FIGAS Pilot?
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Once, I watched three aircraft land at MPA in quick succession.
The TriStar crabbed in with more drift than I've ever seen on an airliner, smacked onto the runway with both bogies smoking lots of rubber, and rolled out shaking.
Five minutes later the Herc came in wing down, came within an ace of wiping the wingtip pod on the runway, bounced a couple of times and shuddered to a stop.
Five minutes later FIGAS turned up. Some considerable time after that they crossed the threshold with about 40 degrees of drift. They wobbled down the runway at about 200 ft, then decisively turned 270 right, landed across, and taxied direct into the main dispersal.
Good decision.
The TriStar crabbed in with more drift than I've ever seen on an airliner, smacked onto the runway with both bogies smoking lots of rubber, and rolled out shaking.
Five minutes later the Herc came in wing down, came within an ace of wiping the wingtip pod on the runway, bounced a couple of times and shuddered to a stop.
Five minutes later FIGAS turned up. Some considerable time after that they crossed the threshold with about 40 degrees of drift. They wobbled down the runway at about 200 ft, then decisively turned 270 right, landed across, and taxied direct into the main dispersal.
Good decision.
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I watched the FIGAS islander land and take off from the grass strip at Hill Cove on West falkland(I think, memory fading). It looked like op certain death. Hats off to Howling Mad Murdoch at the controls, his enormous steel cahooners must have stabilised the crate he was flying.
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You are of course all correct....the FIGAS pilots did a great job in some fairly 'frontier flying' circumstances! On our trip to east FI we had an American tourist on board who was convinced he was going to die as we landed. The main strip was unavailable to us so we landed in a field by the settlement and bounced our way through two fields. Fortunately someone had thought to open the gate between them and the wings cleared the dry stone wall by just enough! Quite exciting!
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Great to see everybody coming to the defence of the FIGAS guys. I know the first post was just a joke, but I can't think of a crowd of aviators who less deserve a dig like that. In years past I often sat in 78 Sqn crewroom, grounded for the day due to weather, and would look out the window to see an Islander flying past Pleasant Peak.
I've now the opportunity to work alongside them at Stanley and have never seen better maintained aircraft and it's obvious that the pilots all pride themselves in working to a high professional standard, whilst still getting the job done in poor weather around some difficult terrain. An outstanding bunch of folks!
I've now the opportunity to work alongside them at Stanley and have never seen better maintained aircraft and it's obvious that the pilots all pride themselves in working to a high professional standard, whilst still getting the job done in poor weather around some difficult terrain. An outstanding bunch of folks!
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I saw some crazy weather in the 6 months I was in the Falklands, and the FIGAS flew in it all. Watched them take off & land before they got onto the runway at MPA, watched them land at San Carlos when the Sea king was struggling to hold a steady hover in howling winds, some exceptionally good handling skills & great local knowledge make a good combination. I loved the way they shut the engines down while still taxying, and practically booted the passengers out while they were still rolling.
I just wish I had chance to fly with them, never did get a trip
I just wish I had chance to fly with them, never did get a trip
I was scheduled do a flypast at San Carlos one day for a funeral - a VC10 and two F3s. The forecast wasn't great, so on the morning I phoned the settlement to get an appraisal of the weather. The local storekeepr mentioned a FIGAS pilot carruing mourners had just landed and perhaps I would I like to speak to him for a professional appraisal of the weather. The FIGAS hero mentioned he has no problem getting in as the vis was quite good, but the ceiling was about 80' and that he was at 50' for the last five miles of the flight!
Flypast cancelled!
I did sit in the right hand seat of one FIGAS flight going out to a settlement strip (can't remeber which one). When we landed, the strip was so rough I honestly thought we had lost a gear leg. The pilot didn't seem phased by it at all.
Flypast cancelled!
I did sit in the right hand seat of one FIGAS flight going out to a settlement strip (can't remeber which one). When we landed, the strip was so rough I honestly thought we had lost a gear leg. The pilot didn't seem phased by it at all.
I went to the Falklands in '87 as a co-pilot with Bristow. We used to reckon there was a clear pecking order of "stacking" for the day as the weather got worse. First the Phantoms would stop (wind considerations for coming to earth after ejecting, I believe), then the Chinooks (blade sailing on start/shutdown), then the Hercs, then the SAR Sea Kings (no offence meant - all the above would of course have launched if operationally required).
A long time after that, Bristow would finally call "enough", and retire for tea and medals.
And while we were drinking our tea, looking out of the window, there would be the drone of the Islander flying past in 50 knot horizontal rain under a 150' cloudbase and 1km vis or less...........
A few years later I left Bristow and joined FIGAS - flew for them for 2 years, some of the best fun flying I have had. I remember one day with a Tornado pilot in the front right hand seat, trying to find my way to Chartres from Port Howard, getting lower and lower through the Saddle, following the road. I have a bit more sense now, but often wonder what he was thinking.............
I would second inputshaft's comments on the professional standards of FIGAS today - the maintenance is second to none and the pilots (all Falkland Islanders at the moment) excellent.
I subsequently went to British Antarctic Survey for 12 years on Twin Otter and Dash 7 (but that is another story), and have now come full circle having joined British International last year, back on the S61 at MPA.
A long time after that, Bristow would finally call "enough", and retire for tea and medals.
And while we were drinking our tea, looking out of the window, there would be the drone of the Islander flying past in 50 knot horizontal rain under a 150' cloudbase and 1km vis or less...........
A few years later I left Bristow and joined FIGAS - flew for them for 2 years, some of the best fun flying I have had. I remember one day with a Tornado pilot in the front right hand seat, trying to find my way to Chartres from Port Howard, getting lower and lower through the Saddle, following the road. I have a bit more sense now, but often wonder what he was thinking.............
I would second inputshaft's comments on the professional standards of FIGAS today - the maintenance is second to none and the pilots (all Falkland Islanders at the moment) excellent.
I subsequently went to British Antarctic Survey for 12 years on Twin Otter and Dash 7 (but that is another story), and have now come full circle having joined British International last year, back on the S61 at MPA.
Back to the video...
Can you imagine being the Display Director seeing this for the first time on practise day?
Also, I can't imagine the CAA ever giving out a Display Authorisation (DA) in the UK for this kind of display.
LJ
Can you imagine being the Display Director seeing this for the first time on practise day?
Also, I can't imagine the CAA ever giving out a Display Authorisation (DA) in the UK for this kind of display.
LJ
Early 86 I was at MPA taking over facilities from the contractor. My boss was a wg cdr navigator from Lyneham - he got a "hats on , no coffee" meeting with the staish at Stanley (and ISTR the Commandder BFFI) for diverting the FIGAS Islander with a party of FI councillors because we had a concrete pour on the MPA runway. He was told that FI councillors had primacy "no matter what"!
Took a trip to Fox Bay which entailed landing between a couple of minefields and rows of half-buried 45-gallon oil drums . I returned to MPA on the Eric. 
The flight announcements on FIBS were another thing - especially when done by the female with a lithp. Apparently they were made so that folks (including bennies) knew they were booked on a particular flight. What they did however, was let the world know was who was "visiting" who, given the lack of "entertainment" in camp. One particular announcement still sticks in my memory - it was for a flight from San Carlos to Port Howard. The passenger(s) were Mr Jones and dog!
. I returned to MPA on the Eric. The flight announcements on FIBS were another thing - especially when done by the female with a lithp. Apparently they were made so that folks (including bennies) knew they were booked on a particular flight. What they did however, was let the world know was who was "visiting" who, given the lack of "entertainment" in camp. One particular announcement still sticks in my memory - it was for a flight from San Carlos to Port Howard. The passenger(s) were Mr Jones and dog!
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Wig Wag
the chap wasn't a blonde Essex lad called Ian by any chance? The Heathrow story sounds identical to that of a chap I worked with in the mid 1980's. If it is the same guy, you've missed the extra point that Heathrow was fog-bound and the police helicopter had to be vectored onto the radio-less Cub by ATC, nearly resulting in a collision. The story (as related by Ian) was that he got the Cub down out of the fog somewhere in a field near North London, only to be met by an irate farmer cursing him and saying "See that ****ing hill? Thats where Graham Hill died"
Another stunt he played was to climb out and hang off the wing, leaving the passenger to fly the Cub - he told the passenger that as he was expert at flying model aircraft, he'd be able to handle the Cub
the chap wasn't a blonde Essex lad called Ian by any chance? The Heathrow story sounds identical to that of a chap I worked with in the mid 1980's. If it is the same guy, you've missed the extra point that Heathrow was fog-bound and the police helicopter had to be vectored onto the radio-less Cub by ATC, nearly resulting in a collision. The story (as related by Ian) was that he got the Cub down out of the fog somewhere in a field near North London, only to be met by an irate farmer cursing him and saying "See that ****ing hill? Thats where Graham Hill died"
Another stunt he played was to climb out and hang off the wing, leaving the passenger to fly the Cub - he told the passenger that as he was expert at flying model aircraft, he'd be able to handle the Cub
Last edited by jamesdevice; 19th Nov 2011 at 22:26.
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Ask this reporter about what he thinks about Piper Cubs
