Hi Whirly,
Glad you made it home safe.
Think you've pretty much summed it up already. Would agree completely about the rush - it was the same last year and more subjects were covered last year too. Definately need more time at AAIB, especially as there were more rotorcraft there this time.
Definately needs some helicopter input from the organisers - think some one like Mr Patterson CAA chief examiner needs to be on hand all day to balance the input a bit from the CAA side.
Learnt somethings about GPS I didn't know or had forgot - jamming bit was frightening!
The after dinner part from Mr Talbot was useful but I found it rather heavy going for an after lunch lecture! And I seem to recall different figures mentioned elsewhere for reaction times to engine failures. It was mentioned that the average approved pilot reaction time for the pilot to lower the collective was 1.0 seconds in the cruise and 0.3seconds during other phases of flight. It was emphaised that you ONLY had 1 second to react - the figures I heard were quite a lot longer, (relatively!), for one particular type from a well respected source.
Without exception it seemed that none of the lecturers would specifically name type or manufacturers when quote figures and performance details...
I wonder with the likes of Q and DK there the lecturers felt a bit out of their depth regarding rotary flight?
Overall a useful day but too much of a rush.
PS Sorry about the mini bash - especially as I suggested it but couldn't find accomodation which was suitable and couldn't make 2 journeys to Farnborough.