Buster Hyman
17th Jul 2007, 10:28
Ari Sharp
July 17, 2007 - 3:27PM
Black Hawk helicopters will swoop across Melbourne for the next two weeks, practising rapid approaches and landings at some of the city's landmarks.
The training exercise, described by the defence department as "routine", will involve a large number of Sikorsky S-70A-9 Black Hawks from the elite 171 Squadron from Sydney's Holsworthy military base.
The wind and rain which continues to lash Melbourne has not affected the exercise.
This week's training will mostly be at military sites, including the Simpson Barracks in Macleod and the HMAS Cerberus in Western Port Bay. Given the size of the defence department land at these sites, a spokesman said there would be little for the public to see.
Next week the focus of the exercise shifts to the city, where the battle group's activities will involve a number of 'ready response insertion profiles' at Melbourne landmarks - essentially practising rapid aerial approaches and landings at the sites.
The defence department have not publicly named the sites, but they are likely to include the MCG and some of the city's skyscrapers.
A defence spokesman said the helicopters would be flying during both night and day and that noise interruptions will be brief and kept to a minimum. The spokesman said members of the public should be not alarmed by the flyovers.
A Black Hawk helicopter from the 171 Squadron was involved in a crash landing off the coast of Fiji in November last year.
A military board of inquiry is investigating the cause of the accident, which killed the pilot and a passenger, and has heard evidence that the choppers may have a potentially disastrous glitch: a tendency to temporarily lose power, known as a 'main rotor droop', which can occur when engines are unable to instantly supply the power required by the pilot to execute a manoeuvre.
Now, I fully appreciate the value of pre-warning the great unwashed about military activities in a non military area, but WTF is the reason for the additional 2 paragraphs? Sensationalism? The "Lets put an edge on this story" angle? FFS! They really want something to happen don't they?:mad:
July 17, 2007 - 3:27PM
Black Hawk helicopters will swoop across Melbourne for the next two weeks, practising rapid approaches and landings at some of the city's landmarks.
The training exercise, described by the defence department as "routine", will involve a large number of Sikorsky S-70A-9 Black Hawks from the elite 171 Squadron from Sydney's Holsworthy military base.
The wind and rain which continues to lash Melbourne has not affected the exercise.
This week's training will mostly be at military sites, including the Simpson Barracks in Macleod and the HMAS Cerberus in Western Port Bay. Given the size of the defence department land at these sites, a spokesman said there would be little for the public to see.
Next week the focus of the exercise shifts to the city, where the battle group's activities will involve a number of 'ready response insertion profiles' at Melbourne landmarks - essentially practising rapid aerial approaches and landings at the sites.
The defence department have not publicly named the sites, but they are likely to include the MCG and some of the city's skyscrapers.
A defence spokesman said the helicopters would be flying during both night and day and that noise interruptions will be brief and kept to a minimum. The spokesman said members of the public should be not alarmed by the flyovers.
A Black Hawk helicopter from the 171 Squadron was involved in a crash landing off the coast of Fiji in November last year.
A military board of inquiry is investigating the cause of the accident, which killed the pilot and a passenger, and has heard evidence that the choppers may have a potentially disastrous glitch: a tendency to temporarily lose power, known as a 'main rotor droop', which can occur when engines are unable to instantly supply the power required by the pilot to execute a manoeuvre.
Now, I fully appreciate the value of pre-warning the great unwashed about military activities in a non military area, but WTF is the reason for the additional 2 paragraphs? Sensationalism? The "Lets put an edge on this story" angle? FFS! They really want something to happen don't they?:mad: