BO 105 - Good, Bad or just Ugly?
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I remember Bristows having a Boelkow in the hangar @1978 from lighthouse duty. I had never seen a helicopter with more wear and tear and cracks in it, ever, and haven't seen one in that bad shape since! They're rugged but certainly need to be maintained like any other machine.
105 flying ashtray...
Back in the old days when smoking was the norm, I used to roll my own ciggies while slinging loads out to the Bishop Rock, mainly through boredom.. When you picked up the load an alarming gap used to appear between the bottom of the door and the airframe 
But.... it served as a marvellous vacuum ashtray, with no evidence of ash or smell when landing for a refuel... 
Gotta love that Bolkow.... long live the tank
But.... it served as a marvellous vacuum ashtray, with no evidence of ash or smell when landing for a refuel... Gotta love that Bolkow.... long live the tank
Well it could be like the A-Star/Squirrel.....and have the entire overhead separate above the door frames....but come to think about it....there was a 212 did that at the Bristow Nigeria Texaco operation too.
The 105-LS is a horse!
The 105-LS is a horse!
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YouTube - Galway Clifden From The Air 1977
a bolkow at work in 1977...
a bolkow at work in 1977...
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"...long live the tank"
Definitely a tank!
Early model 105s had no transmission chip light. Had to 'periodically' inspect the mag plug via the clamshells then underneath the trans through an inspection panel in the interior. Of course if a 'deterioration' in power was noted, thence straight away with the check. Never saw a plug with more metal on it, and it was still in tolerance, although the xmsn was changed shortly thereafter.
" Definitely a tank!
Early model 105s had no transmission chip light. Had to 'periodically' inspect the mag plug via the clamshells then underneath the trans through an inspection panel in the interior. Of course if a 'deterioration' in power was noted, thence straight away with the check. Never saw a plug with more metal on it, and it was still in tolerance, although the xmsn was changed shortly thereafter.
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I like the Bo verry much, I flew the ship in the military.
She is nice to fly and verry reliable
Did we have those already here?
MBB Bo-105
She is nice to fly and verry reliable
Did we have those already here?
MBB Bo-105
I worked on a 105 operation in Africa 20 years ago. The guy who signed up the contract priced it as a Jetranger with an extra engine. At the end of the year they were a $100,000 in the hole.
Not all the aircrafts fault.
Operating without sand filters (too expensive to fit) and pilots refusing to fly with blade tape
(all the blades erroded out) didn't help.
I like the aircraft, made me a lot of money over the years.
The comment by Whirlwind111 about the Bristow 105 made me smile, G-AZOM.
Crashed while on lease to Bond in the early eighties. Conoco VIP trip no less.
Thankfully without casualties. Last saw its sad remains in Gleneagle Helicopters hangar at Edinburgh probably 1987.
One of the issues with the 105 was the material they were made from which was a German spec annodised aluminium. Corrosion was virtually unheard of even in an offshore environment.
However it became very brittle with age and cracks appeared all over the place at around 6000 hours. I've seen them so badly cracked that the whole structure above floor level had to be replaced.
The rigid rotor and main gearbox with nothing to abscorb any vibrations didn't help.
Not all the aircrafts fault.
Operating without sand filters (too expensive to fit) and pilots refusing to fly with blade tape
(all the blades erroded out) didn't help.
I like the aircraft, made me a lot of money over the years.
The comment by Whirlwind111 about the Bristow 105 made me smile, G-AZOM.
Crashed while on lease to Bond in the early eighties. Conoco VIP trip no less.
Thankfully without casualties. Last saw its sad remains in Gleneagle Helicopters hangar at Edinburgh probably 1987.
One of the issues with the 105 was the material they were made from which was a German spec annodised aluminium. Corrosion was virtually unheard of even in an offshore environment.
However it became very brittle with age and cracks appeared all over the place at around 6000 hours. I've seen them so badly cracked that the whole structure above floor level had to be replaced.
The rigid rotor and main gearbox with nothing to abscorb any vibrations didn't help.
Last edited by ericferret; 19th Jan 2009 at 11:44.
Join Date: Jun 2004
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SASless,
For interest's sake.....
The last LS (s/n 2058) is soon to be in service.
It was flown yesterday to blow the dust off of it.
Kind of bittersweet, as while there were never that many built, I think they
are well regarded by anyone who worked them. Oh well, progress and all
that.
Rigidhead
For interest's sake.....
The last LS (s/n 2058) is soon to be in service.
It was flown yesterday to blow the dust off of it.
Kind of bittersweet, as while there were never that many built, I think they
are well regarded by anyone who worked them. Oh well, progress and all
that.
Rigidhead
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need help finding a BO 105 LS-A3
I am currently in need of at least one BO 105 LS-A3 and am having a hard time finding any for sale.
If anyone knows where I can find one or more then please contact me. Also I would like to hear any pros and cons that other pilots may have in regards to this A/C. Are they a good long line platform, as we run 125 ft + lines and is a main stay of our operations.
If anyone knows where I can find one or more then please contact me. Also I would like to hear any pros and cons that other pilots may have in regards to this A/C. Are they a good long line platform, as we run 125 ft + lines and is a main stay of our operations.
Join Date: Jul 2001
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Mmmmm ....
........... "Are they a good long line platform?" .....
Well to fly the machine is very like the Hu500 series of a/c.
I would have thought the RH pilot seat is too far inside the a/c for comfortable vertical reference ops. Also cyclic stick trim cannot be turned off so it can be tiring to keep "fighting the trim" all day. All Bolkow pilots are easily identified by the lack of thumb cover on their flying gloves!
Not sure whether permissions could be obtained for command from the LH seat?
NB the cargo hook affixes to the a/c via cables attached to fitting attached to the u/c legs so care MUST be taken when landing a/c during slinging ops to ensure hook serviceability (keep it out of the muck!).
You WILL need a well trained engineer/mechanic attached to aircraft.
Good luck ... they're a GREAT machine!
........... "Are they a good long line platform?" .....
Well to fly the machine is very like the Hu500 series of a/c.
I would have thought the RH pilot seat is too far inside the a/c for comfortable vertical reference ops. Also cyclic stick trim cannot be turned off so it can be tiring to keep "fighting the trim" all day. All Bolkow pilots are easily identified by the lack of thumb cover on their flying gloves!
Not sure whether permissions could be obtained for command from the LH seat?
NB the cargo hook affixes to the a/c via cables attached to fitting attached to the u/c legs so care MUST be taken when landing a/c during slinging ops to ensure hook serviceability (keep it out of the muck!).
You WILL need a well trained engineer/mechanic attached to aircraft.
Good luck ... they're a GREAT machine!
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Ugly....for sure! Teeth rattling through translation, uncomfortable seats for long flights, expensive parts. But, nothing better for banging down on the back of a pitching ship or following all the nooks and crannies along the coast. Just don't want to be the one having to pay the bills......
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CALSTAR recently completed work on the STC for swapping the C28s for C30s
z=6Vertical Daily News: CALSTAR Completes Major Engine Upgrades - Steve Fossett Played Major Role
z=6Vertical Daily News: CALSTAR Completes Major Engine Upgrades - Steve Fossett Played Major Role
Fossett's planned record attempt?
Does anyone know what record the late Steve Fossett was going to attempt to break in his BO-105? Given his previous achievements it would, no doubt, have been spectacular.
500 Fan.
500 Fan.
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CBS-4 to -5 query
Hi all,
What Serial Number did the factory change from CBS-4 to CBS-5?
I understand that a number of -4's were modified to -5 config but these days it is prohibitively expensive?
TCF
What Serial Number did the factory change from CBS-4 to CBS-5?
I understand that a number of -4's were modified to -5 config but these days it is prohibitively expensive?
TCF
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http://www.airweb.faa.gov/Regulatory_and_Guidance_Library%5CrgMakeModel.nsf/0/6B5D16CFF2F28C728625728A0058947F/$FILE/H3EU.pdf
I may be mistaken but i believe the super lifter was retrofit solution see link above to TCDS , i think that production of new BO 105 has ceased when it was introduced.
Edit Correction , Another database I have shows all s.n after 889 to be CBS-5 last serial number for all C versions is 929 D-HWBH
N-NUMBER SERIAL NUMBER MODEL
335T S898 BO105SCBS-5
137H S908 BO 105S
105AH S920 BO 105S
Last 105 on FAA reg is S/n 920 last cbs 5 is s/n 898
Seems productions stopped in 94 for the CBS versions , the last LS has a 2008 manf date .
I may be mistaken but i believe the super lifter was retrofit solution see link above to TCDS , i think that production of new BO 105 has ceased when it was introduced.
Edit Correction , Another database I have shows all s.n after 889 to be CBS-5 last serial number for all C versions is 929 D-HWBH
N-NUMBER SERIAL NUMBER MODEL
335T S898 BO105SCBS-5
137H S908 BO 105S
105AH S920 BO 105S
Last 105 on FAA reg is S/n 920 last cbs 5 is s/n 898
Seems productions stopped in 94 for the CBS versions , the last LS has a 2008 manf date .
Last edited by widgeon; 2nd Apr 2009 at 14:40.
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Flight's data suggests that the last CBS-4 went out the door in 1995, with the last ECD CBS-5 being forged in 1997. KAI assembled a batch of CBS-5s in 1999/2000 under the Korean Light Helicopter (KLH) program, and it was interesting to read just last month that Dirgantara Indonesia is still delivering NBO-105 CBSs to the Indonesian Army (
).
Don't know about the cost, but SB 105-80-127 states that the CBS-4 to -5 upgrade only takes 15 days.
I/C
).Don't know about the cost, but SB 105-80-127 states that the CBS-4 to -5 upgrade only takes 15 days.
I/C