Mmmmm ....
........... "Are they a good long line platform?" .....
Well to fly the machine is very like the Hu500 series of a/c.
I would have thought the RH pilot seat is too far inside the a/c for comfortable vertical reference ops. Also cyclic stick trim cannot be turned off so it can be tiring to keep "fighting the trim" all day. All Bolkow pilots are easily identified by the lack of thumb cover on their flying gloves!
Not sure whether permissions could be obtained for command from the LH seat?
NB the cargo hook affixes to the a/c via cables attached to fitting attached to the u/c legs so care MUST be taken when landing a/c during slinging ops to ensure hook serviceability (keep it out of the muck!).
You WILL need a well trained engineer/mechanic attached to aircraft.
Good luck ... they're a GREAT machine!
