POP out windows that pop out in flight

[Geoffersincornwall]

I'm looking for feedback on push out cabin windows. We lost one on a 412 last week and the passenger swears he never touched it.

Anybody ever heard of windows coming out of their own accord with no passenger in the adjacent seat?

Thanks

[LPS500]

If I remember correctly this sort of thing was advised by Eurocopter, but I can't remember if it was a service letter or bulletin or exactly when. Seems a window retained by a seal alone could be installed with the seal the wrong way round resulting in the window being effectively outside the aircraft instead of in. Does that make sense? Nothing to do with the Bell of course, but maybe similar?

[ConwayB]

No advice for you, Geoff... but a funny story.

It may be an urban myth told by instructors at FT Rucker, the US ARMY's aviation school... but it sounded funny.

A Chinook has a number of windows along its fuselage held in by weather stripping. Pull a little yellow tab and the weather stripping pulls away and you can push the windows out.

Now, the Chinook doesn't really mind which way it flies because wind (or relative airflow) is not a huge concern.

The story goes thusly...

A foreign student at Ft Rucker (not an Australian, by the way) was flying a circuit... or traffic pattern as the yanks say, at one of Rucker's satellite airfields when the instructor turned off the aircraft's AFCS in the turn.

The Chinook doesn't take turns too well when AFCS is off and the pilot needs to make co-ordinated inputs in order to keep the aircraft balanced... unfortunately the bloggs student put in a boot full of rudder and the aircraft did a 180 degree turn and briefly flew backwards at circuit speed. (I'm sure the sound of compressor stalling was heard contemporaneously).

The rear ramp was open and the cabin was suddenly presented to the relative airflow which pressurised the cabin and popped out all the windows whilst the instructor struggled to bring the aircraft back into normal flight regimes!

I wish I was there to see it... if it actually happened. But why spoil a story with pesky facts?

Conway B

[Blackhawk9]

Was the popout window installed properly? Bell have out an info letter telling you how to install the windows properly , the corners are glued to the seal and the frame with silicon , still easily pushed out but won't fall out!!
Have seen several in Oz and Mid east fall out all were not installed in the correct manner!

[CyclicRick]

I don't know about pop out windows but I had a slightly cracked window dissapear on me up at 11,500ft over the Alps in a 205 on the way to Italy, I only had a t-shirt on and it was bloody freezing!
Had a new one made at the base (only a plexiglass sheet) and that cracked and fell out on the way back, but clever pilot had his jacket on this time

Rick

[Thomas coupling]

no...................................

[Geoffersincornwall]

Blackhawk9

Can you give me any more details on the Bell Service Letter. Anybody else know more about it?

Could be we are onto something. Thanks.

G

[Ascend Charlie]

Was flying a 212 some years back. It had the left-side bubble window for longlining, which has a gaping hole in the bottom for clear viz. It was a night flight, middle of winter, planned altitude of 6000' so it was going to be a cool breeze slipping up my left sleeve.

Wanting to block this pesky airflow, I found a slab of thick rubber foam and wedged it into the window from the outside, secured with some gaffer tape. I reckoned that would stop the airflow from coming in.

Loaded the pax and took off, and passing 40 kt, the wedged-in foam went pop and disappeared OUTWARDS, not inwards as expected.

It was a mighty cold trip after that, as I contemplated that b@stard Bernouilli and his laws.

[mfriskel]

Had a wedge window in a 206BIII rear door pop out in flight, my daughter caught it before it completely departed the acft. It was installed correctly, when reinstalled it would come out easily. Aeronautical Accessories said to try to install with some kind of adhesive. I think the adhesive went between the window and seal, not the seal and door. Been several years, so don't remember what kind of adhesive.

[Blackhawk9]

Geoffersincornwall

The info on installing the popout windows is now in the B412 Maintenance Manual Ch 52 Pg 44 .
The adhesive is C-307, Adhesive ,Silicon,299-947-152,type1,class2 (RTV732 or RTV108)
Primer is Dow Corning 1200
Hope that helps!!

[Geoffersincornwall]

Blackhawk9

You Beautyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

G

[[email protected]]

This is the same pressure differential that has lost so many maps out of the windows of so many helicopters; very amusing unless it is a marked map lost over a hostile area

[I Build 92's]

Flying a production S92, crewman sitting in the forward cabin seat had the push out window fall in on his lap!! Seal was lubricated by an installer to ease in the installation, large No-No!

[chopperdr]

having installed a boatload of windows, have found the use of windex and thick string the easiest installation method. of course the trim of the window is biggest concern. overlap the frame by apprx 1/4".
also if you have any questions, get in touch with johnny wilson at tech tool, probably knows more about windows than any one person in world.
dr

[Geoffersincornwall]

Chopperdr

Thanks for the tip. Problem for us is that pax denies touching window. Trnspt Mgr cannot be convinced as he believes pax. We're in the middle and don't know where to turn.

Statistics indicate that no window has ever left the aircraft WITHOUT there being a pax in the seat alongside it. True? Anybody got any facts to contradict this assertion.

Got any ideas?


G

[Aser]

The 412 and the flying windows....

I always tell to the passengers not to push on the windows, I'm sure they can't read.
The other day the loader found a passenger resting his feet near the window corner...

[MightyGem]

the pilot needs to make co-ordinated inputs in order to keep the aircraft balanced

Now I thought I was supposed to do that all the time.