Flying loads out from between power lines

[Agile]

got impresssed by the precision of this job, lifting loads from between power lines while negociating suport wires. check at 36:00
great video editing and voice over, learned a lot

You Tube

[The Sultan]

Why take the risk?

[[email protected]]

So when something goes wrong and he takes himself out, the guy underneath and the newly installed wires - what is the defence?

Could the poles have been moved to a position clear of the wires? Clearly yes and the lifting job would have been far quicker and without those spine tingling periods of being attached to the pole with nowhere to go waiting for the guy on the ground to release the pole from the support..

Something of an ego trip for a pilot with no idea about risk assessments..........

[Non-PC Plod]

Risk assessment must have been done - he was wearing a helmet! :-]

[Heliflyger]

Nice and smooth handling, the video pretty much describes the life of a utility pilot in Norway

[Langball]

I'm not a pilot, but I did notice that he appeared to be sitting on the thumb of his left hand (thus restricting the movement on the collective). Never seen that technique before.

[heliduck]

Great flying, great video. I’d love to know how they get the video so smooth & to transition from looking down to up.
A lot of VR work involves having very few options if the noise stops, nothing unusual in that.

[aa777888]

Originally Posted by Langball

I'm not a pilot, but I did notice that he appeared to be sitting on the thumb of his left hand (thus restricting the movement on the collective). Never seen that technique before.

He's not sitting on his thumb, he's resting his thumb on the edge of the seat. This can allow one to have more precise control of the collective position by using the fine motor skills in one's hand and finger muscles, rather than the more gross motor skills available in the arm muscles. For small changes, one just squeezes between thumb and fingers with more or less pressure. Not everyone has large enough hands and not every helicopter has the right geometry to allow this method, but it seems to be quite common.

[aa777888]

Originally Posted by heliduck

Great flying, great video. I’d love to know how they get the video so smooth & to transition from looking down to up.

He is using a so-called "360 camera" on the long line, and he mentions this at the beginning of the video. There are quite a few "action cam's" on the market now that, by using two 180 degree spherical field-of-view lenses back to back, capture a 360 degree view in both azimuth and elevation. Perhaps the most famous examples are the GoPro Fusion and the GoPro Max, but there are many others. One then processes the captured video through the camera software, typically on a PC, to obtain whatever view one wants. The software will allow panning, zooming, stabilization, and other effects. The GoPro software even includes "selfie-stick removal", so if you hang the camera out at the end of a stick it will magically remove the stick from the video and make it appear as if the camera is floating in space. Using video editing software you can even mix together multiple, simultaneous views. It's really cool technology that is surprisingly mainstream at this point.

[212man]

Originally Posted by Non-PC Plod

Risk assessment must have been done - he was wearing a helmet! :-]

Yes, complete with 1 inch gap around the chin strap to prevent tightness/chaffing, and any subsequent distration and fatigue that may result.......

Question for 350 (or any) VR pilots - is he looking directly at the load or via the mirror I can see on a bracket? I ask not being a VR pilot but having done the training with a well known school in Penticton, using an EC120, and the only way to see the load from the RHS was to hang out the door! He appears to barely lean right.

[206Fan]

212man,

He has a floor window on the right side along with the mirror. If you watch a few more of his videos you can see the floor window in use!

[212man]

Originally Posted by 206Fan

212man,

He has a floor window on the right side along with the mirror. If you watch a few more of his videos you can see the floor window in use!

Thanks - I see it now in this one:

You Tube

[[email protected]]

A lot of VR work involves having very few options if the noise stops, nothing unusual in that.

But he has none at all for extended periods

[EEngr]

Originally Posted by [email protected]

Could the poles have been moved to a position clear of the wires?

I suspect that what we are watching is the removal of old poles from the right of way. The terrain is steep, the cleared right of way narrow and any moving of poles on the ground would have to be done by hand. If they could have gotten a tractor in to clear more land and move poles, they could have used it to drag them to the nearest road. Far cheaper than using a chopper.

[roundwego]

An excellent piece of video which shows the skills required for this sort of work. He recognises when he is beginning to overcontrol which is a sign of tensing up and a need to relax a bit. I am however surprised he is not wearing a flame retardant flying suit. It won’t save his live in a major impact crash but it could save him from significant burns in the event of a survivable crash with post impact fire.

[Hughes500]

Guys
I m sure risk assessments were done for this sort of work, happens all over the world. If there was a more economical way then that would have ben used.
Like any longline utility work if the noise stops then there are very few options, like any job there is a risk but engines don't stop that often
The 350 has a lifting window through the floor. View is limited but useable unless you are big. It is much easier out of a 500 where you can lean out of the window, but she won't lift what a 350 will !

[heliduck]

Originally Posted by [email protected]

But he has none at all for extended periods

That’s the reality of life on top of a longline.

[JimEli]

Did anyone catch the overtemp on start?

[[email protected]]

That’s the reality of life on top of a longline.

pretty dumb life choice for an intelligent pilot.

[[email protected]]

Did anyone catch the overtemp on start?

which gauge is the ITT/T4? If he did overtemp perhaps he should concentrate on one thing at a time instead of strapping in and talking to the camera - aviate, navigate communicate