Cumbria - Dauphin in the fog...
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Cumbria - Dauphin in the fog...
There's a video doing the rounds on Facebook.
https://www.facebook-DOT-com/brian.weatherall.7/videos/10156472130493490/UzpfSTYzNTg2ODQ4OToyMTcxMzc3MjAzMTg1NDU4/
Chap driving round a corner to be met by a Dauphin looming out the fog at the end of his bonnet...
I can only find it on Facebook, others might have more luck finding it elsewhere...
https://www.facebook-DOT-com/brian.weatherall.7/videos/10156472130493490/UzpfSTYzNTg2ODQ4OToyMTcxMzc3MjAzMTg1NDU4/
Chap driving round a corner to be met by a Dauphin looming out the fog at the end of his bonnet...
I can only find it on Facebook, others might have more luck finding it elsewhere...
Honest Guv.....I retired in '06 and I ain't never flown a Dauphin!
Been there and done that back when I was a dedicated Rudscunner!
Been there and done that back when I was a dedicated Rudscunner!
Avoid imitations
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Yes, those who need to know already know who it was.
As someone once said to me after arriving at our refuel airfield during a mission: "What was the vis like when you broke cloud at MDH?"
I answered truthfully: "We didn't fly an instrument approach, The vis here was too poor to fly IFR, so we had to maintain VMC".
I did have top cover...
But these days the (civvy) rules are different and I stick to them.
As someone once said to me after arriving at our refuel airfield during a mission: "What was the vis like when you broke cloud at MDH?"
I answered truthfully: "We didn't fly an instrument approach, The vis here was too poor to fly IFR, so we had to maintain VMC".
I did have top cover...
But these days the (civvy) rules are different and I stick to them.
Avoid imitations
Join Date: Nov 2000
Location: Wandering the FIR and cyberspace often at highly unsociable times
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I was panicking for a minute there but then I realised there are no GNAAS stickers on it...!!!! Ha. Clearly that dauphin is not a dauphin, it doesn't exist, never has, must be a ghost or something.
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Gents, the subtle glorification of a truly **** bit of airmanship is a risk to our brethren on ROTORHEAD with low skills a high egos. There are no circumstances acceptable EVER to fly in such a manner as to risk the safety of your aircraft or crew.
I understand your point but if you actually look at the video you will see that the aircraft is basically hover taxying. Given the nature of the work the organisation this aircraft supports does, do you not think there may be circumstances where insertion or extraction in similar conditions might be necessary, and that the time to become skilled/proficient is probably not at the moment it's required? Not arguing, just discussing.
But as always, only having little information, who knows?
May be the crew knows the routing, has been there before, is it a bad weather crossing opportunity?
May be it’s just the ridge, much better 500 meters before and behind?
May be they are on a live saving mission, where somebody will die for sure, if they don’t fly?
Seems, the crew is working together, with an open door for better vis.
They are going slowly at the side of the road to avoid trucktraffic, gear down.
They have a stone wall, which makes good visual reference.
I wouldnˋt throw the first stone, cause I have been in an similar situation, just worse.
Caught out in a heavy shower at night (NVG), radar telling me, either way around at least 15 miles of ****ty weather....
Hillside, with trees.
So I ended up, hovering along a powerline, which I illuminated with the landing light, cause I couldn’t see from mast to mast and would have certainly ended in it, if I had lost sight of it.
One eye on the fuel gauge, which seemed to empty far to fast, hoping for a clearing, where I could put the bird down - but didn’t find one.
Nowadays I for sure circumnavigate that area if the weather gets bad again - and or terminate the flight.
Still, last winter, have been searching for someone on another hillside, where the wind cumulated the clouds along the slope.
It was night again and we were around 100 feet ground in some places, but with an escaperoute visiable and a crew, who worked together. Would have been an interesting sight from the ground as well...
212
But why would you want to hover taxi in that ? Difficult to see wire lines as it is, bearing in mind most follow roads and low level ones arent on a chart ! Not a very good advert for junior pilots, doesnt matter if it is a HEMS heli or not
But why would you want to hover taxi in that ? Difficult to see wire lines as it is, bearing in mind most follow roads and low level ones arent on a chart ! Not a very good advert for junior pilots, doesnt matter if it is a HEMS heli or not
Yes, those who need to know already know who it was.
As someone once said to me after arriving at our refuel airfield during a mission: "What was the vis like when you broke cloud at MDH?"
I answered truthfully: "We didn't fly an instrument approach, The vis here was too poor to fly IFR, so we had to maintain VMC".
I did have top cover...
But these days the (civvy) rules are different and I stick to them.
As someone once said to me after arriving at our refuel airfield during a mission: "What was the vis like when you broke cloud at MDH?"
I answered truthfully: "We didn't fly an instrument approach, The vis here was too poor to fly IFR, so we had to maintain VMC".
I did have top cover...
But these days the (civvy) rules are different and I stick to them.
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None of these points make a particularly good excuse to pull this stunt on purpose. I'm sure we've all got ourselves in a crappy situation like this, but as you said the lesson you should take home (if you get home in one piece) is to either go around ****ty weather next time or land). And: no patient's life is ever important enough to knowingly risk and endanger the lifes of your two or three crew members and innocent bystanders on the ground.
Thread Starter
None of these points make a particularly good excuse to pull this stunt on purpose. I'm sure we've all got ourselves in a crappy situation like this, but as you said the lesson you should take home (if you get home in one piece) is to either go around ****ty weather next time or land). And: no patient's life is ever important enough to knowingly risk and endanger the lifes of your two or three crew members and innocent bystanders on the ground.
If you fly an assigned area, you normally have some bad weather routes, which you know throughout, especially where the wires are and where not.
“My area“ is also divided by a long ridgeline, where clouds like to accumulate.
Every 20 miles or so I know a gap, where I could try, if need be, without risking to encounter unknown powerlines.
Its always a juggle between the mission, the experience of the crew and what you can do without risking too much....
Not sure where the chat about HEMS comes from after I used the terms 'insertion/extraction'? For those that still haven't got it: 658 Squadron Army Air Corps
