RN Sea King Icing incident/citation
 

Hello,
I remember reading an accident report or citation about an RN SK conducting a rescue in horrendous conditions in the South West approaches.

It may have been a "I learnt about flying from that" type article. It describes engine flame out and some very nasty conditions, the aircraft ended up in a field. I think there may have been a citation/endorsment for the Captain of the aircraft.

I have googled all the usual suspects and have had no joy. Could anyone point me in the right direction please?

The MOD website only details RAF MAAS, so any hope of trying to find an Army or RN incident is minimal!

Would like to use this as a teaching point and to prompt some informed discussion about Icing.

Regards

Ralph

That sounds like the 'Merc Enterprise' rescue of January 1974. Five Culdrose Sea Kings, including two German a/c from the Foreign Training Unit (the others from 706 and 824 Squadrons) lifted seven crew from a 480 ton Danish coaster when hurricane force winds were blowing down the Channel, and a further four who had been picked up by a Soviet trawler. The ship had capsized off Plymouth. One of the German aircraft and the 824 aircraft suffered severe salt ingestion in the engines, and both made cautionary landings in fields on the way back to Culdrose. The turbine blades were found to have severe corrosion, and I understand the barn door FOD shield was introduced as a partial answer.

Those are the bare bones; I am sure that there is a lot more information available.

ralph, we have had 3 interesting icing incidents (including IMC aborts and forced descents due to weight of ice accreted) in the last year which have prompted lots of discussion. I can probably get you a copy of the info if you pm me.

Crab

Get yourself a S92 as the civilian SAR guys infer it is immune to icing;)

HF

Was Tony Baker, an Australian Navy chap on exchange, or maybe doing the Sea King conversion, as Australia was to take delivery of it's first aircraft in 75 - 76 I think it was. Did get a gong but can't recall which. Salt accretion on compressor was the cause. Won't be home for a month or so so unable to pass on his email address. If you can hang out till then ralphmalph can put you in contact. Tony went on to do the Pax River test pilot thing.

ralphmalph, have just talked to Tony and he is more than happy to correspond with you. Check your PMs for contact details, just caution the time difference if you phone, he is in Queensland at the moment.

Tony was on exchange to 824: Dave Mallock was driving a FGN Sea King and encountered severe torque fluctuations when returning to CU, so bad that he did an engine off into a ploughed field on the Lizard. He thought the machine was about to turn over as he slid through the mud, reckoned that he saw ~30 degrees on the AI before it stopped more or less upright :ooh:

Tony was having problems, too, and broke off his approach into CU on hearing Malarkey Jim's Mayday and went back to provide help if required. When Malarkey called safe on the ground, Tony made the intelligent decision to land: just near the local pub :ok:

AFC's to both of them, well deserved. Problem was salt accumulation on the IGV's following protracted low level ops in gale force winds and associated ocean spray. Quite a few more years before the barn doors appeared, IIRC, even though the USN and most other Sikorsky SK operators had used them for ages :rolleyes:

Now Now HF I didn not say immune, just better equipped to deal with it! ;)