CHINOOK SUPPORT TO FLOOD VICTIMS
 

Saw a Chinook on BBC supporting the flood victims in Yorkshire/Cumbria, was wondering does operating low level over water raise any particular challenges to a Chinook crew.

Maybe not to the crew so much as those below in the downwash from the rotors?

-RP

Nothwithstanding it's Christmas/New Year, it must be nice for the 'boys' to be operating over friendly airspace . . . .

Having got affected relatives in York - thank you to all our Armed Services and the Civil authorities involved.

Will someone tell Kay Burley form SKY news that the big green thing belongs to the Royal Air Force not the Army.

RAF support helicopters operate under Army control. JHC reports to Army HQ, and is presently commanded by a Maj Gen.

But they do have the RAF logo on them.

..........but ownership of the airframes and full command of the crews remains with the RAF. Army HQ pay the running costs. Good to see the guys helping out.

Just watched a clip on BBC News website of a Chinook delivering supplies to the Foss bridge. The clip was taken from a platform initially above and slightly behind the Chinook and later from above the stbd side. There is no indication of whether the footage was taken from another helicopter or a drone. If it was a drone, surely this posed a potential risk to the Chinook as it was outside the pilots view. Any thoughts?

http://http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-35189262

Having watched that BBC Video, I would say it was 'filmed' by a professional media crew from a helicopter - there is sound and the panning is smooth and 'centred' (although drones are approaching those standards).

Watching it from afar, online and the like, I thought the national response looks a bit of a shambles. Almost overwhelming, in fact. Granted its a holiday period and its Winter and its Britain. But it looks an utter shambles.
One gets the impression the poor Army are getting their PPE bit by bit. First of all they were simply in combat uniform and getting very wet up to their armpits. Then they eventually got some sort of waders or wellies (some of them).Then they got hi-viz jackets. Lately 9today in fact) they've been wearing what looks like maritime issue rigid life-jackets (for meeting the PM in)?
It doesn't look good. We should seriously reflect on where we keep getting things so badly wrong. This weather started like over a week ago?
Maybe 1 x Chinook flying into a flooded UK suburb and dropping something off is regarded as a success in itself these days? I feel for the young soldiers involved, I really do. They must be beginning to wonder what they are taking part in? The biggest cluster-**** for many years? I'm not trying to be cruel, just observing as I see it.

Words escape me......

It's something of a no-win situation. If the Army are under general obligation to help the civil communities with things like flood defence (i.e. a MACC task), then of course the Army should hold the appropriate equipment (eg waders, boats etc). But you can't issue every soldier with a set of waders on the basis that sometime in his career he might be required to help in flood defence.

A central pool makes sense. The kit has to be dispatched from Donnington or wherever (Poole RNLI?) to where the issue is. Which of course takes time, and perhaps there are conflicting high priority demands for the same stores.

If the Police ever broke their no-strike law and went on strike, no doubt the Army would be called upon. But they don't have stab vests or handcuffs. I think a pick helve would do well as an ersatz truncheon though.

You're right, it's a mess, but not a mess that's easy to plan for.

Would have to be a very sophisticated drone and hugely talented operator to get remote shots like that in the BBC vid. Stabilised mounted camera from a helo at CAA legal minimums is my guess.

Nor do they have the power arrest people, apart from making a citizen's arrest which would require police to hand the arrested person to.

A single Chinook dropping sandbags while enthusiastic, but largely clueless, squaddies take the poor saps on boat rides through the streets as their properties and livelihoods are destroyed around them. This tells you everything you need to know about this Government's response to the devastating annual floods and how much action has gone in to countering the threat. Never mind all this North versus South bollocks, this is the epitome of Civil preparedness at its absolute worst.

Tell us how the 1993 St Louis floods were dealt with . . .

Oh come on, where's your sense of humour?

It's far to easy to go fishing here.

Of course they are RAF helicopters, but they do work for the Army. If there were no Army need for SH, there would be little pointing the RAF having any SH at all.

Except for helping the people who actually pay for it of course.

A lot of people wise after the event.......media, opposition politicians, ppruners etc! Easy to criticise afterwards. Not nearly so easy to foresee, plan for [and pay for] appropriate responses to natural disasters of an unprecedented scale.

Anybody who has ever had to deal with such disasters will explain the almost impossibility of beating nature.....IMHO.

Well done to all those involved in the rescue and recovery.

H49

Taken from an Arena Aviation AS355 Twin Squirrel, G-TAKE, under contract to the BBC.