New EC 120 operating out of Cape Town

[Deanw]

Hi-tech silent chopper to fly chartered flights from Hout Bay to Cape Point

Cape Times: December 18, 2003

A hi-tech silent helicopter is being used to run charter operations from Hout Bay to Cape Point.

Darryl Waterford, chief executive of Base 4 helicopters, said that had they not been using the EC 120 Colibri helicopter, the residents of Hout Bay and surroundings would never have agreed to have them fly in the area.

Waterford said: "Unlike most other models in use, the EC 120 Colibri is built for passenger comfort, offering all round viewing, air-conditioning and even a CD player. But possibly the main characteristic is the machine's low noise levels. The EC 120 is about 50% quieter than any other commercial helicopter operating locally."

Pilot Gustav Arndt said the helicopter was "a dream to fly".

The EC 120 is built by the Eurocopter company in France. Base 4 bought it for R11.2 million.

Waterford said: "Hout Bay is a sought-after spot for a helicopter charter service for a number of reasons. Firstly, the area is uncluttered by other operators, allowing easy access to our heliport. Secondly, we are within only 30 minutes flying time of Cape Point, one of the country's most spectacular sights to be viewed from a helicopter. It is also within easy reach of the winelands." - Staff Writer

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On another note, it was good to see the Huey flying just now :ok: I guess the judge granted their application this morning after being grounded by the CAA? :eek:

[B Sousa]

EC-120 is very nice, but as a Tour Operator I should think one would look towards the EC-130. EC-120 would be nice for VIP Charter, but the 407 will do better. Not much more money and plenty of everything else....
Most Operators here in Las Vegas(who can afford new Helos) are moving in that direction. In the A-Star (Squirrel)we have a "Love Seat" up front which allows us a total of 6 Pax and Pilot. The EC-130 is doing 7 pax and a Pilot. More Power and better Hydraulics. Hydraulic failures have really been a pain in the butt here anyway..
The Rand is doing OK now and if Owners are going to buy, now may be the time. Certainly good to buy at 6/1 and then make payments if the Rand goes to 12/1
As to the Huey in the Cape, there has to be a message hidden somewhere when an Aircraft is continually hammered for Maintenance Problems. So much so that it requires a Court Order to Fly. Enough said on that.

[Deanw]

From what I'm told, the judge slammed the CAA for grounding an aircraft on mere allegations by other parties and not inspecting the aircraft first.

Apparently, the CAA relied on complaints by other (known) operators, saying that the tailboom had fallen off at an airshow earlier this year, the aircraft had suffered hydraulic and engine failures, etc.

As for Bell vs Eurocopter, my layman inpression is that Eurocopter products tend to be quieter. Sure the EC 120 is small, but it's quietness ensures that it can operate in an area such as Hout Bay which is surrounded by mountains on three sides. Besides, I don't know if they'll be operating there during the quieter winter months.

[B Sousa]

DeanW Writes:"Back to the Huey
From what I'm told, the judge slammed the CAA for grounding an aircraft on mere allegations by other parties and not inspecting the aircraft first.

Apparently, the CAA relied on complaints by other (known) operators, saying that the tailboom had fallen off at an airshow earlier this year, the aircraft had suffered hydraulic and engine failures, etc."


Certainly a good Point. I cannot imagine that they can ground an aircraft on "Conversation". Bare minimum is a physical inspection by a Qualified CAA Examiner......If that did not occur then CAA should have their hands slapped...

[Cardinal Puff]

"Qualified?"..... HA!

Overheard a so called Accident Investigator (AA) at a crash site recently asking the AME recovering the wreck what a turbocharger is. One would assume (wrongly, obviously) that the bare minimum for the position would be an aviation background or some relevant qualification.

Verily, the mind doth boggle....

[B Sousa]

CP writes:"Overheard a so called Accident Investigator (AA) at a crash site recently asking the AME recovering the wreck what a turbocharger is."

You sure that was not Eeeeah what is a tobochaga??

[clipboard]

:ok: Howdy fellas! So Base4 Helicopters have bought an EC 120 for R11.2 million? Wow, is the cost that important? Congratulations Mr. Darryl! My info is that it is a leased helicopter (ZS-RRT) and belongs to a Company owned by well known rally driver Fernando Rueda. I fail to understand why Base4 would want to rent in a helicopter when they've got something like 4 or 5 BO-105's, a 407 and 2 Jetrangers standing in their hangar? I believe their proposed contract in Gabon did not materialize, and that some pilot(s) have left, and that some new guy(s) will join them in in January. Good luck!

From information provided to me by the Huey folks, I can report with confidence, (after seeing some court papers) that the whole grounding of the Huey came from persistant, unfounded and hearsay reports filed to the CAA by "Elvis" and his lawyers. "Elvis" wrote a letter to the CAA and copied it to about 20 other people including the newspapers, the tourism people the Commissioner et al, complaining about the Huey. These letters, about engine failures, cracked and fall off tailbooms, hydraulic failures, tail rotor failures and a total engine failure, was used by the CAA in their responding affadavids, and is now common knowledge. (I Read all the papers from the Court file. Very, very interesting!) The pilot flying the machine must possess excellent flying skills to have dealt with all the mentioned mishaps, as nowhere did I read about people getting kiled in a Huey. Eeesch!!!!!

The fact of the matter is that the CAA, based on these false accusations, wrote a letter to the owner, advising him not to operate the Huey until such time that some CAA Airworthy Inspectors have come to inspect the Huey to determine its airworthiness. This after some 16 inspections by various CAA inspectors to the AMO at Helibase during the last year, who all agreed that the helicopter was in good shape, and well looked after. (Incidently Mr. Comissioner, why do you let a helicopter fly for 12 months, and then ground it on hearsay? The hiding you got it court, you most certainly deserve. )

After adhering to the grounding, and not flying the Huey for 4 days, inspectors failed to show up after the inspection was arranged. The owner then filed an urgent application in the Cape Town High Court to "unground" the helicopter, which was ruled in his favour. The CAA put the cart before the horse by grounding the helicopter on false allegations made by not a member of the public, but the opposition, and failed to inspect the helicopter for airworthiness before grounding it.

By the way Francois, as a fellow helicopter pilot, I want to congratulate you on the perfect engine out landing you did at the Watefront Helipad whilst having 14 pax on board. I mean, for you to autorotate from the container berth from 800 feet, and reach the helipad, and land it without a scratch, takes some doing. Well done boy! ;-) ;-) By making the pad and not ending up in the drink, is a clear indication that the flotation requirement serves no purpose ;-) ;-), as land can be reached at al times whilst operating around the Waterfront. You proved that right??? ;-) Or maybe you are just tooo damn good huh?? ;-) ;-) You surely made Robert Macdonald's day, as you gave him the opportunity to run up his mobile phone bill by the 50 phonecalls he made to the CAA. ;-)

It appears that "Elvis" can not come to terms with the success of the Huey, and is trying everything in his power to get it grounded by persistent lies. (From his letter to the CAA and others, I quote: "These helicopters were supposedly collected from the Ethiopian bush as scrap spare parts" and assembled by backyard mechanics at a place in Cape Town. (I wonder what Joos Cloete will say to this, as at the time he was the project manager on this deal for the Bald Eagle Trust, and he intended to FLY this particular Huey from Ethiopia to SA. In such good nick it was.)

By the way, "Little Elvis" has now confirmed to the helicopter industry in Cape Town that his father have managed to secure some finance for the purchase of a Huey, and that their Huey will arrive in Cape Town by the end of February. Wow, how great that will be? With The Huey Club's eight Hueys in the making, it appears that Hueys may dominate the skies of Cape Town soon. Well done. So "Elvis" is going to spend a few hundred US to give his opposition a go? Makes perfect business sense to me! ;-) ;-)


:yuk:

[4HolerPoler]

Lots of names flying around Clippy - not generally accepted but, after some thought I'm going to leave it as is until I receive a formal request or complaint.

4HP

[Kennel Keeper]

Dumb Question?

How would the proud new owner of a Huey in Cape Town feel if all the rubbish he spoke about the existing Huey was applied to his machine by the CAA??

Would it not be nice if CAA grounded his Huey for the same reasons.
Could it be that the mechanic back where he bought it doctored the papers or even built it from scrap parts purchased who knows where?
Maybe the logs are forged, name plates changed etc. funny what some people might do with computer technology for a fast buck.

Oh and do they really believe that their helicopters are perfect. recall a door blowing off one once!
The wheel will turn in mysterious ways!!

As to using names - these idiots are the very people who squeeeel foul in the face of free and fair competition but always end up spoiling it for all other players who may come aboard later. I think the public and readers, aviation enthusiasts etc must know who is spoiling the game for all.

And please dont forget that 40 odd staff are going to have no Christmas because their salaries depend on the income removed by the grounding of the huey!!

Nice going (you know who you are)

[Goldfish Jack]

Elvis and his little tricks again!!

Has he EVER done anything honestly and within the law??

The only time you see him doing anything honestly is at the casino, trying to organise some finance for his helicopters, only because about 1500 cameras are watching him!!!

[francois marais]

DeanW, It looks like your site has been hijacked my man!

4HP, maybe you should seperate it?

I promised myself I was not going to get involved in a lengthy explanation regarding the Huey ever again, (Especially after the saga with Rotorhead in the beginning of the year) but due to the many phone calls I received this last week, requesting information on the matter, I am prepared to say the following:

1. It is true that the helicopter was grounded by the CAA based upon information passed on to them that the Huey may not be airworthy, and that it had been involved in numerous catastrophic mishaps. (None of which we, the operators were aware of.) The helicopter is maintained by appropriately licenced AME's. Helicopter & Marine Services, is also a licenced AMO. (AMO 938.)

2. The helicopter has never had an engine failure. The worst we have experienced in the year of operation (about 340 hours) was a pipe that had a cracked flange at the entrance to the hydraulic pump, which meant losing the fluid and resulting in executing a normal hydraulic out landing. Not bad for 340 hours of flying. I have known Long Rangers, Jetrangers, Hughes 500's and other helicopters to throw the odd problem after scheduled maintenance, and this is nothing untoward, as its machinery we work with, and things do go wrong with machinery from time to time. The Huey is still maintained in terms of a Bell Registered Maintenance program by licenced & qualified AME's, and one must comend these guys for the work they do, as during the year of operation, there has been no problems. Even the CAA, according to Court papers, commended the engineers on their good work. So the spare part issue, the scrap issue, the backyard mechanics and the pigsty the thing was put together in, with respect Mr. complainant, is not valid.

3. The Huey's owners did adhere to the CAA's grounding, and their request that it remained grounded until such time CAA inspectors would inspect it, but unfortunately the CAA did not play the game, and the arranged inspection did not take place. It was cancelled at the last minute. The owner then seeked the necessary relief in the Supreme Court by way of an urgent application, which was granted in his favour.

4. The CAA defended the application by filing answering affadavids, which included letters written to the CAA and various parties, including the Minister of Transport, by our beloved "entertainer". These letters unfortunately did not contain factual information, purely hearsay, speculation, third hand information and fabrications. (Its a pity that people have to stoop to these levels to satisfy their egos.) Anyway, I guess anyone is entitled to an opinion, but when it becomes blatant lies, with the intend to defame, then I guess its no more an opinion, but pure libel. I find it really strange that some people spend so much time concerning themselves with other people's business, in stead of taking care of their own. In the Court papers, the Huey's were referred to as the "Mini-bus taxis of the air". The word "taxi" is very prevalent here.

5. The Court granted interim relief to the owner, and ordered that the grounding of the Huey was irregular based upon the facts presented to the Court, and ordered the CAA to "Unground" the Huey until such time that the matter can go to oral evidence. Such an event may become very interesting when people will be placed in witness boxes, and forced to "lie" :ok: under oath.;)

So until then, hopefully things will go as normal as we all expect it to be.

Merry Christmas & a prosperous new year to you all out there. May your festive season be filled with happiness, and may your cup runneth over!

Take care you all!:ok:

[Deanw]

Francois, this kind of hijacking I can live with :E :ok:

Besides, the Huey is a lot more interresting than an EC120 ;)

OK Base4 , prove me wrong :} :}

[Gunship]

:mad: Why the :mad: Can us boere not work for a change together ?

This is ridicilous. When your own company can not make it - blame it on someone else and also "ground" them (excuse the pun) ... :suspect:

Slegte moere ... FM - once again I hope you guys rake in millions mate.

PS: Elvis .. someone from NaasPers send me a pic of a guy that looks like Elvis re-incastrated and guys next to a Huey "mooning" someone ? Maybe you guys "mooning" Elvis FM.

Nooit can not / will not believe that.

So Baas 4HP can I post it here bru ... it is just a rumour so nobody said it was the correct thing ...

And I will take the blame :E

All the best to you all !

Gunzzzzzz

[B Sousa]

This thread has gotten some attention, however I think you folks in SA should know that the guy in Capetown who proports to be Elvis is definitely a phony.
ELVIS IS ALIVE AND WELL AND LIVING IN LA$ VEGA$..........I saw him last week......
Thank You, Thank you very much...............

[Goldfish Jack]

Oi Ol B Sousa - u r right and there I was thinking I saw him in Cape Town at the Casino financing his Huey!!

I must have seen an El Scaly vis and judging by his mood Sun International must be making lots of money out of ..vis!

Can u imagine being driven to the Waterfront in a clapped out pink cadellac and then going for a flight in a pink Huey - sounds like lots of SPORTS to me!!! One certainly hopes he flies it a bit better than that sporty Jetranger that flashes over the beach at Camps Bay - I hate helicopter pilots that wear dirty socks and odd shoes!!

Anyone got a copy of the video of Francois doing his autoratation to the pad - would love to see it !!! or do I have to get it from ..vis??

[Goffel]

Goldfish Jack
I have the original recording of the so called faithful aoto-rotation,which CAA are now in the process of getting a court order for me to hand over as there is speculation from a certain person that the pilot broke certain procedures whilst doing the said autorotation and I am loath to hand it over as evidence.

:E

[clipboard]

:ok: Goffel you're full of sh1t. I know you like filming, but who could have imagined that you were there on that; not faithfull, but fatefull day? (Did your teacher not teach you proper english my boy?:p :D )

You need to put a clip of your video on this site. Not the piece where François does the "auto-rotation", but the piece that shows "Little Elvis" running around the pad like a love sick pigeon, cell phone glued to the ear, calling the CAA. Thats faaaarrr more entertaining. The "auto" is not at all entertaining, as it was "perfect". The entertaining bit is to see the kid doing his performance:p (Prima donna at its best!:mad: ) How:mad: can one be? Judging by his moves, its certain that he's definately trying to give his father a go in the rock and roll stakes.

Rumour has it that Elvis now wants to make ammends with the CAA by joining them in their action against the Huey Club, and paying for the cost order awarded against the CAA by the Court. (Bribe, donation, gift????????:mad: Who knows?) Apparently he has also instructed a private investigator to investigate who the "@rses" were that gooid him the brown eyes, so that he can take the appropriate revenge on those "@rses".

When are these people ever going to stop:mad: with other people's business, and concentrate on their own? Beats me!

Merry Christmas, I'm all shook up!:ok: :D

[Danger Boy]

Ahhh so this is where the juicy Huey thread got to!

Someone should really consider re-routing or renaming the thread; I'm sure there could be a lot more interest and possibly a lot more cross-fire.

It would seem that the authorities were caught napping again; surely someone must know what they are doing there? :confused:

Does make me wander though as to their recent change of heart ; if I recall correctly this operation was originally backed by them !!!:(

Whatever transpires Goodwill and Joy to all you ppruners over the festive season:ok:

[clipboard]

:D Danger boy????? Are you the owner of "Danger Dog" ?????
Had a phone call from "Huey Fan" last night from West Africa. It seems the news on the Huey had hit the shores of Nigeria as well. Very interesting!

I'm told that the Huey operation had some 22 inspections during the last year. Each time the owners moved closer to becoming Part 96 compliant. The CAA wanted them to have an AMO, so they got an AMO. The CAA wanted them to write a Maintenance Control Manual, so they wrote one. (By the way, the CAA, as the Regulatory Authority, should be able to provide its clients a speciman copy of a MCM, but they can't or could'nt, because they don't have one themselves:yuk: ) And so the list went on.

Rumour has it that one particular CAA Airworthiness inspector (who has a passion for fancy cars and lots of dollars) are behind this whole issue. One can only but wonder what his motivation was? Anyway, these people will obviously end up in the witness box at some stage early in the new year, and then from their testimonies it will be clear what their motives were.:ok:

Rumour also has it that the CAA is falling apart big time due to its "affirmative" policies and their inability to appoint permanent staff members. The entire senior top structure, are "Acting".

:mad: :yuk:

I also have first hand information that there are a lot of "in fighting" amongst the "acting" top structure, and that egos are bigger than IQ's, causing further rifts in house. I have it on good authority that the Manager - Legal Services were warned by his staff members in the legal department not to take the Huey matter to Court, but he persisted and told them that he was going nail them!!!!:yuk: Wonder who is:{ now???

[Goffel]

Ja,it makes me wander about the whole thing as well.
I have had two phone calls regarding my comment about the famouse video.

One was from an up-country number and the other from an idiot that lives in Cape Town......So.

By the way,it was not 800 feet but 600 feet agl (not amsl).

Huey rule's.:E