To those who doubt,

Everyday is better and better in Merlin land.

Morale exceptionally high and plenty to do (in the air).

Wouldn't swap my job with anyone!

Si

Well it is doing well in sandy places, taking a lot of the strain from the other platforms. Availability is high and the speed and range is popular with the customers, as is the cabin room. Who would have thought it!

It'll have nothing to do with the three engined miracle's MAUM of 15 tons v its zero fuel wt of 10.5 tons and the Wokka's 24.5 MAUM v 12.5 ton ZFW then?

Or did I miss something in basic helicopter design class. Is the R22 actually the safest helicopter flying because of its modest payload? Do modern safety standards dictate that a crap capablity equals high safety standards.

Jackonicko, are you really that gullable, how did it get AST 404 in the first place - politics!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What is the basis of this sweeping statement? Which fatal Chinook and Sea King accidents would have been survivable in a Merlin and vice versa? I'll be happy to go through all the RAF Chinook ones with you.


Lucky the happy customers have a choice, Merlin or walk.

...........were gonna need some higher braking strain line.............

“One reason that Merlin's payload if more modest than the Chinook's is that it is built to modern standards of crashworthiness”.


Not wrong, but why compare Merlin with Chinook in the first place?

Am I correct in saying the RN first selected Merlin? They envisaged two roles from day 1. Primary – ASW, replacing SK5 and SK6. Secondary – Commando, augmenting, not replacing, SK4. This is 20+ years ago, but I recall the specifics hadn’t been thrashed out as to whether all (103!!) cabs would be ASW and a proportion supplied with role mods to convert, or whether some would be non-ASW from the start. I suspect the latter – the detail of the role mods was being worked out (in 1985!) and the time to convert was horrendous.

The RAF requirement came along later and that is where I believe the politics kicked in, not least because the RN buy was decreasing rapidly with every passing LTC round. Industry (not just Westland) had been encouraged to plan for 103 and, unusually, had been allowed to publish this detail. In simple terms, the MoD didn’t look too good when it cut the RN, so people viewed RAF Merlin as a political expediency to allow them to say the total Merlin buy was pretty close (or at least closer) to the original provision. I may not be wholly correct, but I'm not too far out.

Original DOR(Sea) reqmt SR(S)6646 (circa 1989) was 114, all ASW.

Cut to 44, then with the addition of 25 Mk3s still falls way short of what WHL would have hoped for.

:cool:

TOG

Minor point, but the Mk3 buy is 22, not 25.

Yet again we have "Bah Humbug Turnbull" having a pop at the Merlin, makes a change from not having a pop at the "gimmick filled display"!

Whats the matter, drafter not let you go and play with the new toy?

I bet the joys of the world just excude from your gaff.. Just accept its the new kid on the block and that its proving quite popular

Hey, the Chinny lads have new toys to play with as well, they just don't work properly.:rolleyes:

Thats not quite true Jacko. We've been trying to get AW to fix the problem. The inspect & repair is because they haven't fixed the problems yet. Not sure what you guys did as a fix, but I'm sure our Cormorant guys would love to know.

The parts (half-hubs) on the tail rotor have a life of 1700hrs, yet have been showing cracks into the main structure at an average of about 35hrs.

Due to these problems, the Danes had been refusing delivery of their 14 EH101s.

As for the a/c itself, everyone here loves it.:ok:

"To those who doubt,

Everyday is better and better in Merlin land.

Morale exceptionally high and plenty to do (in the air).

Wouldn't swap my job with anyone!"

Si

Get a Life !

:yuk:

Oi toot toot or whatever,

Wow, sounds like the truth hurts and you've had to get personal.
:O

far from it TURNBULL, not getting personal at all, just stating a fact that you are completely anti-merlin and slag it off at every opportunity. Its a free country so you are entitled to your opinions as I am entitled to mine of your posts.

Can you deny that you are anti-merlin?

Not personal?

Loads of others over the months

Not anti-merlin?

Sorry, wrong thread. I was after the "My Dad's bigger than your dad" thread and got momentarily confused by the banter...

Sorry two's but too much negativity on here about all sorts of stuff

NR Droop,

Read it and weep matey.

Please visit us any time you like and ask anyone you like on the Squadron.

I have just had 2 years away flying my desk and have come back to a system that is working, making targets and has high morale.

Still if like your brains shaken out.

SI

Either way, relax. Move along, there's nothing to see here.
 

_________________________________________________
Either way, relax. Move along, there's nothing to see here.
_________________________________________________

:cool:
Sorry, but there is a lot to see here and discuss. I have two major concerns:

1. Can anybody explain me how the main beam's were constructed and how the strenght is compared with oldtime aluminum beam`s as in a Lynx? My consideration is the extreme deteroation of the Merlin crash at Couldrose!

2. As a simpel pilot I am conserned when people tell me that the major parts of the tail rotor construction is manufactered in Italie by hand and these parts vary in shapes and forms!!

I have no problems in noticing the great potential of the Merlin. It is an up to date helicopter, that have some flaws.

And no I am not "a scared future Danish Merlin aircrew member". I just have an interest in the matter. Why don't you guys try to tell me something I don´t know, instead of being the usual w... a..!!!!

:cool:

Si Clik

Me thinks you have been inhaling too much MMMF, I hear there is a lot or it about at E site ! Get down sickbay and take some reality pills !