Originally Posted by
chopjock
SAS
He hit wires and you think he was lucky...
Yep---normally the outcome is not as good. Once the whole incident has been closed by the powers that be, I will share the full report. Thus far, I am not authorized to share it---however I was found NOT culpable. There was 3 of us on-board at the time...we landed safely and ironically for me, watched Cal-Fire put out the fire started by the live lines hitting the ground.
Originally Posted by
nomorehelosforme
A couple of questions, how much protection/help do wire cutters provide and should they be standard on all helicopters?
Obviously, The effectiveness of wire cutters depends on the angle that a strike may occur.
In my case, the blade tips cut the wire---I was "lucky" in that this line was not a steel line, and the span had 450 lbs of tension verses the standard 300 lbs. I would suggest that thiose who fly in the wire environment should have cutters installed, and those who do not, maybe only suggest they do.