ssuu mmmeerr 2200 111 - helicopterlife – helicopter · pdf file ·...

HELICOPTER

LIFE

HELICOPTER LIFE is the HIGH LIFE

Summer 2011 / £3.99

www.helicopterlife.com

Clickety clickR66

now including gyroplanes

LIFEHELICOPTER

SummER 2011SummER 2011

HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2011 3

Robinson R66 32Georgina Hunter-Jonesgoes up to SloaneHelicopters at SywellNorthamptonshire to flytheir brand newRobinson R66 for anevaluation test flight.

Calidus Gyrocopter 42Georgina Hunter-Jonesgoes to Long Mynd inShropshire to the heartof the UK gyrocopterempire - Rotorsport-meets Gerry Speichand flies the newCalidus.

Olympics 2012 49winners and losers?

Alert NAS Hyeres 50Carlo Kuit and PaulKievitvisit NAS Hyeres, fly with the FrenchNavy and learn aboutthe exchange pro-gramme and the secretof the coloured laces!

The Effect of Fukushima 57Helicopter Life, alerted by a letter fromShizuka Saito about theenduring problems inJapan, looks at the effectthat the nuclear disasterhas had on other coun-tries’ nuclear plans.

Book Review 58

CAA Legislation changes 59

DVD & Website Review 62 & 63

Accident Reports 64

House & Helicopter 66

COVER STORYCOVER STORY

First Flight Show & Tell Guide 4Aviation shows and conferences.

The Editor’s Letter 5

Aerial Forum 6 & 10 Rob Hields reviews another aerial eatery

Letters to the Editor 7 & 11 & 23 & 25

Flying Crackers 8 & 9

Sound of Freedom 12Arjan Dijksterhuislooks at the irony ofthe use of the Cougarsin the WW2 freedomcelebrations in view ofthe Dutch defence cutswith a poignant eye.

UH-60s: New Technology or Gossip? 14

EBACE 18Helicopter Lifelooks at how theJapanese disaster andturmoil in the MiddleEast is affecting theaviation economy, aswell as seeing whatwas new at the show.

From Around the World 20 & 40A variety of writers look at recent interna-tional aviation move-ments varying from jetpack flights and newbuildings to escapingby Lynx and Russianimports into Peru.

Helicopter Hunting 26Georgina Hunter-Jonesexamines the history ofdeer hunting by heli-copter in New Zealandand how it changedinto live deer capture inlater years.

HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2011

17 June - 19 June 2011AEROExPO UK

Sywell Airfield, Northampton

http://www.expo.aero/uk/event-info

20 June - 26 June 201149TH PARIS LE BOURGET AIR SHOW

Le Bourget, Paris, France

www.paris-air-show.com/en

email: [email protected]

+33(0)1 53 23 33 33

14 July - 17 July 2011ExPOAERO BRASIL

Sao Jose das Campos, Sao Paulo Brasil

http://www.expoaerobrasil.com.br/2011

20 August 2011

THE SECOND MIL CUP HELICOPTER RACE

Route Kiev – Moscow

Xth International Aviation & Space Salon MAKS.

Kiev is the birthplace of Igor Sikorsky.

http://www.helicopter.su/mil_cup/mil_cup.html

email: [email protected]

27 August - 28 August 2011

HELI CHALLENGE

Enniskillen Airport,

Co.Fermanagh, N. Ireland.

www.helichallenge.org

15 September - 18th September 2011

CHINA HELICOPTER ExPOSITION

Tianjin, near Beijing

www.helicopter-china-expo.com

27 September - 29 September 2011

HELITECH DUxFORD

Imperial War Museum

Duxford, near Cambridge, UK

http://www.helitechevents.com/duxford

12 February - 14 February 2012

HAI HELIExPO 2012

Dallas, Texas, USA

Phone: 703 683 4646

http://www.rotor.com/Events/HELIEXPo2012.aspx

19 September - 20th September 2012THE HELICOPTER SHOW

Farnborough, UK

http://www.thehelicoptershow.com

4

HELICoPTER LIFE is published quarterly by FlyFizzi Ltd.

59 Great ormond Street

London, WC1N-3HZ.

Copyright © FlyFizzi Ltd. 2011.

ISSN 1743-1042.

All rights reserved. opinions expressed herein are not neces-

sarily those of the publishers, the Editor or any of the editorial

staff. Reproduction in whole or in part, in any form whatever,

is strictly prohibited without specific written permission of

the Editor.

COVER PHOTOGRAPHSFlying the Robinson R66 from Sywell

Airfield in Northamptonshirephotograph Malvina Nicca

SummER 2011

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF / PILOTGeorgina [email protected]

CREATIVE [email protected]

COPY EDITORSEvangeline Hunter-Jones, JPJohn Wilson

CONTRIBUTING EDITORSArjan Dijksterhuis, Rob Hields, Paul Kievit andCarlo Kuit, Sir John Severne, Gerry Speich, ChrisJones. Shizuka Saito, Mark Barry-Jackson

CONTRIBUTED PHOTOGRAPHYArjan Dijksterhuis Rob Hields, Alan Norris, PaulKievit and Carlo Kuit, Malvina Nicca, ChrisJones, Ranulf Rayner, Sir Tim Wallis, HilaireDubourcq estate, Roger Walton

SPECIAL THANKS TODave Smith ATPL(H)IR, Paul Herbert,

ADVERTISINGTelephone: +44-(0)20-7430-2384,[email protected]

SUBSCRIPTIONSGo to our website or turn to page [email protected]

WEBSITEwww.helicopterlife.com

Bloghttp://helicopterlife.blogspot.com

HON. EDITORIAL BOARDCaptain Eric Brown, CBE, RN

The Lord Glenarthur, DL

Jennifer MurrayMichael J. H. SmithWing Cdr. Ken Wallis, MBE, RAF

LIFEHELICOPTER

Show & Tell

Guide


certification comes through.

Both distributors hope to have

EASA certification by mid-summer.

The difficulty lies in the fact that

EASA and FAA certification process-

es differ on a number of evaluation

and assessment procedures. However,

at Rotorvation, near Brand’s Hatch,

where I joined a HeliAir Roadshow,

Brian Kane was able to tell me the

most serious problem, the issue over

the hydraulics, had been sorted and

that the Robinson Co. now expected

EASA later this year, possilby by

August.

Different from the R66 in almost

every way, we also have an evaluation

of the Calidus gyroplane. The Calidus

seems almost like a tiny aeroplane

with its stability and unusually long

range and endurance. Perhaps this

type of aircraft marks a new era for

the gyrocopter.

At a time when flying itself it down

it is interesting to hear that the num-

ber of female pilots is increasing.

Between 2000 and 2010, the number

of women pilots in the USA increased

by 18.6% and the number of women

with Airline Pilot Certificates

increased by 35%. Meanwhile, the

number of male pilots dropped by

1%. Female mechanics went up by

43%. However, the percentage of

women (even in the younger ranges)

in the overall population of the USA

also increased significantly, now mak-

ing up 64% of the population.

time required to get permission to fly,

when all they want to do is, for

example, fly the short hope to the

golf course. According to one pilot,

Guan Hongsheng: “It's like this --

your family, your wife, won't let you

go out and pick up girls. But you

went out and did it anyway!”

He told the New York Times.

"Secret flying is like secret love. You

do it, you don't tell people about it."

However, not all of the unap-

proved flights end without conse-

quences. ‘Black Flight’ pilots have

been the targets of UFo sightings in

China, and one unapproved flight

over an airport last July disrupted

commercial jet traffic. Some pilots,

including Guan Hongsheng, have

been apprehended for illegal flying

and fines apparently vary from

between $3,000 to $15,000.

A fairly good deterrent and a good

indication that the will to fly is grow-

ing in China and that the population

understands and desires the benefits

of private helicopter flying.

Whether the R66 will be popular

in China is hard to tell, but it has cer-

tainly been extensively marketed in

the UK. Both Sloane and HeliAir

have had ‘road shows’ around the

countryside, giving flights to poten-

tial punters, and press. Giorgio

Bendoni of Sloane Helicopters said,

“Sloane had the pleasure to take the

demonstrator around for a road show

to some 15 different locations in the

UK and Ireland; flying schools and

clubs, charter operators... More than

200 people have now experienced the

aircraft first hand and we do not have

any record of disappointment or

failed expectations.”

Brian Kean of HeliAir said that

they had flown 98 hours on the R66,

flying around the country taking

potential purchasers on flights and

the response had been extremely pos-

itive, with orders for when EASA

5

The ediTor’S leTTer

This has been an unusually high

profile time for helicopters.

on the one hand, the recession

has led to a drop in corporate, com-

mercial and training flights, on the

other, there was the wedding of the

British Prince William and his wife

Catherine Middleton. Prince William,

as the press continually remind us,

has a ‘day job’ as a SAR pilot. Then

you have the use of helicopters in

Japan, attempting to cool the nuclear

reactors after the earthquake and

tsunami destroyed the Fukushima

Nuclear Plant. This was followed by

the dry weather over the UK leading

to massive fires and, somewhat sur-

prisingly, a lot of helicopters used for

dousing the fires: while you expect to

see this in the USA and Australia, it

is rare in Great Britain. Then, most

high profile of all, there was the use

of the US Navy Seals helicopters in

Pakistan to find osama bin Laden

and the question: What were these

special helicopters that were able to

slip undetected over the Pakistan bor-

der and into Abbottabad, north of

Islamabad, without arousing suspi-

cions from the government or the

locally placed militia? Newspapers as

diverse as the British Daily Mail and

the New York Times have been

debating whether these were modified

UH-60 Black Hawks or stealth heli-

copters designed for the purpose. The

Pentagon has declined to comment

but the interest is there.

As the turmoil in the Middle East

continues to affect the aviation mar-

ket we look for relief to China as a

brighter spot in the future of aviation.

However, there are some unexpected

things there too.

one US newspaper has got hold of

some interesting facts about ‘black

flights’ in China. These are illegal

flights done by wealthy Chinese who

own their own helicopters and do not

want to have to wait the considerable

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AeriAl Forum

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Swinton Park in North Yorkshire robert ‘Noshmore’ Hields on the flying and eating

In the next few issues I am going to give you a few tips on

landing sites that I have visited, and grade them to help low

time and new helicopter pilots venture out into previously

unknown venues.

I promote safety and courteous flying at all times, I accept

that some pilots have higher levels of competence and confi-

dence than others. However, from experience, when you

attempt to decipher information about a site over the telephone,

given by someone who does not understand either the rules of

the air or the limitations of pilots and helicopter types, things

can often turn out to be different on arrival. Google earth is a

useful tool, but don’t forget things change! Just because you

went into a site last year, doesn't mean to say that the new

neighbour isn't a radio-ham, and hasn't stretched his latest 700

foot wire from the attic to the old oak tree over the stream! (I

am not kidding). Also some hotel receptionists may speak flu-

ent English, and have worked happily for 25 years on the front

desk! Yes, I think you get the message, there is no substitute for

a good recce with your own eyes on the day.

I am more than happy to write these articles to help people

enjoy flying helicopters safely, but in this day and age I accept

no responsibility if you get it wrong. Also, if I specify a distinct

approach and circuit pattern, be sure that I will have taken note

of local issues and preferences of residents and owners. Safety

is paramount at all times, and if it does not feel right to you on

the day, go around and re-think the plan.

This one is grade 5. (Basic PPL H with perhaps 50 hours

PIC should be comfortable with the site)

NB: My suggested approach from the East after an over-

head circuit recce, (LH), is ideal with a westerly wind, cross

wind and or cross wind component. Exercise caution with

easterly wind above 15kts depending on all-up weight/power

available and experience! Utilizing a westerly wind for depar-

ture would mean a transition from behind the cricket pitch

and off to the south west of the main building. It is possible

to back-track further down the field for a better transition, but

inform the staff of your intention so as to avoid confusion.

The Swinton Park Castle and country house dates from the

late 1600's, with subsequent alterations and extensions by the

Danby and Cunliffe-Lister families. It combines both

Regency and Victorian Gothic style and architecture. The

estate was purchased by Samuel Cunliffe-Lister in 1880, an

impressive inventor, and industrialist, who made a fortune in

the woolen mills of Bradford.

Although I wasn't aware of this priceless gem of a family

home until it opened as a country house hotel, some ten years

ago, I was certainly aware of ‘Listers Mill’ in Manningham,

Bradford. The giant stone built mill still dominates the

cityscape, with a 250 foot high stone chimney that the local

elders will tell you that,"tha cun led un orse'n cart row'n top'n

it"! It was the biggest silk mill in the world, and employed

continued on page 10

Jane and Jack Havakin

with the Big Red EC130

and Noshmore on the

lawn at Swinton Park

l

59 Great ormond Street, London WC1N-3HZ, England.

Telephone: 020-7430-2384, Email: [email protected].

Please include your name, and email or phone.


More Magnificent R22!

Hi Georgina,

Just thought I'd send you a couple of photos of the new

arrivals at Kirkbride. The Calidus is a great long dis-

tance tourer and the Magni M24 is so like an R22 but

so much better!.

Kind regards

Chris Jones

Chris Jones Gyroplanes

Dutch Helicopter in Libya

Dear Georgina,

I would just like to point out that the Dutch Helicopter

in Libya (Spring 2011) was not ‘downed’ but kept on

the ground.

Many thanks,

Arjan Dijksterhuis

April Fool?

Sent in by Ranulf Rayner with the caption:

Never come shooting down at Ashcombe, Devon by

chopper! Alternative headline: watch your fire!

Silvered Wings

Dear Georgina

Thank you for the review of my book. Silvered Wings.

My local bookshop said that it made a good present

for frustrated dads who would have liked to have been

able to fly!

I realised that I had been incredibly lucky with my

chosen career, one which would be very difficult for a

young officer joining the RAF now to replicate. When

I joined, the British aircraft industry was churning out

new types galore, in the 40s and 50s, and there were

plenty of opportunities for type hogs like me to have a

field day. Nowadays, if a young chap joins the RAF to

fly the Typhoon he will still be flying the same aircraft

when he is Chief of the Air Staff. Both the Hunter and

the Canberra lasted half a century. Furthermore mod-

ern military aircraft are so expensive to fly that I am

sure it is no longer possible to scrounge flights as I

did, like the time I flew a Sea Fury (Silvered Wings

page 33). This couldn't and shouldn't happen today!

My father had flown in the first World War and I

regretted the fact that he never spoke or wrote about it.

I thought there might be a grandson along the line who

would be interested and that was my original motiva-

continued on page 11

7

leTTerS To The ediTor Letters continue on

page 11 & 23 & 25

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publicized glimpse of what the

device might be capable of doing.

Company officials said the remote-

control flight was mandated by the

rigid safety protocol that aims to

make the Jetpack the ‘safest and

easiest-to-fly aircraft’ available. It's

been more than two years since the

device, which uses a high-revving

two-stroke engine to power

the fans, was last demonstrated

Fancy a job as a space pilot?

Virgin Galactic is looking for

pilot-astronaut applicants as the

company ramps up to offer tourist

flights into space. Virgin is ready to

select three candidates, one to start

now and the others to come on board

as needed. The pilots will participate

in the ongoing test-flight program

for WhiteKnightTwo and

SpaceShipTwo in Mojave and later

will help launch commercial opera-

tions and train new pilots at

Spaceport America in New Mexico.

Virgin is looking for graduates of

test-pilot school with experience fly-

ing high-performance jets and large

multi-engine aircraft as well as ‘low

lift-to-drag ratio glide experience

(e.g. simulated flameout landings) in

complex aircraft. Their ideal

candidate would have spaceflight

experience as well -- a criterion

that might not be so hard to meet as

NASA winds down its shuttle

program, leaving their astronaut

corps grounded.

Clothing for the North Sea

Special protective clothing for heli-

copter passengers in transit to and

from installations in the U.K. off-

shore oil industry is essential. Such

clothing increases survival chances

in the unlikely event of a helicopter

ditching. Survival-one specializes in

the production and servicing of

immersion dry suits for various appli-

cations civilian, military and emer-

gency. The primary function of

Immersion suits is to provide the

wearerwith protection against the

effects of cold water immersion,

including both 'cold shock' and

hypothermia. However, imagine what

it is like to sit on a helicopter on a

long flight with a survival suit: heat,

noise, stress and all the rest of it. To

combat this, Survival-one has

designed a new generation of survival

suits using outlast technology to

enable offshore workers to benefit

from enhanced insulation that regu-

lates the microclimate inside the suit

to improve thermal comfort and

reduce thermal stress.

Science Museum does Flight

Tours

The Science Museum is now offering

an exclusive Flight Gallery group

tour, hosted by the museums' own

specialist curator. The tour, which

will run for up to an hour, will high-

light key objects in the collection and

the museum's expert guide will

reveal hidden stories behind objects

that have changed our lives. The tour

of our Flight Gallery,

Not so much Sun and Fun

on Thursday 31st March, Lakeland

Airport, host of the Sun & Fun Air

Show was hit by a tornado with

winds up to 95 mph.

Although the main exhibit area was

unscatched some others were not so

lucky, with some having minor dings

and some being totalled: corpses of

wrecked aircraft littering the ground.

In spite of some fairly severe dam-

age - for example a Ran 2 ended up

landing on the Piper Aircraft park -

the organisers were determined that

the show would go on and helped

exhibitors and visitors with a major

over-night clear up.

EADS wins Randstad Award

EADS and its divisions have won

the Randstad Award for the most

popular employer in France,

Germany and Spain.

In the UK Airbus was rated the sec-

ond most preferred employer.

In France it was Eurocopter that

received the award, while Germany

preferred Airbus and Spain the

whole EADS conglomerate.

JetPack Flies

Martin Jetpack flew for more than

seven minutes and at altitudes of

more than 100 feet in April but there

was a dummy at the controls.

The New Zealand company put a

mannequin onboard and flew the

ducted-fan VToL ultralight aircraft

by remote control in the first


FlyinG CrACkerS

which showcases numerous fascinating objects

including Alcock and Brown's Vickers Vimy biplane,

and the 'Jason I', de Havilland DH60G Gipsy Moth.

Forty Winks in Florida

A controller at the Miami Air Route Traffic Control

Center (ARTCC) was suspended in April for falling

asleep on the midnight shift. The FAA said in a state-

ment there were no missed calls or any disruption to

control services. There were 12 controllers and two

supervisors on duty at the time. Another controller

noticed the sleeping controller and turned him in. The

incident came hours after the midshift crew at the

ARTCC was given a briefing on professionalism and

the importance of reporting to work fit for duty,

according to a news release on the agency's Web site.

Meanwhile, FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt

says the agency is putting a stop to scheduling prac-

tices that, it says, contribute to controller fatigue.

Bell First Flight

The first flight of its oH-58 Block II demonstrator

took place at Bell’s Xworx research and development

facility in Fort Worth, Texas in April 2011.

Cathy Ferrie, Director of Bell Helicopter's Xworx

facility said, “The Block II is a significant leap for-

ward in performance for the Kiowa Warrior platform

and will absolutely make this a 21st Century airframe

for the 21st Century soldier.”

Bell Helicopter is developing this oH-58 Block II in

anticipation of a U.S. Army future requirement of

6K/95 performance. The Block II oH-58 will demon-

strate Bell helicopter's ability to meet or exceed all

performance requirements for the Army's Armed

Aerial Scout. Bell Helicopter is developing this air-

craft with its own resources and at no cost to the gov-

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Prince Charles at HeliPortugal

A Heliportugal AW139 medium twin helicopter was used

to support the visit of His Royal Highness The Prince of

Wales in Portugal on March 31st. The aircraft took off

from Air Base No6 Montijo bound for the airfield at

Evora. The helicopter later transferred the 13 VIP passen-

gers to the helipad in Cascais Marina.

10 HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2011

continued from page 6

thousands of ‘Bradfordians’ when the city was one of the

wealthiest in Britain, if not the world. It also played a very

important part in the war effort by producing countless thou-

sands of silk parachutes for the allies.

It is fair to say that men like Samuel Cunliffe-Lister were

certainly the Victorian equivalents of the likes of Bill Gates,

and possibly Sir Peter Rigby, (hope he buys me out next!).

For those readers of helicopter life who aren’t aware of my

personal background, I have worn three hats in three different

professions. I am a qualified mechanical engineer by trade,

but I joined the Fire Brigade for some action, and went on to

serve for 21 years at the sharp-end, mainly in Leeds, my

home city, but I was stationed in Bradford for a couple of

years, and in that time entered a few of these industrial giants

in the death-throws of a blaze, sometimes with the sound of

tons of iron machines crashing through oil soaked oak floors.

God I miss the security and safety of my previous career after

22 years in the aviation industry!

However, back to the splendid Swinton Park estate. I am

happy to say that the family home, now a magnificent hotel,

and 20,000 acre estate, (yes twenty thousand), is indeed in

very good hands, in so much that the present owner, Mark

Cunliffe-Lister is the great-great-great grandson of Samuel

Cunliffe-Lister. Mark, who along with his wife Felicity, hold

the title of Lord and Lady Masham. (Pronounce as Mas-ham).

Masham itself is a traditional Yorkshire market town, very

much worth a visit. It is un-spoilt and the locals are very

friendly and proud of the town. It is a very popular watering

hole, and is the home of Theakston's Brewery.

Swinton Park Castle is situated about 3/4 of a mile south-

west of Masham center. If you would like to visit, please tele-

phone on 01765-680900. There is a short automated message

so hold to speak to the receptionist to book in. Please do not

just drop-in, as parking is limited and the lawn may well have

been pre-booked. You will be made extremely welcome by all

the staff, and there is no landing fee for visitors who stay for

a meal, overnight, or afternoon tea.

If you enter Swinton Park Masham into Google Earth,

Samuel's at Swinton Park will appear. If you zoom in to about

1500 feet you will see the gatehouse to the East of the castle

between the stone walls. The best approach is directly over this

heading towards the East facing main turret of the house. You

will see on the Google image something that looks like a crick-

et pitch, and although this has now been re-turfed your

approach will take you between a couple of high trees, and over

this area, allowing ample parking about 30 yards from the main

entrance to the castle. Although there is ample room for one

machine, up to a decent twin, I am sure that with a little pre-

planning and separation a safe area for two or three helicopters

is achievable.

I will be speaking to the General manager, Peter Llewellyn,

to discuss other areas to land should the estate consider any

future events, and I will keep all the readers posted on this.

I suggest that a basic service be obtained from RAF

Leeming on the final leg of your journey as it can be busy fly-

ing in the Vale of York at all times, so routing from the south I

would recommend remaining to the west of the A1 and perhaps

chatting to Leeds after Doncaster, before hand-over to the RAF.

Keep a good lookout.

I highly recommend a visit to Swinton Park, it is a truly

breathtaking place, full of lavish furniture, portraits and

antiques. The Hotel has magnificent accommodation in the

tranquility of the Eastern side of the Yorkshire dales. There is

an award winning restaurant, Samuel's, in one of the most

beautiful dining rooms I have seen, serving the highest quality

local sourced food such as venison, game, lamb and beef, and

even estate foraged wild mushrooms, elderflower and wild gar-

lic. For those of you who may share my passion in culinary

excellence, there is a highly acclaimed cookery school, offering

courses at all levels in subjects such as breadmaking, butchery,

stocks and sauces.

We arrived about 430 pm for afternoon tea. Jack and Jane

Havakin and myself sat three abreast in the front of their new

EC130 G HAVI. We have done quite a lot of flying together in

the twenty years we have all known each other, mostly in the

EC120 G IGPW, which I personally liked a lot. However, Jane

got sick of being in the back on her own, so Jack opted for the

130 giving us the chance to all sit together in the front of the

aircraft! The customer is always right can I hear you all saying.

We were met on the lawn by a very helpful and courteous

porter, who escorted us to the reception area, handing us on to

the general manager Peter Llewellyn. After a friendly and very

informative conversation with Peter about the estate, we

relaxed in the main lounge area looking at the impressive fami-

ly portraits and antique furniture. our waiter quickly took an

order for two full afternoon teas, with just an extra pot of finest

leaf Assam for myself. Jane sadly was not at all hungry until

the food arrived, of course, and we soon sat around trading the

odd fresh baked scone with a cucumber sandwich or two.

Needless to say the two towers of food were soon reduced to

crumbs, which helped me with me required 4000 calories a day.

The evening menu was sensational. If you are interested in a

visitcheck the web-site for more details. I shall be dining there

soon.

Highly Recommended. Pilot grade 5.

Jane and Jack Havakin

in the drawing room at

Swinton Park


tion, but one thing led to another and I finished up

with Pen & Sword. Incidentally, I think they did a

very good job in presenting the book, particularly the

cover.

I owe much to Norman Jones and the Tiger Club for

so some wonderful fun flying, and of course to Prince

Philip, who supported sporting flying in the broadest

sense.

When I was working, I used to get very frustrated if I

was unable to fly because the aircraft had gone u/s or

the weather had clamped. But when I retired I made a

clean break and I now live very happily with just some

wonderful memories! None of my family were inter-

ested in flying and since there were no airfields rea-

sonably close to our first home in Somerset, the temp-

tation didn't exist. Cost was another factor and

Headcorn is rather a long way away.

Helicopters have always fascinated me. I suppose part

of the attraction initially was that they were a bit of a

challenge. You couldn't just sit back and let the aircraft

fly itself, you had to work on it all the time. I remem-

ber that you couldn't take your hand off the stick in a

Whirlwind to fold a map because the stick promptly

went to one corner or the other! I am proud of the fact

that I did my first solo on the Dragonfly when you did

not have the automatic link with the collective lever

and the throttle. Incidentally I am a life member of

the Helicopter Museum at Weston.

Ken Wallis is an old friend of mine - he even let my

fly 'Little Nellie'!

Enough of me. I am most impressed with your maga-

zine which I had not seen before. Apart from anything

else the quality of the photographs is fantastic. As a

keen photgrapher I never cease to be amazed at what

can be done with a digital camera. In fact I recently

gave a fund raising lecture in aid of our church with

pictures taken around the world starting with my treas-

ured Box Brownie of the 1920s! I also occasionally

get asked to talk about my book or just some of the

aircraft I have flown. I am the projectionist for our

local NADFAS group and I regard it as justified perks

to be able to borrow their digital projector which,

incidentally, I bought for the Society.

Yours sincerely.

Sir John Severne

Author, Silvered Wings

letters continue on page 23

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This article it is not about Bob Sinclar’s fourth single,

released in May 2007! There are different interpre-

tations of ‘the sound of freedom’, for example the

sound of jet-fighters above the soldiers on a battlefield:

For some this may induce terror, for others it might appear

to be the sound of helicopters arriving for a Search and

Rescue mission. In this piece, the latter comes closest.

Each year, on the 4th May, the Netherlands traditional-

ly stops at eight o´clock PM for a two minute silence, to

commemorate the fallen, to remember and to honour all

the casualties and all the heroes that gave their lives dur-

ing the Second World War, in order to liberate Europe.

one day later, on the 5th May, we celebrate the libera-

tion of the Netherlands in 1945, with a variety of activities

throughout the country. Music festivals are organised in

cities throughout the Netherlands. Many music bands are

present at the festivals in cities all over the Netherlands

and some of these music bands have been chosen to be the

‘Ambassadors of Freedom’ for that particular year. Their

schedule of the day is filled with several performances at

several festivals all over the Netherlands. This is where

having a helicopter available comes in handy!

During the 2010 festivals, a pair of CH-47D Chinooks

were used to transport the bands. In this year’s celebrations

there were a total of three AS.532U2 Mk2 Cougars that

were used to fly the musicians from festival to festival.

one of the crew-members (a musician himself) even

played along with one of the bands on stage.

This was a day of celebration for all the citizens of the

Netherlands but sadly it was a strange day for the crews of

the Cougars.

Recent Defence cuts resulted in the decision to com-

pletely axe the fleet of Cougars within the Defence heli-

copter Command. That thursday was for most crew-mem-

bers the last operational day of flying with the Cougar hel-

icopter. on Monday 11 May, fourteen out of seventeen

Cougar transport-helicopters were phased out. Three

Cougars will remain in service for a short time.

Hopefully, the helicopters of the Defence Helicopter

Command will still be flying the music bands from festi-

val to festival next year! To continue the sound of free-

dom, which is probably the best sound ever.

The Sound of FreedomwORdS aNd PICTuRES bY aRjaN dIjkSTERHuIS


Early Chinese helicopter industry beginnings

were in the late 1950s, when the Soviet Union

helped the Communist Party to build military

and civil helicopters based on the Soviet Mil Mi-4

Hound.

Xperimenting with helicopters for the first

time, in 1966, Harbin built the first indige-

nous helicopter Z-6. It was mainly designed

to carry airborne troops in the frontline, with a fuse-

lage to accommodate 12 soldiers.

Prototype (No.6001) of the Z-6 was completed

in 1967 for static tests. It had a maximum

take-off weight of 7,600 kg, a payload of

1,200 kg, a maximum speed of 192 km/h and a ferry

range of 651 km.

on 25 December 1969, the second Z-6 proto-

type No.6002 made its first flight. It pos-

sesses many advanced features, including a

1,618 kW Wozhou-5 turboshaft engine.

Second Z-6 prototype also had re-designed

blades and fuselage to achieve better perform-

ance in highland regions, larger payload, and

less vibration and noise.

In 1970, the Z-6 programme was relocated to the

newly founded Changhe Aircraft Factory (now

Changhe/Jingdezhen Aircraft Industry

Corporation) in Jiangxi, which later became the sec-

ond largest helicopter manufacturer in China.

The restoration of the relationship between

China and the West in the late 1970s gave the

Chinese aviation another chance to boost its

helicopter industry.

In 1977, with 15 helicopters already built, Z-6

helicopter was type classified. However, despite

being technologically successful, the Z-6 pro-

gramme was later cancelled for various reasons.

operating with foreign partner Eurocopter the

Chinese helicopter industry developed fifty

Z-9 (AS 365N Dauphins) and Z-8 (AS391Ja

Super Frelon).

Now both Harbin and Change have been

involved in international co-operations with

the US and European partners.

Since 2005, the Chinese helicopter industry has

been moving in leaps and bounds both with

western partners and on their own account. It

is possible something special may be unveiled at the

Helicopter Exposition at Tianjin.

Helicopter Facts

about China

HELICOPTER LIFE Summer 201114

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Last month the Navy Seals flew into osama bin

Laden’s compound in Pakistan to make an arrest of

the ‘most wanted man in the world’ but it is report-

ed that one of the helicopters crash landed in the courtyard

and was so badly damaged that it was unable to take off.

The Seals delayed their escape in order to burn the crashed

aircraft so it could not be replicated. However, the fire did

not destroy the tail rotor and concomitant parts and it was

put out by the Pakistanis in the compound and the remain-

ing parts of the helicopter were confiscated.

The Seals who flew into the bin Laden’s compound

usually fly the Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawks, however,

there is a growing rumour that the particular helicopters

they flew were somehow modified to make them unde-

tectable to radar, and quieter and more effective than the

normal model. This would explain why the Pakistanis

apparently had no knowledge of the flight until it had hap-

pened. Rumours totally denied by the US Military.

Photographs of the confiscated parts went viral on the

internet, with experts claiming that the parts did not look

like any officially acknowledged US airframes and stating

they do not look like the normal tail end of a Black Hawk.

Jane’s Weekly reported: “Specifically, the tail rotor of the

crashed helicopter has a five-bladed assembly, whereas

the Black Hawk tail rotor has four blades. Also, where the

Black Hawk’s vertical tail section tapers towards the top,

the helicopter lost in the raid has a vertical tailplane and

has an even chord from top to bottom capped off with

what appears to be a large aerodynamic surface.”

The Army Times reported that a retired special opera-

tions aviator said that the helicopter’s low-observable

technology was similar to that of the F-117 Stealth Fighter.

“It really didn’t look like a traditional Black Hawk,” he

said. “It had ‘hard edges’, sort of like an … F-117, you

know how they have those distinctive edges and angles —

that’s what they had on this one.”

He added - referring to the possibility that the helicop-

ter got into vortex ring (which the Americans call settling

with power) and thus crashed - “it’s hard to settle with

power in a Black Hawk, but ... if they were using one of

these [low-observable helicopters], working at max gross

weight, it’s certainly plausible that they could have

because they would have been flying so heavy.”

He also noted that low-observable modifications added

new

Is there stealth technology in the

‘Pakistan’ uH-60 black Hawks?

will it be shared with China?

TeChnoloGy or GoSSip?

HELICOPTER LIFE Summer 2011

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operations Aviation Regiment’s MH-60s. USSoCoM

awarded a contract to Boeing to modify several MH-60s

to the low-observable design in 1999.

It was said that there was going to be a special unit

with four low-observable helicopters in its fleet, but that

this was cancelled, possibly due to lack of funds.

If there is truth in the rumours and the parts taken by

the Pakistani Military are ‘stealth’ related, this will not

be the first time technology has been ‘forcibly shared’.

A failed Cruise missile strike in the 90s gave Pakistan

access to America’s Cruise missile technology, which

was later duplicated. Then a downed Stealth Fighter in

Bosnia allowed the Chinese to look at the Stealth mate-

rial and design the J-10. Growing ties between Pakistani

and Chinese armed forces have enabled both countries

to see what the new technology is all about. China and

Pakistan, over the past two decades, have co-developed

a multi role combat aircraft called JF-17 Thunders, the

FC-20 and an advanced trainer, the JL-8. It will be inter-

esting to see if Pakistan also shares this information

with China.

UH-60 Black Hawk

fomation not evading

radar or camera

Black Hawk down

but not out

“several hundred pounds” to the weight of the MH-60,

which already weighs about 500 to 1000 pounds more than

a regular UH-60 Black Hawk.

It has also been speculated that the helicopter might have

been coated with some special radar-deflecting substance,

which would have kept the radar cross-section down. And,

if a special coating was applied to the windshield it is plau-

sible that that would make the helicopter more difficult to

fly for pilots wearing night-vision goggles.

Apparently, the US Military has a history of using low-

observable technology on their aircraft. This started with

AH-6 Little Bird special operations attack helicopters in the

1980s. During the 1990s U.S. Special operations Command

worked with the Lockheed-Martin Skunk Works division,

which also designed the F-117, to refine the radar-evading

technology and make it applicable to the 160th Special

Sikorsky UH-60s

“Go! Go!”


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Flying through a turbulent

marketEBACE (EUROPEAN AVIATION BUSINESS CONVENTION AND ExHIBITION) 2011

BY GEORGINA HUNTER-JONES

After a slow start, visitors began to stream in to

EBACE and by the Tuesday afternoon there

were considerable number of people in both

halls, justifying the extra space used by the operators.

There were 511 exhibitors occupying 2,072 exhibit sites,

up from the record year of 2008, which had 455

exhibitors occupying 1,900. 10,600 attendees had pre-

booked and the organisers were optimistic that this

would lead to a considerably higher number of visitors

by the end of the show. Final count was 12,751.

The biggest helicopter event this year was already

forecast last year: the Mercedes Benz Eurocopter EC145.

Last year it was just a dream in model form, this year

they not only unveiled the full sized model, but signed it

away to the first buyer.

In an effort to show how car companies could change

the production of luxury helicopters, Mercedes Benz

Advanced Design Studio in Como is proposing to

redesign the EC145 cabin to give room for the four pas-

sengers (it can take eight in a business layout) plus their

surfboards.

Certainly, Eurocopter must have had configuration

changes in mind when they designed the cabin, as the

seats are on rails for easy movement as are the ‘multi-

function boxes’ which can be used for housing a DVD

player, a drinks cabinet or a table. The luggage compart-

ment can also be made larger or smaller by moving the

aft separation wall, and there are attachment points

which can be used for sports gear.

Eurocopter is particularly interested in the developing

Chinese helicopter market, something the company

recently sampled when they exhibited at the Hainan

Rendez-Vous, a luxury trade show, last month. They also

have a 50-50 joint venture with China’s Avicopter in the

EC175 (known as the Z-15 in China).

AgustaWestland were celebrating a sale at EBACE as


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Genel Havacilik A.S. of Turkey has placed an order for a

GrandNew light twin helicopter. The aircraft will be used

to perform VIP transport missions and it is expected to

be delivered in June 2011. The contract marks the

entrance of the GrandNew model into the Turkish heli-

copter market.

Emilio Dalmasso, Senior Vice President Commercial

Business Unit, AgustaWestland said: “We are proud that

Genel Havacilik has become the first customer in Turkey

to choose the GrandNew helicopter to meet its VIP trans-

port requirements.”

Genel Havacilik A.S. of Turkey is a leading provider

of business aviation services in the region and it has been

operating for over 20 years. An extensive fleet of busi-

ness aircraft is operated from bases in Turkey and the

Middle East. A broad range of services and technical

capabilities include aircraft operation, maintenance, FBo

services and consultancy for aircraft purchases.

PremiAir Aviation was here for the first time on a

shared booth run by Avinode, a Swedish company that

works with aviation charter companies to maximise their

bookings. Thanks to Avinode’s ability to structure flights

around a number of charter companies across the world

it is, as PremiAir’s Charlotte Hounslow explains, “rare

for a plane to have to fly an empty leg.”

“However,” Hounslow explained, ‘there is nothing

quite comparable in helicopters, which makes them a

much more complicated business to manage.”

PremiAir have actually had a surge in customers this

year and have had to recruit more staff. They are looking

forward to the 2012 olympics and expect Hotel Verta

‘London’s Vertical Gateway' and its heliport to be in the

vanguard of the action.

“The London Heliport remains the capital's only

licensed commercial heliport," said David McRobert. "It

provides a vital communication link into the West End of

London”.

Moreover, in case helicopters are not allowed into the

2012 olympic site, which seems likely in what is being

touted as the ‘Green olympics,’ the helipad now has its

own integrated wharf from which high speed boats can

be launched. It is said to take around 20 minutes to the

olympic site from the London Helipad.

Harry Lees of Lees Avionics Limited, part of the

Gama Group, was at the show to advertise the growing

capabilities of his part 145 company, and the increasing

number of types he is now able to work with. Lees

Avionics is currently based at Wycombe Air Park but is

moving to Farnborough, where it will be easier to work

with a variety of types including the AS350. He can now

design the STC for Universal UNSIE FMS and the SX16

Night sun, so consequently does much of his work with

police, ambulance and SAR units.

one of his more recent jobs was working with Atlantic

Airways on the Bell 412s used for SAR on the Faro

Islands. Test flying for these aircraft was done by Geoff

Connelly from Av8, a charter and training company

based at Rochester in Kent.

Genel Havacilik

AS of Turkey has

placed an order

for a GrandNew


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As happens in a volatile market there was a lot of conver-

sation about the uncertainties and threats in the current glob-

al climate and how this will affect the market. Altair, an avia-

tion finance company, Chief operating officer, Jean

Sémiramoth, talking about the used aircraft market said:

“Until the end of last year, the industry expected aircraft

sales to be driven by the Middle East and Asia. There was no

reason to think that this trend would change, until a series of

major catastrophes hit these regions, namely; The earth-

quake, tsunami and nuclear disaster in Japan. The political

unrest in the Middle East region, affecting countries includ-

ing Bahrain, Syria, Yemen, Egypt, Libya, Jordan, Algeria and

Tunisia.

The sudden and serious changes in these regions make the

future for these areas uncertain and market updates, forecasts

and predictions for the aviation industry very difficult to

make with any accuracy. It is likely that every sector of the

aviation industry will be affected to some degree or another,

but at this stage it is too soon to be able to predict the extent

of these effects or for how long they will be felt.

Following the disasters in Japan, several sources have told

us that they have had to turn down transactions and this trend

is expected to continue as the country deals with the after-

math of the earthquake and tsunami.

In North Africa and the Middle East we are seeing many

projects being postponed across all aircraft types; including

the large business jets and the bizliners. Furthermore, one

can expect that some owners and operators in the region will

start selling off their aircraft.

China, on the other hand, is booming with a strong econo-

my and finance available. But even this bastion of light for

the industry is not necessarily all good news for the pre-

owned sector as laws within the country make it very diffi-

cult to import second hand aircraft. So, the market in China

is almost exclusively focused on new aircraft.”

overall, he continued, the future is uncertain and will be a

challenge to our way of doing business.

Helicopters, of course, often do well in markets

where other sectors of the industry are failing: and at

the moment, thanks to a series of natural disasters,

helicopters have been extensively used in Japan and

India, while China is seeking to increase the number

of helicopters in the country in a very short time.

However, helicopters are also costly and while gov-

ernment finances are unsafe it wil be much more dif-

ficult for trade in helicopters to continue.

So, while EBACE was busy and deals were being

done it still seems to be that the market itself is in-

waiting; the bridesmaid who had thought her year

was to come, only to discover that world affairs

changed her parent’s outlook.

There are new things, the car companies (Honda

and Mercedes, for example) and other luxury compa-

nies seem to be making a move towards working with

aviation but the future is still far from settled. To

some extent aviation is always a floater on the pulse

of world affairs, but the unrest in the early part of this

year has made things even more uncertain for compa-

nies and operators. By the time this magazine comes

out we may know more about the future of the

Middle East but it may still be in a limbo of turmoil.

Aviation has a habit of adapting to difficult circum-

stances and even being enhanced by them, so we shall

see, perhaps the turmoil in the Middle East will lead

to an increase in alternative fuel or other innovations.

Car companies are

becoming increasingly

interested in the jet

market

Lotus 125

plays with the

minds of

Hawkers

D u x f o r d2 7 - 2 9 S e p t 2 0 1 1

Helitech Duxford is Europe's largestdedicated helicopter event,

encompassing every tier of the supply chain in one exhibition.

No other helicopter event offers you a face toface business platform which brings

together helicopter solutions providers withsenior buyers of helicopters and helicopterproducts, services, parts and accessories.

Find out more about exhibiting and visiting at

www.helitechevents.com/helilife

Organised by:

Join our socialmedia networks


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Rossy, the Swiss pilot known as "Jetman" for fly-

ing a unique jet-propelled wing attached to his

back, has successfully flown above the Grand

Canyon. The flight was sponsored by Breitling.

Rossy said before the flight, "My first flight in the

U.S. is sure to be one of the most memorable experi-

ences in my life, not only for the sheer beauty of the

Grand Canyon but the honor to fly in sacred Native

American lands,"

After the flight Rossy said in a news release. "Thank

you Mother Nature and the Hualapai Tribe for making

my lifelong dreams come true."

Rossy launched from a helicopter at 8,000 feet above

the canyon, and steering only by movement of his body,

flew at speeds up to 190 mph for more than eight min-

utes at altitudes as low as 200 feet above the canyon

rim. He then deployed a parachute and landed safely on

the canyon floor.

The Systemhaus Project

around the worldjetPack man

Agroundbreaking ceremony at Eurocopter’s

German site in Donauworth last month marked

the official start of construction work on the

company’s new integrated development center, part of

the Systemhaus project. This unique high-tech platform,

due to be completed in 2012, positions the world’s lead-

ing helicopter manufacturer squarely for the future.

With the Systemhaus project, Donauworth will con-

centrate all the resources, skills and equipment required

to develop, manufacture, certify and maintain helicopters

in one location. Development activities that currently are

located at Eurocopter’s ottobrunn site will be integrated

into the new building complex, which will have a surface

area of 30,000 square meters and is to be situated adja-

cent to the plant’s existing assembly facilities.

Moreover, it offers the opportunity to concentrate

activities that today are divided between different loca-

tions both in Donauworth and in ottobrunn. Some 900

Eurocopter employees will move into this future- orient-

ed innovative development center.


by arjan

dijksterhuis

On page 12 of Helicopter Life Spring 2011 we had

the story of the Dutch naval Lynx helicopter cap-

tured on a beach near the city of Sirte, Libya,

during an evacuation mission. What exactly went wrong

was then not known. At the time, the Dutch Ministry of

Defence said that the crew were prevented from taking

off by armed Libyan men loyal to the Libyan leader

Muammar Gaddafi. otte Beeksma, a spokesman for the

Dutch Ministry of Defence also said that the crew were

trying to evacuate a Dutch citizen.

Questions were asked by politicians in the Hague,

political centre of the Netherlands. Was it really neces-

sary to evacuate the Dutch citizen while 'regular' flights

out of Libya were still being flown? Some critics even

questioned why 'we' are not able to retrieve one person

while the British extracted a couple of hundred people in

secret operations?

Later it became public that efforts, undertaken by the

employer of the Dutch citizen, Royal Haskoning, did not

work out for various reasons including the cancellation of

a flight between Sirte and Tripoli, the ground situation

between the two cities, and a passport left at the main

office in Tripoli, an office which had already been vio-

lently searched by the Libyan police.

Political clearance to enter Libyan airspace had not

been requested because the relevant department in Libya

was closed at the time and thus no permission could be

received within the desired time frame. on the other

hand, the flight was not over land and involved a quick

turn-around. It was part of the element of surprise.

At around 16.15 the helicopter took off from the Dutch

frigate HNLMS Tromp and headed towards Libya. About

45 minutes of flying to the beach. 15 minutes prior to the

arrival at the pick up location, contact was made with the

Dutch citizen who reported that the surrounding of the

area was quiet. At 17:13 the HNLMS Tromp received an

emergency signal from the helicopter. About 15 minutes

later the Dutch citizen answered his telephone and

explained that something had gone wrong. In this conver-

sation he also mentioned the presence of a Swedish woman.

The Swedish and Dutch authorities did have contact on

this Sunday and they talked about the evacuation of a

Swedish citizen. The Swedish authorities at first said that

the Swedish citizen already left the city of Sirte, and then

that they could not reach the Swedish citizen. Further

actions were not done regarding the evacuation of the

Swedish citizen. Afterwards it became clear that the

Swedish woman had had contact with her son and he told

her about the possibility of an evacuation planned after

his contact with the Swedish Department of Foreign

Affairs. She headed toward the pick up zone but was

stopped by the military.

During the approach to the beach, the crew noted that

the citizen was not at the pick up zone, but about 200

meters away and talking to an unknown man. These were

two criteria for the cancellation of the evacuation. As they

turned away, the crew saw the Dutch citizen walk away

from the unknown person and head towards the pick up

location. Immediately after landing, one of the crew

members left the helicopter; suddenly thirty men sur-

rounded them and the helicopter, leaving no chance for a

quick departure.

The crew of three, the Dutch citizen and a Swedish

civilian were taken into custody.

The civilians were released on Wednesday March 2.

on Thursday March 10, Saif al Islam, Muammar

Gaddafi’s son, announced the release of the crew. That

thursday night they were released, picked up by an

Hellenic Air Force C-130 Hercules and flown to Athens,

Greece.

As the helicopter was so quickly surrounded by a large

group of military, it was obvious that the evacuation was

not as secret as it should be. Somehow the Libyans knew

that they were coming.

The SH-14D Lynx is still impounded by the Libyans.

Another Lynx helicopter was flown to Djibouti with an

Ilyushin IL-76 from Leeuwarden AB to replace the 277.

The Lynx helicopter flew from there to the Dutch frigate

HNLMS Tromp to continue the scheduled anti-piracy

missions off the coast of East Africa.

dutch Lynx

in Libya

update


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Selex Galileo

acquires uTRI

SELEX Galileo has acquired the Italian technology firm

UTRI (Unmanned Technologies Research Institute).

UTRI provides innovative mini-micro UAS for defence

and homeland security purposes and is recognised for its

excellence in unmanned technology.

SELEX Galileo’s portfolio of Unmanned Aerial Systems

(UAS) now ranges from mini-micro up to tactical UAS. The

acquisition of UTRI will allow SELEX Galileo to further

reinforce its UAS capability by leveraging on the growing

mini-micro market.

Highlights from the range of new products SELEX Galileo

will be able to offer include the operational 6.5 kg mini

Vertical Take off and Landing (VToL) UAS ‘ASIo’ charac-

terised by a unique “perch and stare” capability, the micro

fixed-wing ‘Crex-B’ UAS that weighs 2kg and the ducted-fan

VToL technology Spyball micro UAS.

Eurocopter X3Girl Power

Eurocopter’s X3 hybrid helicopter shown exceeding its

speed challenge. 232 knots (430km/h.) was achieved

in level, stabilized flight. The aircraft beat the target

speed of 220 knots and the test pilot said it provoked no grey

hairs. “We were impressed by the ease at which this speed

objective was achieved,” said Herve Jammayrac, test pilot.

The X3 is intended to develop into a family of aircraft that

offer conventional aircraft speed with helicopter versatility.

Ateam of University of Maryland (UMD) stu-

dent, in the USA students hope that their

attempt to capture a record for human-pow-

ered helicopter flight using a female pilot will be con-

firmed after a flight of about four seconds.

Judy Wexler, who is a 110-pound competitive

cyclist and a doctoral candidate in evolutionary biolo-

gy, sat at the center of the 100-pound aircraft,

Gamera. She then used a large amount of her cycling

expertise to pedal the aircraft into the air. It few

briefly before settling back onto the ground.

The ‘helicopter’ had a base and four rotors, each

forty-three feet long. The rotors are connected by an

x-shaped structure of 29-foot truss arms, these are

angled upwards and on them is suspended the seat,

which has pedals and hand cranks at the center. The

whole aircraft is 103 feet from rotor tip to rotor tip.

The structural components are mostly made from

carbon fiber, balsa wood and foam with a mylar cov-

ering creating the surfaces of the airfoil. A minimum

amount of metal was used.

At least two other teams have made previous suc-

cessful flights of longer duration with male pilots, but

no official world records have been recorded by the

National Aeronautc Association (NAA), so UMD is

allowed to make a claim to be the first female pow-

ered flying machine.


1000 and 1 Gyroplanes?

Dear Georgina

RotorSport UK Ltd are proud to announce the release

of their 100th gyroplane into UK service.

The aircraft, a lovely metallic silver Calidus serial no

012, received it's permit to fly on 16.3.11 from the

CAA, and delivered the very next day to the very happy

owner - Mr Tony Edwards, of Falmouth, Cornwall.

The aircraft was flown to Perranporth, Cornwall, in one

straight delivery flight from the Midland Gliding Club

in Shropshire, 205 miles on 35ltrs (1/2 a tank) of

mogas.

The photo shows Gerry Speich, Managing Director of

RotorSport UK Ltd, shaking hands with Tony Edwards

during the aircraft was handed over.

Gerry Speich said, Despatching 100 aircraft is a testa-

ment to the envious durability and safety of these won-

derful machines.

RotorSport has been engineering, selling and maintain-

ing this fleet since 2005, and has established a safety

record second to none. Approving the all-new Calidus

was a major step to the continuing success of

RotorSport, which will be enhanced further when the

aircraft receives the CAA approval for a constant speed

propeller and Dynon EFIS system later this year.

RotorSport and AutoGyro GmbH together are the world

wide leaders in gyroplane technology, with now over

900 in service in all guises from recreational use to

active military service.”

Existing orders already go past 106 aircraft, so it won't

be long before we celebrate the 200th aircraft.

Best wishes,

Gerry Speich

MD RotorSport UK Ltd

The Japanese Recovery Depends on You

Dear Georgina.

Thanks to the many people who have helped Japan in

a variety of ways in the wake of the recent disasters.

Regrettably, many expats left Japan because they were

disappointed with the government's slow response

with regard to the nuclear contamination.

Two of our flight bases are located at Fukushima

Airport and Shimotsuma Heliport in Ibaragi

Prefecture. There have been negative rumors regarding

nuclear contamination in both Fukushima and Ibaragi

Prefecture. In fact, the entire Kanto area has been

badly damaged by such rumors, especially farmers,

restaurants, hotels and even our company.

Action to be taken:

First of all, we must help revive ecomomic activity in

Fukushima and Ibaragi by enabling the local people to

resume a nomal lifestyle. Second, we need to employ

them and get students and staff to rent apartments from

local owners, who pay tax and stimulate the economy

with their spending on day to day items.

Recently most Japanese have been hesitant about

spending money. They have canceled events, activities,

travel, exhibitions, etc. This is calles ‘Jishuku’ and it is

responsible for halting economic activities, which has

precipitated a second disaster. Even under the worst

conditions, we should buy food, eat out and attend

events.

We are not famous stars, our activities are sober, but

continue as long as we can. This disaster is tremendous

and it will take an exceedingly long time for recovery.

Please do me and the rest of Japan a favour and pur-

chase Japanese materials and visit Japan again.

We look forward to your visit !

Yours sincerely,

Shizuka Saito,

President Alpha Aviation Co Ltd, Japan

continued on page 25, see also page 57

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leTTerS To The ediTor

Calidus handover to

Tony Edwards

helicopter LIFE, Summer 201124

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er

Aid agencies have warned that the remote moun-

tains of Nepal are suffering from a severe food

crisis. Hoever, a lack of funding means aid agen-

cies cannot continue to carry out relief operations. The

only quick way to reach the remote mountains of west-

ern Nepal is by helicopter, and helicopters are an expen-

sive form of transport. otherwise it's a 10-day walk up

steep hillsides from the nearest road to reach the isolated

village of Joripani.

When food arrives on helicopters the whole village

helps unload it and then the rice is packed up onto don-

keys to be distributed around the district. Prem Bahadur

Malla, a farmer in Joripani, says the village would not

survive without the food aid.

For the past decade, international agencies like the UN

World Food Programme (WFP) have been flying food

into this region to prevent starvation. But the WFP has

said that within the next two months it will drastically

scale down aid to Nepal.

The number of people they're feeding in the west of

Nepal will decrease from one million to 100,000 by the

end of the year - largely due to a decline in donations.

The average life expectancy here is 47 years old and

aid agencies fear that this will decline in the coming

years if something is not done to rectify the problem.

when donations die out



Wind Awareness

Dear Georgina,

In recent years I believe I have noticed a

marked reduction in the number of helicopter

pilots making an effort to make their approach-

es and take-offs into wind.

The result seems to be an increase in approach

incidents and out-of-shape arrivals. Has there

been any change in emphasis attached to this

elementary common-sense in training in the

past 10 years or so?

Perhaps the advent of more powerful helicop-

ters has made people careless about taking-off

into wind, but no amount of power will save

you from making a fool of yourself, or worse,

on a fast, downwind approach. My argument is

that if birds, who don't even have an engine-

failure issue, do it into wind, everyone would

do well to follow their example.

Yours sincerely,

Mark Barry-Jackson

Helicopter Life

Hi Georgina,

I just wanted to send you an email to say

thankyou for making such a fantastic maga-

zine!!

I've been an aviation sheetmetal worker for 6

years now, you actually came to do an article

on my old company C&C Aviation in the sum-

mer of 2007!!!

Since then I have gone on to work in the indus-

try as a contracter, which I really enjoy.

I read you're magazine in order to keep up to

date with what's going on and I find it both fac-

tual and interesting.

Its the first subscription I've ever bought and its

worth every penny! So thanks for all you're

good work and keep it up!!!!

Regards

Ryan Theobald

Thanks Ryan, Ed.

leTTerS To The ediTor


,

Pictures courtesy of Sir Tim Wallis

and Hilaire Dubourcq

History of the

Georgina Hunter-Jones

27HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer2011

deer Hunters

2828

There was a time when New Zealand had a variety

of reputations in the ‘helicopter world’. one was

for having more helicopters per capita than any-

where else in the world, (in 2000 just under 500 helicop-

ters in the country and a population of just over 3.7 mil-

lion). Secondly, they used to hold the record for having

crashed more civilian helicopters than anywhere else in

the world. And finally, they were known for the use of

expired parts.

However, all these things, I was told (sometimes by

Australians but also by New Zealanders themselves)

were due to their former ‘can do’ attitude which has now

changed. Moreover, many New Zealand pilots pointed

out that considering the terrain and the type of flying

they do, the crashes were very few, and that the really

poor crash record was in the past, not the present.

The enormous increase in helicopter flying began with

deer hunting by helicopter in the mid 60s. Deer were

originally brought to New Zealand by the British when

the colony was only just being established, possibly as

early as 1847. Deer were brought in partly for trophy

hunting and partly because back in the homeland a per-

son’s status was improved by having a deer park. Since

New Zealand was a land of flightless birds (most of

whom were driven to extinction by human settlement)

with no indigenous predators, the deer quickly bred and

spread across both islands.

By the 1930s, deer were becoming so numerous they

were declared a pest and the government began a cam-

paign of destruction. At first this led to an increase in

hunting by trophy hunters and meat eaters, but by 1951

skins began to increase in value and were now worth

about £4 each, so many private hunters were going in

simply for the skins and leaving the carcass to be eaten

by the birds.

While the government continued to debate the best

ways of culling deer, private shooters were getting as

many skins as they could, mostly brought out of the

wilderness either by human-pulled sledges, or on horse-

back. As time progressed, however, the increasing

German market for wild venison meant hunters wanted

to bring out the whole deer to export overseas, for ‘good

money’. Hunters began devising ingenious ways of get-

ting the deer out of the inhospitable, roadless wilderness;

horses, dog sleds, human power and where possible

boats were used for transport.

Then came aeroplanes: if men could cut down enough

room for a small plane to land there would be pilots will-

ing to come in, stuff the plane with carcasses and push

their (and its) limits to fly it out. There were plenty of

aeroplane accidents this way.

Then finally, helicopters began arriving inNew

Zealand.

The first recorded use of a helicopter for venison

Tim Wallis invented the

bulldogging technique

Crashes often

went unreported

Big money was

made shooting deer Helicopters were

brought in from

all over the world

29HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2011

The Stagliner - a DC3

converted to carry deer

all round New Zealand

recovery was in 1963 by Wattie Cameron, Tim Wallis and

Robert Wilson, all keen shooters.

The biggest herds and the easiest to get at for a shooter

on foot were on the open tops where a fixed wing could not

land to collect the spoils, helicopters on the other hand

could apparently get almost anywhere. Wallis hired a Bell

47, a veteran of Korea, with a Canadian pilot and the fol-

lowing day eleven shooters went to work, having by the

end of the day shot 220 deer of which they were able to

recover 110 carcasses, slung underneath the helicopter

seven at a time. This convinced Wallis of the helicopter’s

potential.

After this, the rush began and pilots and hunters began

bringing in helicopters from all over the world. At first

hunters used Bell 47s, Hillers and even a Brantly. Later

they were able to buy and use Hughes 239s and when the

Hughes 369s came in there was a revolution in speed and

the numbers of deer killed.

There was big money to be made shooting deer, more-

over the pilots were helping the government rid the country

of the pest and they got localized fame from the documen-

taries and films about intrepid adventurers.

However, by 1986 there were also 201 recorded crashes

(some never admitted to accidents, merely pulling the bits

of helicopter out of the bush when they could), over 100

serious incidents and 42 dead. And helicopters led to anoth-

er problem: they were killing deer so fast they could not

regenerate and the fear was that soon there would be no

more deer left to hunt.

The government solution, ironically enough, was to start

farming deer. The deer were to be caught in the wild, trans-

ported to farms, and bred in captivity. This new craze led to

the live capture of deer by helicopter.

“Live capture,” said pilot Pete Masters, “was much more

dangerous for pilots. You could go hunting all day and

never put yourself in a dangerous situation, but with

live capture you were running low-level, following the

deer through twists and turns in wild country with

obstacles everywhere. The pilots who had been

involved in deer hunting were usually experienced

enough to cope but new pilots who came straight in to

live capture had real trouble.”

The first person to capture a deer live from a heli-

copter was Goodwin McNutt, who in 1966 (three years

before deer farming was legal) flew a Hillier UH-12B

while Barry Stearn leapt from the skid onto the sika

hind. Although he caught many deer this way and later

using a drop-net mounted on the front of the Hiller, he

thought the operating costs of NZ$130-140 would be

prohibitive for others.

In 1968, Tim Wallis and his team caught nine deer

by ‘bulldogging’; a technique where the animal was

chased down by helicopter and the catcher jumped

onto his back. This remained a technique for some

years but inevitably led to some bad accidents for both

the jumpers and the deer.

Nets were fired from

modified guns

First recorded

use of helicop-

ters for veni-

son recovery

was 1963

In 1969, Bill Black, head pilot at Alpine Helicopters

used a tranquilliser drug mounted on the end of a pole.

But although sixty deer were captured the drug, Rompun,

did not always work and sometimes the deer would jump

and speed off, apparently revived by the drug .

Moreover, the shooter often missed the target as the pole

dart was difficult and unwieldy, and it took time for the

drug to take effect so expensive helicopters and pilots

were often left sitting around with nothing to do. Would-

be farmers looked for more suitable means of capturing

the deer.

Tim Wallis travelled to Britain, South Africa and

Korea in an attempt to find more efficient methods.

Meanwhile in New Zealand, live capture helicopter

crews were experimenting with small transmitters, inject-

ed with the drug Rompun. This turned out to be stressful

for the pilots as the transmitter often fell out before the

deer had gone to sleep, or just stopped working altogeth-

er, and the pilots pushed hell out of themselves to get to

the transmitter, only to find: no deer.

In 1972, around 600 deer were captured, either by

herding or the use of tranquillisers, but on the other hand

40,000 were shot.

By the late 1970s, the price of live hinds had risen

dramatically and far exceeded the price of a carcass, so

all the pilots were thinking of clever ways to do live cap-

ture. After many ingenious ideas two men, Graham

Jacobs and Ivan Wilson, produced the ‘Gotcha Gun,’ and

around the same time the Thompson brothers of Te Anau

designed the triangular net. Both were fired from an

adapted gun either attached to the helicopter or hand

held. The attached gun had the advantage that the pilot

controlled the whole operation, whereas with the hand

held he had to turn the machine side on to give the shoot-

er a clear shot.

Live capture reached its peak in 1979/80 season when

around 20,000 deer were caught. The Alpine Deer Group

converted a DC-3 to an aerial ark called the Stagliner

and used this to distribute the deer around New Zealand.

During the 1980s, either because there were enough

deer in farms or because the price of venison went down

both deer hunting and live capture began to decline.

However, by this time there were so many helicopters in

the country and they had become so useful that New

Zealander buyers were convinced of its effectiveness

started looking around for other ways of using the

machine. This, in a country with a small population, a

poor infrastructure and a difficult terrain with many

wooded areas, was not hard to find.

New Zealand continues to hold the record of helicop-

ters per head of population and uses now include

tourism, air ambulance, police, sheep and cattle herding,

fire fighting, park maintenance and reconstruction work,

training and most other things you can think of.

Accidents do continue to happen including those that are

undeniably weather and terrain related, however it is

hard to know whether New Zealand pilots are more acci-

dent prone than any other country. one thing, though,

remains unchanged: character.

Question: can a New Zealander do it by helicopter?

Answer: Can do.

In 1972, around 600

deer were captured but

40,000 were shot

32

Pictures by Malvina Nicca

Robinson R66

Test Flight

33

Summer2011

by Georgina Hunter-Jones

once upon a time, back in the dark ages of heli-

copter production, there were no Robinsons. It

seems hard to believe, and indeed, for most of us

flying at the moment, it was a time before we had learnt

to fly. Indeed many helicopter pilots now flying were not

alive at all. The only alternatives if you wanted to be a

helicopter pilot then were the Bell 47, the Brantly, the

Enstrom, the Hughes 269, or one of the turbines, and the

cost was high.

Then came Frank Robinson, an engineer who had

worked at both Bell and Hughes, and his idea. When his

idea was turned down by both Bell and Hughes it

became his dream, a dream that every man should expect

to have a helicopter in the way they expect to have a car;

and today we know the result of that dream. The first

Robinson designs were started in 1973, and certification

and first deliveries were in 1979.

The very real point of this history is that without the

R22 many of the helicopter pilots of today would not

have been flying at all. Robinson created a new market.

He did it because, unlike his contemporaries, he realised

there was a whole mass of people who loved the idea of

flying a helicopter, but did not have much money. They

could afford a car; even a pretty good car, they might

even own a fixed-wing aircraft, but the helicopters avail-

able at the time were all far out of reach; both the origi-

nal purchase price and even the running costs. He caught

that market, and I think he is doing so again with the


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R66, by creating a new market consisting of nearly new

people.

The market for the R66 almost certainly consists of

people who would not previously have thought about

buying a turbine; who would have considered it way out

of their league, but who love helicopter flying and would

actually prefer to fly a turbine, either because they think

it safer, or because they prefer the sound and smell of the

turbine engine, or for some other reason. Before the R66

they could not afford it. Now they can. “Simples!”

Pre-flight walk-round

The R66 does look like the R44. For some people this

is an advantage, for others it is a waste of time not to

have designed a completely different helicopter, and a

few have wondered why the T-bar cyclic was not

changed. The R66 is actually eight inches taller than the

R44 (11 feet 5 inches), but cleverly it looks as though it

has a shorter mast; this is the effect of the cowling cover-

ing the hydraulic controls and the higher mounted gear-

box, which appears to modify the long look of the R44

main rotor shaft into shorter pieces. The cabin is eight

inches wider, which makes it roomier than the R44, but

in tip to toe length (nose to tail) it is only one inch longer

(38 feet 3 inches). Inside there are five seats, three of

them in the back, although the middle one is pretty

small. Cockpit weight allows 300lbs for any seat location

(this includes storage under the seat as well as the person

on top) and the weight of passengers plus baggage with

full fuel is 927lbs (420kgs).

The baggage bay itself is vast and can carry 300lbs in

weight. This is a good thing because the seats have all

been changed to provide extra crashworthiness, which

reduces the amount of luggage that can be carried there

(in 1994 a friend and I flew all the way to Moscow with

only the clothes we could fit under the R22 seats so I

know how useful those little luggage areas were). Behind

the baggage bay is the engine, which can be observed

from both sides.

The blades are metal, a stainless steel leading edge

with aluminium skins and a honeycomb core, the chord

is wider than the R44 and, like the R44 Raven 11, it has

a chord one inch wider at the outboard trailing edge than

the early R44s. The main rotor radius is 16 feet 6 inches.

on the walk round it is good to see that both the sight

glasses for hydraulics and the main and tail rotor gearbox

levels are easily visible, and (another Robinson innova-

tion) LED lights come on automatically when you open

the cowl door (like the fridge), and they are even direct-

ed at the sight glasses to allow you to see them clearly.

The rotating beacon is also an LED light.

The RR250-c300/A1 engine is simpler and needs less

maintenance than the older turbines. It is also more fuel-

efficient. The fuel tank holds 74.6 US gallons, with 1

gallon of unusable fuel.

The tail rotor is slightly bigger than in the R44 and it

Robinson R66

start-up system

Left: key will be

turned to ENABLE.

Right: black button

on the end of the col-

lective pushed once.

Lower left: console

showing N1 moving

up to 58% - self-sus-

taining speed.

Lower right: N2

climbing to the green

arc in the centre of

the N2 gauge.


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has a stabilizer plate on the tail to direct the airflow

across the tail to make the helicopter more stable.

Certainly it feels very solid in directional control, and I

am told that not much right pedal is needed in a hovering

autorotation.

The left side of the helicopter contains the fuel drain (a

typical Robinson weight-saving plastic pipe), the engine

oil and main rotor gearbox access doors, and the fuel

tank. These access doors can also be used as steps by

which to climb up and examine the rotor head and

blades.

once inside, there is an annunciator panel on the con-

sole (an upgrade from the R44 and R22 press-button

lights). It includes lights to tell the pilot if the baggage

door is not correctly shut, red lights for main rotor temp

and pressure, engine fire and engine oil, amber lights for

main rotor chip, tail rotor chip, engine chip, generator,

low fuel, fuel filter, air pilot, engine monitoring unit

(EMU), cowl door and low rpm. There is also a green

light for anti-ice (another Robinson innovation). The

EMU monitors the turbine related instruments (N1, N2,

torque gauge, and MGT – measured gas temperature) and

lights up with excessive temperature or pressure, and also

counts the start cycles, thus reducing the pilot’s work-

load.

The EMU needs approximately ten seconds to warm

up when the pilot switches on the battery as part of the

pre-flight or pre-start checks.. once this is complete a

continuous light on the annunciator panel indicates nor-

mal operation. A slow flashing light, once every two sec-

onds, indicates a fault in the system. A fast flashing light,

four times a second, indicates an exceedance, which must

be looked at by a mechanic before any further flying can

be done. Another rather neat Robinson safety system.

Start-up

The start-up system in the R66 is an innovation with a

typical Robinson slant. It is intended to be simpler than

the normal turbine start favoured by the older turbine

engines, and therefore cheaper, since it is very unlikely to

Sight glasses are

easy to see

Typical Robinson-type

weight-saving plastic

fuel drain

RR250-C300/A1

engine

Tail showing new sta-

bilizor which helps

reduce pedal input


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lead to all the problems of a ‘hot start’. To start, the pilot

turns the key to ENABLE (i.e., ignite), and she then

presses a small black button on the collective (there is a

safety factor here too – it does not matter if you press the

button more than once, or indeed hold it in as though it

was a JetRanger: it will not hurt the engine). The

machine spools itself up to 15%, whereupon the pilot

puts in the fuel, with the normal Robinson ‘mixture’ con-

trol that we are all used to from the R22 or R44. Should

the engine overheat – unlikely at sea level, as it is impos-

sible to put in too much fuel – the pilot simply pulls out

the fuel control, and allows the machine to cool itself

down; there is no need to spool the turbines round as you

do on the JetRanger or Hughes 500, as the machine does

that itself. The machine takes itself up to self-sustaining

speed. once that is achieved there is the normal one

minute warm up, generator on and using the throttle

(again the same as the one on the pistons) and the pilot

can wind up to 100%.

The tachometer (N2 and Rotor RPM) is the same as

the RPM gauges on the R22 and R44, but interestingly

the green area is in the middle of the gauge rather than at

the top. Then the normal Robinson checks, combined

with the normal turbine checks, and you are ready to fly.

Incidentally, this start system is made possible by a gen-

erator control unit in the engine that automatically releas-

es itself from start mode at 58%. Above 58% the igniter

will become active whenever the starter button is

pressed, which allows the engine to be started in-flight,

should there be a failure. This, of course, means that the

starter switch is active anytime the battery master switch

is on, and remains true even when the key is turned off

(worth noting). To disable the starter switch, the pilot

would have to apply the rotor brake, and since no sensi-

ble pilot is going to do that in flight, it is in effect on

throughout the flight.

Flight

I flew with James Skinner, Chief Flying Instructor at

Sloane Helicopters. The R66 felt slick and powerful. We

took off and flew out to the west of Sywell. It was a calm

day with high clouds and we climbed up to 5,000 feet

with a rate of climb of 2000 fpm at 80 torque. We were

three up and three quarters fuel. Levelling off, we

changed speed from 40 knots to 120 knots and there was

no excessive vibration, none of the two-bladed thump you

sometimes get in the JetRanger, and the R66 felt very

smooth. Steep turns were easy and controllable, and we

went into autorotation without any fuss. Rate of descent

was 2000 feet a minute, but that can be slightly reduced

by changing the rpm of the rotor. We did a go around and

it was smooth and unproblematic.

I thought the R66 was quieter than the R44. I was

wearing Bose headsets, but I took them off briefly and it

still seemed quieter than the 22 or 44, and much quieter

than the Hughes 269 series, although probably much the

same as the JetRanger.

Hydraulics off it is heavy. Heavier than in the R44, and

we did not do any movements near the ground without

hydraulics. Probably, though, experience will show ways

of dealing with a hydraulic problem, just as bringing back

the speed in the Bell models to the ‘sweet spot’ makes

control much easier. Moreover, I am told by someone

who did do a hydraulics-off landing that it was very simi-

lar to the R44, and there were no problems.

We came back to the airfield and made an approach.

Experience has taught James Skinner that R44 pilots are

likely to overshoot on approach because the R66’s

streamlined body and greater power to weight ratio make

it harder to slow. But that actually takes only a few cir-

cuits to rectify and, being a fault of too much power, it is

actually a blessing rather than a deficit.

on the airfield we did the normal manoeuvres, includ-

ing quickstops: smooth, no vibration, even quite elegant;

The R66 felt slicker and

smoother than the R44

Although longer and

larger the R66 looks

very similar to the R44

- it is also lighter


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Good rate of descent in

autorotation

Crashworthy

seats

The R66 had more

tail rotor authority

than the R44

turns on the spot, lots of tail rotor authority; turns around the

tail, fun: all very similar to the R44, and controllable, albeit

with the occasional ‘shudder’ on the tail rotor caused by the

wind: the ‘Robinson shuffle’.

Landings and take-offs are slightly different from the R44

as the R66 has a taller mast and larger blades, but again this

is easily compensated for, by holding the cyclic stick slightly

further to the right. However it does take an R44 pilot a few

ups and downs before this idea slowly penetrates the brain!

There are some interesting facts about the R66. It is 600

pounds lighter than the R44. It has been designed with safety

factors in mind, and one of these is ease of flying: the easier

it is to fly, the less the pilot’s concentration will be away

from other factors, like outside traffic. What criticisms there

are seem to be about the seating and space. It is a five-seater,

but the middle back position is definitely for slender girls or

children, because will not hold a full-sized man. Some peo-

ple would also prefer a stick cyclic to the T-bar.

The luggage space was universally applauded: I am told

that a fat man can sit in the luggage bay and be almost hid-

den. I won’t say which fat (but getting slimmer) man tried it!

Flying around in the R66 was fun. It somehow felt less

ponderous than either the R44 or the JetRanger, and more

nippy. I thought it an excellent machine, and I loved flying

it. It seemed like an easy helicopter to fly and rather amus-

ing. of course that is only my opinion after one flight, but

there was nothing intimidating about the machine, and it had

that sense of déjà vu that presumably comes from being a

Robinson. It will be interesting to see if it does indeed create

a brand new market, or steals the old JetRanger fliers from

Bell, or perhaps starts the procession of the helicopter to car

market, where we consider a helicopter as indeed just anoth-

er mode of transport, as predicted by Giuseppe orsi of

Agusta Westland and Robinson himself all those years ago.

We are in a period of change – probably our only certainty.

Good rate of climb

38

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One pilot, four passengers, two blade main rotor

Five seats, minimum 1 pilot

Engine Type:

Powerplant: 1 Rolls-Royce 250-C300/A1

(224 kw) Type Certificate No. E4CE

Engine Ratings:

Rolls-Royce 5 Min Takeoff 300 hp at 6016 rpm

Rolls-Royce Cont 240 hp at 6016 rpm

Robinson 5 Min T/o Rating 270 hp at 6016 rpm

Robinson Max Cont Rating 224 hp at 6016 rpm

Weights:

Basic Empty Weight 1280 lb 581kg

Maximum Gross Weight 2700 lb 1225kg

Fuel

Usable Fuel Capacity 73.6 US gal (493 lb)

Depending on usage and weight -

Endurance 3.2 hours

Fuel use 23 US gals per hour

Passengers and baggage with max fuel 927 lbs

Operation

Max Range 325 nm 600km

Max operating altitude 14,000 ft 4267m

Rate of Climb 1000 fpm 5.08m/s

Hover ceiling IGE 10,000 ft+ 3048m

Hover ceiling oGE 10.000 ft+ 3048m

Cruise speed 120 knots 222kms

Estimated total operating costs in US $299.97 per hr

Robinson R66 Specifications

LAH has been made one of only eleven Rolls-

Royce RR300 Service Centers worldwide. After

completing a thorough application process which

included a background check, site visit, and interview

with the Rolls-Royce Regional Manager and a local

Rolls-Royce representative, LAH was awarded the first

repair station in the United States.

Rolls-Royce requires their repair centers to be an

approved Part 145 Repair Station, have the most-up-to-

date tools and inventory on hand, as well as a “clean

room” for all engine repairs. Most importantly, Rolls-

Royce requires any maintenance engineer who works on

the RR300 engine to have attended a week long training

course at their Indianapolis, Indiana facility.

LAH, Director of Maintenance, Lars Fallman attended

one of the first RR300 courses and had this to say. “I am

very impressed with the course and the new RR300

engine. I believe it to be the perfect fit with the R66.”

LAH is a FAA approved Part 145 Repair Station, and

has been a Robinson Dealer for the last five years. It pro-

vides maintenance repair to private owners, law enforce-

ment agencies, as well as other local flight schools. LAH

President Kimberly orahoske said, “we look forward to

our partnership with Rolls-Royce and believe this will

provide many new opportunities.”

LAH is based in Long Beach, CA and conducts flight

training, Vertical Reference/long line training, tour opera-

tions and charters. LAH is authorized to issue the Form

I-20 for international students to obtain an M-1 visa and

approved by the VA to accept the GI Bill.

LAH NAMED FIRST RR300 SERVICE CENTER IN U.S.A

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This picture of a Cessna 152 which crashed on

Ingleborough in the Yorkshire Dales whilst on a

night training exercise from Blackpool was

taken from an AirSearch Sky Ranger flown by Mike

Poole and Andy Dixon of the AirSearch Flight at

Rufforth (York). Although injured, the crew of the

Cessna survived.

The telephoto picture reveals a man apparently

removing parts from the aircraft. This section has been

enlarged and he can clearly be identified and the

enlarged section has been forwarded to North

Yorkshire Police.

AirSearch is a nationwide club in which pilots hone

their precision flying - specialising in air search.

From time to time these specialised skills are of help

to the emergency services and the community although

AirSearch does not regard itself as an emergency

service. AirSearch pilots fly on Private Pilot licenses which

means they can only be requested to assist - not “tasked”

or ordered - but generally they will provide help if they

possibly can.

The precision flying experts of AirSearch will be “eyes

in the sky” to assist the logistics involved in the 2012

olympic Games. This AirSearch assistance is the largest

ever deployment of a voluntary air service in the UK since

the Second World War. The aircraft will mainly be making

air observation flights to monitor roads and other transport

areas to give early warning of where congestion might be

starting to cause problems.

If AirSearch flying is of interest to you, please email

Arnold Parker on:

[email protected]

(the training exercises will certainly sharpen up your

precision flying skills).

airSearch Sky Rangers

By Arnold Parker, Founder of AirSearch

Gotcha!


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Columbia Helicopters (CHI), a 26-year operator of

the Model 234 aircraft (the civilian version of

the CH47 Chinook), has broken ground for the

expansion of its T55 engine maintenance capabilities to

include a T55-714 engine test cell. The test cell is located

at the company's maintenance headquarters at Aurora,

oregon

This expansion will add T55-714 engine overhaul to

the long list of CHI’s Chinook capabilities. This testing

facility will allow CHI to provide complete engine over-

haul, and quick-turn-around service for troubleshooting

and testing these engines.

“The building of this test cell allows CHI to provide

complete nose-to-tail Chinook maintenance.” said Scott

Ellis, CHI’s Director of Business Development and a 20-

year Chinook service veteran. “As a civilian operator we

can provide our customers with years of experience on

the Chinook; now that experience and maintenance capa-

bility includes the newest engine model installed in the

aircraft.”

Columbia Helicopters is a global service provider for

domestic and international Chinook fleets. CHI’s

Chinook capabilities include repair and overhaul of drive

train components, engines, airframe repairs, and avionic

repair and installation.

As a civilian Chinook operator, CHI provides com-

plete service and repair, including technical assistance for

new and existing military Chinook operators. The addi-

tion of the new test cell expands that service further, to

include Chinook F-model operators.

Columbia Helicopters


Police Trials Toughbook uk

Panasonic Toughbook rugged mobile computing

solutions will be used by Avon & Somerset

Constabulary as part of a three month trial to

prove the benefit of using electronic witness state-

ments (EWS) over the current manual paper based

process. The trial will use a mobile eForms applica-

tion from HeliMedia called Form Patrol to deliver the

EWS solution. By using Form Patrol, police officers

can take statements using the Toughbook rugged

mobile computers and then capture signatures using

the touch screen and stylus. This information is then

securely and automatically transmitted for onward

processing in near real time using the built in

HSPDA modem.

The EWS trial is scheduled to run for a three-

month period beginning in May 2011. Inspector

Kevin McCarthy, from the NPIA Digital Evidence

Programme, commented; “The EWS pilot is intended

to demonstrate radical improvements to the criminal

justice process from the initial arrest phase, through

custody and onto the eventual court appearance. The

typed documents created and distributed electronical-

ly will be easier to read, and accessible instantly via a

desktop computer or laptop. It is vital that the adopt-

ed system will ensure complete integrity of the state-

ment, whilst improving data quality and streamlining

the whole process. In particular, we expect to demon-

strate the savings in the time and cost of managing

the criminal justice back office process.”

mi-171SH delivered toPeru defence ministry

The first Shipment of Mi-171Sh was Delivered to Peru

Defence Ministry in May. The helicopters are manu-

factured by Ulan-Ude Aviation Plant (UUAP) under a

FSUE Rosoboronexport contract.

Six Mi 171 SH will be delivered to Peru and the first batch

were taken there by Antonov AN-124.

The multi-role Mi-171Sh helicopters delivered under the

contract are equipped with new systems raising their efficien-

cy in combat, and also main systems and crew protection,

radioelectronic and instrument equipment that allows flights

in difficult weather during night and day. The Ministry of

Defense of Peru is planning to use Mi-171Sh helicopters for

a wide scope of tasks, including fighting drug trafficking.

The helicopters remain very capable at high altitude in

mountainous terrain and in hot climates.


Calidus evaluation, words and pictures by

Georgina Hunter-Jones

Superbug takes flight

Gerry Speich

taxying back

from a flight in

the Calidus


When I think of gyrocopters I think of funny old

men in wooly hats, open to the skies in a basic

frame on wheel. of course, this has, in fact,

been changing over the years and even Helicopter Life

has reported on other less ‘environmental’ gyrocopters,

including the MT-03 but now the Calidus gyroplane has

taken this one step further.

Unusually, although not uniquely, the Calidus is an

enclosed gyroplane, it can fly up to 120 mph (although in

the UK it is currently limited to 90 mph) and it has much

more the feel of a tiny sleek aeroplane than a rugged

gyrocopter. This is the kind of machine that will appeal

to pilots who want to go touring, people who want to get

somewhere fast rather than enjoying a local area flight.

one of the main changes in the Calidus is the length

of time it can fly. In the past gyrocopters often had less

than an hour’s fuel, the Calidus carries 75 litres (2 litres

unusable) and uses 15 litres an hour in the cruise, a safe

four hours flying even if you prefer to give yourself a

good margin of error. It is also comfortable (and warm)

enough for four hours flying.

The Calidus is built by AutoGyro GbmH at a factory

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Rotorsport workshop - gyros may be worked on by anyone but

must have a (PMR) permit maintenance release to be flown

in Hildesheim in Germany where they also makes the

MT-03. They started building gyroplanes in 2004 and the

company has been increasing in size ever since, they are

currently building up to six gyroplanes a week, such is

the demand. Worldwide there are 1000 gyroplanes (not

all are flying, of course) and 100 of these have come

from Germany. The largest market is in the USA and the

European manufactures are working hard to break into

that market. The company has also built a two seat side-

by-side model, the Cavalon, for which they are hoping to

get CAA certification in the next 18 months.

The Calidus was an all-new design, built from scratch

and incorporating some interesting innovations. These

include the replacement of push-pull rods to the head by

push-pull cables, thereby reducing the weight. There is a

different winding harness and there are no PVC cables.

The Calidus uses pneumatics to power the pre-rotator,

which reduces the number of moving parts in the cockpit

and improves reliability. The trim is also pneumatic and

unlike other gyros it has roll as well as pitch trim.

The blades are aluminium as are the blades on all the

AutoGyro models. This is lighter than the previous metal

blades or the carbon and glass fibre ones. Aluminium

blades, moreover, are all-weather blades and do not wear

away in the rain like carbon-fibre. The newer Calidus

will have a VP propellor at the back, so the pilot can

vary the coarseness of the pitch for take-off or cruise.

The Calidus engine is a Rotax and there is a choice of

the 912 ULS (100 hp) or the more powerful tur-

bocharged 914 UL (115 hp). Gerry Speich, MD of

Rotorsport explains, “both engines are fine performers,

but the 914 gives a faster take off, 30% higher climb

rate, lower engine rpm in the cruise, and higher opera-

tional ceiling. The 914 also weighs around 8 Kg more, so

reduces the available payload. The maximum take off

weight is 500 Kg. The empty weight of the 912 ULS is

280 Kg while the 914 UL weighs 290 Kg, you also have

to take into account the weight of accessories and

extras.”

There is a transponder with mode S, several radio

options and a GPS, which is part of the standard fit.

The Calidus has a monocoque front structure and there

are a choice of two canopies, one open, one enclosed;

you can even fit your own sunshade. Cabin heating is an

option, which just shows how far gyrocoptering has

come from the days of the wooly hat!

Some aspects of gyrocopter flying are very different

from general aviation as we know it. While helicopter

flying and general aviation, are regulated by EASA (and

previously by the JAA) gyrocopter flying is regulated by

the CAA, as the weight restrictions put them under

EASA’s limit. This also changes their maintenance

schedules and who is allowed to work on the machines.

Gerry Speich explains: “Anyone can work on the gyro

- but the aircraft is released to service via a permit main-

tenance release (PMR), and this is authorised via a CAA

Authorised Engineer. This status is a formally audited,

but not formally trained position, for which the CAA

charge. It is aircraft type specific, and the person normal-

ly has to have undertaken one of our type specific train-

ing courses. There are some items that can be undertaken

without an independent PMR - such as bulbs, rotors etc,

as listed in the pilots handbook.”

To fly the Calidus, Speich pops it on a trailer and we

drive out to the local glider strip on Long Mynd. There is

something rather wonderful about trailering a small

plane, as though it was a sort of aerial horse, and the

lightness of the gyro makes it a one-man job to put it on

and off the trailer.

The day is fairly dark and windy but one advantage of

a gyroplane over a microlight is that, because they have a

main rotor instead of a static wing, gyrocopters are not

Main rotor

showing head

damper

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The main

rotor with

head damper

installed

Calidus Rotax

912ULS 100 hp engine

Instrument panel in

the cockpit

Trim and pre-rota-

tor are on the

head of the cyclic

New rotor head

bar which will

reduce vibration

and negate the

need for a damper

Large tail fin

and rudder for

very effective

pedal work

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very susceptible to cross winds. Speich says winds up to

40 knots are not a problem to the gyrocopter, even when

taxing on the ground.

We still want to take off into wind, though, to help the

shortness of the take-off roll, and so we taxy up to where

the gliders are doing a winch launch. As luck would have

it the winch has seized and the gliders are all stuck on the

ground, so we are free to fly off without getting in their

way.

Speich changes a switch in the cockpit from BRAKE

to FLIGHT and, holding the cyclic in the forward posi-

tion, winds up the pre-rotator. He then selected aft cyclic

before starting the take-off run (for the danger of not

doing this see the accident report on page 64). We are

directly into wind and the take-off run is minimal and we

are soon soaring gently into the air. Immediately you

notice how stable the Calidus is, Speich takes his hands

off the controls and they stay put, this is a combination of

good trimming and natural stability, (have a look at the

size of the tail fin compared to the body of the gyro-

copter) but something harder to achieve in, for example,

the Robinson R22.

Levelling off, I take control and do a few turns. The

Calidus has a more effective rudder than earlier models

and is even more effective that the MT-03.

I play around with the trim switches on the cyclic stick

and find how very responsive it is, it seems very easy to

hold the Calidus in turn, in the climb or level. Doing

what a trim should be doing; trimming.

We do some climbing and descending. The Calidus has

a good rate of climb, although this changes with the pitch

of the propellor and when the VP prop is available it will

make it an even more attractive machine.

Coming back to the airfield we land very short and taxi

back to the trailer.

We talk about accidents. one of the main drawbacks of

the gyrocopter in the past has been the high accident rate.

Probably the most infamous of these was the Air

Command, which had two very high profile fatal acci-

dents with low-gyrocopter-time airline pilots in charge.

Something that led to the type no longer being flown in

the UK.

Speich says that the most gyrocopter accidents happen

during pre-rotation. Here the problem is that the main

rotor blade is moving slowly and if the pilot is not con-

centrating sufficiently it is possible to wipe out the tail.

Another common accident is forgetting to push the stick

forward after take-off or landing too fast and turning

over. of course there are also other accidents such as the

pilot who taxied into a gateway, which are just down to

lack of pilot concentration.

He says there are very few gyrocopter accidents in the

air, and that the only way to stop the blades in the air is

to pull negative ‘G’. For this reason they always main-

tain positive ‘G’ and do not bunt the aircraft. Since this

is also true of 2-bladed helicopters that is not much of a

surprise.

Gyrocopters have had a varied past. The first gyros of

any substance were those built by Juan de la Cierva in

the 1920s and 1930s, which led to the formation of the

helicopter. Sadly, de la Cierva was killed in a plane crash

in 1936, or the history of gyroplanes might have been

quite different.

In the Second World War, the US military used gyro-

copters for the calibration of radar systems, and the

Germans tethered them behind the U-boats to use for

surveillance.

After the war gyros seemed to slip back into obscurity

and although there were some innovations by Igor

Benson, and our own Ken Wallis they were hampered by

the restriction on private flying at the time. once this

restriction was lifted in the 1960s there was another era

of gyrocopter growth, with the Campbell Cricket, the

Everette Cricket, and the Ken Wallis machines.

Unfortunately, when the Wallis was to be demonstrated

at a popular show the aviation authority insisted that it

was flown by Pee Wee Judge, who although an accom-

plished pilot was a novice in gyros and consequently

crashed and was killed, giving gyrocopters a bad reputa-

tion, from which it was hard to recover.

At this time there were a variety of small companies

Sometimes it seems

everyone wants to go

flying - but can’t

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developing gyrocopters, some better than others,

but the real leap in gyrocopter flying was made

in the 1960s by Jukka Tervamäki in Finland. He

had already designed the JT-1 from his own

designs and a Benson rotorhead, and this flew in

1959. He continued developing and in the 1960s

designed the more ambitious ATE-3. It flew in

1968. By 1973 he had moved on to the JT-5,

which used composite blades. In 1974, he sold

his JT-5 autogyro plus plans and projects to

Vittorio Magni. Unfortunately, Magni was on

his way home with the plans when they were all

stolen, so he had to go ahead and design his new

gyrocopter from what he could remember and

what he created himself. This became the MT-5.

Magni had many influences including Benson

and Tervamäki, his VPM was built in 1977, and

became the Magni Gyro of today. in 2006, the

first Magni MT-03 was signed off for flight.

AutoGyro in Germany designed the Calidus

with all these influences and their own desire to

create a stable, fast tourer. Much of the machine

was created by CAD drawings and this is the

result. I only flew it briefly, but it was comfort-

able, stable and easy to fly as well as fast and it

struck me as something that could easily

become popular if the price reflects the current

market needs.

The Calidus can travel on an

ordinary car trailer available

from ebay or other outlets

It is so light (290 kgs)

that one man can

handle it alone

Winching up on to

the trailer is easy


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One pilot, one passenger, two blade main rotor.

Pusher engine.

Engine Type:

Powerplant: 1 Rotax engine - choice of

912ULS 100 hp or

914 UL turbocharged 115 hp

Weights:

Empty Weight 912ULS 280 kg

914 UL 290 kg

Max Gross Wt (both) 500kg

NB Front seat weight 65 - 125 kg, back seat weight

120 kgs, lockers under both seats for baggage

Fuel

Fuel Capacity 75 litres(2 lts unusable)

Depending on usage, weight and speed -

Endurance 4 hours

Fuel use 15 litres per hour

Operation

Max Range 440 m 708km

Max operating altitude 14,000 ft 4267m

Rate of Climb depends on propellor -

a new VP propellor will be fitted later in the year

Cruising speed 110 mph

NB: the eleven aircraft currently released to service

have a Vne of 90mph. These aircraft will be retrofit-

ted with a modified rotor system once it has been

approved by the CAA. This will allow the Vne to

return to the design Vne of 120mph. All new aircraft

are planned to be released at 120mph.

Basic Price:

Model with Rotax 912ULS engine € 54,904.65

Model with Rotax 914UL engine € 62,701.85

Calidus autogyro 2011 Specifications


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Like any other major event in the calendar the

British olympics 2012 will have winners and los-

ers, and a great many of those will not be compet-

ing in the games.

Losers are likely to include airfields within the

restricted zone. Airfields inside the zone include:

Southend, Rochester, Headcorn, Biggin Hill, Redhill,

Blackbushe, White Waltham, High Wycombe, Denham,

Elstree, Stapleford, Andrewsfield, and others around

London. During the games these airfields must:

• File a Flight Plan on AFPEx or AFTN between

24 hrs and 2 hours before take-off and follow it - no air-

borne or faxed flight plans will be permitted.

• Receive an acceptance message and approval

number to flight plan.

• Establish and maintain two way RT with appro-

priate control agency quoting approval number.

• Squawk and maintain discrete transponder code

as allocated by the appropriate control authority.

• Receive an ATC service and comply with ATC

instructions.

• Circuit flying is permitted provided a/c squawk a

discrete transponder code. Airfield managers must con-

tact the appropriate control agency daily at commence-

ment and cessation of flying for allocation and return of

a daily changing code. Aircraft may not leave the visual

circuit except on landing.

• All flight plans must include accurate timings

and waypoints, including waypoints if leaving or enter-

ing the zone.

on the other hand, one potential winner is London-

oxford Airport, outside the restricted zone and capable

of taking all the traffic that wishes to avoid the crowded

London TMAs.

James Dillon-Godfray, Business Development

Director at oxford said. “The olympics in 2012 is of

prime interest to London oxford Airport. The Airport's

location provides rapid access to London, the Thames

Valley, South East and the UK's Central Business region.

Just an hour by car from London's West End, the air-

port also boasts UK Border pre-clearance and daily

0600-2230 operations,making it the most accessible dedi-

cated business aviation hub for the nation's capital city.”

Judging by previous olympics the likely increase in

airport traffic will be:

• Up to 150 Head of State entourages

• Up to 3,000 more business aviation flights

• Up to 10,000 more GA flights than normal

• Half a million more international visitors including

• 50,000+ ‘olympicFamily’

• 30,000+ journalists,media.

And these questions have been raised:

Helicopters are likely to need screening if going

into/out of prohibited zone – if permitted at all.

Could be over 150 Head of State movements with lit-

tle to no helicopter access, is that possible?

Can you envisage Presidents, Prime Ministers and roy-

alty taking the train, tube, ‘Javlin’ or DLR?

The exact details of what exactly will be allowed dur-

ing the 2012 olympic Games are still not published but

it seems more and more likely that helicopters will only

be used for security and not for transport, in which case

it begs the question:

How good is 21st century travel for VVIPs?

Great britain 2012 Olympics


The history of Naval Air Station Hyères-Palyvestre

dates back to 1919. In that year the Secretary of

the French Navy decided to set up and drain the

marshes in the area where the airfield was about to be

located. In 1922 the airfield was rented by the French

Navy. on the 1st of February 1925 the Naval Air Station

was officially named “Centre d'Aviation Maritime du

Palyvestre” (Palyvestre Naval Aviation Center). Ever

since the Naval Air Station has been part of the

“Aeronavale” (French Naval Aviation). With the closure

of Naval Air Station Saint-Mandrier in october 2003 the

three resident helicopter squadrons (31 Flotille, 35

Flotille and 36 Flotille) were relocated to NAS Hyères.

These units currently form the backbone of French

Naval Aviation in the Southern part of France.

Naval Air Station (NAS) Hyères now houses three

operational squadrons (31F, 35F and 36F) and one test

squadron, the Centre d'Expérimentation Pratique de

l'Aviation Navale - French Naval Aviation Test Center

(C.E.P.A.). The squadrons fly various types of helicopter,

and Hyères is now the main Naval Air Station in

Southern France.

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Carlo Kuit & Paul Kievit visit

Naval Air Station Hyères-

Palyvestrephotographs by Kuit and Kievit

NaS Hyeres on alert

The first resident unit at Hyères is 31 Flotille

(squadron), which is equipped with six WG-13

Westland Lynx helicopters. The Lynx helicopters are

used primarily in the ‘Anti Surface Warfare’ (ASW)

role, and 31 Flotille is the only unit to undertake this

type of mission. In July 2010, the Lynx helicopter fleet

was relocated to Naval Air Station Lanveoc in Brittany.

“The reason for relocating the Lynx fleet is to have one

pool of Lynx helicopters with 34F, which makes operat-

ing easier,” explained 31F CoMoPS (Commander

operations) Faccio Franck. “At NAS Hyères two Lynx

helicopters will remain active to execute the ASW role.

We have planned to de-activate 31F primarily between

2010 and 2011, and to await the arrival of the first NH-

90s at NAS Hyères. We currently have three pilots

involved in the NH-90 program at Eurocopter in

Marseille. There is an initial program of five weeks, in

which the three pilots will attain the status of ‘Primo

Formateur’ (Fully operational). This means they will

basically work on the review and development of the

documentation developed for this new helicopter. This

will take about two years to complete.”

helicopter LIFE, Spring 201152

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The primary mission of the NH-90 in French Naval

service will be to perform those ASW missions that are

currently executed by the Lynx. The French Navy has

ordered twenty-seven NH-90 NATo Frigate Helicopter

(NFH) variants to replace the SA321G Super Frelon and

the Westland LynxHAS4 in Aéronavale service. The first

four helicopters were delivered to the French Navy

(Marine Nationale) in 2010, and will be part of 31F.

During the authors’ visit two SA.321G Super Frelons,

from 32 Flottile (NAS Lanveoc), were training at NAS

Hyères with the local 31 Flotille, in an anti-terrorism

role. These kinds of exercise take place regularly, but the

French Navy does not disclose any further details. This

visit was expected to be the last by the Super Frelon to

Southern France, because this aircraft was withdrawn

from use during the first Quarter of 2010.

Another important new role for 31F that has emerged

in recent years has been the so-called ‘War against

Drugs’.

In 2008 and 2009 the unit, working with 36 Flottille,

was involved in approximately six successful intercepts

of drugs shipments. These are combined efforts with the

French Customs and the Police. other French Navy units

are involved in drug interception, the best example being

36F, with their AS.565SA Panthers.

“It is only one of our daily variety of missions that the

unit executes on demand. Next to this mission we are

involved in many other tasks like fishery patrol, transport

tasks and Search and Rescue (SAR) missions. We also

operate in International operations,” the Lt. Commander

of 31F explains. “In the West Indies we currently work

together with countries like The Netherlands and the

United States. We have been involved in hostage actions,

and we have also defended ships from eight to ten

attacks. These events all took place in the Gulf of Aden,

where pirates are currently very active.”

of the original forty Lynx helicopters ordered in the

1970s, only about twenty-five remain in service, which

puts pressure on both the crews and the Lynx fleet.

operating with the SA.365N/F Dauphin is 35 Flottille.

This helicopter in the French Naval Service is also

referred to as Pedro. The main task of 35F is Search and

Rescue (SAR) and the unit therefore has a permanent

detachment at the French Aircraft Carrier Charles de

Gaulle. For this purpose the unit is equipped with a num-

ber of SA.365Fs and Sud Aviation Alouette-3’s. Next to

their presence at NAS Hyères, 35F also has a permanent

detachment based at Cherbourg, Lanveoc, La Rochelle

and Le Touquet.

Due to the heavy involvement in SAR an additional

two SA.365SP (Service Publique/ Public Service)

Dauphins have been leased for two periods during 2009,

from Noordzee Helikopters Vlaanderen (NHV). These

aircraft are maintained by NHV and are flown by heli-

copter pilots from the NAS Hyères-based units. The heli-

copters only have civil registrations as they are not part

of the French Navy inventory.

The SAR helicopters based at Cherbourg, Lanveoc, La

Rochelle and Le Touquet are maintained by the company

Heli Union S.A. This company provides air transporta-

SA.321G Super Frelon train-

ing with the local 31 Flotille

in the anti-terrorism role.


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tion services by helicopter. It also offers helicopter main-

tenance services, such as overhaul operations, mainte-

nance checks and technical assistance, logistical support;

and helicopter pilot training services. The contract

between Helio Union S.A. and the French Navy is to run

for five years.

The 36 Flotille was activated during September 1995;

it is the latest and youngest French Naval Air Squadron

to be formed, and specifically to fly the Panther helicop-

ter of the French Navy's fleet from small warships,

including the La Fayette-class Frigate and Forbin-class

(Horizon) Air Warfare ships. The Panther should not be

confused with the AS.365F Dauphin, which also serves

with the French Navy.

The squadron of 36F does not have any anti-subma-

rine warfare capability, nor does it carry offensive

weaponry such as light anti-ship missiles, although a

light 7.62 mm machinegun can be mounted in the cabin

of the Panther helicopter. Sixteen aircraft were purchased

and as many as eight can be operational at sea at any one

time, leaving the remainder at NAS Hyères for training

and maintenance. Curently 36F is involved with deploy-

ments in the countries of Martinique and Reunion.

“The rotation lasts for one year (without family mem-

bers) or for two years: in the latter case it is possible to

relocate the family members of the pilots involved”, as

one 36F pilot explains. “We are used to operating abroad

far away from home; the unit is equipped to do this with

the crews available.”

In recent years, such detachments have become

increasingly demanding for 36F's crews. Panther detach-

ments have also been involved in ‘The War on drugs’.

often these drugs are loaded into high-speed inflatable

boats, their cargo carefully packaged and laid out inside

the boat. Interceptions see the fast boats disabled by

snipers firing from the helicopter, and by a team from the

ship that take the smugglers and their cargo into custody.

In January 2007, a contract was awarded to

Eurocopter to begin the development of a mid-life-

upgrade (MLU) of the French Navy’s Panther fleet. This

project, the so-called Panther Mk2, has been ongoing

since the year 2003, in cooperation with 36F and the

French Government's Arms Procurement Agency

(Délégation Générale pour l'Armement (DGA)). The key

aims of this €80 million ($110 million) update pro-

gramme are to reduce the pilot’s workload, to improve

situational awareness and, eventually, to add a self-pro-

tection system to the type.

The upgraded Panther has a fully up-to-date glass

cockpit, Link 11 data link, Sagem day/night observation

FLIR ball and various notable improvements in the com-

munications systems, plus a new self-protection suite,

designed by Thales, European Aeronautic Defence and

Space Company (EADS) and MBDA missile systems.

This upgrade programme will enable the French Navy to

perform interdiction missions round the clock. The

Panther Mk2’s Euroflir 410 is a new optronic system

developed by the Sagem Company. It has more functions

than the earlier US-made systems used by the French

Navy, notably thermal and daylight image acquisition

The 35 Flotille is currently

equiped with three Sud Aviation

SA-316Bs. The SA-316B first flew

on June 27th 1968 and has a long

history in French Navy service.


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(colour or near infrared), geographic designation and

pointing, automatic scanning for search and rescue, target

automatic tracking, and laser designation for the Night

Vision Goggles (NVG). A lighter version, Euroflir 350,

has been adopted for the modernisation program of the

French Army AS-532 Cougar helicopters. According to

Sagem, the Euroflir 410 is a unique product in the 8-

12µm bandwidth, thanks to its IRIS high-resolution

imager.

By 2014, the Panther Mk2 will also be armed with

either the new light (120 kg) anti-ship missile or the

FASGW-ANL, a joint-venture between BAE systems,

EADS and Finmeccanica. The Anti Navire Léger (ANL)

missile is being designed using the base of the British

Sea Skua missile, and by adapting many existing sub-ele-

ments available off-the-shelf on the MBDA line of tacti-

cal missiles. The EC 565 Panther s/n 505 (F-HKCK)

both serve as the Mk2 series test bed, and the first series

machine is now awaiting validation for operational test-

ing at the French Naval Aviation Test Centre (CEPA).

These tests will be conducted by CEPA in 2010. CEPA is

the centre of practical experimentations and is the allo-

cated test unit of the French navy. It specialises in exper-

imenting with and validating new aeronautical equip-

ment, and the introduction of new helicopter and aircraft

types within French Naval Aviation. The competences of

CEPA extend to all the aircrafts and helicopters of

French Naval Aviation, to their weapon systems, their

equipment, flights safety equipment, aircrafts support

equipment and specialised staff training, as well as air-

craft carriers, aviation installations and helicopter carrier

ships. CEPA currently counts one hundred and eighty

military servicemen and fifty civilians, of whom the

majority is based at Hyères. The Panther Mk2s are

equipped with the SPS, and are likely to enter service

between 2012 and 2014.

All sixteen aircraft in service will be upgraded, but

only the first three will be completed by Eurocopter. The

remainder will be completed by Service Industriel de

l'aéronautique (SIAé), a military maintenance organisation

created during 2008. As with all new upgrades and equip-

ment, they will take time to enter service, but once opera-

tional the Panther Mk2 will be serving alongside the

NH90 for many years to come.

over the past years regular exchange programmes have

been executed between the French Navy and representa-

tives of the United States Navy, the Royal Netherlands

Navy, the German Navy and the Royal Navy. Currently

Capt. Elise Eastman (US Navy) is finalizing a three-year

exchange period. Capt. Eastman has been participating in

the exchange program with 35Flotille. “It has been very

interesting to learn to fly on the aging Alouette-3 and

modern Panther helicopters. It was quite a change and

challenge to transition from the SH-60B Seahawk, which

I flew before travelling to France.”

Capt. Eastman finalized her tour of duty in France dur-

ing october 2009, and travelled back to the U.S. for her

next assignment. “I will certainly miss the spirit, friend-

ship and family feelings I experienced over the three

years. It was a great experience”.

ZPEx (confined) landing areas have been

established in the Massif de Maures

Exchange pilot

Captain Elise

Eastman from

the US Navy


The units at NAS Hyères also house exchange pilots

from the German Navy, as well as a new exchange Pilot

from the Royal Navy, Lt. Commander Martin Craven,

from the NAS Yeovilton based 702nd squadron, who has

over ten years experience flying the Lynx helicopter. “I

arrived a month ago and will stay for a period of three

years in Southern France. It will be a challenge to adapt

to the new situation. I have over 2500 flying hours on

the Lynx; over here I will have to start all over again,

having no experience flying the AS.565MA Panther”. Lt.

Commander Craven said, he is the only exchange pilot

from the Royal Navy in France at the moment.

“Selection for this assignment is upon request, and you

can ask for exchange jobs,” he explains. “For my per-

sonal learning curve, I have always been interested in a

foreign deployment, next to gaining more experience

with interoperational ability between our two countries.

The big difference I have noticed, comparing the opera-

tion of the Lynx and the Panther, is that the pilot of the

Panther is also involved in tactical operations. Currently

we have two pilots onboard during operations with the

Lynx helicopters,” explained to Commanding officer

operations (CoMoPS) Faccio Franck. They are called

‘lefty’ and ‘righty’, where the leftyis the experienced

pilot and the other is the trainee. “We aim to change this

set up,” adds Faccio Franck. “We are working to change

the role of the pilot into a more tactical officer role; this

scenario will allow us to operate with one pilot during

flights and will save money”.

“As a new pilot, I have to wear pink coloured laces

in my flying boots” explains Lt. Commander Craven.

The tradition of the coloured laces was introduced by

the Commanding officer of 36F (Lieutenant

CEPA special-

ized in experi-

menting with

new equipment

Since early 2009 two Super Frelons

have been on permanent detach-

ment at NAS Hyères to conduct

Search and Rescue missions.

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The crew of 36 Flotille in front of

the specially painted Panther.

The pilot with blue laces is Lt.

Commander Alexandre Marchis

youngest unit Commander in the

French Navy

Commander) Alexandre Marchis about two years ago.

There are six colours in use: black is for mechanics, and

pink for trainee co-pilots. The next step is to obtain the

green colour, which indicates co-pilot status. Moving up

the next colour is white, which refers to the status of

basic Captain. orange is granted to Technical Training

Captain. When a pilot of 36F graduates to full mission

capable he or she is allowed to wear the red laces. From

pink to red laces will take approximately two to three

years. Currently eleven pilots are undergoing various

stages of training at NAS Hyères. Blue laces are for the

Commanding officer only. The 36F is the only unit in

the French Naval Aviation that has this new tradition.

“The aim is to challenge each other, and to create a

learning curve and a good spirit, using the coloured

laces,” explains Lt. Commander (Capitaine de Corvette)

Alexandre Marchis.

It is expected that the next Royal Navy pilot on

exchange in France will be a Merlin pilot, as the French

Navy will have introduced the NH-90 in about a year

from now, with 31F, and these two helicopters have

much in common. With this introduction the French

Navy will take an important step into the future, and will

be able to sustain its operations both in France and in the

International Theatre.

Crew of the

Lynx

French navy

Diver


The Effect of Fukushimasee also letter from Shizuka Saito on page 23

Following the disaster at the Fukushima Nuclear

Powerplant in Japan there have been many changes

in the way we see nuclear power and not only in

Japan. Immediately after the disaster Angela Merkle,

Chancellor of the Republic of Germany, shut down eight of

the country’s oldest nuclear plants for a 90 day security

assessment. While this was popular with the anti-nuclear

protestors, who are currently just using one word in their

protests, FUKUSHIMA, it has had a deleterious effect on

Germany’s economy, forcing them to import nuclear ener-

gy, mostly from France and becoming a net energy

importer. The Chancellor is said to be considering all the

future options. However, opinion poles have shown that

76% of Germans would prefer that the country’s seventeen

nuclear reactors were shut down.

In India there has been a different effect. Worried about

the future loss of nuclear energy from Japan, India has

signed a contract for nuclear power with Kazakhstan. India

and Kazakhstan have had a nuclear power agreement since

2009, but this will widen the agreement’s scope.

“The inter-governmental framework agreement on civil

nuclear cooperation signed between the two countries will

broad-base the cooperation and is expected to cover

aspects like research, technology transfer and exploration

of uranium in Kazakhstan, which is known to have one of

the richest reserves of the nuclear fuel that India needs in

increasing quantity,” said a press release issued by the

Ministry of External Affairs in New Delhi.

In Japan itself there is yet another response:

Helicopters came into their own during the early days

of the disaster when they were extensively used for

washing down the nuclear reactors with sea-water.

However, it was quickly decided that there were an

insufficient number of helicopters available to do that

job and fulfill their other functions; carrying supplies

to cut off areas, emergency relief and medical assis-

tance. Although Japan has greatly increased the use of

helicopters since the Great Hanshin Earthquake in

1995, they found they still did not have enough suit-

able machines available.

Consequently, the Japanese government have been

buying and in Italy, AgustaWestland, and Mitsui

Bussan Aerospace have announced that the Fire and

Disaster Management Agency has signed a contract for

another AW139 medium twin helicopter to perform

fire fighting, emergency medical service, air rescue

and transport missions. The helicopter is an addition to

the current fleet and will enter operational service in

spring 2012.

Enstrom have benefitted from the increase in heli-

copter purchasing, selling another six training aircraft

into the country.

57

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58 HELICOPTER LIFE ,Summer 2011

Book review

Published in April, this book is the first

to examine the co-development of

mountain rescue and aviation. Covering

the period from the 18th Century right up to

the present day and illustrated with pictures

from 1904 until today, Leslie Symons’ book

is an insight into the brave and bold design-

ers, the heroic rescuers and engineers who

have developed the craft and the skills needed

to cope with the worst of scenarios in the

harshest of conditions.

Leslie Symons, the author, is an Emeritus

Professor of Geography at the University of

Canterbury, New Zealand. He has been fasci-

nated throughout his life by both mountains

and aviation. His Ph.D, from Queen’s

University, Belfast, was on mountain land

use. His interest in mountain rescue led him

to travel widely, to examine the rescue servic-

es of a number of countries and to write arti-

cles and books.

What is particularly nice about this book is

that it not only looks at aviation in the

moutain rescue service but devotes a lot of

time to discussing helicopter usage, including

some bits which I suspect have not been pre-

viously written about, its history and the

affects of pubicity (good and bad) on the

service, plus where rescue is going now.

This is a nice example: A military helicop-

ter, scrambled out to help a man and a

woman who had called on a mobile phone,

emerged from the clouds above Ben Nevis.

However, when a crew member was winched

down, he was told to go away, the couple did

not need rescue. Later, another call estab-

lished that there was a different couple who

did need rescue, and the crew was dispatched

again and the rescue safely done. However,

the press made much of this and referred to

the rescue as ‘botched’ and ‘blundered”.

Although the journalist later apologised, the damage was done and

bad publicity accrued.

Leslie also looks at the problem of hoax calls, something which

has often bothered me, why would people do such things, one exam-

ple, which was responded to by a mountain rescue team and a Sea

King helicopter, cost, in 1987, £49,765. An incredible waste of

money.

It is a terrific book, lots of new material, good photographs - both

historic and current, well written and well worth reading.

To Ride the mountain winds

Leslie SymonsSandstone Press Ltd

http://www.sandstonepress.com £21.99

59HELICOPTER LIFE,Summer 2011

ORS4 No. 853: Manoeuvring Helicopters

http://www.caa.co.uk/application.aspx?catid=33&pagety

pe=65&appid=11&mode=detail&id=4523

This Permission exempts helicopters from the 500 feet

rule when conducting manoeuvres in accordance with

normal aviation practice at specified sites.

NB: To comply with Rule 6(i)(ii) of the Rules of the Air

Regulations 2007, the helicopter must not be operated

closer than 60 metres to persons, vessels, vehicles or

structures located outside the aerodrome or site.

IN-2011/26: Helicopter Operations at the British

Formula 1 Grand Prix -Silverstone 8-10 July 2011



The purpose of this Information Notice is to highlight

the changes, and to detail the requirements for all opera-

tors and pilots who intend to fly into Silverstone during

the period of the event.

CAP 168: Licensing of Aerodromes



Sets out the standards required at UK licensed aero-

dromes relating to its management systems, operational

procedures, physical characteristics, assessment and

treatment of obstacles, visual aids, rescue and fire-fight-

ing services and medical services.

Consultation on the Civil Aviation Authority's Air

Travel Organisers' Licensing (ATOL) Scheme

Claims Handling Procedures

http://www.caa.co.uk/applicationimages/notifications/sp

acer.gif

View Report 2011/04

http://www.caa.co.uk/Report201104

Emergency MPD 2011-003-E: Rotax 912 and 914

engines: Replacement of Flywheel Hub Washer Part

No. 944072 EMERGENCY MANDATORY PERMIT

DIRECTIVE

http://www.caa.co.uk/applicationimages/notifications/sp

acer.gif

View Emergency MPD 2011-003-E

http://www.caa.co.uk/EmergencyMPD2011003E

Caa Legislation Changesconcerning helicopters and gyroplanes

Changes to airspace around RAF Lyneham announced

by CAA

http://www.caa.co.uk/application.aspx?catid=14&pagetyp

e=65&appid=7&mode=detail&nid=1993

The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) announced a

change in airspace arrangements in the Cotswold region

ahead of the discontinuation of daily flying operations

from RAF Lyneham on 30 September 2011. The CAA

said it had approved the Ministry of Defence's request to

remove the Lyneham Control Zone and Control Area

from the 1 october 2011. In addition, the air traffic con-

trol unit will cease to operate and the Air Traffic Zone

will be suspended, unless re-activated by NoTAM for

occasional air shows.

CAA announce policy change for orphan aircraft

http://www.caa.co.uk/application.aspx?catid=14&pagetyp

e=65&appid=7&mode=detail&nid=1991

Following a policy review, the UK Civil Aviation

Authority (CAA) has introduced a change to the policy

regarding 'orphan' aircraft. An aircraft becomes known as

an orphan when the type is no longer supported by a Type

Certificate Holder, usually the manufacturer and the State

of Design.

IN-2011/36: Airspace Change Proposal Framework

Briefing: London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic

Games CAS(T)

This Information Notice is to advise that on the 3 May

2011, the CAA's Directorate of Airspace Policy (DAP)

held separate Framework Briefings with Manston and

oxford airports on proposals to establish Temporary

Controlled Airspace (CAS (T)) associated with the

London 2012 olympic and Paralympic Games. It is also

provides confirmation of the deadline for the olympic

CAS (T) Proposals and the olympic CAS (T) decision.

http://www.caa.co.uk/applicationimages/notifications/spac

er.gif

View IN-2011/36 <http://www.caa.co.uk/IN201136>

CAA Airworthiness Courses

http://www.caa.co.uk/applicationimages/notifications/spac

er.gif

View IN-2011/33 <http://www.caa.co.uk/IN201133


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HaI 2011

Helicopter annual

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A Day in the Life etc published by Helicopter Association International

www.rotor.com

The HAI have pro-

duced a very witty

addition to their

usual Helicopter Annual;

A Day in the Life.

This is a humorous

look at a school-boy and

his mother and their atti-

tudes to flying. The pair

arrive at an airfield in

some unspecified loca-

tion in America looking

for ‘jets’ on which the

boy is hoping to base a

school project. They, of

course, have not lined up

anywhere particular to go

and find themselves

instead in the company of

a helicopter pilot and

instructor.

Now if this was Great

Britain the chances are

the pilot would be having

a cup of coffee or playing

computer games and

would ask them if they

had a voucher, and if not

suggest they go ‘on their

way’!

However, this is

America where pilots are

more open to opportunity

and consequently the

instructor not only shows

the boy a video of heli-

copter flying but takes

him and his mother for a

free flight. (Something

they would not do in the

UK unless they had seen your bank balance.) The boy is initially

bored and his mother frightened but once they have seen the

video (a good one with a lot of variety of both helicopters and

types of flying) the instructor achieves a conversion not only of

the boy but his mother too. one can’t help hoping that mother

will soon be on her way to buying training flights for both her-

self and her boy and perhaps for a whole load of other family

members.

It was also amusing to see a few familiar faces in the film -

some of whom work

for HAI.

My only real criti-

cism would be that we

did not see a single

female helicopter pilot

in the whole gamut of

helicopter aviation that

was covered. Perhaps

the HAI are waiting for

the Whirly Girls to

bring out their own

DVD and did not want

to force a competition!

The Annual also

contains other things

including the member’s

directory, an industry

buyer’s guide, aviation

resources direction,

industry overview and

statistics and a video

about wire strikes. It is

a very useful piece and

much nicer as a DVD

than in past years when

one had to thumb

through (and carry)

huge heavy books.

I am usually a sup-

porter of reading books

newspapers, and maga-

zines, over reading on

the web, but this is a

great improvement.

Well done HAI, but

don’t forget women fly

too, and not just in the

back seat!


ACCidenT reporTS

and the aircraft behind him being ready to depart, the

pilot elected to carry out a rolling takeoff. As he made a

left turn to enter the runway, he again engaged the pre-

rotator and opened the throttle. At that point, the rotor

blades struck the tail fin. The pilot concluded that the

combination of low rotor rpm, a crosswind and possibly

an aft stick position caused the rotor to flap back and the

retreating blade to strike the tail. In future, he would line

up on the runway and stabilise the correct rpm before

commencing the takeoff. The pilot was 78 years old and

had 633 hours of which 82 were on type.

Schweizer 269C-1, G-CEAW

The pilot was carrying out some general handlingmanoeuvres around Taxiway Y at Liverpool Airport. Theweather conditions were good, with a light and variablewind, and the temperature was 24oC. The pilot complet-ed a landing on the shoulder of the taxiway, facing west,which gave him a lateral slope of about 3°. He then liftedthe aircraft back into the hover, carried out a 180° turnand landed again, this time facing east. As the pilot low-ered the lever, he experienced a violent and divergentvibration. Suspecting ground resonance, the pilot decidedto lift back into the hover, but, on checking the NR herealised that it was below the green arc (the operatingrange for flight). he opened the throttle to increase theNR but was unable to lift to the hover because theincreasing vibration made the aircraft uncontrollable.This was the pilot’s last recollection. The next thing heremembered was sitting on the ground, approximately 40m from the helicopter, being treated by the emergencyservices. The pilot was taken to the local hospital wherehe received 20 stitches to the back of his head. The air-craft was damaged beyond economic repair but there wasno fire.The available evidence indicated that the helicopterentered a ground resonance condition while landing. TheNR was too low for the pilot to lift into the hover and hedid not close the throttle. The ground resonance rapidlyincreased in severity and the helicopter broke up. Thehelicopter manufacturer’s tests suggested that the forwardlanding gear dampers were out of limits, in that the inter-nal gas pressures were too high. However, subsequenttests in the UK suggested that the pressures in three ofthe units were slightly below the specified value, withone of the rear units being more significantly (possiblyaround 14%) below. It was not possible to reconcile thiscontradiction in the conclusions of the two series of tests.The helicopter had successfully completed 121 flyinghours since the 1,200 hour inspection, when the landing

Rotorsport UK MT-03, G-CEYXThe student pilot was departing on a solo cross-coun-

try flight in fine weather. He lined up on Runway 100

and, in accordance with the normal take-off procee-

dure, selected full forward cyclic before he engaged

the pre-rotator.

The student pilot reported that, during a normal take-

off, once the rotator has reached 220rpm, the pre-rota-

tor should be disengaged, the brakes released, the

cyclic moved fully aft and the throttle advanced.

Having carried out these actions, as the gyroplane

increases speed down the runway, the relative airflow

will accelerate the rotor and at about 340 rpm the

gyroplane will become airborne.

on this occasion, the pilot did not select aft cyclic

before he began the take-off roll. He realised that the

take-off was not proceeding normally, at the same

time as hearing his instructor, who was watching from

beside the control tower say, “stick back” over the

radio. The pilot pulled back on the cyclic, the gyro-

plane became airborne and pitched nose up and rolled

left. The rotor blades struck the ground and the gyro-

plane came to rest on its left side. There was no fire

and the student, who was wearing full harness and a

helmet, received only minor injuries.

The student pilot commented that holding the stick

forward caused the rotor to decelerate during the take-

off roll and that pulling back on the cyclic resulted in

retreating blade stall. He considered that he should

have retarded the throttle and brought the gyroplane

to a stop on the runway when he realised he was

using an incorrect technique. He could not explain

why he had not pulled the stick back before beginning

the take-off run but thought that he might have been

preoccupied by the coming cross-country flight. He

had not made this mistake previously either with his

instructor or solo.

It was reported that rejected take-offs had been dis-

cussed but not practiced due to the risk of a roll-over

accident. The student was 51 years old and had 80

hours of which 51 were on type.

Rotorsport UK MTO Sport, G-CGIXThe pilot was intending to fly back to his farm strip at

West Hinckley, Leicestershire. The weather was good,

with a surface wind of 220°/6-8 kt. The pilot taxied the

gyroplane to the holding point for Runway 28 with the

rotor blades stationary. on completion of the pre-takeoff

checks, he engaged the pre-rotator and accelerated the

main rotor to 200 rpm. Due to other traffic in the circuit,


Rotorsport UK MTO Sport, G-CGGW

The pilot had already completed two solo circuits whenhe was joined by a friend who he intended to take on alocal flight. He satisfactorily completed the pre-takeoffchecks and pre-rotated the rotor to 200 rpm before takingoff on Runway 04. After becoming airborne, he levelledthe aircraft at about 10 ft above the runway to allow it toaccelerate to climb speed (55 mph) before climbingaway. on this occasion he was not able to accelerateabove 45 mph by the time he reached the end of the

runway. He climbed to clear a row of trees beyond theend of the runway, but this resulted in the aircraft havinginsufficient airspeed to maintain level flight and it landedheavily in a field beyond the trees. Both occupants, whowere wearing full harnesses and protective helmets, wereuninjured.Discussion

The pilot candidly commented that he had little experi-ence of operating the aircraft at close to its maximumweight and he thought that this, combined with the calmconditions, contributed to him getting the aircraft air-borne at too low an airspeed. once airborne, he wasunable to accelerate the heavy aircraft out of this highdrag condition. He also reported that it had becomenormal practice at the airfield for him and pilots of othersimilar aircraft to start their takeoff roll from just beyonda hump on the runway, rather than using the full lengthavailable.The CAA Safety Sense Leaflets No 7‘Aeroplane Performance’ and No 12 ‘Strip Sense’ con-tain useful information on subjects relevant to this report.

gear dampers had been recharged and the main rotordampers adjusted. The operator experience suggests thatsome aircraft have a greater tendency than others to dis-play symptoms of ground resonance. It is likely thatchanges to the landing gear and main rotor dampers,either singly or in combination, could account for suchtendencies. The pilot was 51 years old and had 370 hoursof which 230 were on type.

Robinson R22 Beta, G-HRBS

The pilot had completed a refresher flight with aninstructor and was about to embark on a solo flight topractise circuits. The aircraft was parked on a grass areawith the engine running as the instructor got out. Thepilot stated that he then completed the before-takeoffchecks and started to lift, but that the aircraft began to tiltsharply to the right. He reported that the right skid wasdigging into the soft ground and that the situation wasexasperated by his being the sole occupant and seated inthe right seat. Believing the aircraft was going to rollover, he reduced power and aggressively applied a leftcyclic control input. The aircraft became airborne, liftingto a height of about a foot and began to rotate to the left.The rear of the right skid then dug into the ground,bringing the rotation to an abrupt halt and causing theaircraft to land heavily.The instructor returned to the aircraft and confirmed withthe pilot that he was still happy to undertake a flight onhis own. The pilot confirmed that he was, and subse-quently successfully practised several takeoffs and land-ings before flying three circuits of the airfield. Heexperienced no handling problems and on completing theflight shut down the aircraft and completed the normalpost-flight paperwork before going home.Subsequently a three inch long crease was found in theright side of the tail section of the aircraft, at its junctionwith the main fuselage.Assessment of the cause

The pilot was aware of dynamic rollover and had been“somewhat shaken” by the degree to which the aircrafthad rolled when attempting to takeoff. He judged that hehad made an “over-aggressive correction” in the oppositedirection as a result, which led temporarily to his losingcontrol of the aircraft. The damage was caused by thetorsion loads experienced when the aircraft skid contact-ed the ground. The decision to continue with the flightwas based on lack of evidence of any damage havingbeen caused and the pilot wishing to regain his confi-dence in his handling abilities.The pilot was 57 years and had 270 hours of which 52were on type.

65

ACCidenT reporTS

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N800PH, sitting next to a typical Rancho de Pencas

in the Cocle Province of the Republic of Panama,

is a late model Messerschmitt Bo105 CBS5 with

2x Alison C20B Engines and fully redundant main sys-

tems (hydraulics, electric, fuel,

lubrication) along with a one

piece solid titanium head.

N800PH – the 800th Bo105 to

roll off the production line in

1988 – started life as an offshore

workhorse and spent most of its

life operating in the Gulf of

Mexico.

In 2008 it went into deep stor-

age, it was finally sold and

brought back to life by its current

owners. The aircraft had been

meticulously maintained and put

into a storage program which

ensured the aircraft was pre-

served in near perfect condition. After rigorous inspection

and overhaul, it set out on a trip through Central America

to Panama City, where it is currently located.

The ‘Rancho de Pencas’ are huts used by farmers and

local tradesmen. They build these structures as a hideaway

from the midday sun. They are made from any straight tree

limbs and the roof covering is made of pencas which is a

type of palm fond. The whole structure is created using a

machete – even down to digging the holes in the ground,

and takes a approximately a day to construct.

Adam Miller, the pilot who flies N800PH, is here at a

Finca (Farm) in Panama’s Cocle

Province. Penonomé is the capital of

the Panamanian province of Coclé.

The origin of the name of this town

comes from the words "penó Nomé".

Nome was a chief of a local native

American tribe, who was put to

death by the Spanish colonial offi-

cials. ‘Penó Nomé’ means ‘Nome

suffered.’

Penonome is one of Panama’s last

undiscovered treasures. It boasts

beautiful mountain views, crystal

clear rivers and plays a very impor-

tant role in Panama’s agricultural

industry, and is home to many ranch-

es, and orchards. It is also an area rich in Indian history,

and petroglyphs can be found throughout much of this

area.

N800PH will soon start its journey back to the USA

and will be used as the flagship for Aviation’s Leading

Social Network, hangarchat.com, and will zig zag North

America in search of the face of HangarChat for 2011.

66

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N800PH in Panama

Adam Miller and

Nick Miles

words and pictures by Adam Miller and Nick Miles, HangarChat.com

ssuu mmmeerr 2200 111 - helicopterlife – helicopter · pdf file ·...

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