Landing platform/dolly

[carlmeek]

I'm wondering if anyone has advice on building a movable landing pad to assist in sliding the helicopter in and out of the hangar.

It's all in pre-planning stage, I don't have anything yet. I'm procuring a 280FX in a month or two, and hangar construction starts next week.

The hangar is a steel framed and skinned style, being built in my residential curtilege under permitted development rules. It's on sloping land, so will comply with the 2.5m eaves height restriction at the highest point of adjoining land, but will be excavated in a bit to give the necessary 3m clearance at the door.

This realistically gives me a maximum of 200mm height for a platform unless I dig deeper! Many platforms I have seen on a quick google are more than that, but I have personally seen one that was a lot lower.

It could run on wheels or rails. Could be powered by human, motor, pulley, whatever.

I'm really interested to hear any advice or experiences people have had.

[nowherespecial]

Helicopter tug Helimo - perfect for all skidded helicopter ? Mototok (http://www.mototok.com/model-helimo.php)

Save yourself unnecessary building/ hassle? Not cheap but brilliant. Not sure if there is a second hand market for them, sorry.

[carlmeek]

That looks like it's going to cost as much as the helicopter ;)

[nowherespecial]

Almost def. But it's cool... :cool:

[nellycopter]

Tony at aero maintenance pontefract has a few sat round the back, very low deck on wheels, he may sell for a few gold coins ......

[Hughes500]

one of my old customers has one that is about 6 inches high, doesn't use it any more since writing his machine off !

[Phugoid Phlue]

One we made earlier

http://www.pprune.org/members/90866-phugoid-phlue-albums-pics1-picture377-bd896568-837e-4975-9db1-b4e422695c51.jpg

[500e]

Not difficult to fabricate
PM me

[carlmeek]

Phugoid.... No image!

How are these platforms discussed so far powered?

[malabo]

Powered? Usually just a loop hitch at one end. Hook on and pull/push with whatever you want. I've seen atv's, lawn-mower tractors, farm tractors, tugs, pickup trucks....
Now I've also seen the back of a flat deck truck used for a mobile pad. After landing the owner just drove the truck with helicopter into his shop.

[John Eacott]

There is this post (http://www.pprune.org/3930666-post3.html) in an old thread which gives some good advice about trolleys generally, but your specific about a limit of 20cm is quite restrictive for the construction. I would guess that would be best resolved by using rails and solid steel wheels, since rubber-shod wheels with swivels capable of supporting the max weight of the trolley and machine are likely to be taller than 20cm to start with.

I had rubber matting on the skid lines for all my trolleys (three of them) and at least 2-3ft extra width on both sides to give a solid reference when landing. Nothing worse than hovering without a proper reference to where you're landing.

Along with the rubber matting were a series of metals straps across the rubber to ensure an earth from the helicopter to the trolley, and an earthing chain from the trolley to the ground. Nothing wrong with putting some tape onto the rubber to give alignment marks to get your helicopter in the right spot on each landing, too :ok: Fore and aft for the skids, and one lateral to line up (maybe) the toe of the skid or the crosstube. Then you know where the helicopter will be when the trolley goes into the hangar and can position hangar support gear accordingly, knowing it will be clear of the blades, etc.

Invest in a good tug to push in and out: third hand ride-on mowers may be cheap but will they perform when it comes to stopping in a hurry?

[helihub]

Helicopter tug Helimo - perfect for all skidded helicopter ? Mototok

Mototok very recently appointed a UK distributor in case anyone's interested

[EN48]

A surprising number of helicopters destroyed and/or pilots killed attempting to land on a dolly. Why take the risk? There are several tugs available that raise the helo off the ground to move it into the hangar. I use an AviGround Systems remote controlled tug with my E480B. Works very well. On the expensive side but far cheaper than a new helo!

[Phugoid Phlue]

I don't seem to be able to get my head round photo posting! :ugh: The picture is on my album if you can access that. Cheers

[ShyTorque]

Plue, you need to upload the image to a site such as photobucket and post a link to it in that location.

[airpolice]

West Yorkshire Police used to have a Land Rover attached to a wheeled frame. It was connected to the front of the Landy, and I never saw it disconnected. Routine procedure was to reverse the Landy out of the big shed, onto the concrete. Apply the handbrake and go flying.

The landing, with blades going over the cab of the landy, struck me as looking for trouble when I first saw it done. In practice it worked a treat.

It did make the end of day / foul wx chores real easy. Just drive into the shed, pushing the whole thing away.

[carlmeek]

That's a pretty nice solution.

I've made up my mind with how i'm going to approach it - thanks in part to the information here.

I'm going to lay "train tracks" out of the hangar onto the concrete pad. I'm then going to construct a pad approx 12 feet square out of rectangle section mild steel. On the bottom will be 100mm pulley wheels to run on the rails. The top will be skinned in thin steel sheet and rubber flooring (plus aluminium grounding strips). The whole thing will be about 125mm high, reducing risk if one skid slips off.

I'll use an electric winch to pull the pad in and out of the hangar.

This is more or less the same as a system I used during some training at a private site in Brighton.

The benefit of tracks is repeatable accuracy and much lower chance of whacking a blade against the side of the hangar. If the machine isn't landed centrally, the 3 blades can be rotated to compensate.

This gives me a nice excuse to finally buy an Arc Welder and learn how to weld :)

[airpolice]

If you fit a ring in the concrete in front of the doors, a good bit in front, you can use the same (rear wall mounted) winch to pull it both in and out.

[RINKER]

I'm sure I've landed that Gazelle on that trolley a few times. There were two
Dark blue ones in Scotland I flew off similar trollies. The one in the image had an ifr panel which obscured the view a bit.
I also used to fly an R44 out of an exposed site that had a trolley and sometimes on return if the wind was strong from an unfavourable direction I had to land on the grass. Shut down to reposition the trolley then start up and put the aircraft on the trolley. So watch out with fixed tracks that you don't get stuffed by a bad wind and try to land out of limits for you and or the helicopter. Must admit I never liked the trollies.
R

[nigelh]

Where do you find a winch that can take 50m cable and also be variable speed ?
I have found some but they are on a drum that is so small they winch in very slowly ...

[chriswhi]

When I owned my 280 I had a Clarke hoist from Machine Mart fitted to the back of the hanger, extended the hand control unit and with a rope that went round the skids.
Stand at the tail, pull down onto its own wheels and operate the winch with other hand and in she goes. A pulley fitted to the outer edge of the pad allows a similar method to pull out of the hanger. The whole system cost less than £ 200.00

[BigMike]

Well constructed, and plenty of room...

"A surprising number of helicopters destroyed and/or pilots killed attempting to land on a dolly. Why take the risk?"

A fairly basic skill for a commercial utility pilot... You would have no hope landing on an exploration pad if you couldn't land on this dolly.
However, good airmanship from those who feel they are not up to it, and choose to move the aircraft by other means.

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a3/Micksphotos/Hems-4.jpg (http://s8.photobucket.com/user/Micksphotos/media/Hems-4.jpg.html)

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a3/Micksphotos/Hems-4-2.jpg (http://s8.photobucket.com/user/Micksphotos/media/Hems-4-2.jpg.html)

[John Eacott]

And look how well you lined it up, Mike ;)

[Peter3127]

Something nice about seeing things done properly.

[nellycopter]

There is also remote control dolly called heliwagon , so you don't have to even get out to drive tractor ...
Open hanger door by remote control and drive dolly straight in ...

Ha ha ...
I think from memory its heliwagon.com or net... Google it maybe ...
I know they not cheap though ....

[Vertical Freedom]

Skids aligned to sumting.........well done (that's the only way; be precise)

[ShyTorque]

Landing a twin Squirrel by night, on a dark blue steel mesh trolley on an unlit helipad was always something I hated doing. Especially as the damned thing was over two feet off the ground. It was too small for the pilot to see any visual cues once over it.

Thankfully, it's hydraulic drive engine failed terminally after a couple of years, with the aircraft on it, parked by myself, halfway on its way into the hangar for the night. So the owners, the police, had to guard their base all night because the whole place was now insecure and the aircraft was now offline until an engineer could free off the hydraulics the following morning. They finally took my longstanding advice and bought an electric Heli-lift with a remote control.

[EN48]

There is also remote control dolly called heliwagon ,

Yes, there is: http://www.heliwagon.com/ A great source of entertainment at our local airport is to watch pilots for a gov. agency attempt to land on the Heliwagon on a gusty day. So far, they have never failed but great motivation for using an AviGround, Heliporter, or any of several other similar helo moving devices. This would be true of any raised dolly type device, not just a Heliwagon. BTW, looks like the Heliwagon sells for something in the $20,000 to $30,000 U.S. depending on size and options. I have had a close look at the Heliwagon and it appears to be a quality piece; however, put a skid in the wrong place and this wont matter much.

[Jettiejock]

Or you could modify an electric pallet truck, which can be bought for a few hundred pounds on Ebay.

[md 600 driver]

Hi has anyone go or know if anyone in the UK with a helicopter dolly for sale the flat type please

[Hughes500]

600

what do you mean by flat ? One of my old customers has a very nice one about 12 x 12 with 10 inch wheels

[md 600 driver]

500 that sounds like I am looking for can you pm me the details please

Steve

600

what do you mean by flat ? One of my old customers has a very nice one about 12 x 12 with 10 inch wheels

[Efirmovich]

There are some round the back at AML which if you are in York is only just down the road to you !


E.

[enstrompilot]

There are some round the back at AML which if you are in York is only just down the road to you !


E.

Hi

Built 2 of these at home

2x4 softwood sleepers, 50mm angle iron rails, wielded together to length, v up, drilled and screwed to sleepers
Steel v wheels, from ebay, to suit rails
I have design for platform, mine clad with 6x 8x4 sheets of shuttering ply 18mm, planted with non slip paint (sand text)
1x toolstation winch, modified with extra long drum and extended control cable
Pulley beyond end of rails, pulls out and back
Bump stop at end of travel, winch hard against to secure platform

Very important to have rails dead flat at landing position to ensure all wheels in solid contact. No ground resonance
Overall cost ?, sub £1000 ?

Can send drawings and images

I land 1650 kg turbine, every few days for 8+ yrs

[email protected]
Ian

[md 600 driver]

Many thanks everyone. Now managed to get one thanks to pprune

[pj.john1975]

Dear Sir,

I would like to fabricate a moveable Helicopter dolly for a Bell 407. Am based in India, Would you by any chance have a fabrication drawing and the material specs to be used. Would really appreciate if you can help. Thank you.- John

[SASless]

One Dolly I used to land a BO-105 upon had a fiberglass rod whip sticking up in front of the Pilot's side Windscreen for use in line up and fore/aft placement.

We moved the aircraft forward until the Whip touched the Windscreen frame and checked for proper lateral alignment before setting down.

It took a few times to sort it all out but upon doing do landing back after dark with only the aircraft lights and the odd Flood Light near the Hangar was easy enough.

Throw in gusty winds, rain, and snow at 0300 after a long day......and it was a bit sporty but worked.

That Dolly also ran on rails and had a remote controlled winch with auto stops at each end.....with the remote being stowed in the cockpit till needed.

It was nice not having to go out into the weather to a cold soaked aircraft or clean snow/ice off it before flight.

The key to the Dolly thing is to make them plenty big.....as big as you can and still maneuver it in and around as need be.

[Paul Cantrell]

"A surprising number of helicopters destroyed and/or pilots killed attempting to land on a dolly. Why take the risk?"

A fairly basic skill for a commercial utility pilot... You would have no hope landing on an exploration pad if you couldn't land on this dolly


Re: landing on dollies... Many years ago I used to fly an Enstrom which had previously been flown by a local ENG pilot. One day I'm at the airport and bump into a guy who says "hey, I flew in this helicopter with (the ENG pilot)". Yup, this was his ship.

"He showed me one of those autorotations". Um, ok...

"And we landed on that little platform with wheels". Yeah, that's called a dolly. Wait. Hang on a sec. Did the pilot use the engine to land on the dolly?

"No, he just did the autorotation thing onto the dolly". Ah, hmm, ok ( now not feeling quite so good about my autorotation skills )

I never met the ENG pilot in person, so never got to ask him if that was true, but he did have something like 12 engine failures over the years without putting a scratch on a machine, so maybe! In any case a fun story.