Rotor Strike in the NT

[thekite]

ATSB has issued a first report on the R22 accident where a woman was killed by a rotor strike.
Pilot reports that a gust of wind struck him and the low RRPM horn came on.
But I think that he may have had a partial power failure-not linked to the gust of wind.
thekite

:confused:

[Swamp76]

How is either situation related to the rotor hitting the woman?

[thekite]

I wonder if the cause of the low RRPM horn coming on was in fact the reported "gust of wind". I do not see how that decays your RRPM.

But earlier in the report it was mentioned hat the pilot had changed 6 of the 8 spark plugs to cure "an ignition problem".

I wonder if the supposed ignition problem was in fact a sticking exhaust valve, which I have experienced a number of times with R22s.

RRPM and airspeed are lost, and the heli shakes like a dog shi**ing razor blades. Just like an "ignition problem".

As for woman being struckas the heli descended: there were various people wandering about, after the pilot lost sped and height, perhaps she was just at the wrong place at the wrong time.

thekite

[bugdevheli]

six of the eight spark plugs in a 22?????

[TiPwEiGhT]

4 Cylinders, 2 Plugs in each one on the Robbo. If you ARE a robbo pilot I would suggest some retraining. If not, then good on you!

[oxi]

Where did it happen?

[thekite]

Check it for yourself:
www.atsb.gov.au ocurrence 200704706
thekite

[Sir HC]

Rob. Me thinks you know very little about this accident. I have heard various reports from people very close to the people on the ground and after reading the entire report, I don't agree with your theory. To the ATSB this is just another private mustering accident, fact is they wouldnt't know their earhole from their a***hole and will go with the theory that takes the least work. The pilot needs to accept the consequences of his actions and understandably he has taken it very badly thus far. Unfortunately the majority of private mustering pilots (although he had a CPL) have very little professionalism and it really was a matter of time until something like this happened. Lets hope lessons are learnt. Stick to your Yak.

[thekite]

So I'm outed!
Of course you are right Sir HC. I indeed know only what I read in the papers, and am disinformed by the ATSB perhaps.
Why else do I use terms like perhaps, maybe and what if?
But do we not work these websites to learn what we may? and perhaps add a little to decrease our own ignorance.
And yes do go ahead and lambast my ignorance. For I do not know at all what happened.
Perhaps you are going to tell me that this is just some dumb ringer on a cattle station.
I might agree. I spent some years teaching (in the classroom, as I was grounded then) in NZ, shooters who wanted to be pilots, and Australian ringers who likewise wanted to be pilots.
I always saw the attitude that I was talking bull faeces, and a real Bush Bloke would just sort it out when the time came. If it ever did. A very different attitude to what I used to see in the cockpit, where real terror was always available as a training aid!
But the real problem was not stupidity, rather, ignorance and bull**** macho attitudes.
And yes I have seen ringers reef up the collective and only the poor little darling has yawed through 90 degrees do they mash in the full left Blunny!
(Not my students though)
So Sir HC, do go ahead. Elucidate. Why else do we write
thekite:ugh:

[bugdevheli]

thekite What i should have said was,why would anyone go to the trouble of removing cowls etc and only half do the job.

[TeeS]

Budge

To be correct, shouldn't that be 3/4 of the job! :)

Tees

[bugdevheli]

Tees. Technically correct. three quarters of the job! Half a job, is a sort of phrase used to describe shoddy workmanship. Shows how important it is to get the correct terminology on Prune. Now take the word Fanny for instance.

[VeeAny]

BudgevHeli

Is taking of Fanny permitted on PPrune ?
In some countries it still probably constitutes an offence.:p

I am not an engineer but maybe 2 of the plugs on a Robbie are more awkward to get at than the others, maybe he only had 6 spare plugs.

GS

[thekite]

:ugh:My point is that his loss of height and speed was not likely to have been caused by a gust of wind.

A Robbo will fly on 3 cylinders, but if a valve sticks, the fault is likely to disappear if you shut down and start up again.

Unlike an ignition fault which will most likely produce the same symptoms and shutdown and restart.

thekite