spinwing... hours have nothing to do with tyres wearing out. operators who taxi alot will wear them out quickly, and vice versa
jimma... i thnk it is about time pilots stop taking hot drinks on flights. Tea and coffee are diuretics, which help to pass fluid out of the body and accelerate dehydration. The only drink taken onboard should be water, and it should be in resealable containers. You want to see how much damage to avionics, and corrosion spilt coffee and tea can cause. Having the water in resealable bottles minimises that risk, and removes the corrosion risk associated with those drinks. Get over the lack of cup holder, modify your old (bad) habits!!!
Mamaput... actually, having seen a recent chart for range/payload over distance, the 139 easily outperformed a 76C. The C+ wasn't shown, and no, I don't know who produced the chart. It wasn't Agusta though. Also showed 'heavy' machines, and the 92 way outperformed the rest. Quite impressive.
helmet fire...
The limited CAT A fits nicely in the middle BUT it allows compromise. If you want to have full CAT A, fit the aircraft with less seats and voila! You have it. If you then accept the exposure rate of 0.17% to a possible (not likely) consequence, you can load it up and operate cost effectively.
Doesn't that mean, that, comparing a 76 to the 139 for instance, the 76 would have to do 2 trips for every single 139 trip, if both were flown to full Cat A?? So, in the future, if/when full Cat A is mandatory, how would a 76 still be cost effective?? I agree, it does allow compromise, and I agree that full Cat A is not always necessary, convincing rulemakers however, is a different matter entirely. Interesting arguement though
Nick... is the 76D going to be fully Cat A capable?? If so, would it not also be overpowered and under payload capable?? Your views are insightful.
For the record, I think the engine Agusta decided on for the 139 was a poor choice. Smaller, lighter engines of slightly less power (and shorter exhausts!!!!!) would have been far better. Perhaps Bell using the same engine (nearly the same anyway) in the BA609, had some influence. Shame really.