Ahh Mount Caroline. I remember it well. I think that I only landed facing in the direction shown in your photo Jemy. As I recall the prevailing wind generally dictated landing with the nose hanging over the escarpment. Not easy (for me anyway) with a howling gail blowing up the hill.
I am somewhat overwhelmed by the response to my origional post. Thanks everyone. Please do keep them comming!
Jemy,
There was a time when the only landings on the Brent Spar at night were done by the 212s as its unusual motion and strange crane positioning could catch out pilots who didn't land there on a very regular basis, and even with the 212's there was a tail strike on the crane by Clanger L, a very experienced 212 pilot and TRE. We even used to shut down on there and I found the motion made me feel quite sick in a fairly short time.
Does anyone know what dear old Henry Boyt is doing now? His dog and mine (and occasionally Henry and I) used to share an office many years back when he was running the British Gas pipeline survey operation. Mike Ginn was also based there then.
I've been doing more clearing to prepare a nursery and have found some more old photos. I'll try and scan them if I have time over the wekend.
Kosovo 1999
Back L-R Pete Cole,Barney ? ,Ian Campbell,Mike Stern,Roger Asbey,UN Bloke,Fred Dunne.
Front L-R Richard Norris,Guy Heard,John McDonough,Andy Shaw,John Grant.
Flying over the chicken factory the Serbs used to hide in! UN put an end to that!!
Loadmaster for the day Ian Campbell
Fred had a hard day!
So did Guy
So did Jamie!
John Grant & Eric Pashley
Richard Norris & Alun Tink
Camp Brazda
OPS. Jamie Jamieson & Richard Norris
Lunch time !!
A Serious Alun Tink & Loadmaster for the day John Grant
Andy Shaw and his Sumburgh Hotel t-shirt
Food drop
Another food drop
Treasure Finder 1991:
Brent SAR training 1991:
5N-BLDY Den Helder 1992. Bristow had a Bell 212 based offshore on the NAM K14, nominally for day/night SAR, but mostly used for shuttles and crew changes.
5N BAK parked on Funiwa production deck, Nigeria 1992:
5N BAK in Fishtown, Nigeria 1992. back in the days when we regularly visited the local villages before the 1999 hijackings:
5N AOV Funiwa, Nigeria 1992:
Old Warri Texaco yard 1992. At that time we had 2 AS355s, 3 212s and a 206 there:
House 17 Warri Texaco 1992, Keith Roberts and Pete Cawthorne:
Some great photos of HM. It had a very colourful career for a 61 (North Sea, Falklands, Maldives on lease, Kosovo, & SAR). Real shame about it's sad demise!
Sadly Malcolm Soper died from a stroke a few years ago, not long after he retired from BHL. He was my chief pilot in Aberdeen for much of my time there. A true gentleman of the kind you just don't get these days. As well as flying the line with him on many ocassions he once took me up for some aerobatics in his beloved chipmunk which he kept at Perth.
Seeing the photos of G-BIBG looking immaculate in the new Bristow logo and on the theme of companies that Bristow bought, here are two of BG in its original ex-factory BCAL colours. First one from a photo in my logbook shows it at Raleigh Durham, North Carolina on 2 April 1981 on its delivery flight from having the Sperry autopilot fitted by Heliflight(?) at Conroe, Houston. Routing Conroe - Baton Rouge - Birmingham - De Kalb Peachtree, Atlanta - Raleigh Durham - Sussex County - Bridgeport, Connecticut, then via ship to Le Havre and flown to Shoreham where the second photo was taken, before flying onward to Aberdeen on 26 April 1981.
and with apologies for the quality of this shot - landing on the Geco Alpha off the Scillies - as it's from a brochure, but soggyboxers will remember the fairly hairy night ship's pilot transfer we did together in TB from Falmouth to the Mobil Kestrel tanker in October 79.
and this one, although in BCAL colours was after the Bristow takeover but before the helicopters were repainted. The word "British" was painted out but "Caledonian Helicopters" remained. Taken on HMS Ark Royal off Cape Wrath in February 1988 - 214ST G-BKFP and S61's B-BIMU, G-BIHH, G-BFPF.
Last edited by Speechless Two : 29th August 2007 at 13:52.
And my final contribution of "before we were Bristow...."
Irish Helicopters Bell 212 EI-AWN in summer 1973 on the Glomar North Sea in Marathon's gas field off Kinsale, south of Cork.
Someone - think it was a Bristow crew - later snagged the tail wheel of a S-61 in the deck perimeter netting of this ship with a fast stop arrival resulting in a "positive" main wheels landing causing the main blades to take out the top of the cockpit and the speed selects etc so it couldn't be shut down. The Captain got everyone off and at the insistence of the OIM took off and ditched it. He then abandoned it and left the 61 to its own devices. Inevitably it came back towards the ship and circled it for (I think) nearly four hours before running out of fuel. Perhaps someone can correct the details if necessary as it was probably fifth hand and exaggerated before I heard the story!
Next one, taken on the same day in 1973, is of Dennis Gartrell. Whatever happened to him? Note the flares! We had a ridiculous "uniform" of a grey polo neck shirt, grey flared trousers (Dennis must have had his in the wash) and a black bomber jacket.
and finally one taken again in 1973 on the Irish Lighthouse Board contract. Bo105 EI-AWB. Unfortunately I haven't noted the location and 34 years later I can only guess that it might be at Fanad Head.
night ship's pilot transfer we did together in TB from Falmouth to the Mobil Kestrel tanker in October 79.
House 17
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