winching techniques

[Rotor Power]

Can someone please give latest winching circuit for training especially for nil wind condition when the simulated survivor keeps moving away due to downwash?

[Cabe LeCutter]

I will have a pint of what you are drinking if you think you will get a sensible or even workable answer to that.

Heads down, look out for the flack

[Airborne Aircrew]

Rotor:

I'm far from knowledgeable with regard to absolute SAR doctrine but I do wonder why you're interested in a complete circuit when the little devil is simply being pushed away by your downdraft... Are you planning on flying an entire circuit rather than just craftily repositioning? Poor devil might have drowned or you might lose him/her doing that... Just a thought..

[Arm out the window]

It's been a long time, but as I remember running the cable out early and keeping your speed up so the strop just arrives at the survivor before your downwash hits in earnest used to work OK.

How you arrive at that point is immaterial, but if you're talking about overflying a survivor in the water and then setting up for the rescue, it would probably be a smallish racetrack, keeping the survivor in sight and giving the crewman time to set up for the winch, then arranging your final approach as above.

[david parry]

Your crewman will do all that is required in a winchex and the patter will be of the highest calibre. easy easy and steady

[fergineer]

simple winch out the wire to its max length then hit the two speed winch to max, the heli is well ahead of the survivor and the winchman collides with survivor. No down wash no movement.....

[leopold bloom]

RP
If you PM me with an email address I will send you a Powerpoint slide showing an academic winching circuit with the associated script.

[pohm1]

Try a higher hover.

P1

[Herod]

I was going to suggest stopping the engines.

[Lima Juliet]

This is the only way to winch in aviation!

[Rotor Power]

Thanks a lot folks.

I will certainly try some of these gr8 ideas.

I was just wondering why not a simple mirror to help the pilot instead of blindly following someone else's interpretation that too when he doesn't have command over English language.

seeing is believing !

[Motleycallsign]

You could always attach a 'Highline' to the winch hook and drop that to the survivor, he can then pull the hook to him instead of being blown away. Just a thought...........

[Rotor Power]

sounds like you have been flying Navy Sea Kings!

[handysnaks]

Rotor Power. I do wish you would ask that question on this thread
Future of UK SAR. If you do, please tell them that you're the Chief Training Instructor for The UK /Bristows SAR Bid.

Just to see what happens, you understand...

[Al-bert]

ere we go

RP

I was just wondering why not a simple mirror to help the pilot instead of blindly following someone else's interpretation that too when he doesn't have command over English language.

I believe polished Hub Caps (Humber to be precise) were once the preferred option!

[leopold bloom]

Steady

I will have a pint of what you are drinking if you think you will get a sensible or even workable answer to that.

Heads down, look out for the flack

Tsing Tao please Cabe

[david parry]

Winching is no big deal if you are a qualified helicopter pilot with SAR capabilities and have an SAR aircrewman onboard, or much better still an SAR aircrewman Diver onboard AKA GOD the trouble starts and ends when you have non of the above onboard ,and you think you are jack of all trades and an ace of the base old and bold . ps what happened to wet winching drills in Portland harbour FROGMEN JUMP TO RESCUE - British Pathé

[Cornish Jack]

Al-bert ... not Humber, Hillman Husky, 2 off fitted to the Bristol Sycamore. one on the oleo and one on a bracket outside the cockpit. Not a huge success - about on a par with the extending intercom cable which the winchman plugged into with the 'waterproof' plug and socket!! Oh, yes AND the Sproule net!! Once the Sycamore was replaced with a machine which could carry Winch Op AND Winchman, things improved. Downwash could be overcome by putting the W/M into the water some distance before the overhead and letting out enough cable to 'trail' him. Once settled and with fine judgement (), give the pilot "Up 10" and simultaneously hit the switch up. W/M leaves the water and swings forward and as he passes the vertical, pay out enough cable to pop him into the water by the survivor. By the time the helo is overhead, all is secure and ready for lift... "5,4,3,2,1, Steady, Up Gently" Easy Peasy. Used to do it regularly on Staff continuation at Valley.
A couple of caveats - It was used (in modified form) at a Bank Holiday demo at Blackpool - before my time. The sequence went slightly awry, W/M got too far behind and resultant swing had him 'eyeballing' the pilot through the windscreen
It didn't work on the Kaman Husky 'cos the downwash was ALWAYS ahead of the aircraft - a feature which made it a prime machine for fire suppression carrying the underslung 'Fireball' extinguisher. This allowed the fire hose men to walk the hoses into the fire.

[Al-bert]

Cornish,

damn, they lied to me, I was told it was Humber, a quality hubcap!
I did encounter the Sproule net, but its days were really over when I got to SAR. As for swinging in the winchman- it would all depend on who was the winchman!

[Adam Nams]

SAR aircrewman Diver onboard

Don't forget your flippers.