Huey Crash Landing Inquiry

[gusopenshaw]

In the scene in my novel that has brought me to this forum, a pilot passes out, leaving the only other person aboard, his son, to attempt to land the medevac Huey. The son has some experience, but not enough. The ship comes down into a thick bed of pine trees, and gets damaged, but both men survive. I have a few questions about this situation:

1. Would the son be able to assume the controls from the starboard seat? The story takes place in present-day. Do all Hueys still in use as Medevacs have co-pilot controls?

2. What sort of damage might you expect?

3. Under what circumstances might the fuel explode?

I appreciate your help.

[Aesir]

Well for the first the proper pilot position is always the starboard side in almost all helicopters! The co-pilot sits on the left.

Usually ambulance helicopters are flown with 2 properly rated pilots so yes there would normally be installed dual controls in a medevac helicopter.

Some ambulance helicopters are smaller than the Huey UH1 but civilian ambulance companies never use Huey´s. They would use the similar looking Bell 212 or 412!

Smaller types use only one pilot which flies from the right seat like the B206 or B407 helicopters, but they don´t look like Huey if that matters for your story. However if you are concerned that the scenario is a truthful picture of real life and you want to use only one pilot in the story you would have to use some civilian type helicopter like B206L or B407 for example.

In single pilot operations there are no dual controls installed so it´s higly unlikely that the son would be able to assume any resemblance of control from the left seat unless he was pretty experienced pilot.

The landing would have to be possibly a combination autorotation-run on landing since he would have no chance of reaching the anti-torque tail rotor pedals for directional control.

The fuel only explodes in Hollywood movies, seems that all helicopters that crash in films carry a small charge of explosives around. However the fuel could start to burn after the crash.

It´s likely that if the son has relativley could experience in helicopters for the sake of your story that he could steer the helicopter to running landing where it would roll over during the landing and he would carry his unconsious father out of the wrecked helicopter at the last moment before the fire consumes the fuselage... but please no explosions unless they are carrying ammuntion or fireworks.

[gusopenshaw]

Thanks for that, Aesir. Good stuff. Funny comment re: the Hollywood versions. I promise no such thing here.

[jessie13]

Disagree with some of the info provided. Haven't heard of any hueys operators that remove cyclic, collective and tail rotor controls even if it is single pilot operations. If its an ex-military UH-1, its not designed to or ever have had the controls removed (gunships the exception).

[Aesir]

jessie13,

I don´t quite understand what you mean?? Did I say that dual controls would be removed from a Huey somewhere??

[B Sousa]

Gus
Head on down to Ft Rucker and talk to the Huey folks. It will save you time.........

[jessie13]

Aesir, Isn't that what you meant by your fifth paragraph? "In a single pilot operation, there are no dual controls installed."

[Whirlybird]

jessie13,
Read Aesir's 4th and fifth paragraphs again. He said that for single pilot ops you would use the B206L or B407, and that those probably wouldn't have dual controls. At least, that was my understanding of it.

[dammyneckhurts]

Here in Canada we fly 204,205 and 212 "hueys" frequently with single pilot sitting in the right seat.

The dual controls get removed from the left side for all heli skiing, and also fire fighting in some locations.

[jessie13]

I assumed he was talking about the senario for "gusopenshaw" and also thats interesting from "dammyneckhurts". Do they have anything to cover where the cyclic and collective were fitted? I assume they leave the tail rotor pedals in. Have thet designed it for easy fit and remove or do the relevent companies modify it themselves for this? I'd be interested to hear. Don't get me wrong Aesir, I agree with everything you said but from the way I read it, I asumed you were talking about Huey. I'm sorry if you weren't.