LIFEHELICOPTER

SummER 2014SummER 2014

HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014 3

Macedonian WarriorCarlo Kuit and PaulKievit look at the newtypes of training forthe Macedonian mili-tary

Whirlwind RevisitedDerek Jones flies therevamped WestlandWhirlwind and giveshis impression of thecurrent incarnation,while AndrewWhitehouse explainshow he came to buythe machine

Going the DistanceMark Radcliffeupdates us on thestate of his charity fordisabled servicemenWings4Warriors

Russian HelicoptersZhanna KiktenkoDirector of theHeliRussia Expo looksat the Russian heli-copter scene, and theshow held at CrocusExpo in Moscow

Singapore Airshow David Oliver 54

Model News 58

CAA Legislation changes 59

Accident Reports 64

House & Helicopter 66

COVER STORYCOVER STORY

Flight Show & Tell Guide 4Aviation shows and conferences.

The Editor’s Letter 5

Aerial Forum 6 & 7

Letters to the Editor 10, 21

Flying Crackers 8 & 9

EC175 Air Test 12 & 13

UK ATC improvementsnew technologicaldevelopments used bythe CAA for ATCimprovements

NATO IcelandAlan Norrisreports on the IcelandDefence Meet, bring-ing together partici-pants in the NordicDefence CooperationNATO and non-NATOmembers

International NewsThe state of helicopterbusiness around theworld

Russia Round theWorldG Hunter-Jones, talks to MichaelFarikh about his R66flight round the worldwith four friends

40

46

26

18

11

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HELICOPTER

HELICOPTER LIFE is the HIGH LIFE

Summer 2014 / £3.99

www.helicopterlife.com

including gyroplanes

LIFE

HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014

2 June - 4 June 2014

HELIExPO UK

Sywell Aerodrome, Northamptonshire, UK

http://www.heliukexpo.com

19 - 21 June 2014EUROPEAN HELICOPTER SHOW

Hradec Kralove, Czech Republic

http://www.eurohelishow.com

14 July - 20 July 2014FARNBOROUGH AIR SHOW

Farnborough, near London, UK.

www.farnborough.com

2 September - 5 September 2014EUROPEAN ROTORCRAFT FORUm

Grand Harbour Hotel,

Southampton, UK

http://aerosociety.com/Events/Event-List/1487/European-

Rotorcraft-Forum-2014

21 September - 23 September 2014

NBAA

Orlando Florida

http://www.nbaa.org

24 September - 26 September 2014

HELITECH

Amsterdam, Holland

http://www.helitechevents.com

4 November - 6 November 2014DUBAI HELICOPTER SHOW

Maydan Racecourse, Dubai

www.dubaihelicoptershow.com

3 March - 5 March 2015HAI HELIExPO

Orange County Convention Centre

Orlando Florida

http://heliexpo.rotor.org

16 September - 19 September 2015CHINESE HELIExPO

Industry Base of The AVIC Helicopter

Free Trade Zone of Tianjin Port

(Airport economic zone)

http://www.helicopter-china-expo.com/

4 HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014

developments both in foreign helicop-

ters in Russia and in their homegrown

industry. Helicopter Life will be

attending the Russian Helicopter

Show and seeing how it has changed

since its inception.

This issue has also seen the North

Sea Operators response to the CAA

changes to helicopter transportation

through the UK shelf. After a series of

accidents, the CAA, in consultation

with other affected parties, made

many changes to North Sea regula-

tions: CAP 1145. The operators have

now had time to respond to these

changes, and are mostly positive

about how they will work with the

new regulations. The CAA has also

agreed to some changes including the

timing of implementing these

changes.

Helicopter Life travelled up to

Aberdeen to see the new Airbus

Helicopters EC175 in action. Certified

in January 2014, the EC175 is a 5

tonne class helicopter designed princi-

pally for the oil and gas market. The

Avicopter Z-15 is the Chinese version

of the machine which is manufactured

by the Harbin Aircraft Industry

Group. We have a report on page 12.

lighted the problem that “sixty per-

cent of helicopter air ambulance land-

ing facilities in the UK are ‘inade-

quate’, something that could lead to

greater morbidity and mortality.”

Why is the change to better safer

landing sites coming so slowly, and

why do potentially dangerous sites

still remain? Is the CAA so busy with

enforcement of licence infringement,

so that it no longer has time for safe-

ty issues? Has EASA sidelined the

national agencies to such an extent

that they are no longer relevant, and

at the same time become out of touch

itself?

This question is further underlined

by the growth of more regulatory

bodies including, in Great Britain, the

General Aviation Challenge Panel

established in November 2013 by the

UK Government, to combat the

growth of over-regulation in aviation.

On a broader perspective we see

the rise of national political parties in

Europe wanting to take they nations

out of the European Union. While it

is unlikely they will succeed in their

ambitions, if they did, there would be

an interesting question for aviation

(and other industries too) who then

would be the legislative and regulato-

ry body? Would aviation return to

national legislative bodies, or would

there be some government led body

created as part of the Department of

Transport: a return to the future?

We have two stories in the maga-

zine relating to NATO, one is the

cover story about a new training

school in Macedonia, a country keen

to become part of NATO, and the

other is about one of the founding

countries of NATO, Iceland.

Russia, while not actually in

NATO, is currently in a co-operative

agreement with NATO. The country

is increasing both its civilian and mil-

itary helicopter fleet and Zhanna

Kiktenko writes about the many

5

HELICOPTER LIFE is published quarterly by FlyFizzi Ltd.

59 Great Ormond Street

London, WC1N-3HZ.

Copyright © FlyFizzi Ltd. 2014.

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 PHOTOGRAPH

Macedonian Helicopters

photograph courtesy of Broncho Aviation

SummER 2014

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF / PILOTGeorgina Hunter-Joneseditor@helicopterlife.com

CREATIVE DIRECTORSart@helicopterlife.com

COPY EDITORSGerald Cheyne

CONTRIBUTING EDITORSDerek Jones, Carlo Kuit and Paul Kievit, ZhannaKiktenko, Alan Norris, David Oliver, MarkRadcliffe, Andrew Whitehouse

CONTRIBUTED PHOTOGRAPHYAlan Norris, Jane Gregory, Gerald Cheyne,Broncho Aviation, Mark Radcliffe, HeliRussia,David Oliver

SPECIAL THANKS TODave Smith ATPL(H)IR,

ADVERTISINGTelephone: +44-(0)20-7430-2384,advertising@helicopterlife.com

SUBSCRIPTIONSGo to our website or turn to page 54subscriptions@helicopterlife.com

WEBSITEwww.helicopterlife.com

Bloghttp://www.helicopterlife.blogspot.comSee Helicopter Life on Facebook & Twitter

HON. EDITORIAL BOARDCaptain Eric Brown, CBE, RN

The Lord Glenarthur, DL

Jennifer MurrayMichael J. H. Smith

LIFEHELICOPTER

The ediTor’S leTTerShow & Tell

Guide

On April 30 2014, EASA

(European Aviation Safety

Agency) announced that they

had approved certification of the

Robinson R66. This came nearly four

years after the machine received FAA

certification (October 10, 2010).

While this is extremely good news

both for those awaiting a G reg

(CAA UK Certification, part of

EASA) machine and for the many

operators in the Europe Union who

have been awaiting delivery of their

machines and were losing money by

being forced to use the older and less

efficient machines, it also begs the

question, why did it take EASA so

long to certify a machine that is fly-

ing in so many other countries around

the world?

There are now more than 500

machines flying around the world.

EASA has been charging Robinson

Helicopters $25,000 a month to do

their investigations, and the manufac-

turer has currently paid the legislative

agency nearly $1 million. In contrast,

certification in the USA was free,

cost $170 in South Africa and even in

Russia (CIS) cost a comparatively

low $178,000.

Is EASA is standing in the way of

development the helicopter industry

and if so why? Or are they simply

unable to keep pace with the speed of

change in aviation development and

are thus inefficient?

In May this year, Bristol Royal

Infirmary was delighted to announce

they have their first approved

helideck for the hospital. However,

even though the importance of Air

Ambulances is now understood,

Bristol is an all too rare example of

success.

Earlier this year a report was sub-

mitted by the Association of Air

Ambulances (AAA) to the UK’s All

Party Parliamentary Group for Air

Ambulances (APPGAA) that high-

HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 20146 7

AeriAl Forum

First Air Ambulance HeliDeck at

Bristol Royal Infirmary

The new £3 million helideck at Bristol Royal

Infirmary (BRI) was used for the first time on

Friday 9 May by Dorset and Somerset Air

Ambulance just two days after its official opening.

Air ambulances across the region had spent the last

few weeks undergoing orientation test flights for the new

helideck which is located 220 feet above ground on the

roof of BRI and last Friday saw the first patient experi-

ence its benefit.

The patient, an adult male who had undergone previ-

ous cardiac treatment at BRI was airlifted from Pylle

near Shepton Mallet at 2 pm. He arrived on the 25m

square helideck just ten minutes later.

A grant of £500,000 from the HELP Appeal supported

the helideck’s construction as part of a major redevelop-

ment at the BRI. It connects directly to services within

the Bristol Royal Hospital for Children as well as the

adult Emergency Department at Bristol Royal Infirmary.

The Bristol Heart Institute will also receive patients

transferred by helicopter for cardiac treatment.

Bill Sivewright, Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance

Chief Executive Officer said, “The importance of heli-

pads at Major Trauma Centres is paramount in ensuring

that patients get to the right place for the best treatment

first time! The fact that the helideck at BRI was used so

quickly after its launch and potentially has already made

a difference to someone’s life means it’s an invaluable

asset.

“The development of helipads and suitable landing

facilities is a key issue for the Association of Air

Ambulances that we support strongly.”

Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance has attended over

9,800 incidents since its launch in March 2000, saving

many lives and aiding recovery with outstanding imme-

diate care and rapid delivery to the hospital best suited to

meet the patient’s needs

More information about the Dorset and Somerset Air

Ambulance can be found by visiting: www.dsairambu-

lance.org.uk or by calling: 01823 669604.

HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014 HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 20148 9

FlyinG CrACkerS

Black Knight Heli-Truck

The autonomous vehicle is designed to carry sup-

plies into hostile environments and evacuate injured

soldiers from the battlefield.

It's called the Black Knight Transformer and was

developed by aerospace company Advanced Tactics

with funding from the U.S. military.

In the first test, the vehicle hovered 10 feet off the

ground for a couple of minutes, but it is capable of

flying at much higher altitudes while carrying pay-

loads of more than 4000 pounds.

After landing, the UAV folds up its propellers and

transforms into a supply truck, capable of navigating

over rough terrain.

Advanced Tactics says that along with being able to

complete missions in hard to reach places

autonomously, the UAV will be modular, ensuring

that it can be easily scaled to match mission parame-

ters. The transformer's drive train will also be

detachable, allowing it to be replaced by an amphibi-

ous boat hull, making it suitable for missions on land

and at sea.

Sikorsky Presidential Helicopter

The Pentagon announced in May that Sikorsky

Aircraft has won the initial $1.24 billion contract to

develop and build six new U.S. presidential helicop-

ters, the first step toward a fleet of 21 new aircraft

by 2023.

Former Defence Secretary Robert Gates cancelled an

earlier program managed by Lockheed Martin Corp

in 2009 after the cost more than doubled to around

$13 billion, prompting President Barack Obama to

FlyinG CrACkerS

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ly recommended increasing funding

for the FAA's research into unleaded

alternatives while Shell has said it

already has one that meets all the

applicable standards.

Electric Aircraft

Airbus announced last month that

it has successfully test flown a pro-

totype electric aircraft called the E-

Fan and the company says it's bull-

ish on building an electric-powered

airliner for the regional market,

possibly with a hybrid drive. The

E-Fan is a composite, tandem two-

seater with a pair of ducted fans on

the tail driven by individual electric

motors. Its lithium polymer batter-

ies are housed in the wings where

fuel would normally be in a light

aircraft. The company released this

video of the E-Fan's first flight.

Airbus told Reuters this week that

it hopes to develop an electric-pow-

ered regional airliner with 70 to 90

seats and believes the project is

realistic within a 15- to 20-year

timeline. The aircraft would be

capable of at least taking off and

landing under electric power and

might use some sort of hybrid drive

for sustained flight. The industry

has been experimenting for decades

with the type of ducted fan system

such an aircraft might have. Ducted

props are more efficient than turbo-

fans engines and are also quieter.

The E-Fan has a pair of electric-

driven fans with a total combined

power output of 60 kilowatts or

about 80 HP. Its short endurance

currently about 30 minutes makes it

impractical for anything but experi-

mental test flight, but Jean Botti,

Airbus's chief technology officer,

told reporters that an immediate goal

is to raise the endurance to an hour

or more.

Two other aircraft companies,

Pipistrel in Slovenia and Flight

Design in Germany, also have

experimental hybrid aircraft in the

works.

Monkey’s Birds Nest Soup

At one military airport in China,

officials have discovered a unique

solution to their bird problem; they

trained rhesus monkeys to climb

trees near the field and knock down

bird nests. “Our airfield is located

along one of the eight flyways, the

East Asian-Australasian Flyway, so

large numbers of migrating birds

come here around March every year

and begin nesting near the airport,

which creates significant safety haz-

ards for flight,” said Su Chuang,

head of the bird control team at an

unidentified airbase of Beijing

Military Command, according to

China Daily. Workers have been

hired in the past to knock down the

nests, but it's a slow and costly

process. In the last two months, two

trained monkeys have destroyed

about 180 nests.

Christmas Clutch

Does anyone remember when

Nobby Clarke was doing a Father

Christmas jaunt in the Brantly and

had a clutch failure, forcing him

down on a muck heap? Lucky they

were wider in those days! He was

rescued by the Fire Brigade.

Leaded Aviation Fuel

The EPA has been petitioned to

reconsider its current position on

leaded aviation fuel and start the

process to regulate lead emissions

from general aviation aircraft.

Friends of the Earth, Physicians for

Social Responsibility and Oregon

Aviation Watch filed the latest peti-

tion last week. An earlier petition

filed by the three in 2006 was denied

in 2012 but the groups say in their

latest action there is overwhelming

evidence that 100LL is causing

health-threatening environmental

lead pollution and urge the EPA to

make the ‘endangerment finding’

necessary to move with regulations.

“There is no need for further study,”

the petition reads. “EPA has all of

the evidence it needs to make an

endangerment finding.”

In its 2012 decision, the EPA said it

needed more data to establish that

people are being poisoned by lead in

avgas emissions. It said existing data

on lead concentrations near airports

didn't differentiate between aircraft

and other sources of lead and that it

would need another three years to

determine if lead emissions from air-

craft engines pose a public health

risk. Meanwhile, the high cost of

100LL has most engine and aircraft

manufacturers investigating alterna-

tives, including mogas, diesel and

hybrid electric power, while the

search for an unleaded replacement

for avgas grinds on. Congress recent-

describe it "an example of the procurement process gone

amok."

The total value of the new program is expected to be about

$3 billion, said Marty Hauser, director of government

communications for United Technologies.

Lockheed will be the key subcontractor to Sikorsky on the

new program, which is based on the Sikorsky S-92 heli-

copter that is already used by 10 nations for their head of

state missions.

Efforts to buy a new presidential helicopter began shortly

after the Sept. 11, 2001, hijacking attacks, which revealed

the outdated nature of communications systems on the

existing fleet, which had been in service since 1974.

Sikorsky was the sole bidder for the helicopter after other

companies decided not to compete. Navy Captain Dean

Peters, who heads the program for the Navy, said the con-

tract was on fixed-price terms, with an incentive fee. He

said the goal was to integrate mature equipment into an

existing, in-production aircraft to minimize development

and testing costs.

He said Sikorsky would build six test aircraft, of which

four would later be used for operations. The contract will

have options for 17 additional operational aircraft.

"Sikorsky has long been synonymous with Marine One,

the presidential helicopter," DeLauro said. "Every presi-

dent since Eisenhower has flown in a Sikorsky, made right

here in Connecticut."

Motorcycles Helicopter Synergy

More than 3,000 bikers descended on North Weald

Airfield, home of the Herts Air Ambulance, for the Essex

Motorcycle Show. Sponsored by ICE Patch, the event

raised over £5,000 for the life-saving helicopter; making it

the most successful show to date.

The show, which is in its ninth year, was held at the finish-

ing point for the Herts Air Ambulance Motorcycle Run;

Weald Aviation at North Weald Airfield.

Volunteers were on hand at the Essex Air Ambulance stand

to sign people up for the Essex Air Ambulance Motorcycle

Run.

The Essex County Council Road Safety Team, Essex

Police and Essex Fire and rescue are working in partner-

ship to promote Essex Hugger.

Hugger, who is named after a rear mudguard, has been

launched on the back of alarming statistics that show

motorcyclists make up only around 1 pre cent of traffic on

Essex roads, yet represent a 26 per cent of people killed or

seriously injured.

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

Telephone: 020-7430-2384, Email: editor@helicopterlife.com.

Please include your name, and email or phone.

HeliTech Excel and Amsterdam

Dear Georgina

David George's letter in the Spring Edition was typi-

cally forthright, but merits a response from BHA!

We are well aware of the concerns expressed by

David and others, and we are committed to improve

the situation in the short term and resolve it to the sat-

isfaction of all our membership when circumstances

permit. Indeed, Reed have agreed to attend our next

Board Meeting, which David will attend, and we

intend to address the issues and identify solutions.

It would be unwise to be too prescriptive at this stage,

but I see the following as ingredients of an improved

package:

Firstly, we need to improve what we have, especially

on behalf of smaller enterprises.

Secondly, we should consider whether an alternative

option is possible should HeliTech not meet all our

needs.

Thirdly, we need to consider long term options to

ensure a more holistic approach to client requirements.

I would add that in all of this, we must consult with,

but necessarily be bound-by, the needs of our EHA

Colleagues.

Regards

Sir Christopher Coville

Chairman BHA

HeliTech Excel and Amsterdam

Dear Georgina

Re David George’s letter in the Spring issue of

Helicopter Life. I am sure Reed must be aware of the

dissent. If they are working in their shareholders best

interests, they will be wanting to consult their cus-

tomers on the product they provide. If there is a meet-

ing in June with Reed attending can I suggest, as a first

step, a survey of companies who have exhibited

(between, say 2010 and 2014), visitors, BHA members

and HCGB (representing a large proportion of UK pri-

vate customers)?

At the heart of this is 'why do we exhibit'. I imagine

the answers from all areas will be broadly similar. Yes,

sales are important but we also go to catch up on news,

inform planning, find new opportunities, get feedback

on our performance over the past year, socialise and

meet interesting people. This is true for exhibitors and

visitors alike. The survey would ask something along

the lines of: Is the current format (Excel and Schipol) meeting

these requirements?

If a survey is carried out it should be done jointly

with BHA for transparency - no bad news buried in the

collating process. I am sure that Reed would under-

stand this is in their best interests. There are other

Show organisers waiting for the opportunity to take a

bite from the industry and dissent among

exhibitors/visitors is an opportunity. If BHA recognises

there is a problem and is willing to help Reed address

this then surely nobody loses?

I would especially want to ask the OEM's, Operators,

Flight Schools, Equipment and Service suppliers,

Military (where did all the visitors who used to come

from Benson, Wattisham and Culdrose go?) and

MRO's to send multiple responses from individuals in

engineering, flight ops and sales -not a general corpo-

rate response from the marketing department. A good

Expo is vibrant, filled with earnest discussions in cor-

ners, gossip, chance meetings and unexpected opportu-

nities. Marketing departments provide the backdrop

but an Expo without the former never survives -it's too

dull. PDG used to send 8 or more employees to

Duxford. I only saw 2 at Excel. Did you also notice

there were hardly any Scandinavian operators visiting

Excel in 2013, or military personnel from

Wattisham/Culdrose and Benson?

Responses from individuals will give the true picture.

I suspect that location will be a common theme.

UKTI, tasked with encouraging UK exports, is wor-

ried with the way Reed is presenting the UK industry

to overseas buyers. Air Covers works closely with the

Defence and SAR Export Team and I know that they

have also had a meeting with Reed to express their

concern.

Finally, the survey should also address cost. The dis-

parity for exhibitors between Heli Expo and Excel is

too great to ignore. If poly-board and octanorm shell

schemes become the HAI curtained cattle-pens then so

be it - there's a difference of £150 per m2. These days

most of us erect full printed backdrops anyway.

Best wishes

John Pattison

continued on page 21

leTTerS To The ediTor

1011HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014

Letters are continued on page 21

TeChnoloGy For heliCopTerS

new

uK pursuing leading-edge technology to

improve air-traffic management

The Civil Aviation

Authority (CAA), the

UK's specialist avia-

tion regulator, has awarded a

study to Airbus Defence and

Space to examine the feasibil-

ity of using the latest radar

technology for better air traf-

fic management.

Conventional radar uses a

rotating antenna to sweep the

sky, actively sending out radio

pulses and detecting those

which are reflected back from

aircraft. Airbus Defence and

Space has developed a so-

called ‘passive radar’ system

that doesn't emit any radia-

tion, but instead analyses radi-

ation reflections from other

emitters, such as radio and tel-

evision stations, to detect

objects. By measuring the dif-

ferences between the original

broadcast signal and the sig-

nals reflected from aircraft in

the air, the position of the air-

craft can be detected. The dif-

ference is that a passive radar

system that relies on signals

already in the air avoids creat-

ing additional emissions in

populated areas, releases

bandwidth for other uses and

addresses the problem of misleading echoes from wind

farms.

This type of new system potentially offers a highly cost

effective and extremely reliable system. Passive radar is

expected to be highly reliable as well as cost effective

compared to the current systems in use in civil airports,

because the current approach relies on one radar transmit-

ter per airport putting enough signals in the sky.

Translating the motto

"Four eyes see more than

two" into the radar

world, several cost effec-

tive passive radar sensors

using a number of emit-

ters could broaden the

basis for detection. The

current active radars

used can be susceptible

to confusing echoes and

interference from the

increasing number of

wind farms in the UK.

Placing several passive

radar sensors intelligent-

ly can eliminate these

unwanted effects.

(NB, Airbus Defence

and Space announced in

2011 the development of

a software and hardware

radar modification to sig-

nificantly mitigate inter-

ference from wind tur-

bines).

Passive radar may also

help to free up spectrum

that could be used for an

upcoming 5G network.

Airbus Defence and

Space started to develop

the passive radar solution

in 2006 and has already

demonstrated a working system, which can detect ultra-

light aircraft many kilometres away with accuracies down

to 20m, as well as detect larger aircraft 200km away, mak-

ing it one of the early pioneers and currently at the head of

the field in this area. Airbus Defence and Space hopes that

the application of this technology originally conceived for

military use could reshape the way that air traffic is man-

aged in the future.

HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014 HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 201412 13

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EC175 Test Demo in Aberdeen

The EC175 was certified by EASA in January this year.

Georgina Hunter-Jones

HELICOPTER LIFE Summer 2014 HELICOPTER LIFE Summer 201414 15

words by Alan Norris

pictures by Alan Norris and

courtesy of NATO

For NATO

Despite having no armed forces of its own Iceland

was one of the founding countries of NATO and

its strategic location off the East coast of

America and the West coast of Scandinavia, meant that

the island played an important role during the cold war

of the 1980s.

The Iceland Defense Force, a military command of the

United States armed forces, was created at the request of

NATO to provide for the defence of Iceland. The United

States had a fully operational air base on Iceland at

Keflavik with the 57th Fighter Interceptor Squadron and

a detachment of the 67 Aerospace Rescue and Recovery

Squadron operating the HH-60G Pave Hawk in the

search and rescue role.

Following the American withdrawal from Keflavik in

2006 Iceland did not, and still does not, maintain an air

force so the country was left unable to patrol its airspace.

After a number of Russian Air Force aircraft entered

Icelandic airspace on several occasions the Icelandic

government requested that Iceland's NATO allies assume

responsibility for protecting their airspace. This was

agreed and it is known as the Icelandic Air Policing,

where NATO allies periodically deploy fighter aircraft to

Keflavik Air Base. Also, although not members of

NATO, the governments of Finland and Sweden, at the

request of Iceland, are contributing forces to the air

policing mission during 2014.

The island also has a Radar Operations Control Center

with four sites in Iceland plus a single radar site on the

Faeroe Islands. These radar sites were handed over to

Iceland by the United States as part of the Iceland Air

Defence System. The four radar sites on the island are

primarily used to monitor air traffic and direct allied

interceptors based out of the country. Originally con-

trolled as part of the Icelandic Defence Agency it is now

under the command of the Icelandic Coast Guard.

In February 2014, the current deployment to Iceland

of a Norwegian air-defense detachment was allowed to

conduct a NATO peacetime preparedness mission exer-

cise, Iceland Air Meet 2014 (IAM2014). The aim of

An Icy Blast

HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014 HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 201416 17

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which was to bring together participants from NATO

member nations Norway, Iceland and the Netherlands,

and from partner countries Finland and Sweden, to con-

duct a wide range of air defense related flying activities.

This was the first time that Finland and Sweden had

deployed to Iceland and the training exercise was aimed

at improving the ability to deploy assets to the island and

provide additional training opportunities to strengthen

Nordic defense cooperation (NORDEFCO), between

both NATO members and non-members in the region.

Training activities during the exercise included a num-

ber of air combat training missions between dissimilar

aircraft with Norwegian, Finnish and Swedish fighter air-

craft flying two to three waves daily in designated train-

ing areas allocated to fighter operations in Icelandic air-

space and predominantly over the sea. With weather in

the region always unpredictable, during the exercise

wind speeds reached over 40 knots gusting up to 60

knots sometimes, whenever the fighters were in the air

search and rescue over cover was supplied by both the

local Icelandic Coast Guard AS332-L1 Super Puma and

Finnish NH90s.

In 2001 the Finnish Ministry of Defense signed a con-

tract for 20 NH90 TTHs for the Finnish Army, as part of

a joint Nordic acquisition with Sweden and Norway, val-

ued then at USD470 million (EUR350 million,) to

replace their fleet of Mi-8 utility helicopters. This figure

eventually rose to USD520 million (EUR400 million)

which included spares, support and training. It was

seven years later before NH Industries began deliveries

to the Finnish Helicopter Battalion based in Utti,

Finland, which has to date received 15 NH90s. In 2013

Finland renegotiated its contract as a result of the deliv-

ery delays and under the new contract the program was

extended to 2018, with deliveries to be completed by

mid-2014, some six years later than originally scheduled.

Finland was one of the first countries to go operational

with the NH90 in 2010.

Powered by the Rolls-Royce Turbomeca RTM322

with FADEC and engine intake air particle separators,

the Finnish NH90 TTH is the utility version with a rear

ramp for troop access to the large cabin. The TTH does

not have any offensive avionics fitted but is fitted with a

defensive aid suite, weather radar, FLIR sensor, Hellas

obstacle warning system and a wire cutting system. To

cope with the cold weather of Finland a de-icing and

anti-icing system is fitted to all aircraft in the fleet plus

the SAR model is also fitted with a winch. Standard crew

is pilot and co-pilot, with a payload capacity of 20

troops, 12 stretchers, a light tactical vehicle or 5,500

pounds (2,500 kg) of cargo.

The Finnish Army have taken part in a number of

NATO exercises over recent years operating with the

NH90 including an European Defense Agency exercise

in Portugal. In Finland, exercise arrangements come

under the responsibility of the Air Force's Satakunta Air

Command and the Iceland Air Meet formed part of the

Finnish Defense Forces' 2014 plan for combined training

and exercise events. Its objectives include the training of

aircrews and fighter controllers in a combined Nordic

environment while improving the Air Force's crisis man-

agement capabilities. IAM2014 also provided an oppor-

tunity to obtain experience of combined operations dur-

ing the deployment phase that involved logistics plan-

ning and the controlled rotation of personnel while an

operation was in full swing.

The Army's two NH90 utility helicopters were flown to

the Royal Norwegian Air Force air base in Bodø,

Norway. The main blades were removed before being

loaded on to a ship, along with support equipment, to be

sealifted to Iceland. Major Tuukka Elonheimo, Finnish

contingent coordinator said, “ every deployment gives us

an opportunity to learn a little more benefitting our opera-

tional effectiveness.”

Once on station in Keflavik, located 50 kilometers

from the Icelandic capital Reykjavik, the two helicopters

played a key role in flight safety during the exercise, with

one NH90 available everyday on quick reaction alert

ready to scramble on a SAR mission whenever any of the

fighter aircraft were airborne.

The second Finnish NH90 and its crew were tasked

each day to carry out search and rescue training missions

over the sea and in the mountains of Iceland in conjunc-

tion with the personnel and vessels of the Icelandic Coast

Guard. The prevailing extreme conditions in the Atlantic

at the time made for an exceptional exercise arena for

pilots, loadmasters, rescue swimmers, and technicians to

re-certify and hone their skills. This was also a good

opportunity for Finnish fixed wing pilots to experience

being winched into and out of the sea.

During the early part of the exercise the NH90s were

scrambled in support of local authorities in a live search

and rescue task at sea to the north from Reykjavik.

Lieutenant Colonel Keränen, Commanding Officer said:

"This was our first combined joint operation in which

Finnish Army helicopters and Air Force have worked

alongside a host nation and other countries cooperating to

this extent."

Although the Icelandic Air Meet strengthened the ties

with their Scandinavian countries, for the Finnish detach-

ment this major NATO exercise provided yet another

venue to develop the operational capability of the NH90

from the deployment and redeployment phases to live

SAR scenarios.

The Finnish Army were

deployed to Iceland

The NH90 TTH is the utility

version with rear ramp

HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014 HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 201418 19

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Industry Response to CAA changes

in the North Sea (Cap 1145)

In February 2014, in response to recent helicopter

incidents in the North Sea, and as the result of a

review of offshore helicopter operations, taken in

conjunction with the Norwegian CAA and EASA, the

CAA brought out a number of measures to improve safe-

ty for flights taking place over the North Sea (CAP

1145).

These measures were fully listed in the last issue of

Helicopter Life but include:

* Prohibiting helicopter flights in the most severe sea

conditions, so that the chance of a ditched helicopter cap-

sizing is reduced and a rescue can be safely undertaken.

* Pending further safety improvements to helicopters,

passengers will only be able to fly if they are seated next

to an emergency window exit to make it easier to get out

of a helicopter in an emergency (unless helicopters are

fitted with extra flotation devices or passengers are pro-

vided with better emergency breathing systems).

* Requiring all passengers to have better emergency

breathing equipment (EBS) to increase underwater sur-

vival time, unless the helicopter is equipped with side

floats.

*Fitting side floats.

*Implementing automatic flotation equipment.

*From 1 April 2015, when being transferred offshore

in a helicopter passenger will not be permitted on board

where the passenger's body size (including safety equip-

ment) exceeds the size of window emergency exits.

In response to this, the European Helicopters

Operators Council (EHOC,) which is made up of the ‘big

three’ Bond, Bristow and CHC, were asked when they

became involved with the regulator’s changes. They

explained that they regularly meet with the all the regula-

tors within Europe and were all engaged in discussions

while the CAA were compiling their report.

CHC explained: “Our fundamental business model is

not affected by the CAA report; we remain committed to

providing safe, efficient and flexible services to our cus-

tomers around the world… in industry efforts such as the

Joint Operators Review (launched in September 2013),

we make sure that every CHC person understands that

they have a personal obligation to the people who fly

with us every day, passengers and our own crew.”

The operators were keen to stress that most innova-

tions were not initiated by the regulators but indeed by

the industry itself, this includes major innovations such

as the use of Flight Data Monitoring, HUMS, and safety

equipment for passengers. While some of that work was

done collaboratively amongst all of the operators, others

were developed bilaterally with the oil and gas compa-

nies. Once in place for that operator and their customer,

the work was shared across the industry, with further

refinements made as more people offered experience and

ideas.

EHOC points out that “CAP1145 contains a range of

actions and recommendations, many of which are aligned

with the work already underway through the JOR.”

While the operators were often happy with the safety

aspects of the required changes there were some difficul-

ties in implementing them within the time frame

required.

Moreover, the required breathing systems were not

previously available, however, there have been improve-

ments in hardware and “over the years, the industry has

identified the potential risks relating to cold-water shock

for personnel involved in ditching scenarios and so intro-

duced a number of systems to mitigate this risk.”

At present, the industry is working together in the UK

to develop, certify, train and implement a suitable Cat A

EBS system; latest estimates envisage that this will take

around 4 months beyond the 1 June 2014 timeline origi-

nally granted by the UK CAA. Furthermore, it is likely

to take several years to build and test the side floatation

devices required by the CAA.

On the specific subject of instrument flying skills,

EHOC reported that they have recurrent training pro-

grammes, but that they are always evaluating and

improving all levels of training.

The unions supporting workers on the North Sea were

also worried by the regulation concerning the passen-

gers’ body size and the size of the window, feeling that

this might lead to job losses.

The input and comments from EHOC and the UK

Continental Shelf (UKCS) operators has led to some

variations in the CAA regulations:

Firstly, this is the delay of the implementation of the

seating restrictions until 1 September 2014.

Secondly, the CAA have brought forward the date

from which the improved EBS will be compulsory. This

will now be 1 January 2015 rather than 1 April 2016.

The new system is expected to be ready in July; it will

deliver a significant improvement in safety for those fly-

ing offshore.

They decided to make these changes after evidence

provided by the oil and gas industry that reducing heli-

copter capacity owing to seating restrictions could have

an adverse impact on safety critical maintenance work

due to take place at offshore installations over the sum-

mer. There has also been confirmation that the first

improved breathing system units (which will remove the

need for seating restrictions) won’t be available before

mid-July. And finally, they took into account the recent

certification of the redesigned gear shaft for the Airbus

Helicopters EC225, enabling it to be fitted on existing

helicopters of this type. The CAA said that this is an

important safety modification which should be imple-

mented as quickly as possible, but will also require heli-

copters being temporarily taken out of service, further

reducing capacity at this busy time for offshore safety

maintenance.

The CAA understood workforce concerns about its

plans to prevent helicopter operators carrying passengers

whose body size means they couldn’t escape through

push-out window exits in an emergency. The change,

which is not due to take effect until 1 April 2015, is to

ensure that everyone onboard can escape in the event of

a helicopter capsizing after a ditching or water impact.

The Offshore Helicopter Safety Action Group has said

that the introduction of the requirement will be sensibly

managed and the Group’s aim is that no one loses their

job as a result of the change. Exit sizes vary from one

helicopter type to another and even from one seat row to

the next on some helicopters and there are many options

being explored, especially around seat allocation.

Malcolm Webb, Oil & Gas UK chief executive, said:

in response to the CAA changes: “The CAA consultation

with industry has been highly constructive, prompting

and accelerating the introduction of breakthrough lifesav-

ing equipment over a year ahead of CAA proposed

action. CAP1145 is a real milestone for safety in the

North Sea. Additionally, the new equipment comes with

a significantly improved lifejacket for all passengers,

more good news for offshore safety.”

He added that, “By adjusting the timescale for limiting

helicopter seating capacity to better align with the avail-

ability of Category A Emergency Breathing Systems, the

CAA has facilitated the work of the fast-approaching

annual turnaround season, when safety critical mainte-

nance is carried out during the summer months.

Oil & Gas UK also warmly welcomes the news that

the redesigned gear shaft for EC225 helicopters has been

certified, and will now be introduced as soon as possible.

This is another significant step forward for safety.”

However, although the operators are well disposed

towards the regulators changes there is no doubt that the

changes will cost millions of Euros and that, since they

are only currently being implemented in the North Sea

and not worldwide, it will lead to some competition

issues. The question here is really are all these changes

really going to increase safety, or are they merely a knee-

jerk reaction by the regulators in response to public out-

cry at the well publicized incidents? On this possible

lack of competitiveness the operators said: “the JOR is

reviewing how CAP1145 may, or should, subsequently

be implemented elsewhere. This work is being done in

close cooperation with the oil and gas companies and

will be shaped by regional variations.”

If this is indeed the case, and the changes are indeed

significant, then there should be a worldwide improve-

ment in offshore safety standards.

HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014 HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 201420 21

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continued from page 10

Skeeter Correction

Dear Georgina.

Unfortunately you got the info' wrong in the House

and Helicopter feature, as I am not a helicopter pilot or

an engineer! I've had to take a bit of 'ribbing' from the

lads down at the Helicopter Museum and people who

know me and read your magazine. Still, on the plus side,

I am now elevated into the flying fraternity with a stroke

of the pen, ha ha.

Also, you managed to put in the photo' of Peter

Nowicki's aircraft instead of our non-flying project (see

right). Never mind, it's good we can laugh about it. We

haven't really started it's refurbishment as yet, because

we have been mainly concerned with aquiring some of

the missing parts.

Kind regards,

John Phillips

Australian Helicopter Life

Dear Georgina

Rotortech 2014 is about “All the innovations under the

sun.” The exhibitors are all about latest technology. And

a lot of the speakers will be guiding us through the diffi-

cult transition to EASA rules – a project with hard to

achieve bench marks.

Now that Australian Helicopters, has been awarded a

10-year contract with the Victorian Government and

Ambulance Victoria using AW139 helicopters, attendees

may wish to learn more about the new performance leg-

islation which made the AW139 the leader in the very

limited pack. Industry experts will guide you through the

thought processes. CASA has offered two specialists to

take part in a regulatory/industry panel discussion on

many topics, the one of immediate concern is the restruc-

turing of the training industry. The implementation of

CASR Part 61 is less than four months away.

We have engaged the services if Greg Ward, an enter-

tainer and MC of conferences. (His real qualification is

that of a comedian!) Those attending as delegates (or at

our conference dinner) will be amused by his profession-

al and very funny way of doing things. Tickets will be

released soon; we have 190 seats left.

As mentioned in our last edition, we were surprised to

find out we were number two in the Western World for

helicopter registrations with 2,100 helicopters. Our near-

by neighbour, New Zealand, has 900 helicopters. Add

both together and we are not far below all the European

registrations at around 4,250.

Reminder: Rotortech 2014 – 24/25 May 2014 – Twin

Waters - Sunshine Coast, Qld. The AHIA’s Rotortech

2014 will be at the popular beach front Novotel Twin

Waters Resort, Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia.

The venue is only a short taxi trip from Sunshine Coast

Airport (and about one hour’s drive from the Brisbane

International Airport). Our hosts have offered room to

park at least 20 small and maybe 15 medium helicopters.

AHIA members are invited to apply for a helicopter

landing site at the venue. We have 29 standard display

booths in the main exhibition area next to the conference

hall. There is free entry to outdoor displays and exhibi-

tions for the general public. Fees will apply to delegates

attending the conference hall activities.

More information and delegate order forms at

www.austhia.com. Check out the venue and relaxing set-

ting at www.novoteltwinwatersresort.com.au.

Those who are curious about happenings in Australia;

can see more at www.bladeslapper.com. Just check out

the thread starting with AHIA…(topic).

Kindest regards,

Rob Rich

AHIA Events Coordinator

Australian Helicopter Industry Association Limited

PO Box 1796

CARINDALE QLD 4152 Australia

Mob: +61 (0) 415 641 774

Email: secretary@austhia.com

To The ediTormore leTTerS

Now a fully licenced Rotorway pilot, I have started

doing examining and some instruction on the

types of Rotorway (162F and Exec 90). As ever

you learn far more on the job than you do when you are

training.

It seems to me that the real reason the Rotorway has a

bad reputation is not that there is anything wrong with

the machine, but merely that it is underpowered. My first

test was on a 162F Rotorway based in the South of

England. The pilot was relatively experienced, the day

cool and the wind light. We had a excellent flight in the

Hampshire area with no problems, and the student passed

without issue.

The next time I flew one of the Rotorways I was

teaching. It was again a 162F and one that is known as

being a ‘good one’ with a relatively powerful engine. The

weather was cool, but there was a wind of 18 knots. Now

for most helicopters 18 knots of wind is going to be

worth looking at, but not an intrinstic problem. However,

with the Rotorway, even the more powerful types, you do

not want to turn downwind in such a wind.

We had full fuel and were close to the all-up-weight of

the machine. I took off, with a slight cross wind, and

immediately lost RPM. I managed to turn into wind, but

could not get the RPM back up. This was partly because

I had the collective too high, but being near to the

ground I found it hard to bring it down, even though I

knew theoretically I was over-pitching and hence needed

to bring down the collective before I could bring up the

RPM. I was also losing tail rotor authority and hence had

full right pedal while the machine turned left. It took sev-

eral goes, and even a shut down before I managed to

resolve the problem, which was owing to my own cack-

handedness, but nonetheless a potential bigger problem.

However, never call me a quick learner. I then took off

into the local area for a flight. Fine in itself but the nicest

take-off run without any trees was downwind, and yes, I

was indeed stupid enough to take-off down wind. Thanks

to the relatively airflow, the fact that this was quite a

powerful 162F and that we had the space I did not put

the nose into the ground. But wiser consideration after

the event made me realise I would have been much bet-

ter off taking off into wind, even given the presence of

trees and wires.

I am told that flying the Rotorway makes you a better

pilot and I am starting to see why.

A few days later I did another Rotorway test, this time

on an Exec 90. There was no wind and the weather was

hot, so with this less powerful engine we had to be par-

ticularly careful. We were careful not to have full fuel

this time, and we did a few tests in the hover to check we

had enough power available. We did and everything was

fine. The pilot flew nicely, careful and well and he

passed his test. But it is important to be aware of the

machine’s limitations.

Type Rating on the Rotorway 162F by Georgina Hunter-Jones

see: http://www.helicopterlife.blogspot.com

Helicopter Training

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Airbus Helicopters’ EC225 presence in the African

oil and gas heli-lift market will expand following

delivery of an additional workhorse rotorcraft to

SonAir, to deploy this long-range helicopter on opera-

tions in Angola.

This is SonAir’s latest EC225 joining SonAir’s fleet of

heavy helicopters that already includes 11 EC225s, four

AS332 L2s and three AS365 N3s.

As a subsidiary of the Sonangol Group – a structured

aviation service provider in Angola, and the largest

African helicopter operator – SonAir will utilize the

newly-delivered EC225 in oil and gas transport duties

with an existing customer. SonAir is in the process of

adding a total of five additional EC225s to its inventory,

three of which will be leased from Milestone Aviation

Group, while two others will be owned outright by

SonAir, permitting the company to initiate heli-lift busi-

ness with three new partners and two existing customers.

“The expansion of SonAir’s EC225 fleet underscores

their confidence in this powerful helicopter for highly-

demanding missions,” said Airbus Helicopters CEO

Guillaume Faury. “It reinforces our long term relation-

ship and our commitment to fully support their growing

activity in Africa.”

“By growing our fleet, SonAir will benefit from the

EC225’s performance, range and power,” SonAir CEO

João Andrade explained. “We look forward to continuing

to serve our customers with one of the best aircraft in oil

and gas helicopter transportation.”

The EC225 is an 11-ton-class rotorcraft in Airbus

Helicopters’ Super Puma family. With more than 300,000

flight hours logged in worldwide service to date, it is

deployed in duties ranging from offshore transportation

and cargo airlift to search and rescue (SAR), parapublic

operations and military missions.

SonAir Serviço Aereo, SA, a subsidiary of Sonangol

Group, is a structured aviation operator in Angola, using

both helicopters and planes, providing services to all

major oil & gas companies as its core business and also

to the State as complementary business. SonAir started

as an aviation department and today, after 35 years in the

industry operates a fleet of over 25 helicopters. SonAir´s

mission is to provide safe and reliable air transportation

services, assuring an optimal economic balance. SonAir

is today the largest African helicopter operator and 90

percent of the fleet is dedicated to the Oil and Gas, flying

both offshore and onshore. The onshore flying is also

supported by fixed wing activity. The workforce rounds

about 1000 employees, mainly nationals: the expat work-

force is less than 15 percent. Internationally, SonAir also

offers a closed charter, direct service from the US to

Angola dedicated to the Energy industry. Our vision is to

be the leading operator of air transportation in support of

the national Oil and Gas Industry, with regional expan-

sion, acting safely, with quality and competitively.

Airbus Delivers EC225 to Angola

Airbus Helicopters completes deliveries of EC135s

to Turkey’s THK Gökçen Aviation for emergency

medical services Their fleet now totals 17 of the

twin-engine rotorcraft and critical-care airlift services

from Turkey’s THK Gökçen Aviation are now at their

full-up capability following completion of Airbus

Helicopters’ delivery of EC135 to this commercial arm

of the Turkish Aeronautical Association.

The EC135 already has demonstrated its capabilities in

THK Gökçen Aviation’s emergency medical services

(EMS) missions, as more than 2,000 flight hours have

been logged since the helicopter’s 2013 service introduc-

tion with the operator. THK Gökçen Aviation is utilizing

its EC135s in the framework of a five-year EMS contract

with the Turkish Ministry of Health.

“This rapid fleet build-up – with all helicopters phased

in during 12 months – confirms the operational excel-

lence of THK Gökçen Aviation, and also validates the

EC135’s capabilities as the reference rotorcraft for EMS

operations,” said Olivier Lambert, Airbus Helicopters’

Senior Vice President for Sales and Customer Relations.

With their 17 EC135 helicopters THK not only

increase their mission capability but are also able to

assure the Turkish population the best service in any con-

ditions. Moreover, THK has established important MRO

facilities together with their subsidiary Asal Aeronautics.

“Our EC135s are performing very well, with high reli-

ability levels in the full range of operating conditions

across Turkey,” added Osman Yildirim, President of

THK.

The EC135 combines a wide, unobstructed cabin with

excellent performance, range and payload capacity –

along with low-noise operations. Its oversized sliding

side doors and rear clamshell doors enable fast

loading/unloading of patients – with additional safety

during ground operations ensured by Airbus Helicopters’

signature shrouded Fenestron® tail rotor.

THK is known for their excellent operational capabili-

ties thanks to the biggest fleet of firefighting aircraft, two

fixed wing aircraft for air ambulance, three business jets

and various types of single and multi-engine aircraft.

ASAL Aeronautics is located at Isparta airport. Their

MRO facilities are located in the center of the southern

part of Turkey which is convenient for operators in and

around Turkey. ASAL MRO facilities are capable of pro-

viding both base and line maintenance with certified

engineers, technicians and tools. All personnel were

trained at Airbus Helicopters’ facilities.

Airbus Helicopters EC135s to Turkey

Around the World

HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014 252524

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Arrius2R Bell 505 Engine Test Run

The first engine test bench run of Turbomeca’s new

Arrius 2R turboshaft took place on April 29th

2014 at the company’s Bordes factory in south-

western France.

The latest Arrius variant is destined for Bell

Helicopter’s new Jet Ranger replacement, the Bell 505

Jet Ranger XTM, and the initial rotations were witnessed

by Bell Helicopter’s 505 Program Director Paul Watts

and the new rotorcraft’s development team.

The Arrius 2R is designed to deliver performance and

power within the 500 shaft horsepower range, while

improving safety and lowering pilot workload via a Full

Authority Dual-channel Engine Control (FADEC). The

twin-module configuration will reduce fuel consumption

and lead to lower operating costs.

More than 3,000 Arrius engines have been sold by

Turbomeca, accumulating 6.6 million flight hours for

430 customers in 60 countries. This proven reliability is

built into the 2R and reinforced by a 3,000 hour Time-

Between-Overhaul to be offered at service entry.

The engine will also benefit from Turbomeca’s

renowned service and support capabilities.

Launched in 2013, development of the Arrius 2R is

proceeding to schedule and certification is planned for

the end of 2015.

The Bell 505 Jet Ranger X was unveiled last February

at the Heli-Expo 2014 convention in Anaheim,

California, and approximately 200 letters of intent have

already been signed, indicating a high level of market

acceptance.

Red Bull latest

Hannes Arch of Austria and Paul Bonhomme of

Britain will be taking their heated rivalry for the

championship lead to the hottest race of the 2014

season on May 17/18 when the Red Bull Air Race touch-

es down in Putrajaya, Malaysia for the first time. Arch,

the 2008 champion, beat the defending champion from

Great Britain in the last race of the world's fastest motor-

sport series in Rovinj, Croatia by fractions of a second

following Bonhomme’s narrow defeat over Arch in the

season opener in Abu Dhabi.

Japan’s Yoshihide Muroya is looking forward to the

first race in Asia after getting his career-first podium

with a strong third place in Rovinj. Australia’s Matt Hall

is confident the race in his corner of the world can revive

his championship hopes after the former Royal

Australian Air Force fighter pilot suffered from untimely

pylon hits in the first two races. Canada’s Pete McLeod,

third in Abu Dhabi, will be hard pressed in Putrajaya to

hold onto third overall as the gaps between the pilots has

narrowed this year due to rule changes – all 12 pilots fly

with a standardized engine and propeller. The competi-

tion in Rovinj was fierce with a record-breaking number

of pylon hits.

The pilots have been looking forward to the first race

in Putrajaya, where temperatures in May rise above 30

degrees, as one of the highlights of the season. Putrajaya

is just south of Kuala Lumpur and was built in the 1990s.

The city is committed to sustainable development and

represents the coming-of-age of Malaysia.

Malaysia’s Challenger Cup pilot Halim Othman, a

decorated air display team leader and former “top gun”

pilot in the Royal Malaysian Air Force, will be taking

part in the Challenger Cup competition that gives new

pilots a chance to develop their low-altitude flying skills

under race conditions, in a separate event from the main

race.

In the Red Bull Air Race, pilots’ race against the clock

as they try to navigate their planes as fast as possible

through a challenging low-altitude slalom course filled

with Air Gate pylons. The pilots reach top speeds of up

to 370 kilometers per hour and endure forces of up to

10Gs in the tight turns on courses.

World Championship Standings: 1. Hannes Arch

(AUT) 21 points, 2. Paul Bonhomme (GBR) 21, 3. Pete

McLeod (CAN) 12, 4. Yoshihide Muroya (JPN) 7, 5.

Matt Hall (AUS) 7, 6. Nicolas Ivanoff (FRA) 5, 7.

Martin Sonka (CZE) 5, 8. Nigel Lamb (GBR) 5, 9.

Matthias Dolderer (GER) 5, 10. Kirby Chambliss (USA.

26 27HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014 HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014

,

Russian R66s Round the WorldStory by Georgina Hunter-Jones

Photographs by Dmitry Kubasov

up with this famous company and become the first in our

country to do it.”

There were also more serious reasons for their flight,

as Michael Farikh explained: “When we flew abroad in

2009, in preparation for the flight, we saw that foreign

legislative systems for flying were much less restrictive

than our own. So, we introduced an initiative for major

changes to legislation without which projects similar to

round-the-world flight would be impossible. In 2010, this

new law became effective, which allows you to fly

around Russia in greater comfort. This new Air Law was

an immense victory and the start of our round-the-world

trip.”

The pilots also saw there were economic reasons for

their flight. In remote places such as Kamchatka and

Chukotka there is very little infrastructure and very little

In August and September last year, five Russian men

flew round the world in a Robinson R66. Their jour-

ney lasted for 43 days, took 220 flight hours and cov-

ered 39,448 kms (24,537 miles). They flew over

Greenland, North America, the Russian provinces of

Kamchatka and Chukotka and crossed over the Atlantic,

all in a small single turbine helicopter.

The men were Michael Farikh, the team leader,

Alexander Kurylev, an aerobatic champion, Dmitriy

Rakitskiy, Chief pilot of Aviamarket, Vadim Melnikov,

who only learnt to fly in 2010, and Dmitry Kubasov, the

photographer, cameraman and general gofer.

Explaining why they did it, Michael Farikh said, “no

one in Russia had ever flown round the world in a heli-

copter, and even in the world there are only 18 such

madmen (and women)… That’s why we decided to join

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HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014 HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014

population movement. Moreover, these places are virtu-

ally inaccessible to the average Russian, both because of

the cost and the difficulty of getting there. However, the

pilots saw huge economic advantages of flying for the

population. Citing Alaska as a suitable example, (which

also has large areas without any infrastructure, no roads,

railways etc, but a very healthy small aircraft popula-

tion) they pointed out that small helicopters and small

planes would revolutionise movement in these areas,

much of which is completely cut off from the main

cities. “The cost of one flight hour in a helicopter can-

not be compared with the cost of a large airplane, were

they to use it, for example, to take a shepherd out to

pasture and back.”

Furthermore, Alexander Kurylev explains, “small air-

craft allow for the natural preservation of the environ-

ment, by not disturbing the landscape.”

All the pilots agreed that if aviation were introduced

here it would mean a huge improvement in living stan-

dards for the people.

Preparations for the Trip

While making preparations for the trip, Farikh dis-

covered there would be a problem flying a Russian reg-

istered helicopter in the USA. “The USA,” Farikh

explained, “is the only place in the world where you

cannot fly a Russian registered light aircraft.”

He made many calls to the FAA, explaining his prob-

lem, only to find that his application was rejected. If

they could not fly though Alaska in US airspace they

could not make the trip. However, Farikh and his group

were not to be deterred. Farikh went to fly in Canada, to

A break in a busy

schedule

Quentin lends

a hand

These places are virtually inaccessible to

the average Russian

see if being closer to the FAA would help. On this trip he

met an American called Bob Kelly, an experienced and

well-connected aviator, who quickly became his friend.

Thanks to Kelly, the group were able to get clearance to

fly through selected airports in the USA, and the trip

became a possibility again.

The Route

Farikh explains that they chose their route by looking

for interesting places to fly, where there had been less

exposure to small helicopters and in particular to the

small turbine Robinson R66. Thinking back to his earlier

trip around the North Pole, Farikh says, “when we

arrived in the Arctic even the helicopter pilots were

amazed to see us. They said, ‘you cannot fly a TOY heli-

copter here!”

The two Robinson R66s started from their home base

at Bun’kovo Heliport, 40 miles northwest of Moscow.

They then flew to North Cape Norway, to Italy to Ceuta

in Africa, to Paris. London, up to Scotland and to the

Faroe Islands crossing the North Atlantic to Iceland, and

Greenland and making landfall in Canada at Iqaluit on

Aug. 20.

From Nunavut, the R66s flew across the Hudson Strait

to Kugguak, Quebec, and continued south through

Labrador to Goose Bay, and west across Quebec to reach

Gatineau Airport on the 21st, and Toronto’s Buttonville

Airport on August 22. They landed at Fairbanks in Alaska

and flew across Alaska, back into Russia, flying across

30 HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014 HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 201430 31

Kamchatka and Chukotka, finally to return to Bun’kovo

on 14th September 2013.

They had a very strict regime, getting up early, flying

12 hours a day and keeping to a strict military timetable.

This was necessary, the pilots explain, to achieve their

goals and make their dream come true.

They carried long-range tanks, which allowed them to

do five hours flying without refuelling, and they worked

on using 87 litres (23 US gallons) per hour.

The most challenging experience, Vadim Melnikov, the

least experienced pilot explained, was flying into The

Faroe Islands in the North Atlantic in fog. To get into the

airport you have to fly between mountains and the visibil-

ity was pretty low. However, he adds, they had some

good advice from an experienced British aviator who

explained the best way to fly in. And both helicopters

made it without incident.

Indeed the whole trip was incident free. And, although

both helicopters carried spare parts none of these were

needed and there was not one single technological prob-

lem.

Flying into virtually unvisited regions in Russia gave

the aviators another perspective on their country. The bur-

den of bureaucracy! Alexander Kurylev explains, “two

identical towns in Alaska and Russia, both with 800 resi-

dents. The Alaskan town has a mayor and a police offi-

cer; the Chukotka town has an entire administrative staff!

Bureaucrats who decide what can and cannot be done.

They are all receiving large salaries from the state budget

and have no interest in the development of the region.

More freedom should be given to entrepreneurs; this will

not cause anarchy but simply give the freedom to make

decisions. Then the area would grow financially.”

The Future

What will the quartet do next, they were asked.

Melnikov replied, “logically it makes sense to go for

speed, but in that case we would have to pursue some

research goals and I think it would be difficult to find an

incentive... Perhaps it makes sense to fly to some far-

away places – South Africa, South America, Australia,

New Zealand. The South Pole, that of course is suicide.

But to fly to other continents would be interesting.”

So, perhaps it will be the suicide run? We wait to see

what this group decide, but it is sure to be intriguing.

Flying at the top of the

world in a TOY!

Formation

Dining on the

beach

Alexander Kurylev, Vadim melnikov, Dmitriy Rakitskiy,

Dmitry Kubasov, and michael Farikh, the team leader.

michael Farikh

and Alexander

Kurylev

3332

Summer2014

Paul Kievit and Carlo Kuit

Photographs by Broncho Aviation

macedonian Warriors

In 2001, the Macedonian Air Brigade came into

being after the tragic crash of a Mi-17 helicopter

killing all the people onboard. The investigations

after the crash highlighted various problems; the train-

ing of the Mi-17 crew was not sufficient and the crew’s

knowledge levels and the facilities themselves were

found to be insufficient by Inspectors of the Ministry of

Defense (MoD). The conclusion was that a new way of

HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 201434 35HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014

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training had to be established to prevent such crashes in

the future. The 2001 crash led to the creation of the

Military Aviation Authority (MAA). The MAA is cur-

rently responsible for the definition of rules and training

within the Macedonian Armed Forces; their main role is

to liaise between the Ministry of Defense of Macedonia

and the in 2011 established Pilot Training Center (PTC)

located at Petrovec airport, the sole location for the

Macedonian Air Brigade.

Inspectors of the Air Brigade and the representatives

of Elmak (Macedonian company led by the Israeli com-

pany Elbit) discussed ways of recruiting new pilots and

the e-assessment of cadets already in training with the

Air Brigade. The result, after two years of detailed

analyses, was that the Ministry of Defence of the

Republic of Macedonia and the Israeli company Elbit

signed an agreement on the 28th of December 2010, to

establish a Pilot Training Center (PTC). The PTC will

educate pilots for the needs of the Ministry of Defense

and the Ministry of Internal Affairs, as well as for the

needs of the other state institutions. The PTC is the first

Centre of this type in the South East Europe. The bene-

fits are expected to become visible in several years

when the PTC is planned to grow into a Regional

Center allowing for training of pilots from other coun-

tries.

The agreement between the Macedonian MOD and

Elbit specified an eight year partnership, assets, includ-

ing five Zlin 242 training aircraft and four Bell-206 hel-

icopters and technical assets, were transferred to the

Ministry of Defense.

The training of the first generation of pilots at the

PTC would be carried out by instructors from Elbit (this

role will be gradually taken over by Macedonian

instructors). To support the PTC the overall required

infrastructure has been built from hangars, classrooms

and simulators. Dragan Nedelkovski, Quality Manager

and Flight Instructor, who has been involved in the

analysis process, emphasizes that the operational per-

sonnel in the squadrons of the Air Brigade will be able

for the first time to solely focus on their operational

tasks. Before the start of the PTC, the pilot educational

process was carried out by the Brigade, a very demand-

ing task and taking a lot of energy from the pilots who

were also busy with the execution of their daily tasks.

The Macedonian Air Force and Air Defence Forces

(Makedonsko Voeno Vozduhoplovstvo i

Protivvozdushna Odbrana) was created on the 10th of

June 1992. The Macedonian Air Force and Air Defence

Forces acquired four Mi-17 helicopters from the

Ukraine in 1994. Four Zlin 242L trainers were acquired

from the Czech Republic in 1995. The Zlin’s are cur-

rently in the fleet of the PTC. Latest acquisitions have

Four Bell 206s

are used for basic

training

mindset. Every PTC pilot first has to have a test flight

with the Air Brigade, after that further training is done

onto either the Mi-17 or Mi-24.

During February 2012, Mr. Shraga took the role as

Director of the PTC supported by Chief Flight

Instructor Mr. Mann, both were experienced helicopter

pilots and currently working for Elmak. Both have

eight year contracts to the PTC.” We bring the spirit of

Israel and introduce a new training approach for pilots

and their future tasks,” Mr. Shraga explains. “The crash

in 2001 with a Mi-17 made the government realize

changes were necessary to the existing doctrine in the

Macedonian Air Force and the way training was previ-

ously being conducted”. Chief Flight Instructor Mr.

Mann adds “We are in uncharted territory as the old

Yugoslavian way of working was still in use, develop-

ments in training doctrine basically stopped during the

late 1980s, however the skeleton is still strong”. He

continues “The biggest gap we have encountered is that

an unified training programme was not available. “The

power behind the flying is the way of thinking”. Mr.

Mann adds. “We are forming Air Warriors”.

The first phase of training by the PTC ended in late

2013 with the graduation of four pilots. Two classes

have been trained so far with the 3rd class going

through the ground phase during the author’s visit in

May 2013. The first one ended the basic phase and the

second ended the advanced phase, so trainees graduat-

ed in March 2014. The PTC has logged 186 hours so

been four Bell-206 helicopters to support the Pilot train-

ing in the PTC. The first was procured second-hand

from the Irish company Gaelic Helicopters (C/N 4513,

ex EI-MER) and delivered to the PTC at Petrovec Air

Force Base on the 22th of November 2012. By end of

2013 all four Bell-206 helicopters were delivered to the

PTC. With the arrival of the Bell 206s NVG training

became possible. The aim of the Bell-206 is to close the

gap between Zlin 242 and Mi-17/24 when pilots have

their conversion done at the unit.

The idea of the PTC came from the Office of Colonel

Kire Kolevski (Air Force Brigade Commander). At the

time he was Wing Commander of the operational units

that took care of the training. “Currently the PTC is

seen as a company that makes our pilots ready for the

Mi-24 and Mi-17. When the UH-1 was still in service it

took up 60-100 hours of the training, the conversion

from Zlin to the Mi-24 took two years and was very dif-

ficult. With the PTC now in place the conversion will

take 15-20 hours, so 2-3 months,” explains the Colonel.

The Personal goal for Colonel Kolevski is to adapt to

the Israeli way of flying and even more to the IsraeliThey do NVG

training

There is an eight year partner-

ship between Elbit and the

macedonia mOD

The goal is to provide 15

well trained pilots

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HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014

macedonia has given four Bell 206s to the

PTC for training

far. “The type conversion (Mi-17/24) is not the respon-

sibility of the PTC, 30% of conversion is supported by

the simulator” Mr. Mann adds. The Simulators were

built by ‘Simultec’ Romania. Both basic and advanced

training can be conducted on the simulators. The Mi-24

simulator is based on the ‘Alexander’ upgrade. Both the

PTC and the Air Brigade will use the simulator for

advanced training.

“There was a gap between the organized recurrency

training, this because of the different experience level

of the pilots” said Mr. Mann. The Macedonian Air

Force had to deal with a limited amount of flying hours

and a small quantity of aircraft. “For the foundation and

basic training, the training part was the missing link,”

Chief Instructor Pilot Mann concludes.

“An important issue is that now many cadets have

the same instructor for a long time. The instructors can

work with the cadets on their problems and update their

skills. Every phase is an individual one and is also indi-

vidually screened, this is done during the debriefings”

explains Mr. Mann “In Israel the cadets are 18 years old

and highly motivated. In Macedonian the cadets are

between the 23-26 year and less open minded. They

have to change their way of thinking, the first were fly-

ing with the intention of not breaking the rules, now

they need to learn to think for themselves and also

make decisions there selves. This gives back a challeng-

ing mindset during the daily flying. They have to think

there selves, calculate in height, weight and tempera-

ture” concludes Mr. Mann. Major Dragan Nedelkoski,

currently working for Elbit/Elmak, states “It is another

way of thinking, this is also true for the fifteen young

people currently in the Air Brigade”.

The ground school consists of physical fitness and

English language test, as well as flights with the future

PTC trainees. A PTC committee decides whether a stu-

dent is suitable to be trained. The next phase is the

flight screening, in which the student has to perform ten

flights with an experienced instructor pilot. This phase

is concluded by a decision by the Committee whether to

allow the student to continue or not. When the PTC stu-

dent passes the flight screening he/she signs up for a

period of 18 months with the PTC in which the elemen-

tary flying and advanced flying phases are taught. The

elementary phase consists of 38 flights (without take

offs and landings by the student). To support the stu-

dents there are five Zlin 242L aircraft and four instruc-

tors, including the PTC Director, who train the students

on the newly acquired Bell-206 helicopters. During the

elementary flying phase 65 flying hours will be logged

by the students, the advanced flying phase will consist

of 85 hours of flying. As part of the contract with Elbit

1400 flying hours on the simulator are included for

training in both the elementary and the advanced phase.

The advanced phase is

85 hours of flying

The first PTC course started with ninety cadets. After the

air screening there were only sixteen left, after the flight

screening there were only four cadets left. The second

course started with thirty-nine cadets (twenty-seven of

whom had already participated in the first course). After the

end there were three students who passed. Colonel

Kolevski adds “The first goal for the PTC is to provide a

maximum of fifteen pilots to the Air Brigade, after that the

Macedonian Police will send their student pilots to the

PTC”. According to student pilot Stefan Gjorgjiev the first

three PTC classes will produce four students each.

The Macedonian Air Force will require eight pilots each

year. Within a number of years it is expected to have

replaced all fifty-two pilots, one third of whom will be

Police Aviators, who are now (2014) on active duty and

were trained by aviators from the PTC.

Next to the development of the PTC the Air Brigade

started an extensive upgrade programme to their existing

fleet of Mi-8MT, Mi-17 and Mi-24 helicopters, the pro-

gramme known under the name “Alexander” dates back to

2007. The upgrade is being led by Elbit systems. “In total

eight Mi-24s will remain operational with the Air Brigade.

Four of them will be fitted with the “Alexander” upgrade

and the other four will have the ‘Jasmin +’ upgrade, the lat-

ter upgrade will only have a NVG capability”. Lt. Colonel

Ivanov ‘Delfin’ Slobodan adds. Currently two Mi-24s and

one Mi-17 have been fully upgraded to ‘Alexander’ stan-

dard.

One of the main limitations during combat missions in

the past was the lack of night flying capabilities of the Mi-

24 fleet. After the 2001 conflict, Macedonia decided to

upgrade two Mi-24s under the “Alexander” project (#201

and #205). The project was outsourced to the Israeli com-

pany Elbit Systems. The first partially upgraded Mi-24s

returned to service in November 2007 after an overhaul at

AVIAKON (Konotop Aircraft Repair Plant), Ukraine. As

part of the “Alexander” upgrade the Mi-24 is now equipped

with a ANVIS/HUD-24 (Aviators Night Vision Head-Up

Display) system developed by Elbit. This day/night systems

combines helmet-mounted AN/AVS-9 night vision goggle

(NVG) imagery with aircraft flight and navigation data,

including computer generated graphics on altitude, horizon,

speed and heading. The ANVIS/HUD-24 is enhancing the

flight safety and tactical awareness of crews. With a possi-

ble membership to NATO in the future missions, communi-

cations, navigation and identification systems are by now

NATAO/ICAO compatible. The modernized ‘Hinds’ are

able to navigate using GPS, VOR, ILS and DME equip-

ment. The cockpit of the Hind also has been rebuild by

installing two 6in x 8in color displays, one of which is a

multifunctional touch display. To reduce the pilot workload,

a Hands-on Collective and Stick (HOTAS) and an

improved armament integration system have been installed.

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HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014 HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014

Other improvement is the new line-of-sight (LOS)

module integrated with the ANVIS/HUD-24, which

improves and increases coordination between crew

members. LOS gives the pilots a much improved

ability to acquire targets, the gun turret can be con-

nected to the WSO’s helmet, allowing the gun turret

to be aimed at a target by simply looking at the tar-

get. Perhaps one of the most important updates is

the addition of an electro-optical payload/forward

looking infra-red (EOP/FLIR) camera to improve

weapon delivery in all-weather situations. Necessary

weight saving for the Mi-24s was achieved by

removing all subsystems for the 9K113 ‘Shturm’

(AT-6 “Spiral”) anti-tank guided missile system, as

well as removing the automatic bombardment sys-

tem. As a result the Mi-24s are not able to use anti-

tank missiles anymore. The first fully upgraded Mi-

24 (MAF-201) was presented on 10th of June 2009.

The current Mi-17 fleet is also being upgraded.

By now one Mi-17 has received a full “Alexander”

upgrade similar to the Mi-24s apart from the

weapon upgrade. Furthermore, two Mi-17s received

a lower upgrade consisting of IFF, NVG and multi-

functional touch-screens and moving maps. This

upgrade is locally known as “Jasmin” according to

Lt. Col. Slobodan, Squadron Commander of the Mi-

17s. “The conversion to the Mi-17 and the training

were executed in Macedonia. All the students were

trained in one and a half months, which included12

flying hours”. Major Ckorov explains. “The conver-

The mi-17 fleet is also being

upgraded

Some mils mi-24Vs have the Alexander

upgrade, others the Jasmin

sion from the old Mi-24’s to the new ‘Alexander’ update

was conducted by a ground course in one month”. A select-

ed team went over to Israel, making use of the ‘Train the

Trainer’ concept when they came back to Macedonia to

train the other pilots in the unit. The conversion to the Mi-

24 ‘Alexander’ takes at around 18 hours for basic flying

and NVG. The combat training and target weapon system

training is an additional 8 to 10 hours.

The Mi-17’s now have a good system, new helmets,

NVG capability Lt. Colonel Ivanov ‘Delfin’ Slobodan says.

The ‘Jasmin’ update consisted of small things like an extra

data link and the possibility to use laser guided missiles

and a protection system. The conversion of the Mi-17 and

the training were completely done at Macedonia. The Mi-

17 squadron has currently 6 Mi-8/17 pilots and 8 opera-

tional aircraft. Lt. Col. Slobodan says, “Plans and achieve-

ments for the Mi-17’s are; more advanced training and

enlisting younger pilots. “In the future 8 Mi-24 Hinds will

be operational with the Air Brigade. Four of them will be

fitted with the ‘Alexander’ update and the other four will

have the ‘Jasmin +’ update” according to Lt. Colonel

Ivanov ‘Delfin’ Slobodan. The ‘Alexander’ upgrade has

given the Macedonian Air Brigade a valuable asset and are

the most advanced “Hinds” currently available and could

play an important role within NATO in the future.

Conversion to the mi-17

takes and a half months

and 12 flying hours

HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014 HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 201440 41

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The S 55 design goes back a long way. The first

prototype flew in November 1949. It was the first

helicopter with a really usable large cabin and

flew in all roles both military and civil. Rumour has it

that the CIA used one of the earliest production models

for clandestine operations in Korea (painted black no

doubt).

Westland Aircraft Ltd. acquired a licence to build them

(and in the process made them heavier), initially with

Pratt and Whitney or Wright Cyclone piston engines.

Later versions for the Royal Navy had the 750 hp 14

cylinder Alvis Leonides Major engine, but the extra

weight led to a very marginal performance.

A significant boost in capability was given when

Westlands replaced the heavy piston engine with a de

Havilland Gnome gas turbine, itself a licence produced

version of the General Electric T 58. Unfortunately the

original main gearbox and all the dynamic components

were retained, so the 1050 shp Gnome was derated to

730 shp to suit.

Some Whirlwind 10’s were conversions from piston

versions, others being new builds. XJ 729 served with

both 22 and 202 Search and Rescue Squadrons in the

UK, finishing it’s career at the SAR Wing Headquarters,

where it was maintained in a serviceable condition for

some time.

In civilian life as G-BVGE and owned by Andrew

Whitehouse, it now resides in Southern England, where I

flew it recently. It is now painted to represent the colour

scheme that it wore when flown with 22 Squadron.

During a previous refurbishing process, a large num-

ber of redundant fittings and cables etc were removed,

Westland Whirlwind HAR mark 10making it the lightest Whirlwind by some margin that I

have ever flown. In service, they were notorious during

their long lives for accumulating the fixed fittings for

every conceivable modification known to helicoptering

man. One particular machine in the Far East had been

modified with the fittings for, in addition to the normal

role equipment, sand filter nose door, underslung load

gear, package winch, two GPMG machine guns, HF

radio, Night Sun kit, Decca Navigator and SS11 missile

firing. The latter capability ceased abruptly when, fol-

lowing a missile failure, the operator pressed the ‘Clear

aircraft’ switch instead of the ‘Missile Jettison’ and

dropped all the carriers, missiles etc, into the South

China Sea. With all this kit, two crew and full fuel, you

could not carry anything else!

The external check is extensive. There are five gear-

boxes between the front and the back, two hydraulic sys-

tems, assorted belt drives, and removeable panels galore

with their zsus fasteners. Apart from the usual checks for

damage to the rotating components, it also involves a lot

of climbing. The Whirlwind is a tall beast and getting to

the tail rotor gearbox without a ladder is an acrobatic feat

that defies description.

The cabin is large but rather deceptive because of

weight considerations. In theory ten troops could be car-

ried. In practice, four was more likely, maybe five if they

were Ghurkas, or three if they were New Zealand Maoris

and one of them was carrying the mortar base plate.

Even then the fuel load had to be drastically reduced,

which meant range was very restricted!

Again theoretically, 2000 lb could be carried on the

hook. In the hotter and higher parts of Aden, this often

degenerated to a derisory 700 lb. It was better to put a

bigger load in the cabin and carry out a sort of controlled

crash onto the helipads of the hilltop pickets. Getting air-

borne again was less of a problem, as you could often get

to the edge of the pad, tip the Whirlwind over and gain

speed for a climb away.

The winch, mainly used in the SAR role was mounted

over the main cabin door and could lift 450 lb. The 60 ft

of cable was distinctly short for jungle rescue, leading to

an ad hoc and time consuming technique involving 60 ft

lengths of tape and a lot of winching in and out.

Entry to the cockpit involves a climb up to the sliding

window, aided by slippery hand and footholds. Once

installed, it is apparent that ergonomics were not high on

the designers’ priorities. Switches, buttons and levers are

scattered liberally about. However, all the instruments

are the old, large easily readable variety, with the flight

instruments arranged tidily in the standard ‘T’ pattern.

The seats adjust vertically and the pedals fore and aft.

Unfortunately, the seats with squashy foam cushions

were guaranteed to produce long term back problems,

particularly when a backpack dinghy was worn.

The engine is normally controlled by a very early gen-

eration analogue computer, a sort of stone age FADEC,

which can cause some heart stopping moments if it

decides to pull a fast one. In a bad mood, (its signalling

circuits do not like damp), it can open the throttle to full

power, freeze it or shut it to flight idle, usually at the

most inopportune moment, demanding a quick grab for

the manual throttle selector on the stick. The manual

throttle removes engine protection circuits, is very high

geared and demands care. For pilots converting from

normal piston engine throttle/lever techniques it is a bit

of a challenge, as there is no connection between the

lever and the engine power. You have to think throttle

controls the power and the lever controls the RRPM.Derek Jones reports on the last

Westland built Sikorsky S.55 derivative still flying, G-BVGE

It is important to avoid

the hot exhaust

De Haviland Gnome

engine

4342 HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014

Although with a lot of practice all manoeuvres are possi-

ble, generally it is better to treat everything very gently.

Engine starting after the cockpit check is simple - nor-

mally. Booster pumps on, LP cock on and press the start

button. At 4500 rpm, the HP cock is opened and the com-

puter winds up the engine to ground idle. Now the rotor

brake can be released, and the rotor speed select lever gin-

gerly eased forward to the fully governed gate where the

rotor rpm will have reached 220 - 222, and the hydraulic

and DC systems will be on line. Now the A/C systems

which power the gyros and radios can put on.

The cyclic and collective controls are fully powered by

the two hydraulic systems and have no artificial feel. It is

usual to fly with the cyclic frictions off and a bit of collec-

tive friction on to stop the lever moving of its own accord.

The yaw pedals are not powered, and in the hover the left

foot forces are distinctly heavy, exacerbating the back-

ache!

In its current lightened state, ‘GE’ uses a lot less power

in the hover than it used to, typically about 800-900 lb

torque against the maximum of 1290, even at the full fuel

load of 1400 lb.

The transition to forward flight is easy. Just lower the

nose a little and pull the collective to climb power, the

engine computer sorting out the details. Normal climb

speed is 55 kt giving just over 1000 fpm. The rather

strange forceless cyclic control now becomes apparent.

You cannot let go of it - ever. If you do, there will be a

violent manoeuvre as it just falls over to full travel. Once

in forward flight, the load on the left yaw pedal reduces

considerably.

In the cruise, the Whirlwind rumbles along at 90 kt,

using about 55 gallons of Jet A1 per hour. Again a bit of

attention is required as the Vne is only 95 kt. The rotor

was never designed for high speed antics, or lots of bank.

Thirty degrees is the maximum and you exceed it at

your considerable peril at higher weights and speeds.

This makes displaying the Whirlwind a bit of a tippy-

toes exercise to make it look interesting, and is prefer-

ably done at low fuel states.

The view from the elevated pilot’s seat is good to the

front and sideways to the right. Unfortunately in the

slightly nose down cruise, you look right at a thick bar

across the windscreen. Anywhere to the left and below

is unknown territory and meant a lot of trust in your

crewman in winching or load lifting exercises.

One of the more useful controls was the fuel jettison

switch, particularly in the SAR role. How much fuel to

jettison to be able to lift soggy survivors out of the

water needed complex calculations, relating weight lift-

ing capability, fuel needed for the hover and enough to

get back to base or hospital.

Whirlwinds were designed in the days when engine

failure was not an uncommon occurrence. Hence, its

auto rotation characteristics are extremely benign. The

rotor has lots of built in inertia and the four wheel

undercarriage is pretty forgiving of heavyish arrivals,

provided the touchdown is reasonably level, although

the brakes are not very effective. Landing main wheels

first and then pitching forwards is liable to lead to a

short Whirlwind, as the rotor can chop the tail off.

In service, for the most part the Whirlwind 10 was a

friendly beast and rarely let you down, in spite of oper-

ating in some distinctly adverse conditions around the

world. However, its size led to assumptions by the

uninitiated (usually the Army) about its capabilities,

which were often optimistic and meant pushing the

margins to achieve worthwhile results.

Now, to be flying the last one brings different pres-

sures. One is constantly aware of flying something rare

and historic, and the thought of breaking it, whilst not

spoiling the pleasure, induces some caution.

Andrew Whitehouse owner of the last

Westland built Sikorsky S.55 G-BVGE

Asked why he bought the machine, Andrew

replied: “Why indeed?”

“I have known the machine for the last 10 years and

have flown it many times with Jim Kelly, plus I have a

strong and historic connection with Agusta Westland in

Yeovil. And I want to keep the only flying Whirlwind

in the world flying.

(Call it) History and heritage ???..............

And, it’s kinda neat to be one of the only two current

whirlwind pilots in the world.”

The Whirlwind is 15 feet 7 inches tall and the pilot

has to climb up steps to enter the cockpit

Pre-flight check is

a long perform-

ance History

Whirlwind HAR.10 XJ729/G-BVGE Was bought for

scrap in 1992, restored to flight that year and flew regu-

larly until its departure to Ireland in the late 90's. She was

a regular airshow performer during the mid 90's including

RIAT in 1995 - Then owned by James Kelly in Ireland,

her permit to fly expired late 2008 and was not renewed,

XJ729 has now been acquired by Andrew Whitehouse

and has been granted a permit to fly on 6th December

2013. It made a static appearance at RNAS Yeovilton Air

Day in 2013 and is due to participate in several air shows

in 2014.

XJ729 has flown 8 hours up to date in 2014 and can be

seen regularly around the West Country

44 45HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014 HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014

Georgina Hunter-Jones on a greenhorn’s flight in the last

Westland built Sikorsky S.55 G-BVGE

the nose to pitch slightly up and down, which by now was

expected. Recovery from pitch changes are easy and

smooth but it is embarrassing finding it difficult to hold

height and speed. Even steeper turns were very benign, but

you do need extra power and some pedal input. The

machine was not intended for severe flying movements.

We did a few autorotations and that was a surprise.

Firstly, because the collective has such a short distance to

travel from cruise position to autorotation position, and

secondly because it is all so slow and gentle. However, we

were descending at around 2000 feet a minute, so slow and

gentle can also be quite fast!

The flare at the bottom of the autorotation needs to be

started early. Although this is obvious it still cannot be

overstated. The machine is heavy, has a slow reacting

engine and was descending at a high rate of speed, while

still appearing to be hardly moving. In fact the flare recov-

ery was as gentle as everything else and easily done, the

power is so great compared to our weight (we were only

two on board and there was less than half tanks) so we

came to a gentle graceful hover 10 feet above the ground.

Finally, we did a confined area back into the farm. Here

you are definitely aware of the size of the machine. The

landing area is actually quite large, although there is a

hedge on the approach, but flying a helicopter of this size

it seemed so small, and to those watching I was clearly

quite close to the hedge. As I mentioned before, it is

impossible to over-emphasize how high you need to be

above the ground and how high you already are.

I loved flying the Whirlwind. I thought of it as a huge

kindly teddy bear, but I did have to remind myself that real

bears can bite!

The pilot in command flies from the right-hand

seat. The cockpit is high off the ground and there

are steps to get up there. While this is fine when

the engine is shut down, approaching the Whirlwind

when it is fired up (especially if getting into the left hand

cockpit) it is very important not to cross the path of the

turbine outlet as this is very hot and very close to the

cockpit steps. Once at the top of the steps, is important to

put your head into the cockpit first, rather than your feet,

as leaving your head outside to follow your body would

allow it to get startlingly close to the main rotor, whirling

just a short distance above the cockpit.

The first thing I noticed once strapped into my seat is

just how high above the ground you really are. Clearly,

this is obvious, but it cannot be overstated. As this was

my first flight in the Whirlwind I constantly overestimat-

ed our distance from the ground. This was true both in

my approach into a confined area and when landing. The

cockpit is almost fifteen feet above the ground, as com-

pared to around five foot on a normal high skid machine

like a Hughes 500.

We lifted into the hover and I was immediately sur-

prised at how benign the machine is, without any kicks

left or right, it simply lifted up and stayed in a very nice

stable hover.

We did some ground manoeuvres, and here again the

most important thing is to remind yourself about ground

height. It was very stable in both roll, and in pitch in the

hover. Left turns did need a lot of pedal. The yaw pedals

are mechanical and not hydraulic like the rest of the con-

trols, and although there was not much wind you are

pushing against the torque. In the hover I found I had to

push hard on the left pedal to turn, however in forward

flight the relative airflow and shape of the helicopter

means there is only occasional need for pedal input, and

right hovering turns were very smooth as the large fin

and normal left foot input balanced the machine’s ten-

dency to run away.

We took off from the hover and into the circuit with

Andrew warning me not to make any sharp movements

in pitch. Consequently, we took off in a rather upright

position and I imagined it would be rather similar flying

a boat. We climbed at about 55 – 60 knots, using 90%

torque.

In forward flight, although it felt very comfortable it

was hard to hold height and speed, this is owing to slight

instability in pitch in flight, and is perhaps owing to the

lower weight than the original design (this one has had

all un-necessary elements like the winch motor

removed). There are no sharp movements though, and it

is easy to recover height and speed, but it just means you

do have to keep concentrating. Cruise speed was between

80 and 90 knots. VNE is 95 knots so I brought the speed

up there to see if there would be any change in vibration

levels; there was not, the Whirlwind continued flying in

the same smooth, gentle pace.

However, there is no trim on the stick, and you cannot

let go of the cyclic as it will flop around and that would

change the smoothness of the flight.

Turns left and right were smooth, with a tendency for

General characteristics:Crew: Two pilots

Length: 41 ft 8½ in (12.72 m)

Rotor diameter: 53 ft 0 in (16.15 m)

Height: 15 ft 7½ in (4.76 m)

Disc area: 2,205 ft² (205 m²)

Empty Weight: 5,993 lb (2,724 kg)

Max Take off weight: 7,800 lb (3,538 kg)

Powerplant: 1 × De Haviland (now Rolls Royce) Gnome

turboshaft engine 1500 hp (1119 kW)

Performance:Maximum speed: 109 mph (95 knots, 175 km/h)

Range: 290nm or 534 km

Service ceiling: 13,000 ft (3,960 m)

Rate of climb: 910 ft/min (4.6 m/s)

Disc loading: 3.5 lb/ft² (17.3 kg/m²)

Power/weight: 0.10 hp/lb (0.16 kW/kg)

The main rotor is surprisingly

close to the cockpit

You need to be an acrobat to

check the tail rotor gear box

The Whirlwind is 41

feet 8 inches long

4746 HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014 HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014

Going the Distance

As a North Sea helicopter pilot I often find myself

engaged lengthy conversations with my col-

leagues during our long journeys over the hori-

zon. Most of us know all there is to know about our

counterparts in the seat opposite and this inevitably

includes the story of how they too came to find them-

selves in the best job in the world.

The challenging and dynamic nature of helicopter

flight attracts some of the most interesting and adventur-

ous people and for the student pilots sponsored by chari-

ty ‘Wings for Warriors’ this is no exception. Take for

example the story of nineteen year old infantryman Chris

Kirk.

Like many of us ‘rotorheads’ Chris’ imagination was

captured early on after he read the book ‘Chickenhawk’

by Robert Mason. As the other kids in his Glasgow

neighbourhood dreamed of playing for Celtic or Rangers,

Chris would lie in bed and imagine the sound of the UH-

1 Huey with its rotor blades thumping their way across

Vietnam. Whatever it took, he knew he wanted to

become a helicopter pilot.

As soon as he turned eighteen and having already

achieved good grades at school, Chris immediately visit-

ed his local Armed Forces Careers Office. He had opted

not to attend University as he was desperately keen to

join the Army and so it was recommended he enlist in

the infantry and be promoted to Corporal before applying

for a pilot’s course.

This he did eagerly and just a year later found himself

on the frontline in the most dangerous place on earth,

Helmand province Afghanistan. As ‘point man’ Chris had

volunteered himself to lead the front of his patrol,

equipped with a metal detector to search for deadly

explosive devices expertly concealed within the dusty

landscape.

He volunteered for this dangerous job because, his

own words “I was the best at it, so I figured volunteering

was the best chance we had of keeping everyone alive”.

By the 176th day of his tour of duty and having been

involved in just as many ruthless and bloody fire fights

with a fanatical enemy, Chris’ life changed forever. Just

four days before returning home to his mother and

younger brother, Chris had been carrying water contain-

ers between an armoured vehicle and his patrol base dur-

ing a routine re-supply mission. He was close enough to

see his friend waving to him from the roof of the base

whilst he slowly and meticulously scanned the ground in

front of him with his ‘valon’ metal detector.

This time however he would fail to detect one ruthless

device, which had been constructed from plastic to

reduce its metallic signature.

“I remember stopping to shuffle two water bottles I

was carrying and then the next second it seeming to

evaporate into my face, followed by a cloud of dust. My

next memory is sitting up facing the complete opposite

direction and looking at my platoon commander who

was getting up off the ground. When I looked down I

saw a black crater and my left foot seemed to have disap-

peared from beneath me. Instantly I knew I had stood on

one of the devices I had spent the past 6 months search-

ing for and my combat trousers were pretty much gone

and with blood all over my legs.

Still quite dazed and confused by the whole situation it

took a while to notice my arm seemed to be spraying

blood on me before my platoon commander grabbed my

left arm and pulled me away from the site of the blast.

This was due to the threat of secondary explosions

before my friends could then start performing the first

aid drills that ended up keeping me alive.

After that it all gets very blurry but one of my last

memories was lying on a stretcher, looking up and seeing

an Apache helicopter. This gave me a slight feeling of

relief as I knew the MERT helicopter (medical emer-

gency response team) was not far behind”…

The device had sent hundreds of pieces of shrapnel

flying through the air, which had torn through Chris’

body with ease. When he awoke in hospital several days

later, he was confronted by the realisation that he had

lost a log and wold spend the rest of his life as ‘dis-

abled’. Inevitably he would go on to be medically dis-

charged from the Army and had lost the chance of

achieving his dream.

An extremely difficult year followed for Chris, during

which time he had to re-learn basic skills such as how to

walk as well as cope with the worry of what to do next.

Then he stumbled across ‘Wings for Warriors’ during

some late night Googling.

After successfully being accepted onto the programme

Chris has already gone on to complete his PPL (H),

which has enabled him to do things and develop skills he

never thought possible. More importantly it has also

restored his confidence and pride as he inches ever closer

to the dream, which he really thought had been lost in

the explosion.

What is most unique about ‘Wings’ however is that we

do not offer these benefits as a short term challenge,

mark Radcliffe writes about

his experiences setting up the charity Wings4Warriors

Chris Kirk with

Valon

48 HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014

experience or simple confidence boost as we believe a

sticking plaster simply won’t fix the effects of a long and

brutal war. Our mission is to provide our bravest and best

with the opportunity to undergo a prolonged and sustain-

able change after injury, by facilitating their training as

fully fledged commercial pilots. This brings legitimate

value to the industry too however, as employers benefit

from employees with unparalleled commitment and

motivation as well as the characteristics so inherent with-

in members of the Armed Forces.

For a fraction of the cost of training these people for

war we are training them for life as well as meeting a

legitimate demand for trained professionals in the

process.

Our first graduates are already employed in locations

from Aberdeen to Zambia and with your help we hope to

go even further.

To donate simply

text Wings43 to

70070 followed by

your donation

amount

(www.wings4warriors.org.uk)

Thank you

50 51HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014 HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014

The helicopter market in Russia continues its phe-

nomenal growth. Every year, the annual results are

presented at HeliRussia in May, this year for the

seventh time. Here we have the opportunity to see the

dynamics of Russian helicopter production, plus foreign

technology from 2009 to 2013. More detailed informa-

tion will be provided at the 6th Helicopter Market:

Reality and Prospects International Conference, organ-

ized by the Helicopter Industry Association and AviaPort

agency, held on the opening day of the HeliRussia exhi-

bition.

Production of Russian helicopters has been increasing

since 2005, and from 2009 there was an improvement in

the quality of the structure and range of helicopters mod-

els in the country.

Domestic production of helicopters has increased 3.5-

fold since 2004. Since 2009 it has increased by 66%.

There is no other machine building industry in Russia

with such powerful indicators of growth.

Alexander Mikheev, CEO of Russian Helicopters,

said: “In 2013, the company continued its development

as a modern, highly efficient and dynamic Russian com-

pany. We have fully implemented the state defence

orders, provided military helicopters for export, and pro-

duced dozens of batches of reliable and secure commer-

cial helicopters for Russian and foreign customers.”

The business plan for next year has already been

decided. In particular, the development of major projects

in light, medium, and heavy helicopters have been

agreed. One priority is the acceleration of the implemen-

tation schedule for the launch into the global market of

new multi-purpose helicopters Ka-62, Mi-38, and Mi-

171A2. An agreement with AgustaWestland has been

signed, defining the direction of this joint programme for

the creation of a new light helicopter with a take-off

weight of 2.5 tonnes. Russian Helicopters and

Turbomeca have signed an agreement to open a service

center to support the commissioning of Ka-226T and Ka-

62, equipped with French engines.

At the end of 2013, the portfolio of solid company

orders totaled 808 helicopters, while its value is estimat-

ed at 401.2 billion rubles. The delivery plan for 2014

includes 100% firm orders.

In 2013, 303 helicopters were produced and 275 deliv-

ered to customers. Deliveries in 2013 totaled 275 heli-

copters, down by 15 helicopters, or 5.2%, compared to

Russian and Foreign Helicopters:

market trends Russia 2014

2012. In 2013, the company supplied 9 types of helicop-

ters to customers in 10 countries around the world.

Commenting on the results, Alexander Mikheev, CEO

of Russian Helicopters, noted that “the slight reduction in

volume of deliveries is not associated with a reduction in

portfolio orders or a drop in production, but due to

rescheduling deliveries to customers.”

Helicopter technology from abroad continues to lead

the Russian market in the light and medium helicopters

segment. The annual survey of dealers of the world's

major helicopter manufacturers reveals the following pic-

ture of deliveries.

Last year was a record year in Russia for numbers of

imported foreign helicopters. Compared to 2012, deliver-

ies increased by almost 50% and totaled 145 foreign-

manufactured helicopters.

The total number of foreign-manufactured helicopters

in Russia's helicopter fleet is growing. According to data

from the registry in 2009, there were 246 helicopters,

and at the beginning of 2014, 584, which is an increase

of 237%.

The absolute leader is still Robinson Helicopter's light

machines. The Russian fleet increased by 86 helicopters -

59% of the total supply of foreign origin helicopters. In

2010-2012, Robinson had 63% of the deliveries, and in

2009, it was nearly 65%.

Deliveries of helicopters from this manufacturer

remained stable from 2010 to 2012, and in 2013,

increased by 24. This growth was due to increased

demand for the R66, production of which began in 2010.

Despite the fact that a Russian certificate for this type of

helicopter was only received in mid March 2013, the

Russian fleet of R66 in 2012 already includes ten.

In the past year, deliveries of R66 amounted to 48

units, which in relative terms is 56% of the deliveries of

all models of Robinson helicopters in Russia.

At the same time, there was significant growth of the

medium-class fleet of helicopters of major manufacturers

in Russia. The high growth trend began in 2011.

As can be seen from the data in the table, the supply

of helicopters of medium class in Russia in 2013

increased by 64% compared to the previous year. For

light class helicopters, the growth was 39%.

The medium class is still lead by Airbus Helicopters

(Eurocopter until January 2014). According to the com-

mercial director of Eurocopter Vostok, Artem Fetisov, in

2013 28 helicopters were delivered to Russia (compared

to 19 in previous years) including: AS350, EC120,

EC130, EC145. Three more helicopters from this manu-

facturer were delivered to Russia by other companies.

Thus, the Russian helicopter fleet of Airbus Helicopters

in 2013 grew by 31 (versus 22 in 2012). Deliveries of the

year exceeded the previous year by 9 helicopters. Now,

more than 140 Airbus Helicopters aircraft are operating

in Russia.

American company Bell Helicopter also increased its

deliveries to Russia. Alexander Evdokimov, president of

Jet Transfer (official representative of Bell Helicopter

Textron Inc.) reported that in 2013, Russia received 9

helicopters: 8 Bell 429 and 1 Bell 407. Two helicopters

more than in the previous year.

AgustaWestland greatly increased its supply of heli-

copters in 2013. In the last year, 19 helicopters were

delivered to Russia, among which, according to Alberto

Ponti, responsible for sales of AgustaWestland in Russia

and the Baltic countries, 13 AW139, 2 AW119 and 4

Article by Zhanna Kiktenko,

Director of the HeliRussia 2014 exhibition

HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014 HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 201452 5353

AW109SP. He also noted that 18 AW139 helicopters are

now flying in Russia. The increase in supply compared

to the previous year was 270%. AW139 is now produced

in Russia and this makes itself felt! The absolute increase

of helicopters by this manufacturer for the year was 12

helicopters.

It can be seen that all foreign helicopter manufacturers

are doing well in the Russian helicopter market: Bell,

Eurocopter, AgustaWestland, and of course, Robinson.

According to the Civil Aviation National Research

Institute, over the past five years, the Russian fleet has

increased by 355 helicopters, of which 314 were light

and medium class helicopters, and 287 of them of for-

eign manufacture.

Today, the Russian civilian helicopter fleet mainly

consists of domestic production, the share of which

among the total number of registered helicopters is 76%.

The fleet mainly still consists of 1192 MI-8 helicopters

in various modes.

During the five-year period under consideration, the

increase of helicopters in the light and medium class

totaled 166.8%, whereas the increase in the fleet of

heavy units was 3.2%. This despite the fact that the

structure of the fleet is still dominated by heavy-class

machines. Thus there is a clear trend towards an increase

in the number of medium and light helicopters compared

to heavy units.

In Russia, the helicopter work structure today is still

dominated by the oil and gas industry, where demand is

mainly for heavy helicopters. However, there has been a

rapid development of the use of helicopters for medical

purposes: medical evacuation and medical assistance.

The assessment of the All-Russian center for Disaster

Medicine is that more than 200 helicopters are required.

In this field light and medium class helicopters are most

effective.

In addition, light and medium class helicopters are

increasingly used not only by private owners and small

helicopter operators, but also the public services: the

Ministry for Emergency Situations and the Ministry of

Internal Affairs, as well as major airlines including

UTAir and Gazpromavia.

The increase in the helicopter fleet, following the

development of the helicopter services market, inevitably

entails the development of helicopter landing sites and

infrastructure for helicopter operations, and the need for

equipment and services.

The HeliRussia international helicopter industry exhi-

bition allowed companies to assess the changing quality

of the Russian helicopter market. All types of develop-

ment were be reflected in the exhibition and the business

program.

Last summer, the Russian president

instructed the Government of the

Russian Federation to prepare a com-

prehensive program for the implementation

of gas fuel in all modes of transport, includ-

ing aircraft manufacturing.

A round table will be held at HeliRussia

2014 entitled "Gas motor fuel is a real alter-

native to traditional aviation fuel", the task

of which is to discuss ways to implement the

instructions of Russian president Vladimir

Putin for helicopters and aircraft of with gas

motor fuels, including liquefied natural gas.

At the HeliRussia 2014, everyone will

have the great opportunity to see, hear and

participate in the discussion of the prospects

of breakthrough innovation that will allow

Russia to produce Russian helicopters and

planes of a category of unique aircraft in

their class, with minimum costs for aviation

fuel.

HeliRussia 2014

Alternative Fuel Forum

54 55HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014 HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014

Launched in 1981 as Asian Aerospace based at the

Changi Exhibition Centre near Singapore Changi

Airport, the only major air show in Asia, it has

grown to become the third largest air show in the world,

and is touted by its organisers as the "world’s second

most influential air show".

This begs the question as to which of the European

heavyweights it rates itself second to, Farnborough

which first took place in 1948, or Paris which celebrated

its 50th show at Le Bourget in 2013, although this event

dates back to 1909 when an exhibition of aviation was

held at Paris’s Grand Palace.

What is not in dispute is the significant demand for

helicopters in the Asia-Pacific region while the US and

European markets remain static at best and in decline at

worst. Strong economic growth, territorial disputes, ter-

rorist threats, and modernization programmes will create

significant demand for military helicopters in the Asia-

Pacific region, which is expected to reach almost 30 per-

cent of the total military helicopter market by 2023.

Whereas the leading OEMs target a worldwide audi-

ence for their products at Farnborough and Paris,

exhibitors at the Singapore Air Show are focused directly

at the local Asia-Pacific market. All the leading helicop-

ter manufacturers were in attendance at Singapore Air

Show 2014 (SAS14) at the Changi Exhibition Centre in

February. These included the United States contingent

with Bell and Sikorsky under their respective corporate

entities, Textron and United Technologies Corporation.

Both companies have enjoyed considerable success in

the Asia-Pacific’s military market primarily through the

US government’s Foreign Military Sales (FMS) pro-

gramme. Although promotion of Bell’s civil range was

low key at the air show, its part in the V-22 Osprey pro-

gramme was given high prominence with Singapore,

South Korea and Indonesia seen as prime customer tar-

gets for the tiltrotor which had already been selected by

Japan.

On the face of it, Russian Helicopters participation

also seemed low key with only models of its products on

show and no helicopters in the static aircraft park. This

was largely because of the dominant position that its Mi-

17 holds with the region’s military air arms. However,

its ‘new’ Ka-62 aimed at the oil and gas sector was pro-

moted as being the first Russian helicopter to be created

as a result of close international cooperation which

Russian Helicopters claimed will garner great interest

from its established regional markets. Russian

Helicopters also showcased the multirole Ka-32A11BC,

which is used in over 30 countries for fire fighting,

search and rescue operations, and complex construction

and installation work.

The military range on display at SAS14, albeit in

model form only, included the Ka-52 Alligator reconnais-

sance and combat helicopter which the international

community had its first chance to see this helicopter in

summer 2013 at the Le Bourget Air Show in France,

where it successfully completed its flight demonstration

programme.

Making the biggest impact in the helicopter section of

SAS14 were the European OEMs, AgustaWestland and

Airbus Helicopters, nee Eurocopter. Both companies

were looking forward to 2014 with confidence after a

difficult year that saw the cancellation of

AgustaWestland’s Indian VIP helicopters contract and

Eurocopter faced the grounding of the EC225 fleet and

EC175 programme delays.

AgustaWestland’s Alessandro Capocaccia told

Helicopter Life “ Singapore is the epicenter of an area

that has been seeing impressive and steady economic

growth, and no less is the market growth in terms of the

helicopter market. At SAS14 we were incredibly busy,

making us optimistic that we would exceed the 10-15

percent growth of the last few years.

“I'd say that, as far as AgustaWestland is concerned,

there are three areas of gained success and future oppor-

tunities. The Oil Gas & Petrochemical (OGP) market has

been booming for us globally, especially thanks to the

AW139 and now the AW189. In Asia-Pacific region we

have an enthusiast customer in Malaysia’s Weststar that

will operate 40 AW helicopters, 34 of which AW139s

with an additional 10 signed for at the Singapore Air

Show. Also, Brunei Shell, Travira and SFS have ordered

AW139s for offshore transport. We expect big things

from Indonesia, a relatively small market but with good

forecasts in the OGP sector. News should arrive in the

coming months and years “fingers crossed”.

“Military-wise, the news comes mainly from Thailand,

Malaysia and Philippines. Our naval capabilities are

expressed especially by the Super Lynx in Thailand, and

we see market for its ‘heir’, the AW159. Other military

helicopters that have been finding success are the

Power/LUH light twin, ordered by Philippines and

Malaysia, and the AW139 by Thailand. At SAS14 we

had the mock-up of the AW149, the ideal modern

replacement for a series of older models operating in the

area, that gained much interest from potential customers.

We consider the AW139M the epitome of

AgustaWestland's dual use concept, a COTS platform

with military configuration customized to requirements.

Very interesting for modernizing armed forces.”

The Corporate/VIP market is, which Alessandro said

was always strong in booming countries, was very attrac-

tive to AgustaWestland which already has a global lead-

ership position in the multi-engine segment and which

would grow with GrandNew, AW139 and AW169.

David Oliver visits Singapore Airshow and exam-

ines the differences with older European showsWords and pictures by the author

56 HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014 HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 201457

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Airbus Helicopter admitted that its biggest challenge

at Singapore Air Show 2014 was to establish the ‘new’

company image of Airbus Helicopters. Eurocopter has

held a very strong position in the Asia-Pacific market for

many years and Airbus Helicopter’s President and CEO,

Guillaume Faury, was on hand at SAS14 to underline the

importance of the region. As a prelude to SAS14, In

December 2013, the company carried out a demonstra-

tion tour of its EC175 Asia-Pacific region visiting

Malaysia, Vietnam and Thailand targeting Oil Gas &

Petrochemical (OGP) companies.

Airbus Helicopters is confident of substantial sales of

its EC725 medium helicopters, which is already being

delivered to the Malaysian, Indonesian, Taiwanese and

Thai air forces, while Japan and Vietnam operate the

SAR version of the EC225. The company has a strong

relationship with the region being involved in the devel-

opment with Korean Aerospace Industries of the Surion

light utility helicopter, and the co-production of the

EC120 light helicopter with Hafei of China and ST

Aerospace as well as opening a new EC225 Full Flight

Simulator training centre at Subang in Malaysia.

However, all the helicopter OEMs agreed that the

Singapore Air Show was the ideal venue at which to

reach potentially the biggest prize in the sector, the

Chinese market. According to Bell Helicopter, the com-

mercial/civil helicopter fleet in China has grown by an

average of 20 percent annually from 2009 to 2014, from

227 to 465, and his trend is also supported by a legisla-

tion which is aligning with US requirements and allows

more maritime search-and- rescue, patrol and oil-and-gas

operations.

Only weeks after Singapore Air Show 2014 Airbus

Helicopters and China’s Avicopter, the helicopter busi-

ness unit of China Aviation Industry Corporation (AVIC),

signed a joint agreement for the production of 1,000

jointly-developed EC175/AC352 helicopters at the

Elysée Palace in Paris. Airbus Helicopters CEO

Guillaume Faury said that the agreement resulted from

several years of close collaboration between the teams.

He added that it set the stage for an unprecedented full-

scale production framework by both partners and added a

new dimension to the Airbus Helicopters’ relationship

with Avicopter.

On 9 April AgustaWestland and Sino-US

Intercontinental of China celebrated the opening a joint

regional business headquarters in Shanghai to address the

very promising Chinese market. A week later, at the 2014

Asian Business Aviation Conference & Exhibition at

Shanghai, the two leading US helicopter OEMs con-

firmed their commitment to penetrating this challenging

market sector.

Bell Helicopter Bell set about bringing its new Short

Light Single (SLS), the 505 Jet Ranger to market with its

Chinese distributor, Aerochine and also promoted its new

long-range twin-engine Bell 525 Relentless which is

aimed at the OGP market.

Meanwhile, Sikorsky announced that the Civil

Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) had issued a

validation type certificate for the S-76D aircraft, allow-

ing Sikorsky to begin delivering the commercial helicop-

ter to customers in China.

There is little doubt that the Singapore Air Show has

an healthy future as a focused shop window for helicop-

ter OEMs targeting the fast growing Asia-Pacific market

while the ‘old’ international air shows at Le Bourget in

France and Farnborough in the UK are centred in a

region of falling military budgets and static

commercial/civil markets. These shows are now seen as

little more than expensive networking venues where

fewer and fewer major contracts are concluded. Several

leading OEMs have recently been questioning their rele-

vance, and with the escalating costs of exhibiting at two

European air shows, should Singapore be their first

choice followed by either Le Bourget or Farnborough.

We will watch with interest to see which of the OEMs

will make the break first.

malaysian Airbus Helicopters

EC725

58 59HELICOPTER LIFE Summer 2014HELICOPTER LIFE,Summer 2014

IN-2014/079: Consultation on CAP 774 UK Flight

Information Services - Comment Response Document

Following the recent consultation on Amendment 1 to

Edition 2 of CAP 774 UK Flight Information Services,

the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has published, via

the CAP 774 Consultation page (www.caa.co.uk/consul-

tations), its response to the comments received. The

CAA is now planning to have a completed CAP 774,

which will take into account the comments received,

ready for publication on the CAA website on 26 June

2014

The Conversion of Registered Training Facilities

(RTF) to Approved Training Organisations (ATO) -

Ad

This Information Notice provides additional information

to those RTFs intending to seek an approval to provide

instruction for Part-FCL Licences, Ratings and

Certificates in accordance with the Aircrew Regulations

Changes to CAA TK Examination Service for

Applicants for Professional Pilots Licences (A&H), IR

This Information Notice provides detailed information

on the transition to electronic-examinations (e-Exams)

for Flight Crew, Phase 2 of this programme will transi-

tion Part-66 AML examinations to an e-Exams delivery.

IN-2014/057: CRm Training and the Selection of

CRM Instructors and Examiners under Part-ORO

This Notice is to assist operators in maintaining stan-

dards of both Crew Resource Management Instructors

and Crew Resource Management Instructor Examiners

until EASA guidance is published.

Amendment of the requirement to renew a Class or

Type Rating included in a UK issued Pilot Licence

This Information Notice advises of a change to the

requirements for the renewal of a class or type rating for

pilots who also hold an equivalent and valid rating on a

non-European licence and amends specific details con-

cerning the renewal of type ratings given in IN 2013/098

(entitled "Amendment of the Requirements to Renew an

Instrument Rating that has lapsed by more than seven

years").

IN-2014/058: Regulation of Code-Share Agreements

The purpose of this Information Notice is to guide and

inform UK air operators about how compliance with

ORO.AOC.115 and ARO.OPS.105 and related

CAA Legislation Changesconcerning helicopters and gyroplanes

Acceptable Means of Compliance (AMCs) and Guidance

Material (GM) is to be achieved.

IN - 2014/053: Regulatory Documents Containing

References to the CAA

The purpose of this Information Notice is to let regulated

organisations know they do not need to change their regu-

latory documents solely to reflect the changes to SARG.

It also advises those who have not yet been briefed of the

high level organisation of SARG and AAA.

IN-2014/052: Eligibility of Pilots to Conduct Check

Flights

The responsibility for deciding when a check flight

should be performed as part of the continued airworthi-

ness management of all aircraft belongs with the aircraft

owner, maintainer or continuing airworthiness manage-

ment organisation. Best practice dictates that a suitably

qualified, and experienced pilot should be used when it

has been determined that a check flight is necessary.

ORS4 No.1021: manoeuvring Helicopters 500 foot

This Permission exempts helicopters from the 500 foot

rule when conducting manoeuvres in accordance with

normal aviation practice at specified sites

http://www.caa.co.uk/docs/33/ORS4No1021.pdf

ORS4 No.1016: Carriage of Approved Oxygen and

Survival Equipment in Aircraft Flying for Purposes

other than PT or CAT

Exemption to allow UK-registered aircraft not flying for

the purpose of Public Transport or Commercial Air

Transport to fly with equipment that is not approved

ORS4 No.1018: Flying Tests

Exemption to allow certain flying tests to be undertaken

on a non-EASA aircraft complying only with airworthi-

ness provisions applicable to a private flighthttp://www.caa.co.uk/docs/33/ORS4%20No.%201018

%20Flying%20Tests.pdf

ORS4 No.1019: Flying Training/Checking

Exemption to allow certain types of remunerated flying

training to be undertaken on an aircraft which is jointly

owned and operated for private purposes.http://www.caa.co.uk/docs/33/ORS4%20No.%201019

%20Flying%20Training_Checking.pdf

ShowS For Summer

Woodspring Wings model Flying Club

25th Anniversary

July 5th and 6th 2014

Woodspring Wings Model Flying Club cele-

brates its 25th anniversary with a bumper aeri-

al display at its Yatton airbase this summer.

One of the most eagerly anticipated events in the

model aircraft flying

calendar, the

Woodspring Wings 2014

show takes place at the

Claverham Drove air-

field near Yatton over

the weekend of July 5

and 6 and is expected to

bring flyers and model

fans from all over the

South West.

Organised by model

flying veteran Bruce

McKay, the flying dis-

plays feature some of

the best pilots and mod-

els in the UK including

Steve Holland.

Some of the biggest and best models the UK has to

offer will be there, with everything from First World War

biplanes to modern jets. Also featured will be exciting

high-altitude rocket

displays and perennial

children’s favourite the

‘Toffee Bomber’.

Woodspring Wings

chairman Warren

Smyth said: “We are

determined to pull out

all the stops for our

25th anniversary show

with more slots for the

top flyers from around

the country. In addition

to this the principal

traders will also be

here along with the

popular bring and buy.”

Warren said: “The

celebrated Dawn Patrol

team would be bringing seven large biplanes for a partic-

ularly poignant and atmospheric First World War fly-

past.”

Pilots form the Large Model Association will display a

selection of large

Second World War

Warbirds on vari-

ous flying slots

including two

Lancasters and a

sprinkling of

Spitfires.

Gas turbines

will be well repre-

sented with both

military jets and a

powered sailplane.

Warren said

civil aircraft would

be well represented

with between wars

and post war biplanes along with a representation of the

first airborne refuelling from the inter- war period.

Jet, electric and glo-petrol powered helicopters will

also be on show including aerobatics and scale flying.

Woodspring

Wings MAC is one

of the few model-

flying clubs in the

UK to own its own

site. The flying

field and the two

adjacent fields

total about 21

acres of flat land

bordered by

streams and ditch-

es on the edge of

the North

Somerset Levels.

The popular

show attracts

around 8,000 visi-

tors each year.

HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 201460 61HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014

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Aselection of books are available from

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News and views

@

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UNDERWATER ESCAPE/

SURVIVAL TRAINING

www.ANDARK.co.uk

01489 581755

Southampton, UK

Have a Smartphone? Scan this QR code to find out more about exhibiting or visit www.helitechevents.com

INTERESTED IN EXHIBITING? Contact Elex van Rensburg, Sales Manager Tel: +44 (0)20 8910 7810 elex.vanrensburg@reedexpo.co.uk

JOIN US 14-16 OCTOBER 2014 AMSTERDAM RAI

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JAA approved

Helicopter Life was sent a pair

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so I took them flying and thisis my opinion. As far as simply usingthe gloves is concerned they were verygood, they fitted tightly and I was ableto do fiddly things with switches andfasteners, that are not so easy withnormal leather flying gloves. They aremade from synthetic material.

However, while fuelling the RotorwayI managed to pour fuel over my

gloves: this became a short term prob-lem and a long term disaster. Short-

term the gloves became so cold I couldnot continue to wear them, and had toreplace them with my former leathergloves. Long term; three days laterthey were still smelling of AvGas, andI suppose could potentially be a firehazard.

Given that in an aviation environ-ment you are likely to spill fuel I didnot think these synthetic gloves wereas suitable as leather gloves which,although not as neat for dainty manip-ulation of screws etc do protect yourhands better.

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Company News Company News

HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014

On April 30, 2014, four years after initial FAA cer-

tification, the European Aviation Safety Agency

issued its type certificate for the Robinson R66

Turbine helicopter. Robinson is pleased to add EASA

member states to the now over fifty countries (including

Australia, Brazil, Canada, Japan, Russia, South Africa,

and the U.S.) that have certified the R66.

EASA certification marks an important milestone for

Robinson, and with certification finally in place,

Robinson can deliver its current backlog of European

orders and focus on strengthening its presence in the

European market. Presently, there are sixteen R66 serv-

ice centers, of which thirteen are dealers, approved in

Europe.

Currently priced at $839,000 USD, Robinson designed

the 5-place R66 to be a mid-size, low maintenance tur-

bine helicopter that would perform as well or better than

its competitors, but at a lower cost. To date, Robinson

has delivered over 500 R66s and estimates total fleet

hours at over 160,000. In response to customer feedback,

glass and touch-screen avionics were recently added to

the R66’s options list.

China’s civil aviation authority, the CAAC, certi-

fied the Robinson R66 Turbine helicopter on 29

April 2014, almost one year to the day the certifi-

cation process began. China joins the now over fifty

countries including Australia, Brazil, Canada, EASA

member states (Europe), Japan, South Africa, and the

U.S. that have certified the R66.

As China relaxes airspace restrictions and its general

aviation continues to develop through investments in

infrastructure and training, helicopters are expected to

play a more prominent role. With low operating and

acquisition costs, the high performance 5-place R66 is

well suited for the country’s emerging rotorcraft market.

Foreign markets have historically represented two-

thirds of Robinson’s sales. To date, approximately 500

R66 helicopters operate in more than thirty countries and

Robinson estimates total fleet hours at over 160,000. In

response to customer feedback, glass and touchscreen

avionics were recently added to the R66’s options list.

Robinson R66 EASA Certification Robinson R66 Chinese Certification

HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014 HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 2014

of all other affected helicopters to ensure that thehydraulic unions are correctly orientated. Noabnormalities were found during these inspections.The pilot was 59 and had 224 hours, 8 were on type.

AW139 G-LBAL

The helicopter was scheduled to depart Gillingham Hallfor Coventry Airport at 1830 hrs but the passengers werenot ready to depart until around 1920 hrs. By this time,night had fallen and dense fog had developed; witnessesdescribed visibility in the order of tens of metres.The co-pilot escorted the passengers to the helicopter andassisted them aboard, while the commander started theengines. The helicopter lifted into a hover at 1924 hrs,and then hover-taxied to the middle of the paddock inwhich the helipad was sited. The commander, who wasthe pilot flying, briefed that he would climb verticallyfrom the hover before setting course.The helicopter climbed, initially with very little groundspeed. At a height of approximately 32ft, the helicopterstarted transitioning, picking up forward speed as it con-tinued to climb. The radio altitude peaked at 125 ft agl asthe ground speed increased through 60kt. Thehelicopter thereafter pitched progressively nose-down,entering a descent as it did so, reaching 35º nose‑downone second before the end of the data recording. Thefinal complete frame of recorded data analysed to dateshowed a pitch attitude of 25º nose-down, a radio alti-tude of 82 ft agl and a ground speed of 90 kt. Therecorded rate of descent was 2,400 ft/min and increasing.In the final few seconds of the flight the co‑pilot madetwo verbal prompts regarding pitch attitude to the com-mander. Simultaneously, the recorded data shows thatfull collective was applied.The recorded data includes parameters relating to cau-tions, warnings and faults. None were active during theaccident flight with the exception of the last data pointswhen full collective had been applied and a gearboxtorque-related caution was triggered. The data showedthat trim release switches on the cyclic and collectivecontrols, on which force must be applied against springsto achieve manual flight, were active throughout theflight. The comprehensive recorded data set is subject toon-going analysis.Analysis

AAIB investigation to date has not identified any techni-cal malfunction which might account for the accident.The investigation continues, with the aim of identifyingany technical matters of relevance, as well as focusing onflight in degraded visual environments.The pilot was 36, had 2,320 hours, 580 on type.

ed on their threads using finger pressure. After rightingthe helicopter the level of hydraulic fluid remaining inthe tank was found to be approximately 130 ml abovethe hydraulic fluid supply pipe.Analysis

Prior to the accident, no evidence of a hydraulic fluidleak had been observed by either the pilot or mainte-nance personnel, so it is reasonable to assume that theunions became loose at some point during the accidentflight. When hydraulic system pressure was lost, theloose unions would have allowed the pressure within thetail rotor load compensator to dissipate. This would haveresulted in an immediate loss of assistance to the yawcontrols and an increase in the force required by the pilotto maintain directional control. The presence of fluidwithin the hydraulic system would have prevented theloss of pressure in the main rotor load compensators,allowing hydraulic assistance of the main rotor controlsto be maintained for a period.Detailed testing established that full control of the tailrotor remained available albeit without hydraulic assis-tance. The higher control loads associated with an imme-diate and unexpected loss of hydraulic power to the tailrotor servo probably led the pilot to believe that tail rotorcontrol had failed.Both the warning systems designed to alert the pilot to aloss of hydraulic pressure were found to operate normal-ly. As the hydraulic system pressure dropped, the warn-ings would be expected to activate. The pilot was fullyoccupied in controlling the helicopter at a criticalmoment close to the ground, so may not have perceivedthe warnings.No other such events have been identified on theAS350B fleet which indicates that the unions, if correctlytorqued, are unlikely to become loose. The only mainte-nance which was carried out on the tail rotor servo actua-tor was as a result of the incorporation of the EurocopterSB AS350-01.00.66. It is therefore probable that, whilecarrying out this SB, the load compensator and hydraulicunions were orientated in such a way as to apply a loadto the unions. This resulted in the unions becomingloose, causing a loss of hydraulic fluid and ultimatelysystem pressure.Safety action taken by the manufacturer

As a result of this accident the manufacturer has intro-duced changes to the work cards used during the incor-poration of SB AS350-01.00.66 and maintenance to thetail rotor load compensator to ensure that the load com-pensator and hydraulic unions are oriented in such amanner as to minimise the loading on the unions.In addition, the manufacture has carried out an inspection

6564

ACCidenT reporTSACCidenT reporTS

AS350B3e Squirrel, G-ECUK

The helicopter, with the pilot and his son on board, wasin the late stages of an approach to a private helicopterlanding site when the accident occurred. The weatherconditions were fine, with good visibility and calm wind.The pilot reported that he carried out a detailed Check Aof the aircraft before flight, which revealed no abnormal-ities. In particular, there were no signs of fluid on thehelicopter skins or on the hangar floor. The early stagesof the flight were uneventful and the pilot returned to thesame landing site after about 20 minutes. He flew anapproach to an open grass field adjacent to the landingpad, crossing electricity cables at the field boundary atabout 30 ft and 40 kt. In the latter stages of the approachat about 15 ft and 20 kt, the pilot increased collectivepitch a little and began a slight flare. At about the sametime he made a left pedal input to make a track correc-tion. As he did so, he experienced what he described as aslight jolt, followed by an immediate and violent yaw tothe left.The pilot believed that he instinctively applied more col-

lective pitch in order to avoid ground contact, and the leftyaw rate increased, causing him to believe that a tailrotor malfunction had occurred. He reported trying tocontrol the yaw with pedal input, but without effect. Hetherefore reduced collective and the yaw rate reduced,but by this time he felt the “control forces wereextreme”. The helicopter made two or three more com-plete rotations before contacting the ground. The rightskid collapsed, causing the main rotor blades to strike theground. The pilot secured the aircraft, and both occupantsvacated through their respective side doors. The pilot wasfound to have suffered three broken vertebra.The pilot reported that his full attention was directed atcontrolling the sudden and unexpected yaw, particularlyas the helicopter was at such a low height. He initiallystated that, because of the difficulty controlling the heli-copter, he could not recall whether there had been anycockpit warning lights or sounds before it struck theground. After later consideration, he was certain therehad been none.An initial examination of the helicopter was carried outat the accident site by a field service representative ofEurocopter UK. The examination confirmed that the heli-copter had suffered significant damage to the airframe,rotor blades and dynamic components. During the exami-nation, evidence of a hydraulic leak at the base of the tailboom was observed. Further examination confirmed thathydraulic fluid had been leaking from two unions whichsecured hydraulic pipes to the tail rotor hydraulic servoand load compensator. Both unions could be easily rotat-

AW109S G-IOOZ

The helicopter had departed from St Mawes, Cornwall,intending to fly to a private landing ground on Exmoornear Withypool, Somerset - this journey would takeabout 30 minutes.The pilot was aware that another helicopter was sched-uled to land at the same site somewhat later and hadarranged for landing lights and a vehicle with a radio tobe present. He contacted the vehicle driver beforedeparting St Mawes and was told that everythingwas set up and the weather was clear.As he approached the site at 2,500 ft, the pilot contactedthe operator on the ground and was told that “it hadstarted to cloud over but the moon was still visible andhe could be heard coming”. Flying over the site at 2,500 ft QNH with the radioaltimeter showing over 1,000 ft agl, the pilot could justabout make out the lights below him but noted that, tothe north and east of the landing site, it appeared to betotally clear. He lowered the landing gear, carried out thelanding checks and tested the landing lights, setting themoveable landing light to the straight ahead position. Hetook up a southerly heading towards the site anddescended through a thin layer of cloud over the villageof Exford, commencing his approach to the landing sitewhich he saw about a mile distant and at a height ofabout 500 ft; the lights, and in particular the flashinglights on the operator’s vehicle, were clearlyvisible tothe pilot at this point.The pilot had been largely navigating using the groundlights but, at about 500 m from the site, he switched onthe landing lights and was immediately dazzled by theglare from the mist which had formed at low level. Hestates that he was momentarily blinded and disorientedbefore he switched the light off again. Although onlytravelling at about 40 kt, he descended too rapidly andfailed to see a line of trees, approximately 30 ft high,which the helicopter clipped with its tail rotor. It imme-diately started to yaw and the pilot force-landed in afield some 300 m short of the landing site. In doing so,the helicopter span through about 180º and the landinggear sank into the soft, wet ground, detaching the nose-wheel.The pilot was uninjured. Although the main rotor had notstruck the ground, the tail rotor blades and landing gearwere badly damaged.The pilot was 61 years old and had 3,147 hours of which428 were on type.

HELICOPTER LIFE, Summer 201466

AndhouSe heliCopTer

Historic Whirlwinds then and now

courtesy of Andrew Whitehouse