery 41:30 UV damage and sunglasses 46:23 Polarised glasses and canopies 47:10 Glass cockpits 49:36 Colour vision 51:00 Maintaining vision as we get older 53:00 Recommendations on prescription lenses – progressive lenses and bi-focals 56:50 Medical waivers 59:35 Contact details for Warren 1:02:50 Live call with Dennis Kenyon and his book ‘Dangerous Appointment’ 1:04:26 Listener email – Josh 1:05:50 World Helicopter Day
RWS 24 – CoaX Helicopters with Richard Woodward
Mar 08, 2015
Test pilot Richard Woodward mixes his time between A380s and single seat helicopters
Today’s episode is about a single seat helicopter design being developed in Australia that makes use of a coaxial rotor system.
And who better to talk us through the design than Airbus A380 captain Richard Woodward. That’s right, Richard is not only Manager of Flying Operations and Chief Test Pilot at CoaX Helicopters but also a line Captain with QANTAS flying the A380.
Some back of the napkin calculations show that you could put 13 of the 20′ diameter helicopters side by side under the A380 wings.
The coaxial rotor design uses two main rotors mounted above each other on the one mast. Each rotor spins in the opposite (contra rotating) direction thereby cancelling out the torque created as a result of powered flight.
This also means that no tail rotor is required – less power lost to the tail rotor system, reduced aircraft length, removal of a significant ground handling danger and a delicate, potential aircraft point of failure.
The dual rotors also allow for a reduction in rotor diameter and rotor tip speeds.
[Tweet “The coaxial design provides a x1.4 rotor diameter advantage – compact and more performance.”]
Richard had his start in aviation through the Royal Australian Air Force where he flew Hueys and later moved into SAR and then test flying.
In the interview Richard talks about the process the CoaX Helicopter’s team has had to go through to purchase an aircraft design that was created in the 1950s, reverse engineer the original design drawings with the help of remaining airframes and then reconstruct and re-engineer to get a modern and improved commercially viable flying example. He describes the process as ‘eye watering’.
The results speak for themselves with a very fun and compact helicopter – check out the video further down the page.
Some additional interesting things about coaxial rotor systems for those of us not used to them:
* top speed is limited by flapping to equality of the rotors – where one side is high the other is low reducing the clearance between the two discs * retreating blade stall is not such a factor because of the lower blade tip speeds (smaller diameter) * reduced blade tip speeds provide a lower noise signature * top speed is almost practically the same in any direction – tail fins do come into play * 9 – 17% of engine power is lost to the tail rotor in a conventional helicopter * yaw control in coaxial rotor designs can be problematic but is overcome in Coax Helicopter’s designs by drag flaps on the end of the rotor blades that provide a torque differential between the blades * yaw pedal inputs required are small and relatively steady with no tail rotor effects to worry about * center of gravity is something that needs consideration as much of the weight is close to the mast * gust response in the hover is reduced as the contra rotating rotors experience opposite effects
Kamov and Sikorsky would seem to be the only other current manufacturers with flying coaxial rotor helicopters.
In this week’s episode: 01:20 Thanks for sharing the show with your connections 02:00 HAI Heli Expo 2015 03:05 Clean Up Australia Day – with helicopters 04:20 Richard Woodward started flying in 1971 with the RAAF 06:00 Flying Hueys 07:11 Peacekeeping ops in the Sinai 08:40 SAR, instructing and Empire Test Pilot Course 10:40 Early NVG test and development and Papua New Guinea HDA ops 14:40 Blackhawk introduction into Australian service 16:50 Flying 747s, 767, A330 and A380 No.1 in France 18:50 Advantages that helicopter pilots take to jumbos 20:30 CoaX Helicopters and aircraft genesis 22:00 Torpedo carrier and air target towing 22:40 Co-axial rotor design and shafts 24:10 Limitations and advantages, aerodynamics 26:20 Generating yaw control 28:40 Tail rotor absorbs 9-17% of power in a normal helicopter 29:30 Reduction in ground handling danger due no tail rotor 31:00 Noise and engine operation 32:10 Center of gravity considerations 33:40 Scaling the design up and production 36:40 Flying characteristics and manoeuvring 38:00 Licensing and training 42:50 Autorotations 44:30 Helicopter monitoring system fitted as standard 47:40 Reaction of fellow A380 aircrew 49:11 Converting original paper designs into 3D models and engineering 51:30 Looking for investment and purchase orders 52:30 Episode Sponsors trainmorepilots.com 52:55 American Helicopter Museum and Helicopter Museum, UK will be part of World Helicopter Day, 16 Aug 2015
[Tweet “Original idea was for helicopter to be dropped to downed aircrew so they could fly home”]
[Tweet “Autorotates quite well, comes down at a typical helicopter rate, approx 1400fpm”]
Concept idea for a future 5 seat CoaX Helicopter design
Some of the CoaX Helicopter team at RotorTech 2014
In the show I talk about a Clean Up Australia Day event I was part of where we used a MD500 to external load out rubbish from mangroves near Redcliffe airfield. Pics below.
Be part of the conversation and get involved in the comments section below. What questions do you have about this one man helicopter or the coax design?
RWS 23 – Helicopter Helmets with Mark Jones
Mar 01, 2015
Mark Jones is Snr Product Specialist, Aircrew Systems at Gentex Corp and has 42 years of life support equipment experience.
To take us through everything you ever wanted to know about helicopter aircrew helmets we are joined today by Mark Jones of Gentex Aircrew Systems. The modern helmet does much more than just provide head protection as you are about to find out.
Should you get one?
What should you look for in a helmet?
Fitting advice
And how to take care of your helmet so it lasts
That’s some of the topics we cover in this episode.
Most of us would associate helmets with head protection in the event of a crash. Strangely enough that wasn’t the reason aircrew first started to wear them. Early aviation helmets first provided a way to keep aircrew heads warm.
Then came the need to provide radio communication ear cups and later a method of affixing oxygen masks.
[Tweet “When things go south in a helicopter everything wants to stab at you/puncture holes in your helmet”]
The modern helicopter helmet has a big focus on crash protection as seen in the bulk of styrofoam that they contain. We also now use them to mount visors, microphones, NVDs, HUDs, torches, gas masks, face shields and more advanced audio electronics.
Not to mention a place to mount cool helmet patches!
After listening to this interview you will have a much great appreciation for the design that goes into a helmet and the job that it does for you. You might even be able to get a discount on your flight insurance to help offset the initial investment.
In this week’s episode: 01:08 Helicopter Aircrew Helmets – Mark Jones, Gentex 02:02 HAI Heli-Expo 2015 – past guests Shawn Coyle, Robert Feerst 02:45 World Helicopter Day events 16 Aug 2015 04:25 42 years working on aircrew helmets and Mark’s role at Gentex 06:23 F-117 Stealth Fighter 08:00 Working at Gentex day to day 09:15 The case for wearing a helicopter helmet 11:50 Gentex company background and shift into helmets 15:15 First pilot helmets and helicopter roles 17:05 Other functions of a helmet + G-force absorption 19:09 Noise attenuation 20:30 Anatomy and construction of a helicopter helmet 26:10 Thermal plastic liner (TPL) 27:53 Helicopter helmets vs jets vs motorbikes 28:55 What to look for in a helicopter helmet 31:30 Minimising helmet hot spots 34:00 Wearing glasses under helmet earcups – 2-fold problem 36:40 Looking after your helmet and servicing 38:50 External scratches and impact on helmet protection 41:50 Helmet warranties and costs(/investment) 44:10 Buying 2nd hand helmet – helmet inspection 46:00 Active noise reduction (ANR) and Communications Ear Plugs (CEP) 48:35 Final tips and future advances 51:10 Insurance company discounts on flight insurance 52:40 Episode Sponsors trainmorepilots.com
RWS 22 – Kiowa Warrior in Iraq with Robert Mills
Feb 18, 2015
CWO2 Robert Mills did two deployments to Iraq flying the Kiowa Warrior.
Blackdeath 23 was Robert Mill’s callsign in an Air Cavalry Unit operating the Kiowa Warrior in Iraq. Robert has published his journal as a book of the same name covering his two tours in Iraq and the daily challenges of operating a scout helicopter in that environment.
The Bell OH-58D Kiowa Warrior is a light scout helicopter operated by the US Army and based on the Bell 407 Jetranger – but with a heap of extras bolted on.
2 seats, 2 crew
4 bladed main rotor
rear cabin occupied by electronics and power boxes
Robert deployed to Iraq the first time fresh out of flight school and learnt on-the-job. In the book you get an immersion into the routine of combat flying ops and what it was like for aircrew in this particular theatre.
In this episode we cover some of the background to the stories and incidents in the book from an aviation viewpoint. The interview also acts as introduction to the flying conditions you might encounter should you find yourself in Iraq one day.
[Tweet “Want a power management pilot? Get an OH58 guy. When you pick it up, you are in the yellow all the time.”]
At the time of recording the Kiowa is being retired from US service with the possibility of airframes being sold overseas. That will leave the US Army fleets as an all multi-engine fleet. The Kiowa’s role will be picked up by a mix of Apache and UAVs amid considerable commentary whether this is a good idea or not.
01:25 Professionalism quote 01:50 New CASA licence 02:30 World Helicopter Day – get involved 03:30 Flying Kiowa in Iraq with Robert Mills author of Blackdeath23 04:50 Joining up as a military pilot 06:40 Why choose Kiowa 08:20 Kiowa aircraft intro and walkaround 11:15 What’s in the rear cabin area? 12:25 Officers vs Warrant Officer pilot streams 14:10 85 flight hours on arrival into Iraq 17:30 Country brief for flying conditions – its hot… its cold 20:20 Best solution for drinking water in the cockpit – the sock method 22:40 Terrain and elevations 24:05 Retrans station resupply 25:31 Flying low over the built up areas 27:06 Kite hazard 28:10 Dust storms 29:48 Impact on the machines 31:30 Preparing aircraft for quarantine exit clearance 33:40 A typical daily routine in theatre 37:30 Equipment that would take in aircraft 39:40 M4 rifle on the glareshield and armour 44:35 Escalation of force and range training 46:42 Soccer balls and crayons 48:45 Night flying on the Syrian border 50:30 Dust landings in Kuwait 52:25 American Sniper movie/book 53:15 Returning after doing the ultimate mission – challenges 56:06 EMS flying – from taking lives to saving lives 57:20 Get the book 58:36 Sponsors trainmorepilots.com
RWS 21 – V-22 Osprey with Mike McKinney
Feb 11, 2015
Mike McKinney is a retired LT Col now working as a civil maintenance test pilot on the V-22 Osprey.
A battle truck that cruises at 240kts and can land in your supermarket car park – the V-22 Osprey is one of the more unique aircraft kicking around.
Ok, technically its a tiltrotor design but we’ll adopt it as more rotary wing than fixed wing.
The Osprey was developed from earlier tilt rotor aircraft such as the XV-3 and XV-15. After a long-ish development period (20+ years) the Osprey is now fielded by the USAF and US Marine Corps.
Lots of engineering tricks have been built into the design. The rotors and wing fold up almost to the size of the fuselage in what looks like a circus contortionist act that helps storage onboard ships. The engine lubrication/scavenge system also has to work in vertical and horizontal positions.
V-22 Osprey Compilation
Extensive use of computerised flight control systems are required to convert pilot inputs into the right mix of thrust, blade tilt, engine angle, flaperons and rudder deflection to cover the huge operating speed range.
Our guest this week is Mike McKinney who takes us on a walk-through of this amazing machine. Mike is a retired US Air Force Lt Col who flew UH-1Ns and MH-53J/M Pave Low helicopters in the special operations support role.
From 2005-2010, Mike flew the CV-22 Osprey (Air Force variant). He was selected as initial cadre for the introduction of the Osprey into the USAF and helped develop the initial training course and stood up the training squadron for the USAF. His involvement extended to the Operational Test & Evaluation of the CV-22 before it was considered mission capable and accepted into the fleet.
Mike McKinney in front of a USAF CV-22 Osprey
These days he still gets to fly the Osprey as a civilian contractor out of Kirtland AFB in New Mexico on post-maintenance functional check flights and operational check flights, ensuring the airplane is airworthy and mission capable prior to being placed back in service.
This episode was recorded in early Feb 2015. News reporting at the time indicates that the deployment of V-22s to Iraq was a request from coalition partners operating against ISIS. “Once you grasp the full functionality of the V-22 Osprey, the insistence on its in-theater deployment by Emirates leaders is not hard to understand.”[Forbes Magazine]
00:50 r/helicopters on Reddit – thanks for the plug 01:11 Sponsors trainmorepilots.com 01:20 World Helicopter Day 01:50 V-22 Osprey Tiltrotor 02:40 Mike Mckinney intro – USAF special operations helicopter pilot and Osprey instructor 04:04 Bell 47 lesson then hooked 04:40 Roles of the USAF helicopter fleet – missile site support, VIP, combat search and rescue (CSAR), special operations 08:20 Osprey initial design and operational need – speed! 09:50 Mike’s first V-22 involvement, Fort Worth 10:56 Initial impressions when people see one up close 12:50 Prop-rotor system 14:50 Engines and gearboxes – 6150hp x 2 18:00 Hydraulics 20:55 Cockpit layout and flight controls, helicopter and aeroplane modes 27:00 Acceleration – co-ordinating the engine tilt and mode transfer 30:34 Blades below the fuselage 32:06 Cabin noise levels 33:00 Aircrewman / Flight engineers 33:50 Role equipment and cargo capabilities – OCL, fast roping, hoist 36:50 Self protection equipment 38:50 External load capability 39:50 Internal fuel 13,000lbs @ 3300lbs/hr and aux fuel hook up 41:10 280kts top speed, groundspeed 300kts+, oxygen and heights 43:20 Emergency handling, vortex ring reputation unfounded, autorotation, 170kt aeroplane glide 51:30 Training process, Air Force vs Marines, rotary, fixed wing, straight through, 9 months 54:00 Civil maintenance test flying 55:35 Heavy focus on simulator training 57:40 Concept of tiltrotor is sound, some V-22 shortcomings 59:50 Importance of speed on the battlefield 1:01:55 Next generation of tiltrotors – AW609, Bell V-280 Valour
RWS 20 – Aerial Firefighting with Gordy Cox
Feb 01, 2015
Gordy Cox is the Director of Operations at Redding Air Service and knows a thing or two about helicopter firefighting.
A great example of the utility of helicopters is their use in firefighting support. There is more to it than meets the eye though.
[Warning: This is a longer episode, approx 85mins, so you might want to download the file and play locally]
Using underslung buckets or bellytanks helicopters are able to provide water right where it is needed to aid in the fire management of bush and wilderness fires. The ability to use natural water sources close to the area of operations, even if that is a small waterhole or a backyard pool, results in quick turnarounds.
[leadplayer_vid id=”54CEBA4AC393F”]
Helicopters are able to move equipment and people around the fire area quickly and to areas with no other infrastructure. Its this ability to work so closely with ground firefighters that makes them so effective.
[Tweet “Firefighter first, pilot 2nd. The flying has to be second nature. Head is outside 90% of the time.”]
A big part of managing a large fire is the removal of combustible fuel in the path of the fire or around areas that need to be protected such as buildings. Ground techniques such as fire breaks and back burning can be complemented by helicopter carried heli-torches and other incendiaries.
On the flying side it requires a bunch of skill and experience. To deliver as much water as possible the aircraft are operating at high all up weights, often in mountainous terrain, poor visibility and hot conditions. Significant co-ordination is needed between other aircraft, ground personnel and the ability to maintain situational awareness of how things are developing. Being able to talk and listen on several radios at once is a bonus.
In this episode veteran helicopter firefighter Gordy Cox takes us inside the world of aerial firefighting to get an understanding of what is involved.
In this week’s episode: 01:50 Gordy Cox, Director of Operations Redding Air Service 02:11 Based in Salt Lake City, Utah 02:50 Parents in the RAF, Born in Ghana 03:30 1982 RAF in backseat of Nimrods chasing Russian submarines 04:10 Helicopter Adventures for helicopter training and then CFI 05:15 First forestry work dropping hay bales in Robinson R22 06:10 Bunch of hours in Hawaii 07:05 Chief Pilot at Redding Air Services 07:45 Flying in bare feet Hawaii – control touch 09:15 History of helicopter use on fires 10:30 Smoke jumpers 13:30 Standard exclusive use contract daily routine – ‘fire station standby’ 17:20 Smoke report actions on and initial attack 20:01 Tools of the trade 22:24 Finding a water source, portable tanks and ‘pumpkins’ 25:00 Handling a spot fire 28:20 Campaign fires and helibases 30:30 AirAttack and HelCo, locating dip sites, gates, burnouts 35:50 Helibase accommodation arrangements 38:02 Operations and aviation briefings at the start of the day 39:55 Wrapping building with silver foil, resupply and flying in sprinklers 41:10 Aerial fire starting – plastic sphere device (PSD) and heli-torch 46:10 Fire bucket characteristics and operation, typical bucket weight/machine combos 50:34 Drop methods for different fuel types 52:10 Belly Tanks 54:10 Retardants, gels and foams 59:30 Flying conditions near fires 1:04:30 Getting a start with flying on fires 1:07:45 Aerial highrise fire fighting 1:08:55 Night vision devices and fire fighting at night 1:10:07 Drone use on fires and future applications 1:14:11 Traveling gnomes Timothy and Tabitha in Gordy’s photos 1:18:00 Chris Hadfield’s approach to life 1:19:03 ‘Gordy’ on PPRuNe, Redding Air Service, happy to answer any questions 1:23:06 Sponsors trainmorepilots.com – marketing tip, using the tool snip.ly
— Timothy & Tabitha (@Timothy_Tabitha) May 24, 2014
Video footage of the Twin Falls Helitack crews 2013 fire season. Credits: David Frey [leadplayer_vid id=”54CCB0EF9D2A8″]
Heli-torch operations for backburning – like napalm! [leadplayer_vid id=”54CCB26D88E57″]
[Tweet “Its almost impossible to put a fire out, what we do is manage it.”]
[Tweet “You get to know everyone on the crew. It really is like a family. Work hard, play hard.”]
Redding Air Service bucket trials in 1957
Picking up ground crew – beats walking out
Many thanks to Gordy ‘G-man’ Cox for sharing his fire fighting experience with us.
Have a question for Gordy or tips on firefighting with helicopters? Was this episode too long, should it have been two parts? Let us know in the comments.
RWS 19 – Height Velocity Diagram with Shawn Coyle
Jan 15, 2015
Shawn Coyle is an experienced helicopter test pilot with a passion for helping other pilots learn more about their profession.
Whether you walk away from a landing after an helicopter engine failure or not depends on many things but one good predictor is the Height Velocity(H/V) diagram.
The H/V diagram (also known as H/V curve and dead man’s curve) represents combinations of airspeeds and altitudes that have been determined for that helicopter type where it will be difficult or impossible to safely land the helicopter.
But how is the diagram or chart arrived at?
What are the conditions it is tested under?
In this episode of the Rotary Wing Show test pilot Shawn Coyle takes us in great detail through the diagram and the machinations that go into building one. Shawn’s experience ranges from civil and military operational flying to certification flight testing and training experimental test pilots.
An author of several well know helicopter books Shawn also on occasion acts as an expert witness and on crash investigations.
After listening to this episode you will have a much greater understanding of how the H/V diagram is derived, what it means for your flying operations and probably a reluctance to let your hover height drift upwards.
In this week’s episode: 01:20 Weather extremes on social media streams 01:48 Listener voicemail 03:25 Hello to our Croatian listener! 04:00 Height velocity diagram 05:50 Guest Shawn Coyle bio 06:06 Early start to flying in Air Cadets 06:47 Jet training then sent to helicopters 08:16 Freedom of action as a helicopter pilot 09:20 Test pilot school 11:42 Flying with the Brits 15:10 Writing books on helicopters 18:14 Automatic flight control systems 27:05 What is a height velocity diagram 27:50 Conditions used to record results 29:35 Where do you go to perform tests? 30:45 Other names for the curve and misnomers – ‘dead man’s curve’ 32:41 Background of the diagram 33:28 Engine failure rates and lack of data 35:10 3 engine failures for Shawn 36:50 Delayed pilot response built into the height velocity diagram 41:03 Low hover point test technique 42:43 Impact of aging aircraft on curve 44:06 Number of data points required to construct the diagram 45:20 Verification process by certification authority 45:50 Paved level surface for touchdown, no zero touchdown requirement 47:10 What happens if you test on grass…. 48:45 The scariest point to test and amount of nose down 50:34 Insurance impact of the height velocity diagram and limitation vs performance consideration 52:20 Low altitude, high speed section of the diagram 53:30 Best advice when you have to operate in shaded area 54:45 Applicability for approaches and arrivals 55:55 Ray Prouty dinner story 57:18 Piece of advice that you would pass on 59:20 2015 plans and travel 1:00:30 Little Book of Autorotations by Shawn Coyle 1:01:50 Sponsors trainmorepilots.com 1:02:10 WorldHelicopterDay.com
Shawn speaks at the CHC 2013 Safety Conference about the certification process [leadplayer_vid id=”54B62D3BA13F5″]
[Tweet ““Measuring with a micrometer, marking with a chalk line and cutting with a chainsaw””]
[Tweet ““Know exactly what the symptoms are and exactly what you are going to do””]
[Tweet ““Never seen a helicopter say beat me, I love it!! (more than Blackhawk)””] Have a question for Shawn or topics that you would like him to cover? Let us know in the comments.
RWS 18 – Around the world solo in 17 days with Simon Oliphant-Hope
Dec 23, 2014
Simon Oliphant-Hope next to the MD500 that broke the around the world record in 2004. A box full of maps, a sat phone, a support crew of 1 in a British hangar, full tanks and off you hop for an around the world record flight in an MD500 helicopter – that’s what Simon Oliphant-Hope did.
00:45 Thanks for your feedback 01:30 Aaron and Lorena Knapp photo 02:00 Listener shoutout 02:50 Simon intro and Eastern Atlantic Helicopters 06:05 Moving from property to helicopters 07:10 Early helicopter work and starting a company 08:44 Getting a CFI rating 09:50 Idea to fly around the world 10:30 Planning the world record attempt 11:20 Rules for a world record 12:56 Average speed calculated first lift off / last touch down 14:00 Daily routine 16:10 Solo and support crew, getting through Russia 17:50 MD500 as the attempt aircraft 20:26 First attempt in 2001 and 9/11 23:33 Carrying maps and pre-attempt planning 26:00 Home base support crew and comms 27:11 Orthopaedic cushion from Ron Bower(previous record holder) 29:41 Going west bound challenges, Ross Perot Jnr, Dick Smith 31:30 Film flying and James Bond 32:30 Tips for young pilots 34:39 Route map 34:50 Marketing tip – trainmorepilots.com 36:00 Merry Christmas to you 36:30 World helicopter day
Flight path for 2004 around the world record flight.
In this video Simon also talks about his around the world flight (30sec advert at the beginning) [leadplayer_vid id=”5494C417C4BC3″]
In 2013 a russian team flew around the world in 44 days with 2 Robinson helicopters – this puts Simon’s achievement (solo and 17 days) into perspective: [leadplayer_vid id=”5494C3592FCB5″]
Be part of the conversation around this episode by leaving a comment below.
RWS 17 – Helicopter Aircrew Recruiting with Mark Weeden
Dec 10, 2014
Mark Weeden is the Recruitment Lead at CHC Helicopters (Australia) and is busy keeping 48 helicopters manned by some of the best talent.
Its time to dust off your CV and step behind the scenes of a helicopter aircrew recruiting office so you can be better prepared for your next job application.
Several times in our flying careers we’ll need to go through the process of applying for a position and mostly likely interviewing against other candidates.
As the machines get bigger and more expensive the stakes get higher – both for us and for the recruiters looking to take us on.
In this interview Mark Weeden takes us through the recruiting process for CHC Helicopters. He will also give you an insight into the challenges of aircrew recruiters so that you get a better appreciation of their role and how you can make their life easier (and your future job prospects better).
You’ll find links to resources and sites mentioned in the show further down the page.
01:05 Instructor renewal out of the way + exam question for you 02:00 Movember team raised over $3300 02:27 Oliver is an ex-C-17 loadmaster now studying to be a pilot 03:03 Chamber of Commerce talk about this podcast to local business owners 03:25 Boeing defence event in Brisbane 03:55 World Helicopter Day teaser 04:55 Employment and interviewing process and Mark Weeden intro 06:22 Mark’s role at CHC as Recruitment Lead and background 09:00 CHC Helicopters globally and helicopter fleet 11:15 Australian CHC basing locations 12:38 What keeps aviation recruiters up at night? 13:30 Recruitment pipeline 16:56 Position descriptions for job listings 18:24 Where are CHC jobs listed and job alerts 20:50 Number of aircrew CVs on file 24:30 Prequalified CVs are pulled for each job opening 26:05 Keeping CVs on file updated and current 27:10 Recruiting team size 28:03 Screening and interview process 30:53 Wombat test, sim check ride, psychometric, reference checks, medical 36:55 Timeline 2 weeks -> months 37:55 Insurance industry impact on aircrew hourly requirements 41:20 Aircrew CV tips and advice 46:35 Cover letters 48:15 Follow up after applications 49:10 LinkedIn best practices 53:46 Catch 22 – offshore hours needed for an offshore… 56:35 Current vacancies and expressions of interest 58:45 Thanks to episode sponsors trainmorepilots.com
RWS 16 – Helicopter Instructing Tips with Philip Greenspun
Nov 18, 2014
Philip Greenspun is a helicopter instructor in Boston, USA Photo Credit:Ellis Vener Educating or instructing can be it’s own skill set regardless of the actual content taught. Philip Greenspun is a MIT lecturer and a flight instructor and shares his own approach to flying training.
If you are a helicopter instructor or in a check & training role then brush up your thought processes as we chat to Philip about his experiences and about flying training.
If you are currently a student going through training then you will have a chance to think a little bit more about what you are being taught and what it all actually means when it comes to the application in the air.
Philip has written some great articles about flying, instructing, aircraft type reviews and cross country touring that are worth a read.
You’ll find links to resources and sites mentioned in the show further down the page.
00:50 G20 conference 02:10 Movember 02:45 Instructor renewal and study tool ANKI 03:50 Philip Greenspun intro 06:00 How to teach people to hover 10:10 Putting the helicopter at risk 10:50 East Coast Aeroclub – Boston 12:30 Teaching autorotations 15:10 Aircraft attitude 17:00 How much a student can cope with 18:30 Blending lecturing and engineering methodology into flight instruction 23:20 Teaching philosophy – Paul Cantrell, Mike Rhodes 25:30 The point of teaching something – autorotation flare speed, mast bumping, low RRPM examples 28:30 Learning a checklist 31:00 Briefing format 31:40 Flight school software 33:30 Favourite aviation experiences 36:00 Where has flying taken you around the world/US 38:30 Feedback from people about flying articles 40:30 philip.greenspun.com website 43:30 How to get more website visitors 45:30 Angel flights 49:30 Tips that you wished you knew earlier 50:30 Instrument flying focus on the AI 53:20 Sponsors trainmorepilots.com 53:50 Get involved – Rotary Wing show on social media 54:30 Question of the day
RWS 15 – Display Flying with Dennis Kenyon – Part 2
Nov 09, 2014
Dennis ‘the Maestro’ Kenyon
This is part 2 of the interview with British helicopter display pilot Dennis Kenyon. For part 1, listen to Episode 14
In this episode we delve deeper into the preparation, setup and mindset needed to be a display pilot.
Dennis is a CAA appointed Display Authority Examiner and does train and approve other pilots but its not something he takes lightly.
We also talk about a display crash that Dennis was involved in and some of the factors that contributed to that. If it can happen to someone as experienced and skillful as Dennis… the rest of us need to stack everything in our favor.
The Dennis Kenyon Junior helicopter scholarship was set up to commemorate the life of Dennis’ son. Its aim is to take someone that would not normally have been able to achieve a helicopter licence due to factors such as finance and to turn them into not only a pilot but an aviator and an ambassador for aviation.
Past scholarship winner Hannah Nobbs writes:
Being awarded the Dennis Kenyon Junior Memorial helicopter flying scholarship was a once in a lifetime experience. Learning to fly was fantastic, and something I had only dreamed off. The best part was learning from Dennis, his enthusiasm for flying is infectious and following him on his various flying adventures during training allowed me to see so many new places and meet new people in the helo industry.
The scholarship opened up a world of opportunities within aviation, nearly 10 years on I am working as an Aerospace Engineer for a leading Helicopter Manufacturer, have gone on to do the ATPL exams and flown in several parts of Europe.
To any companies that have the opportunity to support the scholarship fund I would say that the potential return from the scholarship to industry is immense. In my opinion it is not so much about encouraging young people to be commercial helicopter pilots, as the extra funds needed to get to a position where you are employable is huge, but about opening up a whole world of helicopters and aviation to a young person, and gaining a lifelong ambassador for the industry.
Dennis is looking to joint venture with interested companies for the future support of the Scholarship. Who knows, we might see a future TV series – ‘So you think you can fly!’
If you know of a company that would benefit from working with a living legend of the helicopter industry on a project like this then get in touch via the comments below or direct to Dennis through his website.
You’ll find links to resources and sites mentioned in the show further down the page.
01:14 Show sponsors trainmorepilots.com 01:40 Routine before a display flight 03:38 How different is each display sequence 04:50 Salt Lake City crash review 10:44 Training(and suitability) for display authority 14:02 Chuck Aaron and B105 15:25 Warned of display flying due ‘Cavalier’ attitude 16:50 Display flying as a way of promoting type sales 17:59 Messages for Dennis – Dennis Martin, Hannah Nobbs 21:05 Dennis Kenyon Junior Helicopter Scholarship 25:00 Sponsorship and partnerships for the scholarship 26:50 Background to the Scholarship – Dennis’ son 30:10 Next scholarship planning 31:31 Application process via dennis-kenyon.com 35:45 More than being about just pushing and pulling controls 38:05 What type haven’t you flown that you still want to? 39:44 Tail rotor failures x 3 + safety certificate 44:40 A UFO story 48:15 Best advice you can give a pilot
Do you know a company that would like to partner with Dennis for his scholarship program? If you do, please point them to this episode and they can contact Dennis through the links above. Lets use our network to get behind Dennis
Salt Lake City Crash at high density altitude:
[leadplayer_vid id=”545EEE160265F”]
A montage of one of Dennis’ MD500 displays
Dennis Kenyon in front of a RAF Gloster Meteor – he had a dual engine flameout at 20,000ft at night and managed to land it safely inside the airfield (RWY closed due another aircraft crash)
Dennis Kenyon and Mitsuo Aoyama at the World Helicopter Championships. Mitsuo would later go on to open a beer bottle with a Robinson on Japanese TV
RWS 14 – Display Flying with Dennis Kenyon – Part 1
Nov 04, 2014
Dennis ‘the Maestro’ Kenyon
Display flying has captured the imagination of the public ever since the very first flights. One the longest performing and well respected helicopter display pilots in the world is UK pilot Dennis Kenyon
Note: This is part 1 of the interview. Look for part 2 in Episode 15
Dennis ‘the maestro’ Kenyon got his flying start in the RAF progressing through Tiger Moths, Chimpmunks, Cheetah, Varsity, Lincoln, Meteor, Canberra, Vampire, Hunter, Pembroke, Hastings and Anson types (58 fixed wing types).
After almost taking up a career in the airlines a chance meeting put Dennis on the path to helicopters. As an employee pilot at a UK helicopter and aeroplane dealership, Dennis was able to fly through Europe establishing Enstrom dealerships along the way.
The display flying came as a natural progression to promote the helicopter sales and the rest as they say is history with 1500+ display flights and a world helicopter championship win (+ several placings) coming from it. The CAA has made Dennis a Display Authority Examiner and he has trained several of the current UK helicopter display pilots.
He has worked on several films and TV shows including Blackhawk Down and Golden Eye. To round things out Dennis is a published author and has contributed articles to many flying publications.
Dennis is as passionate about flying as ever – you’ll hear it in his voice. Never short of a story to tell and with a wicked sense of British humour.
A helicopter scholarship that commemorates the life of Dennis Kenyon Junior, his son, is a current focus of Dennis’ efforts and is the only one of its kind in the UK(world?).
He is known alternatively as ‘The Maestro’, ‘Dennis the Menace’ and ‘Dennisimo’. Its also been said that he put the ‘D’ in display flying.
Its a pleasure to bring you this interview with a living helicopter legend.
You’ll find links to resources and sites mentioned in the show further down the page.
01:05 Podcast length feedback 02:10 Listener email – Arron 03:02 Movember charity fundraiser – http://rotarywingshow.com/mo 03:40 Dennis Kenyon intro 05:40 Early fixed wing experience in RAF 09:55 “600mph fighter jet strapped to a 19yr old’s bum” 11:20 Double flameout at night 14:48 Airline pilot licence but ‘too old’ at 36! 15:40 Learning to fly a helicopter 18:00 Enstrom distributor 19:03 Aviation writing – books and articles 19:30 FAMA helicopter – 2 seater turbine 22:10 Flying around Europe planting Enstrom dealerships 24:32 Reviewing helicopter types and writing them up for magazines 25:42 Blackhawk Down and other film flying 29:40 Helicopter display flying – Mike Meager, Enstrom USA 32:30 Dennis moves into display flying 33:36 Becoming a DAE and training other display pilots 35:00 Clocking over 1500 display flights 36:23 World helicopter championships 39:20 Display helicopter types 40:00 Planning a display routine 42:10 Display maneuvers 45:44 Wingovers – what was that maneuver? 49:21 Top 10 Helicopter Books for Helicopter Aircrew 49:32 Show sponsors trainmorepilots.com
Do you know a company that would like to partner with Dennis for his scholarship program? If you do, please point them to this episode and they can contact Dennis through the links above. Lets use our network to get behind Dennis
A page from Dennis’ logbook during the fliming of Blackhawk Down
Jerry Grayson’s Huey in the foreground, then the two Little Birds, then the Twin Squirrel camera ship. Bobby “Zee” is at the right, talking to Cameraman Mike Kelem. In the distance is Marc Wolff (Aerial Director) talking to Dennis. – Photo: Jerry Grayson
Left to Right: Jerry Grayson, Dennis Kenyon, Olaf Schumacher Photo: Jerry Grayson
Dennis Kenyon aka ‘Dennis the Menace’ during his display at Biggin Hill on 14 May 1977. Photo Credit: Peter Nicholson
Georgie seen here with Dennis during her Dennis Kenyon Junior scholarship – imagine getting taught to fly by Dennis!
Be part of the conversation around this episode by leaving a comment below.
RWS 13 – Helicopter Longlining with Andre Hutchings
Oct 27, 2014
Andre Hutchings is an experienced helicopter longline pilot and instructor Photo:LA Helicopters
Do you remember how humbling it felt first learning to hover? If you ever want to experience that feeling again then give longlining a go.
The ability for helicopters to move equipment and loads to remote or hard to reach locations makes them incredibly useful machines. Helicopter longlining notches that capability up several levels of awesomeness.
There are utility helicopter pilots the world over that earn their living through this challenging skillset and today we get to find out a bit more about what is involved.
Andre Hutchings is an experienced longline pilot and instructor. We catch Andre between trips to Afghanistan where he is introducing longline work to the military forces there and resupplying outposts. Where you hear in this interview is a super condensed ‘how-to’ longline lesson so get ready to take some notes.
You’ll find links to resources and sites mentioned in the show further down the page.
00:55 Listener feedback – Brett from Melbourne, Australia 02:07 Leave a review here 02:20 Movember charity event for men’s health – sponsor Mick here 03:25 Future project – if you want to promote helicopters worldwide get in touch 04:02 Quote of the week 04:56 Welcome Andre Hutchings – longing and vertical reference 05:30 Longline work in Afghanistan with US military 06:58 First flying experience – L.A. , instructing, L.A. police department, Columbia Helicopters, MD500, Vertol, Chinooks, country manager in Afghanistan 08:10 Compressed longlining course into an interview 08:30 Volomission longline training company 09:25 Vertical reference vs longline 12:35 Some of the more interesting external loads 13:49 What makes a good longline machine 15:11 Human factors, seating position, fatigue, single pilot 17:34 Preflight planning, load weights, load order, distance, fuel 18:50 Weight and balance, load flight characteristics 20:28 Equipment – hook check, lines, nets, briefings 23:29 Line materials – steel vs synthetic, jacket, electrical line 26:34 Taglines 27:29 Groundcrew and signals 29:44 Aircraft pickup, taking up the slack, lifting the hook clear 33:09 Hooking up the load / transition 37:28 Loads in flight – turns, rolling in and out, spinning loads 39:22 Approach, judging height, speeds 41:40 Correcting a swing 43:25 Cocking off for wind and sight picture 45:06 Christmas trees 46:56 Releasing the load and rigging 51:09 Flight emergencies 53:08 Where people go wrong with longlining 56:23 Remoted instruments 57:34 Volomission longlining course structure 1:01:40 info@volomission.com / volomission.com 1:03:46 Show sponsors trainmorepilots.com
RWS 12 – NASA Rotary Wing Project with Susan Gorton
Oct 16, 2014
Susan Gorton heads up the NASA Rotary Wing Project
NASA is not just space shuttles, Mars robots and moon landings! Susan Gorton has been leading the NASA Rotary Wing Project for the last 8 years helping to pave the way for faster, quieter, safer and more economical helicopter designs and operations.
You are in for a treat today as you get to hear about the latest work in helicopter research and learn a bit more about what goes into the design and engineering process along the way.
Before her 15 years at NASA, Susan spent another 15 years as a researcher at the US Army’s Aeroflightdynamics Directorate.
[Tweet “‘Man! I can’t believe they pay me to do this’ #helicopter research @NASAAmes”]
Armed with a Bachelor of Science in Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering from the University of Illinois and a Master of Science in Aeronautics from the George Washington University, Susan Gorton has authored or co-authored over 70 publications!
She is the recipient of numerous awards, including:
AHS International AgustaWestland International Fellowship Award
2 x NASA Outstanding Leadership Medals
NASA Exceptional Achievement Medal
Army Civilian Service Medal, and
the Army Research and Development Award.
Ms. Gorton is an Associate Fellow of the AIAA, a member of the American Helicopter Society International Technical Council and former Technical Director of the AHS. She also holds a helicopter private pilot’s license.
You’ll find links to resources and sites mentioned in the show further down the page.
01:10 Today’s quote 01:30 Brought to you by trainmorepilots.com 01:45 Instructor rating renewal and Australian Part 61 legislation 02:30 Susan Gorton – NASA Rotary Wing Project Lead 04:30 Early career and research – University and Army research 06:05 Love of helicopters – in your blood 06:58 Getting own helicopter licence 09:10 Working at NASA – Aeronautics and not just space 09:50 Pushing forward helicopters 10:40 Coming up with projects and budget 12:20 Rotary Wing Project research history 14:27 How do you get a job at NASA? 17:01 Lots of smart people in the same room 17:38 Equipment and facilities that are used in research (wind tunnels) 20:50 Flight ops vs ground based testing and partnerships 22:10 Ownership of test data and partnership agreements 24:02 Noise characteristics, impulse noise, supersonic flow and bladeslap 25:50 More blades, slower RPM, new blade shapes, operationally suitable 28:02 Tracing NASA research into operational designs 29:10 Apache Block 3 phase gearbox 31:30 5 Areas of research focus for Rotary Wing Project 32:58 Variable speed power turbines 35:10 Reynolds number 35:57 Variable speed gearboxes – 2 speed drive system 37:10 Active rotor concept – how to make a design do more than one thing 39:26 Fluid dynamics and computer modelling, 11th largest supercomputer 42:35 Rotorcraft integration into NextGen (FAA next airspace system) 45:51 Crash test – CH-46 Sea Knight structural drop testing using moon landing trainer 51:48 8000 1-inch dots randomly placed by hand on airframe 53:07 Current best description of how Lift is generated 55:28 Breakthroughs in top end speed and how fast will we get? 58:50 How can line pilots take this information to improve their skills/operations 59:40 Maximum noise situations and how to minimise noise impact 1:05:05 Top 10 helicopter books for helicopter aircrew 1:05:35 Quote reference – Sailor Davis
[Tweet “‘Helicopters have everything for aerodynamicists – don’t go supersonic but the blade tips do'”]
[Tweet “How to make helicopters quieter, faster, more economical, cost effective and still get performance”]
RWS 11 – Whirly Girls International with Dianna Stanger
Oct 06, 2014
Passing on the love of flying to a new generation – Dianna talking helicopters with a group of kids
Whirly Girls International president(2014) Dianna Stanger got her start in flying thanks to a need for breakfast eggs on her island home. That started a love affair that most of us can relate too.
Dianna is one busy lady. She manages an airfield and FBO in Texas, operates a flying school amongst several other businesses, is involved in angel medical flights, supports work on her ranch while also supporting several organisations working to raise the profile of aviation.
Her own progression in helicopters went from R22, R44, B206, Agusta 109 and now a EC120 which is her daily ride. Dianna is also a fixed wing pilot with a number of air race trophies under her belt. She is fiercely competitive which you’ll find out in interview and gives any project a huge amount of focus.
Competitors that go up against her soon in pylon racing in Dianna’s new jet will need to be on their toes!
As president of Whirly Girls International Dianna is charged with leading the international support network in raising the profile of the female helicopter aviator, mentoring and providing a source of camaraderie and information sharing.
[Tweet “Its hard for you to talk to a pilot for them not to get excited about what they do”]
Big smiles with 2014 Whirly Girl scholarships – Dianna 5th from the right.
Whirly Girls has been around since 1955, is an affiliate member of the HAI and also promotes helicopters in general.
There are a number of scholarships that are offered each year including – NVG, mountain flying, agricultural, turbine transition, external load, recurrency, R44 safety course, maintenance, ditching and flight instructor. (I like the one that attempts to poach a fixed wing pilot across to the rotary side)
2015 will see Whirly Girls turn 60 years old with several events and a logo competition planned to mark the occasion.
You’ll find links to resources and sites mentioned in the show down the page.
[Tweet “44 countries, 1800+ members and dating back to 1955 #whirlygirls”]
00:50 Brought to you by trainmorepilots.com 01:10 Top 10 helicopter books for helicopter aircrew 01:50 New videos on website 02:05 Today’s guest – Dianna Stanger, Whirly Girls President 2014 03:23 Texas ranch 04:10 Animals! 04:50 Horse competitions and competitive nature 05:35 Helipad and airstrip on the ranch 06:30 First introduction to helicopters and shopping 08:10 Connecticut to Bahamas in R22 09:30 R44 with floats 10:10 Jetranger 206B from movie US Marshals 11:13 Agusta 109 Power – speed/endurance, landing on wheels, IFR 13:30 EC120 – daily commuter, ranch work 15:00 Responding to hurricanes 16:45 Managing airfield and FBO 18:02 Flying conditions and terrain in Texas 19:05 Aviation kids programs 21:50 Whirly Girls organisation and history 23:30 Flying scholarships – fixed to rotary, safety, instructing, NVG + more 26:05 Diamond (60th) anniversary – competitions, banquet, logo competition 27:45 Air races and fighter trainer pylon racing 30:33 Angel flights – first helicopter accepted 33:40 Scariest moment in flying 35:57 What do you look for in hiring a pilot 37:44 ‘West with the Night’ – recommended book 39:37 AOPA board position and children’s program 40:25 What’s coming up for Dianna 43:11 Cross country air race – racing aces team, scholarship 45:10 Helicopter pylon racing video 45:35 Helicopter Pilots Model Code of Conduct
RWS 10 – Owning a Helicopter School with Heather Howley
Sep 30, 2014
Heather Howley is the owner and Chief Pilot of Independent Helicopters
For most young helicopter pilots opening your own helicopter training school is probably not high on your list of things to do.
But this is exactly what Heather Howley, this week’s guest on the show, did when she was left in the lurch with a helicopter lease contract to cover.
Heather is the owner and chief pilot of Independent Helicopters based out of Saratoga County Airport, New York.
The company offers helicopter training in R22s and R44s supplemented by a ground based simulator. Like most school charter and airwork ops on the side keep life interesting and the machines busy.
You’ll quickly pick up Heather’s passion and love of flying in the interview. Its hard to imagine her doing anything else for many years to come.
01:14 Chinook webinar 01:50 Sponsors trainmorepilots.com 02:27 Heather Howley 03:28 School, working with animals and travel 05:10 Ground school and mentor 05:45 Silver State Helicopters + student loans 06:50 Training as a flight instructor 07:30 Taking Mum for a helicopter flight 08:45 Working as an instructor 10:40 Starting own helicopter company 15:13 Balancing hats – company owner, instructor, chief pilot 16:50 Business awards 18:25 What looking for when hiring pilots 19:38 Trends in the US training industry 21:15 Helicopter training rate 22:05 Veterans program 23:50 Common student challenges 26:12 Local terrain, landmarks, airspace around New York 29:44 Pilots groups and organisations, Girls with Wings 31:58 Mentoring others 33:00 Things I wish I need earlier 34:37 Scariest moments with students 36:58 Tips on getting first helicopter job 37:45 Recommended books 39:05 Lucy the flying dog 41:15 Subscribe on iTunes 41:30 Pilot recruiting interview – send in your questions to feedback@rotarywingshow.com
RWS 9 – Never Work a Day in your Life with John Eacott
Sep 22, 2014
John Eacott is heavily involved in aviation in and out of the cockpit
John Eacott’s aviation career has spanned 49 years and he’s still adding time on top of that today as an active commercial pilot.
He has spent a huge amount of time flying over oceans as an ex-Royal Navy pilot and multiple stints in the oil industry.
He is also the first nuclear qualified helicopter pilot I’ve ever spoken to and we cover that in the interview.
John has worked for several of the larger companies as well as owned his own helicopter company.
Police, firefighting, aerial photography, banner towing, charter, heli-skiiing, traffic reporting, longlining and film flying – you name it – including flying in antarctica. – John has done it.
He is also heavily involved in the industry outside the cockpit being a long time member and office holder in The Honourable Company of Air Pilots and is a frequent contributor to online forums.
00:50 49 years in aviation 01:53 Meet John Eacott 02:25 6 yrs old and wanted to be a pilot 03:40 Into the Royal Navy 04:40 Flying training and Wings 06:10 Wessex helicopter on Anti-submarine operations 08:30 Sea King trials unit and introduction to service 10:20 Travelling the globe 10:50 Nuclear depth charges 12:00 SAR 13:08 Nigeria time on oil and gas with Alouettes and floats 15:04 North Sea flying 212s living on the rigs 17:10 1979 working out of Derby and Broome (Australia) 19:30 OMEGA navigation system 21:40 Navigating off a plotting board 23:53 Okanagan Helicopters Australia and S-61 26:02 Bombay and getting engaged 27:55 S-76s in Bass Strait and IFR helicopter operations 29:22 Victorian Police Air Wing (Dauphin) 30:58 TV stations and National Safety Council 31:45 Bob Jane T-Marts and V8 Super Cars 32:40 Low level filming accident 35:05 NSW Fire Fighting 37:05 Trained reactions in emergency 38:30 Twin engine emergencies 39:50 Airmanship 43:42 Guild of Air Pilots 44:40 Pilot-less helicopters 46:30 Aviator – not a systems operator 47:45 Flag flying with BK117 49:55 Antartica helicopter operations 53:50 Iceberg breaking off 56:20 Freedom of the City and Guild Livery, Master Air Pilot No. 1144 57:25 Tips for new pilots 1:02:20 Leave a comment on the blog 1:02:48 Pilot recruiting interview – send in your questions to feedback@rotarywingshow.com 1:03:50 Sponsors trainmorepilots.com
RWS 8 – Helicopter EMS in Alaska with Lorena Knapp
Sep 14, 2014
Lorena Knapp on EMS flying in Alaska
Alaska is still largely wilderness and remote communities rely heavily on helicopter operations. Air Ambulance services like the one that today’s guest Lorena Knapp flies for can drastically reduce the time needed to get a patient to primary care given the terrain and ground conditions.
Find out about flying conditions in Alaska and get an insight into helicopter Emergency Medical Service (EMS) operations. Along the way we follow Lorena’s career progression to find out how she got her start and worked her way up to her current challenging position.
01:12 Meet Lorena Knapp 02:30 Current role with Air Methods and location 04:30 Early flying experience with her dad 06:10 Helicopter training and getting licence 08:22 Hillsboro Aviation training and instructing 09:00 Oil and Gas in Gulf of Mexico 11:10 Tours – Juneau and Denali, Alaska 13:40 Moving into EMS 14:50 Air Methods organisation and history 18:00 EMS operations – Air Ambulance, VFR, NVGs, shifts 20:20 Medical crews and carrying patients, memorable calls 25:10 Really making a difference 26:20 Flying in Alaska 28:10 Terrain and heights 28:50 Day length changes, NVGs 30:45 Impact of weather 34:05 Cold weather ops 38:25 Sectional charts, GPS and navigation 39:55 Anchorage airspace classes 42:20 Helicopter industry operators 44:00 Getting a job in Alaska 44:50 Alaska highlights off hours 47:20 Helping people achieve dreams 49:45 Ninety-nines and other women aviation groups 52:53 Trainmorepilots.com 53:20 Best helicopter novels – send in your nominations
View from the cockpit flying in Alaska in an Astar – no steam driven gauges here
In the episode we talk about the size of Alaska. This graphic shows the size comparison with the rest of the United States.
Lorena’s TEDx Talk Video [leadplayer_vid id=”5415358564A54″]
RWS 7 – Helicopter Underwater Escape Training with Mick Dowling
Sep 06, 2014
Mick Dowling on Helicopter Underwater Escape Training
30 seconds ago you were airborne but now you are in the drink and water is quickly filling your helicopter cockpit while the machine starts to roll upside down – what do you do next?
If you are not 100% certain then you will want to listen to this interview with Mick Dowling, Commercial HUET Manager at the Careflight Group.
HUET = Helicopter Underwater Escape Training
Knowing what to do in those critical seconds after entering the water may just save your life.
01:05 Where in the world you are listening from – 31 countries 01:58 PPRuNe thread 04:18 Mick Dowling from Careflight Group 04:34 What is helicopter underwater escape training (HUET) 05:56 Origins of HUET 06:35 Mick’s background and career path 08:00 Careflight Training Services division 09:05 Who needs HUET 11:26 Legislative requirements and currency 12:52 Increase in survival chances after HUET 13:48 Early courses – progress to current best practices 17:11 HUET in a nutshell 18:33 Things to think about pre-flight + preparation 20:57 Reference point – most important thing 22:11 Brace position for impact 25:54 When the helicopter turns upside down 27:45 Losing orientation 29:39 Opening the exit 31:05 Reaching the surface 31:55 Lifejackets 33:05 Going back for others 34:35 Blackhawk in Fiji 35:40 Maximising survival on the surface 38:28 HEEDS / EBS 41:10 Extra tips 42:37 Getting HUET training and course breakdown 48:00 Next actions 49:40 Submit any questions here on the blog 50:48 Next episode… Don’t forget to sign up for email alerts 51:06 Visit today’s sponsor – trainmorepilots.com
“Careflight Group, is one of a few in Australia who are able to provide competency based HUET utilising modular Aircraft Underwater Escape Trainers “AUET”. To successfully egress, and be assessed competent when using the AUET platform, trainees are required to operate multiple Seatbelt and Exit types. As a result we’ve noted aircrew and trainees completing HUET in the AUET tend to experience a high skill retention rate” ~ Mick Dowling
RWS 6 – Zululand Anti-Poaching Wing with Etienne Gerber
Aug 30, 2014
ZAP Wing aircrew in front of one of their two R44 helicopters
In this episode of the Rotary Wing Show we head to Zululand, South Africa to hear about how helicopters are being employed in the fight against Rhino poachers. Etienne Gerber is the chief pilot at Zululand Anti-Poaching Wing and shares first hand the challenges his crews face in performing their role.
02:00 Leave a 5 star review on iTunes/Stitcher 03:40 Meet Etienne Gerber 05:45 Zululand Anti-poaching Wing 08:03 Air Operators Certificate – Airwork 09:20 What drives Rhino poaching 12:20 Organised crime connections and resourced 13:50 Operational base and game park area of operations 16:25 Aircraft fleet – 2 x R44 + 2 x light fixed wing 17:40 Night Ops 19:20 Impact on poachers 20:30 Pilot experience and support crew 21:50 Training and area familiarisation 24:00 Job appreciation 25:00 Engineers, maintenance, aircraft contracts 26:25 Self protection and not getting eaten 27:40 Flying conditions and weather 29:00 Terrain in operating area 31:10 Airspace, heights and other aircraft 32:58 Navigation, available maps, local landmarks 34:45 An average day 37:55 Flight following 39:37 Flying rates and hours budget 41:00 What happens on a call out 44:10 What are rhinos like 46:10 Poachers 46:50 Rhinos and helicopters 47:40 Drones 49:10 ZAP Wing funding
If you enjoyed the interview and want to support Etienne and the other aircrew please donate via the button above – its at least worth the cost of a cup of coffee
[Tweet “Averaging 1 call out per day for anti-poaching helicopters”]
[Tweet “Rhino horn is Keratin, same material as your fingernails”]
Got a comment or question about today’s show? Use the area below to leave your thoughts.
RWS 5 – First Person View Quadcopters with Raphael Pirker
Aug 25, 2014
Raphael Pirker From Team Blacksheep talks about FPV Quadcopters
Flying helicopters doesn’t come cheap but for those of us that can’t get enough of it or don’t have the funds for the real thing then a new technology might be the answer – enter First Person View (FPV) remote controlled aircraft.
The idea is that you strap on a set of video goggles linked to a camera in the aircraft and ‘pilot’ the aircraft as if you were sitting in it. At just meters off the ground you can get all your low flying kicks out of your system.
Add in a GoPro camera and you have your flight to share with people in HD video.
This is the video that was my first introduction into the world of FPV.
In Episode 5 of the Rotary Wing Show we get to hear from Raphael (Trappy) Pirker from Team Blacksheep (no, not a Kiwi), a company that manufactures a popular line of FPV quadcopters.
Raphael talks about FPV flying, what kit you need and some of the performance figures of these machines. We also touch on the legalities and legislation issues surrounding ‘drone’ flights – and Trappy should know as he is front and centre in the FAA’s sights with regards to commercial use of unmanned vehicle systems in the USA – see google search results.
Team Blacksheep and some of their designs
We then get into the safety side of drone operations and how they affect us as helicopter operators + plus what we can do to be better aware of flight risks.
[Tweet “15-20Km range, 120km/h & 12000 feet on these quadcopters”]
[Tweet “50K-80K quadcopters hitting the market per month”]
Got a comment or question about today’s show? Use the area below to leave your thoughts.
RWS 4 – Flying In China with Dan Heath
Aug 16, 2014
Dan Heath in front of a EC135 in China
An interview with Dan Heath, a flying instructor and charter pilot flying in China.
Dan talks about the conditions on the ground in China, an insight into the Chinese helicopter industry and some of the challenges and opportunities for helicopter operators there.
If you are keen to get in touch with Dan for information on flying or aviation business opportunities in China then he is happy to chat with you. You can reach Dan through the website link above.
RWS 3 – Helicopter Night Vision Goggles with Richard Maas
Aug 09, 2014
Dickie Maas wearing a set of NVGs
An interview with Richard(Dickie) Maas, a Night Vision Goggle(NVG) instructor and assessor.
Only a small percentage of helicopter crews have had the chance to fly with NVGs so far – that is slowly changing.
In this interview Dickie will take us through how NVGs work, how they impact on military, law enforcement and EMS work and some of the limitations that they do have.
[Tweet “NVGs are becoming the way of the future for aeromedical flying. http://rotarywingshow.com/rws-3-helicopter-night-vision-goggles-richard-maas/”]
ANVIS-9 Goggles are a common type of helicopter NVGs
Dickie taking a break in between jobs in front of a Bell 412 in Brisbane
This video gives a good idea of the difference NVGs make to night helicopter operations.
Got a good NVG story to tell? Consider sharing your story below in the comments so that the rest of us can learn from the event. If you have questions then ask them below too.
[Tweet “To a low level flight crew, wire MUST be classified as an invisible hazard. http://rotarywingshow.com/rws-2-flying-wire-environment-robert-feerst/”]
[Tweet “Never, Ever ASSUME that you and the pilot are seeing the same thing. Never! http://rotarywingshow.com/rws-2-flying-wire-environment-robert-feerst/”]
[Tweet “52% of wire strikes were by pilots with over 5000hrs. It is not a rookie mistake.” http://rotarywingshow.com/rws-2-flying-wire-environment-robert-feerst/”]
Article “A Plan for Reducing Wire Strike Accidents” – Click Here
This is the video that we discuss at the end of the interview. Produced by the same people that shoot and edit 60 Minutes in partnership with a larger number of helicopter industry bodies, this is something all helicopter crews should watch.
Have you hit a wire or come close to it? Do you know someone that has? Consider sharing your story below in the comments so that the rest of us can learn from the event.
Mountain flying can be demanding on aircrew and helicopters. Yet helicopters are incredibly useful in this environment.
In this episode of the Rotary Wing Show, Mick talks with Pieter Koster of NHZ Topflight, a helicopter mountain flying school operated by Canadian Helicopters.
The school operates out of Penticton, British Columbia, Canada with a number of Bell 407, EC120B, Bell 206B and AS350 BA/B2 machines.
The full mountain flying course runs for 3 weeks where pilots complete ground school and practical flying components.
[tweet “Fly accurately, get the helicopter slowed down, 60kts, level, assess your TQ vs baseline TQ http://rotarywingshow.com/1-mountainflying/”]
[tweet “Shallow approach minimises RoD, power change required to level & risk of vortex ring state http://rotarywingshow.com/1-mountainflying/”]
[tweet “When you fly towards rising terrain you will subconsciously climb and lose airspeed http://rotarywingshow.com/1-mountainflying/”]
Turkish Airforce and Royal Danish Airforce personnel finishing the Mountain Flying Course in March 2014
Pieter talks about how he got started as a helicopter pilot and some of his early jobs. We then get into some of the techniques that help pilots operating efficiently and safely when operating around mountains.