Crab,
You brought up some good discussion points in your last post. Assessing a candidate on a PPC/LPC in the Level D simulator for an instrument departure requires they maintain runway heading +/- 5 degrees until VY under EASA, TC, FAA and the CAA. Any deviation outside of this tolerance that is not corrected in a timely manner would generate a “2” or below standard grade.
If flight safety was compromised the checkride would be assessed as a failure and stopped. Windsocks, antennas and other infield obstacles become the concern if the Flight Crew drift off the runway due to poor heading control.
Now applying these same heading tolerances to a night helipad departure into a black hole would pretty much guarantee a slew of unsuccessful checkrides and suspended instrument privileges for most of us, myself included some days. During monitored checkrides there is no breathing room for the TRE. Greater than 5 degrees, correction not made in a timely manner and it’s a fail for the two guys up front. Keeping the low visibility fix wing type runway departure in those checkrides rather than a helicopter specific helipad departure is probably by design.
Maintaining that heading within 5 degrees or less is definitely a developed skill that most guys struggle with. Until the aircraft hits 40 KIAS it’s up to the pilot’s boots to keep it tracking straight out which is easier said than done. Most of us yaw a little off the bug and then come back quickly but 5 degrees or less is damn challenging.
We are not assessed doing these departures on OPC’s either as they are in the daylight only where I work. Our opportunity to practice “black hole” helipad and helideck departures happens at night offshore in the actual aircraft every 90 days and during our annual simulator training and LOFT session after the checkride in the sim. Each pilot does no less than six takeoffs each during the LOFT concentrating on their scan and technique at different weights. We do another 3-4 night helipad departures during the IFR training sessions before the checkride.
As soon as they are climbing through VY we snapshot them back to the rig for another departure in quick succession. Various incapacitation events are introduced as are minor distracting emergencies to get the crew to focus on flying the profile first or rejecting prior to rotation without hesitation.
If our guys are weak during the training, specifically helipad black hole departures, the sim instructor does not sign them off for the checkride. We’ve had several pilots require additional specific IFR training before the instructor gives them the go ahead as it should be. Unfortunately, there’s too much turning a blind eye pencil whipping Checkrides and Training out there. Eventually it catches up with individual and something bad happens.........