What's New In W. Africa (Nigeria)
So it appears that not one single Bristow pilot will be asked to take redundancy because the group can find work for them somewhere in the world AND they are getting a modest payrise too.
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Check your incubator please!
Something stinks in there and it might be the two-headed babies.
The Dornier 328 Turboprop was a bit pricey but sort of okay. Then came the switch (driven by exactly which technical or customer demand-based decisions, please?) to the 328Jet with its alarming appetite for an electrical distribution box one was not allowed to do field repairs on, tires (80 landings per on a high-cycle operation - sheer genius) and the occasional engine (due to an unforeseen design flaw). It didn't take Einstein to see how that one was going to work out.
The EC-155... I went to gawk at the cockpit when they were all shiny and new and leaned up against the seat back cushion, like a wet sponge because of being soaked with sweat. That took the gloss off right away.
We used to moan when the Dornier air con played up so that it got up to 25° in there. That helo must be like a sauna by comparison.
That is just something I know about, from flying Twotters, having to live with a hot and humid cockpit day in, day out. The rest of it, failing power checks and what-not, I will leave to someone who knows all about that sort of thing to discuss. Don't forget to tell us about the TCAS.
The Dornier 328 Turboprop was a bit pricey but sort of okay. Then came the switch (driven by exactly which technical or customer demand-based decisions, please?) to the 328Jet with its alarming appetite for an electrical distribution box one was not allowed to do field repairs on, tires (80 landings per on a high-cycle operation - sheer genius) and the occasional engine (due to an unforeseen design flaw). It didn't take Einstein to see how that one was going to work out.
The EC-155... I went to gawk at the cockpit when they were all shiny and new and leaned up against the seat back cushion, like a wet sponge because of being soaked with sweat. That took the gloss off right away.
We used to moan when the Dornier air con played up so that it got up to 25° in there. That helo must be like a sauna by comparison.
That is just something I know about, from flying Twotters, having to live with a hot and humid cockpit day in, day out. The rest of it, failing power checks and what-not, I will leave to someone who knows all about that sort of thing to discuss. Don't forget to tell us about the TCAS.
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Chuks - but both types are so much safer than the ones they replaced and that after all is the main issue is it not?
Remember the Twin Otter overun or the rotor failure at PH on the 212?
Remember the Twin Otter overun or the rotor failure at PH on the 212?
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Who says?
Both Shell Twotter crashes in Nigeria could not be blamed on the basic design of the aircraft, unless you expect a Dornier 328 to just hit a mountain and bounce off unharmed or to cut its way through an F27 like a hot knife through butter, both things the Twotter is sadly incapable of.
The number of hours racked up on the Dorniers was too little to say much about its safety record I think, while the program itself seems to have croaked mostly on the basis that it was too expensive, something that should only have come as a surprise to some Shell so-called manager stupid or greedy enough to have chosen a new and relatively untried type of aircraft over one that had an established track record, the Dornier 328 over the Dash 8.
Thank God Shell didn't repeat that blunder when they chose the EC-155, eh?
The number of hours racked up on the Dorniers was too little to say much about its safety record I think, while the program itself seems to have croaked mostly on the basis that it was too expensive, something that should only have come as a surprise to some Shell so-called manager stupid or greedy enough to have chosen a new and relatively untried type of aircraft over one that had an established track record, the Dornier 328 over the Dash 8.
Thank God Shell didn't repeat that blunder when they chose the EC-155, eh?
Shellie....
Which rotor failure of a 212 are you referring to?
Matter of fact....let's do a list of Bristow Helicopter accidents at Shell facilities shall we?
The wire strike....wrote off one at PHC.
The Engineering failure that killed Monte.
The main rotor blade delam.
What was it....three fatal Wessex Crashes?
Mobil Eket accidents....
Then there was the Eket Wind Sock massacre by the CP.
The 212 that got flown into the water.
The un-explicable early morninng crash at the QIT.
Chevron/Texaco
A 412 that went missing one night on a Casavac
All that time....ACN lost one Alouette that rolled over on the ramp due to an Engineering fault and one 365 lost at Brass.
Which rotor failure of a 212 are you referring to?
Matter of fact....let's do a list of Bristow Helicopter accidents at Shell facilities shall we?
The wire strike....wrote off one at PHC.
The Engineering failure that killed Monte.
The main rotor blade delam.
What was it....three fatal Wessex Crashes?
Mobil Eket accidents....
Then there was the Eket Wind Sock massacre by the CP.
The 212 that got flown into the water.
The un-explicable early morninng crash at the QIT.
Chevron/Texaco
A 412 that went missing one night on a Casavac
All that time....ACN lost one Alouette that rolled over on the ramp due to an Engineering fault and one 365 lost at Brass.
Last edited by SASless; 14th Jul 2010 at 13:06.
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Another plausable reason
Apart from being a good read, you have all obviously missed the point...
The whole excercise (or should that be 'to exorcise') has been to see the rapid demise, and to put an end to, the grumpy engineer syndrome at the BRC!!!
Of course this reason is a long shot, but it's definately plausable when nothing else logical come to mind
The whole excercise (or should that be 'to exorcise') has been to see the rapid demise, and to put an end to, the grumpy engineer syndrome at the BRC!!!
Of course this reason is a long shot, but it's definately plausable when nothing else logical come to mind
I did fail to point out the Mobil crashes......but did say Eket...which we all know is not Shell. I included those to address the big company against little company comment.
I did leave out the Super Puma ditching of late as well.
I did leave out the Super Puma ditching of late as well.
SAS, he's referring to Al's blade grip failure (on short final) I assume.
Frankly I don't why anyone is giving SM airtime - surely no one believes his comments to be genuine?
On another note, I see NNPC has become insolvent.....
BBC News - Nigeria state oil firm insolvent, says minister
Frankly I don't why anyone is giving SM airtime - surely no one believes his comments to be genuine?
On another note, I see NNPC has become insolvent.....
BBC News - Nigeria state oil firm insolvent, says minister
212man.....my Gulder pickled brain seems to remember two very similar occurences.....both happened while I was out of the country doing Somalia and a bit of EMS flying on 412's back in the States.
Did not one result in a ditching on a canal....while flown by the shortest tenured CP in Bristow history prior to his taking the Warri Chair momentarily?
You taken that green book out of the Loo and broken the glass yet?
I would imagine you are feeling kinda vulnerable right now.....especially if your contract has that wee tiny printed paragraph that says something along the line of ".....and those other duties as may be imposed."
Now that is real news! She must have one very good secret source to come up with that kind of information!
Did not one result in a ditching on a canal....while flown by the shortest tenured CP in Bristow history prior to his taking the Warri Chair momentarily?
You taken that green book out of the Loo and broken the glass yet?
I would imagine you are feeling kinda vulnerable right now.....especially if your contract has that wee tiny printed paragraph that says something along the line of ".....and those other duties as may be imposed."
The NNPC is plagued by mismanagement and corruption, says the BBC's Caroline Duffield in Lagos.
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Tomorrow is D day, decision day for Bristow personnel, who have been asked to state whether they'll be taking up the company's offer of continuing employment or Caverscam's offer (if they have one - and if it bears any resemblance to what they thought they'd been offered). Some pilots have already accepted staying on with Bristow and have gone on refresher training in Dubai, possibly because the company just announced the Addax contract renewal for 3 years and upgrading to Bell 412EPs (will this finally signal a farewell to DD?). There are also quite a few pilots away on AS332L2 courses already, probably to crew up the aircraft which arrived a week or so ago.
I'd say Caverscam will find it hard going crewing the contract with properly qualified crews in just 12 weeks time, considering they don't seem to have much of anything - except Aero
in place yet.The thread about payday at Arik Air on the African Aviation thread makes interesting reading and may be a sign of how things will go with Conscammer
D.Day well that will explain why the few pilots that i know who have applied direct to Dancopter haven't heard anything yet with a short time scale to the start of the contract.
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I have talked to some friends who have applied to C/D-without even getting a reply...
Some are having >4000 hours, OFfshore-PIC-experience offering "the full package"-nothing...no answer, no "application received"...7
Hmm...
strange.....?
Some are having >4000 hours, OFfshore-PIC-experience offering "the full package"-nothing...no answer, no "application received"...7
Hmm...
strange.....?
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D Day came and went and it looks as if Bristow will be losing about what they expected to Caverscam, a few Captains and a few cojos who've been offered Captains jobs with Caverscam. It'll probably look really good on the CV in a few years with Caverscam's reputation as the Centre of Excellence in Africa 
. Caverscam will be gaining an excellent barrack room lawyer, the Pid a noisy Pork and Cheeser and a few cojos. I guess they'll need all they can get as even if only 4 of the 155s are serviceable (chance would be a fine thing 
) they'll need at least 12 on site to man them and keep to Smell flight and duty times by 1st October. Then they'll need the crews for the other aircraft to fill in for the broken EC155s - as usual. I think that at a conservative estimate, with a few pilots staying out here on an accompanied basis, they'll need 40 pilots to run the contract, so they'll have to find almost 30 from somewhere, at least half of those qualified and in country in less than 11 weeks. I'll bet someone is having sleepless nights and losing hair already wondering how they're going to do it in time. Caverscam probably don't care because they have the contract (and thus the money) but ConDoctor has a reputation to think about and it's already been dented by their inability to actually have any aircraft or crews here to start the first part of the contract which started nearly 3 weeks ago. Actually, that's probably more the fault of poor organisation on the part of the Smell Aircraft advisors. ConDoctor's first aircraft is due to leave next week and when it gets here, that's when their fun will start
I wonder what 212 man thinks about the old Portuguese friend of his from 155 days leaving Aero and joining Caverscam to fly the 155 and 139
. Caverscam will be gaining an excellent barrack room lawyer, the Pid a noisy Pork and Cheeser and a few cojos. I guess they'll need all they can get as even if only 4 of the 155s are serviceable (chance would be a fine thing ) they'll need at least 12 on site to man them and keep to Smell flight and duty times by 1st October. Then they'll need the crews for the other aircraft to fill in for the broken EC155s - as usual. I think that at a conservative estimate, with a few pilots staying out here on an accompanied basis, they'll need 40 pilots to run the contract, so they'll have to find almost 30 from somewhere, at least half of those qualified and in country in less than 11 weeks. I'll bet someone is having sleepless nights and losing hair already wondering how they're going to do it in time. Caverscam probably don't care because they have the contract (and thus the money) but ConDoctor has a reputation to think about and it's already been dented by their inability to actually have any aircraft or crews here to start the first part of the contract which started nearly 3 weeks ago. Actually, that's probably more the fault of poor organisation on the part of the Smell Aircraft advisors. ConDoctor's first aircraft is due to leave next week and when it gets here, that's when their fun will start I wonder what 212 man thinks about the old Portuguese friend of his from 155 days leaving Aero and joining Caverscam to fly the 155 and 139
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Has anybody noticed something odd about Nigeria and helicopter companies:
Aero
Bristow
Caverscam
DonCopter
I guess Evergreen should be here before Fast helicopters Gulf or HeliOnion then?
How come OAS is here already?
Companies starting with S haven't done too well - Southern Air, Stillwater
..... nor have those starting with C - Concorde, Court, CHC, Caver........
Aero
Bristow
Caverscam
DonCopter
I guess Evergreen should be here before Fast helicopters Gulf or HeliOnion then?
How come OAS is here already?
Companies starting with S haven't done too well - Southern Air, Stillwater
..... nor have those starting with C - Concorde, Court, CHC, Caver........
What about Pan African.....as it was around since the early 70's or even sooner.....starting with Bell 47's....only to move up to the warm loving embraces of Air Log......now Bristow. Or should I say "clutches"?