Wheely?

[terminus mos]

Any information on the CHC S-92 with the stuck nose gear in Aberdeen yesterday?

[HeliComparator]

In the paper it just said they had to lower the gear using the emergency method, so no big deal (mind you, it is dangerous to believe anything you read in the paper!).

[212man]

In the paper it just said they had to lower the gear using the emergency method, so no big deal

The exact opposite of what I had during an acceptance flight where, on selecting 'gear up', the main gear retracted and the nose gear blew itself down. It made for a strange looking photograph....

[terminus mos]

The engineers got it down while the aircraft was in the hover. I have a couple of pics taken by a friend but I don't have a hosting account and I am not signing up for one. I will email them if someone wants to post them?

[Bravo73]

Originally Posted by terminus mos

The engineers got it down while the aircraft was in the hover.

Out of interest, any idea if there were passengers on board at the time?

[terminus mos]

Yes, you can see them through the window.

[HeliComparator]

Originally Posted by terminus mos

The engineers got it down while the aircraft was in the hover. I have a couple of pics taken by a friend but I don't have a hosting account and I am not signing up for one. I will email them if someone wants to post them?

OK so there is the normal method, the emergency method (blow down) and the extra-emergency method (engineers pulling on it whilst hitting it with a hammer!).

[Bravo73]

Originally Posted by terminus mos

Yes, you can see them through the window.

I recall when this happened with another aircraft type at ABZ. The customer wasn't very happy due to their passengers being on board and risk assessments etc whilst there was an engineer under the aircraft.

[HeliComparator]

Originally Posted by Bravo73

I recall when this happened with another aircraft type at ABZ. The customer wasn't very happy due to their passengers being on board and risk assessments etc whilst there was an engineer under the aircraft.

So what did they propose as an alternative? Continue to hover whilst completing risk assessment paperwork -oops, ran out of fuel!


Evacuating the pax in the hover - oops, one of them slipped and is now underneath the helicopter with a broken ankle!


No, the only correct procedure to keep the interfering client happy would no doubt been to have them beamed out, or maybe use the time machine to go back and select a different aircraft.


No wonder the industry is in the state it is in - far too much time spent appeasing the ignorant client instead of getting on with doing the job safely.

[FC80]

Terminus mos - imgur: the simple image sharer allows free upload of pictures, no account needed, no strings attached.

[terminus mos]

[terminus mos]

So what did they propose as an alternative? Continue to hover whilst completing risk assessment paperwork -oops, ran out of fuel!

Of course, the pictures show the only sensible way to do it. It happened to me once in an S-76, I landed the nose (just aft of the nosewheel) on some stacked ballast bags prepared by the Engineers, disembarked the pax and ensured the aircraft was stable while Engineering freed the nose wheel.

[albatross]

A hearty well done to all those folks!

[Democritus]

It's been posted before but different era (1965) and a bit more challenging to sort out!

[HeliCraig]

There was a similar incident at Redhill with an A109 and David Cameron. They decided to get him out from a low hover.

David Cameron jumped from helicopter in landing drama - Telegraph

[Noah Zark.]

Democritus,
Are they carrying out a crew change as well?

[Sanus]

Not a set of ear defenders to be seen - had they been invented in 1965? Or did they get in the way of listening to the sweet sound of a pair of R-R Gnomes?

[Democritus]

Originally Posted by Sanus

Not a set of ear defenders to be seen - had they been invented in 1965? Or did they get in the way of listening to the sweet sound of a pair of R-R Gnomes?

Ear defenders were certainly available but fairly poor compared to nowadays. The old two-piece aircrew bonedome of the early 1960's - inner plus silver outer shell - was no match for helicopter turbine engine noise which is why I and nearly all the ex-military pilots of that era in Aberdeen in 1993 filed hearing loss claims against the MoD before their date for claims deadline passed. Most of us got around £3500 as a settlement. Not much for a lifetime of tinnitus and having to wear a couple of NHS hearing aids nowadays. Pardon..?

No Gnomes there though - it's a Wessex Mk1 with a single Napier Gazelle engine.