New, and somewhat counter-intuitive, helicopter CFIT report (http://shortlinks.co.uk/3h)
SHortshaft
29th Nov 2005, 10:57
I find it hard to believe that keeping the eyes open and outside the helicopter is not the answer. Another gismo will just cause more time to be spent looking inside. Is this not Catch 22?
Head Turner
29th Nov 2005, 15:45
Night VMC is really not acceptable, and I think that this is where many mistakes are made. Also there is an apparent lack of instruction on the subject of flying in deteriorating visibility, or even how to recognise poor visibility situations, and the immediate action to take to remain in a safe flying condition.
Tell me how you would know that there is cloud at your level and in front of you at night?
NickLappos
29th Nov 2005, 19:41
Head,
I think is a bit too simplistic to just limit all night ops to IMC, unless you want all helo operations to mimic all airplane operations, a good way to stamp out helicopters. If night IMC is required, how does one do anything a helo does at night? The problem is not lack of instruction, it is the need to continue to operate at night, because that is what the machine is for. Look at the thread we just completed on night rig ops to see what experienced pilots think about night rig landings.
I wouldn't advocate switching to IFR because IFR achieves safety the backwards way - it limits what we do in the name of safety. By truncating the altitudes that we can use, and the places that we can land and takeoff from, it assures safety. IFR also keeps us ignorant of what is around us (why do you need to know?) because it simplifies the world until it is safe enough for the 1945 technology that is in our cockpits.
The EGPWS is one of a new class of equipment that will change the way we fly, by giving us the information we need to do the real job. Waiting for us is also a new class of visionics that allows us to see while IMC, and control systems that allow us to hover on IMC.
Is it a head's down device? Not really, the displays are a map that shows by color what terrain is above your flight path, and it orients to be course up, like a weather radar, and is just as useful. It also has aural warnings to cue you, should you need them.