Hot new helicopter/rotorcraft news

[phrogdriver]

I hear a lot of complaints from owners over the Safran engine. Maybe the army should share a platform with the navy as they did with the 57/67.

Unless you make something a true joint program, you really don't see much in terms of synergy. Contract maintenance is always done by "body shops" competing on price. They're commercial aircraft, so it's not as if the parts manufacturing needed scaling. Program management is the only economy, and there's no way the Navy and Army will ever agree on the best way to manage flight training, or even handle the airworthiness of the platform itself.

 

[ChuckMK23]

US Army takes new look at training aviators with decisions coming soon

The Army is examining a new training model for aviators as its helicopter fleet evolves into a complex network of manned and unmanned aircraft.

www.defensenews.com

 

[Griz882]

This is why we can’t let “restricted” aviators fly helicopters!

A fighter jet pilot crashed a Utah Apache helicopter after spending only 35 minutes in a simulator: report

A fighter jet pilot flew a helicopter without adequate training, a FOX 13 report stated. It crashed, and the colonel sustained "serious" injuries.

www.yahoo.com

 

[phrogdriver]

This is why we can’t let “restricted” aviators fly helicopters!

A fighter jet pilot crashed a Utah Apache helicopter after spending only 35 minutes in a simulator: report

A fighter jet pilot flew a helicopter without adequate training, a FOX 13 report stated. It crashed, and the colonel sustained "serious" injuries.

www.yahoo.com

Sounds like that CWO IP was giving his good-deal joyride VIP copilot a little too much rope.

 

[Griz882]

Sounds like that CWO IP was giving his good-deal joyride VIP copilot a little too much rope.

About 10 feet too much.

 

[hscs]

Wow Trying to think what they could have done that would have caused that serious of an injury. ROD from a 10’ cut gun isn’t that high.

 

[IKE]

Wow Trying to think what they could have done that would have caused that serious of an injury. ROD from a 10’ cut gun isn’t that high.

Lateral drift on touchdown?
The Apache, especially when unarmed, has a pretty low roll moment-of-inertia. I have 1 hour in an AH-64, and I remember feeling like it was going to rollover if I taxied too briskly in a turn.

 

[JTS11]

Lateral drift on touchdown?
The Apache, especially when unarmed, has a pretty low roll moment-of-inertia. I have 1 hour in an AH-64, and I remember feeling like it was going to rollover if I taxied too briskly in a turn.

I wonder if the AH-1W or Z are less tolerant of any lateral drift than an AH-64? I'm guessing it's somewhat similar.

I worked with an AH-1W WTI that said one of the more harrowing flights he had in CONUS was having to land on a dirt strip LLL with significant brownout. Maybe some of the AH-1 dudes on here can weigh in.

 

[Hotdogs]

I wonder if the AH-1W or Z are less tolerant of any lateral drift than an AH-64? I'm guessing it's somewhat similar.

I worked with an AH-1W WTI that said one of the more harrowing flights he had in CONUS was having to lande on a dirt strip LLL with significant brownout. Maybe some of the AH-1 dudes on here can weigh in.

The high Cg and narrow wheel well placement of the Apache was an overall negative for the Marines purchasing them as an alternative to the Whiskey for shipboard ops. Throw in a pitching deck and night time ops, and you get the picture on a tight flight deck. That’s based on years of pass downs from the initial eval, so take it with a grain of salt.

Hard to compare since we don’t taxi around on wheels, but landing in uneven terrain with greater than 1-3 degree of slope is never a fun experience. Just enough to feel awkward in the aircraft. Skids catching on micro terrain is always a hazard, and very unforgiving for the H-1 community. A dynamic rollover event in 2011 during OEF caused a fatality from catching on the landing pad material. FARPs are typically briefed as a completely separate objective area because of the collection of characters at a FARP and overall hazards to the aircraft.

LLL brownouts in any helicopter aren’t fun, but even more so without crew chiefs giving you a talk on. Cockpit visibility in the immediate area of the skid is hard to ascertain because the cockpit is high and forward of the skid toes. The Z is much better in that regard due to the blade cuffs not creating as much downwash in the terminal environment.

 

[JTS11]

The high Cg and narrow wheel well placement of the Apache was an overall negative for the Marines purchasing them as an alternative to the Whiskey for shipboard ops. Throw in a pitching deck and night time ops, and you get the picture on a tight flight deck. That’s based on years of pass downs from the initial eval, so take it with a grain of salt.

Hard to compare since we don’t taxi around on wheels, but landing in uneven terrain with greater than 1-3 degree of slope is never a fun experience. Just enough to feel awkward in the aircraft. Skids catching on micro terrain is always a hazard, and very unforgiving for the H-1 community. A dynamic rollover event in 2011 during OEF caused a fatality from catching on the landing pad material. FARPs are typically briefed as a completely separate objective area because of the collection of characters at a FARP and overall hazards to the aircraft.

LLL brownouts in any helicopter aren’t fun, but even more so without crew chiefs giving you a talk on. Cockpit visibility in the immediate area of the skid is hard to ascertain because the cockpit is high and forward of the skid toes. The Z is much better in that regard due to the blade cuffs not creating as much downwash in the terminal environment.

Would the aft cockpit dude normally be the PAC, or just depends (WRT brownout landings)?

 

[JTS11]

LLL brownouts in any helicopter aren’t fun, but even more so without crew chiefs giving you a talk on.

This is a great point. The CC's live back in the null zone and have better viz. The pilots up front end up looking out to their 90 and further to find some bit of contrast in the terrain. It's also a CRM exercise with the crew. There's a big difference on the ICS between "no lower"...and 'POWER, POWER' from the CC. If I heard the power call, I was ripping the collective (slightly hyperbolic), but honestly didn't care about engine temp limits.

Over my whole career, I remember "brownout solution" being the #1 priority at every ASOAG, but it never really went anywhere. I'm guessing the Kilo is much better tech wise.

 

[Hotdogs]

Would the aft cockpit dude normally be the PAC, or just depends (WRT brownout landings)?

It’s interchangeable, and situationally dependent. We train to execute from either seat.

Over my whole career, I remember "brownout solution" being the #1 priority at every ASOAG, but it never really went anywhere. I'm guessing the Kilo is much better tech wise.

Nothings changed. Lots of commercial DVE solutions out there, but always fell below the cut line in terms of priorities. Especially in today’s new operating environment.

 

[Hair Warrior]

What the hell happened to Hurivac SOP's? I was at Pensacola when hurricane Frederick whipped through. As I recall every single orange and white aircraft was flown off. Good times for instructors. I think more Ensign-mobiles were damaged than aircraft at Whiting or mainside Pensacola. Do we not have enough instructors in the VTs to fly off the aircraft?

I wonder if Tyndall put their SOP into action…

 

[Gatordev]

Continuing the white top discussion...

Kind of makes your heart skip a beat when you roll onto final and see all these guys spinning. Did I miss a NOTAM?

Thankfully, I did not and it didn't activate until today.

 

[Hair Warrior]

Experimental Fly-By-Wire UH-60M Black Hawk To Become Autonomy Testbed

Evolving autonomous resupply and other capabilities could open up new and valuable tactical opportunities for the Army's Black Hawk fleets.

www.twz.com