Review into North Sea offshore helicopter operations announced by CAA
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Holly Beach, Louisiana
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Despite being a very experienced Diver but not current at the time of the training in the pool....it was not exactly a piece of cake. No big deal just dropping down and breathing while up right but upside down with legs hung over the side of the pool edge was a bit of a trick to cope with.
Now as to trying that without being an experienced Diver, for real in cold water, following a hard impact....well at least your odds are improved but how much really?
In Pool training is a must!
Now as to trying that without being an experienced Diver, for real in cold water, following a hard impact....well at least your odds are improved but how much really?
In Pool training is a must!
Originally Posted by Boudreaux Bob
In Pool training is a must!
Pool training
Nobody is allowed offshore without proper pool training.
At least in the Netherlands. We have done away with 72 hour excemptions.
The dry trainer CA-EBS is an add-on onto the rebreather training covered in Bosiet training.
SLB
Nobody is allowed offshore without proper pool training.
At least in the Netherlands. We have done away with 72 hour excemptions.
The dry trainer CA-EBS is an add-on onto the rebreather training covered in Bosiet training.
SLB
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Aberdeen
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But the EBS "training" is not very realistic, all it really shows you is how to put the thing on, and deploy it.
I did my last survival refresher in September 2013, therefore it will be Sep 2017 before I get a chance to try the EBS in an underwater environment (although I don't intend to still be offshore by that time!). That is a long time, and there are many of my offshore colleagues in a similar situation.
I did my last survival refresher in September 2013, therefore it will be Sep 2017 before I get a chance to try the EBS in an underwater environment (although I don't intend to still be offshore by that time!). That is a long time, and there are many of my offshore colleagues in a similar situation.
Memo out today advising that a number of jackets have been returned post-flight with depleted bottles. Contents will be checked at offshore departure-point and if there are empty cylinders and no spares employees will be delayed offshore until they can be provided with a full cylinder.
Folks, may I ask how is the new EBS system working out. Apparently the 'mouth piece and nose clip' needs a bit of a re-design. I was speaking to someone who did the training and he said that the oval mouth piece is hard to grip and the nose clip gave him a piercing pain if he moved his head.
I just saw this on the internet https://falckebs.wordpress.com/ and the mouth piece looks a much better design. I thought that there was only one unit type available, but maybe I was wrong.
I just saw this on the internet https://falckebs.wordpress.com/ and the mouth piece looks a much better design. I thought that there was only one unit type available, but maybe I was wrong.
Lines have to be purged before going into the boot so bottles will deplete - also, purging makes a great noise so helps to pass the time.......
Different degree of servicing and those whom have it in SNS seem happy enough. I suggest any niggles with nose clip being designed to suit maximum shapes will soon be forgotten when under water!
Atleast they have EBS - unlike the crew who will still suffer from 'cold shock' regardless of how big their escape door is ;-)
Different degree of servicing and those whom have it in SNS seem happy enough. I suggest any niggles with nose clip being designed to suit maximum shapes will soon be forgotten when under water!
Atleast they have EBS - unlike the crew who will still suffer from 'cold shock' regardless of how big their escape door is ;-)
Join Date: Oct 2014
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Applicability of UK CAA Safety Directive
The latest safety directive from the UK CAA is published here: http://www.caa.co.uk/docs/33/SafetyDirective2014002.pdf
According to the SD it is applicable to "All AOC Helicopter Operators Conducting Offshore Operations".
Does any of you know how the UK CAA plan to enforce this applicability after EASA HOFO regulation is implemented next year? According to CRD 2013-10, the new rule will replace all national regulation, and from my understanding it will also invalid this SD.
After the new regulation is implemented, operators from all EU states will be welcome to engage in UK offshore heli ops, and these will be under the oversight from the authority in their respective home states. I do not see how UK CAA can add any additional requirements like this in the future.
According to the SD it is applicable to "All AOC Helicopter Operators Conducting Offshore Operations".
Does any of you know how the UK CAA plan to enforce this applicability after EASA HOFO regulation is implemented next year? According to CRD 2013-10, the new rule will replace all national regulation, and from my understanding it will also invalid this SD.
After the new regulation is implemented, operators from all EU states will be welcome to engage in UK offshore heli ops, and these will be under the oversight from the authority in their respective home states. I do not see how UK CAA can add any additional requirements like this in the future.
Join Date: Sep 2008
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however one should also keep in mind a sense of priority
The real percentage turns out to have been just 9%, 11 people, with just 4 in the last 20 years.
CAP1145 Helicopter Water Impact Survivability Statistics - A Critique
The difference? The CAA included pax incapacitated on impact who were unable to escape and 20 tourists on the way to the Sillies.
Good to see the operators doing some operationally directed research: Helicopter industry collaborates on eyetracking research to enhance flight safety
Good to see the operators doing some operationally directed research: Helicopter industry collaborates on eyetracking research to enhance flight safety
There were nearly 120 fatalities in the UK sector in 40 years. In justifying their directives on EBS and window size the CAA seem to have implied around 30% were people trapped in capsized helicopters.
The real percentage turns out to have been just 9%, 11 people, with just 4 in the last 20 years.
CAP1145 Helicopter Water Impact Survivability Statistics - A Critique
The difference? The CAA included pax incapacitated on impact who were unable to escape and 20 tourists on the way to the Sillies.
The real percentage turns out to have been just 9%, 11 people, with just 4 in the last 20 years.
CAP1145 Helicopter Water Impact Survivability Statistics - A Critique
The difference? The CAA included pax incapacitated on impact who were unable to escape and 20 tourists on the way to the Sillies.
Join Date: Mar 2002
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A derivative of the widely used military STASS system called HEUBA was introduced on the Canadian East Coast were it is being / has been used by passengers from Conoco-Phillips, Hibernian (an ExxonMobil JV), Husky, Suncor, Shell and Statoil for over 5 years.
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Correct, Zalt. This was in response to the Cougar accident and in my opinion, a good one. More expensive training, but vastly superior to those horrific re-breathers used elsewhere. I've used EBS in the military and commercially since 1989 and feel quite uncomfortable over cold water (or warm, for that matter) without it. The pax seem to appreciate it as well.
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My personal view is that (sadly) the CAA may rue the day they enforced these devices
Why? If Canada and the Military are using them.....
The idea that somebody who is not a sports diver, will take a mouthpiece and purge it and then start breathing underwater for the first time, ever, in a real emergency, seems very far fetched. I say that as someone that has never used SCUBA gear and has done HEED/STASS training.
Having consulted with a world-leading expert on water survival at a SAR symposium a few years ago - the mouthpiece needs to be in place before you enter the water since the human 'gasp-reflex' will likely render you unable to purge the mouthpiece if you wait until after water entry and the colder the water, the worse it gets.
Purging upside down is an art and needs to be practised in a pool not a classroom.
Purging upside down is an art and needs to be practised in a pool not a classroom.
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I was under the impression in Canada a SWET chair is used to practice HEUBA deployment underwater at a 'safe', shallow depth but in the UK the oil industry training body has removed all EBS HUET runs from their CA-EBS standard harving the total HUET runs too. Considering the AAIB have already queried the training for the earlier rebreathers in an interim Sumburgh report one can only hope they opine on EBS training in their final report.
