‘Antiquated Fuel control mechanism’
A dark and stormy night is not the time to find out you have been sold a pup. It needs a proper trial, as does the S92, before it goes into SAR. How long was the current machine, the S61 trialed for with the auto hover before it was cleared for operations? I believe it was over a year.
I am told the current UK SAR 61’s were ‘rushed’ into service with an inadequate Doppler as part of the Auto hover and so to this day they throw a wobbly now and then when it’s not needed (the dark stormy night being just that time). The cockpit was standard 61 and not optimized for low level over water I.F flying. I believe those trialing the aircraft included a couple of ex-army pilots? So Fleet Air Arm experience and lessons learnt was not used, then there was no doubt the cost to change the cockpits…..overheads not needed in a commercial company. So much for the proper trial bunk!
Apathy within the present operator’s management towards proactive development and upgrading of their kit has largely led to the current 61 just hanging in there long enough to be ousted. Let’s face it the S92 & the 139 are helicopters, they aren’t going to be perfect (not designed by pilots with unlimited budgets) Even so, it will be the crews using them that will just get on and get the job done as best they can, as indeed they have for the past couple of decades. Brilliant work by CHC and good luck to the present crews in taking the next steps forward with the next generation cabs. At least they aren’t Eurocrapter machines…. Money for old rope?
Seems to be a few present BHL staff, or SAR crew members crying foul on this forum, bemoaning the aircraft choices to come. Well if you don’t like it then don’t go over to the new exciting jobs (leave them for us), stay with Bristow or go to the S61 fleet in Ireland.