JJ;
Hopefully this one's back on topic.............
I'm not surprised at the relative inexperience of the crew. Too many of us in the industry knew Spotty Muldoon (last words on the CVR of their last big crash were his saying he was unhappy at what was going on) the rumours were out there and although I'm very happy for FNW to correct my thoughts/attitude, there seemed to be a very high rotation of experienced pilots through their Human Resources Dept.
On our fleet insurance, AOC/Private management the MINIMUM hours for an IFR P1 are 2 500, and even then every flight that pilot conducts has to be sanctioned by either me, or the head of training, or the accountable manager (our signatures approving actually have to be on his flight brief) until he reaches 3000 hours.
There has grown up around the IFR pilot an apparent aura of experience and knowledge. The IR is intended to allow you to fly IFR in controlled airspace, fly IFR airport to airport or to recover to an airport IFR when the weather craps out. It does NOT allow you to pull a towering take-off from a paddock with cloud on the ground and a viz in "tens of metres). it does NOT allow a pilot to fly an approach into a paddock in those conditions (I would love to know what the weather was like when they arrived)
One AOC in the UK has recently taken a kicking from the CAA because a pilot took off from an airfield in the UK with no approach aids, no IFR assistance in weather conditions well below what was either legal or sensible. His actions have caused the company both massive embarrassment and financial loss.
I used to fly off-shore (about 11 years of it) and became very accustomed to taking off into immediate instrument flight, but I learned those skills sitting next to some very experienced captains who showed me how and then talked me through how, until I got it right.
I have had the client in the back yelling about "What do you mean you won't land in my garden?!! I hired a F***ing IFR helicopter and pilot, I'll go back to White Knuckle Helicopters next time, they always get me in!" A long time ago I caved to that pressure and scared myself witless, now I'm old enough and ugly enough to argue the point, and if the client walks, so be it. I have also had the argument on behalf of other pilots, and expect to have it again, sadly, because as an industry we are crap at telling the punters exactly what an IFR helicopter/pilot combination is really capable of.
SND