Heading for disaster

[170']

R22Driver.

The issue of more experience in an instructor,can be on many occasions little more benefit than hangar talk. But it's invaluable, both before and after you have the license to learn..(sorry Mr Wellington, you're in a tiny minority)

The reason it's so valuable, is because it's indefinable...It's not now, and hasn't been for a long time, how to hit a hot LZ ...

But it's a moot point really, as experienced pilot instructors are the exception not the rule.

A seasoned pilot has often flown in many environments, and doesn't have to look in a book because its minus 20 out. or there's a sand/snowstorm coming. A seasoned person knows the difference in snow types, how to land in snow or sand, without having to seek opinions on a website or a book that won't be available when you really need it!

Knows what kind of weather causes the skids to freeze down in winter, and how to break it out if they forgot the very simple procedure to prevent it in the first place...Knows what parts really need defrosting on a machine left out overnight in an ice storm.

If you ever ferry a machine and get caught in an ice storm away from home base, good luck in getting it ready to fly the following morning, when you're all alone on a freezing apron Sunday morning at daylight, and the machines due on a contract 1000 miles away in 2 days.

Unless of course someone taught you what to do! In that case it's 20 mins and your getting toasty tootsies courtesy of bleed air...Unless your in a 109 ...right Gary....;-)

Knows how to revive a battery. knows how to do a drip test from the pilots point of view, before you ferry it back to base with a leak..Knows that the flight school told you you don't fly with a leak.

Well when you get that first turbine job after waiting a long time. The boss says, it'll be fine, just bring it on home. It'd be nice to know if he's a homicidal maniac, looking for the insurance payout. Or if it's a common problem with the component, and if it's a stabilized leak, that you're safe to fly it home with.

This comes from hands on time or canvassing advice from a trusted senior pilot who you respect..The problem is at the bottom end of the ladder, not many people have the teeshirts, so who do you ask?

I'm not trying to break anyone down, we all have to learn! But you will not learn much until your out there doing it for yourself in the commercial world...I just hope you have an annoying old graybeard around to help you out, the way we old guys did !

I'm in my 50's now, but still keep a couple of phone numbers in my wallet. These were my mentors at various stages in my helo life. And if I had a problem tomorrow, I wouldn't hesitate to call one of these really grizzled old farts for some advice...Have you got phone numbers you can reach for?

You might be flying from High Wycombe or Sheffield at the moment, and all this sounds ridiculous to you! But if you stay with helo's.
You're probably gonna find yourself in lots of weird places that you can't imagine right now!

In fact, as I write it reminds me of a simple example.

I was driving a 58T years ago, and couldn,t get it to start...Was in a remote location after delivering and and holding in place for assembly, a huge radio tower mast top piece...

I had a mechanic in the right seat getting some bootleg stick time on the ferry legs ...He couldn't figure it out either...It was in the early days of cell phones with the monster satchel deals we used to pack around..

Anyway..Called Ops and the boss said they'd send in a sparks chaser and some gear. But we'd have to spend the night in the machine, as it was coming dark and the parts would be flown to a local operator by FW and the guy and parts ferried to us in a 206 the following day...So I called an old friend who'd flown H34's in the early sixties...I explained the problem and he said " lift he right seat up and at the back is a tube looking deal with a fuse in it"..."It's the fuse that's blown"...
I said are you sure, and he said it's never happened to him personally, but an old 34 driver had told him about it years ago during training on type...This was in the 1950's, and he hadn't flown one since 1966..

Sure as !!!!, we pulled the seat up and wrapped in self amalgamating tape was an inline fuse, they'd wrapped it in black SA tape to protect it from moisture, which made it blend in with the black paint and crud mashed down behind the seat...

So we pulled one out of another non essential unit, and replaced the dud, flashed the old girl up..Called Ops and said cancel everything, we're on our way again...Saved the company a bunch of cash, scored a few brownie points for ourselves, and all thanks to an old goat with a good memory!

Ok, It's not a flying technique, or a safety of flight story. But with many small operators, your knowledge can make or break the operation, thereby keeping food on your table!

Lots of these places will give you a new perspective from the one you hold now. And this is the reason we have such a huge difference of opinion among the helo pilot ranks! Everybodies looking from a different hilltop at the same view.Just the scene looks different to all of us.

I've asked a lot of older friends why ,when the go into retirement, they don't think about instructing part time.

It'll keep you occupied, and maybe you can put some really good, hard earned knowledge back into the biz that's been your life...

I've got a bunch of various reasons given to me why not...But the bottom line is, very few of the guy's that should be teaching are...Pretty sad really, but that's life for you !

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