The most unusual/challenging landing site in the world?
Aye carumba! How low is that barge???
Have you noticed how close the stinger is to the water? From the photo, it looks like the landing spot is at the same (or even a slightly lower) level than the water...
Or is this just par for the course in PNG?
B73
(Still no relation to BROVA99)
Have you noticed how close the stinger is to the water? From the photo, it looks like the landing spot is at the same (or even a slightly lower) level than the water...
Or is this just par for the course in PNG?
B73
(Still no relation to BROVA99)
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Great shots...but....
None of them look as small as that time your first instructor said "you got it. Now land this thing anywhere on the airport!" Now that was threading a needle! LOL
Senis Semper Fidelis
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Burg Al Arab(or whatever its called)
I saw on the box last evening a new(to me that is) TV advert showing several aerial views of some old lady getting into a copter and taking off, what a spectacular ad!
I know this has been discussed before,
but that ad did impress moi!
But heres my technical question for you pro guys,
at that altitude you would need high power to come to a virtual crawl in a very high hover to line up and approach the platform, how quickly and what effect would the platform have on the heli, in that the platform suddenly becomes ground level and the heli is under major power input and very coarse pitch,
Or would you come into a much higher hover over the platform and then let down gently?
Vfr
I know this has been discussed before,
but that ad did impress moi!
But heres my technical question for you pro guys,
at that altitude you would need high power to come to a virtual crawl in a very high hover to line up and approach the platform, how quickly and what effect would the platform have on the heli, in that the platform suddenly becomes ground level and the heli is under major power input and very coarse pitch,
Or would you come into a much higher hover over the platform and then let down gently?
Vfr
Join Date: Jan 2001
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Either is fine, if you have the power, although if the pad is small then coming into a high hover may make it difficult to maintain references.
I haven't flown to the pad you've mentioned, but landing on a pinnacle the size of your skids at 8,000ASL requires similiar technique.
If power is limited, I'll fly a nearly flat approach. Average power demand is higher than for a steep approach, but a steep approach may require a sudden spike in power that your helicopter can't provide. The mantra is "load up early".
The flat approach also helps with some of the illusions of mountain flying (false horizons, rate of closure, big hand, etc.)
I know some who advocate a steep approach with power limited. There definitely are merits to this. If you can't lose one or all engines and avoid the LZ then being closer to an autorotative profile makes sense.
When I fly the flat approach, I know my single engine fly away speed and commit myself to the LZ if I lose an engine below that speed and don't have room beneath to dive for speed.
Matthew.
I haven't flown to the pad you've mentioned, but landing on a pinnacle the size of your skids at 8,000ASL requires similiar technique.
If power is limited, I'll fly a nearly flat approach. Average power demand is higher than for a steep approach, but a steep approach may require a sudden spike in power that your helicopter can't provide. The mantra is "load up early".
The flat approach also helps with some of the illusions of mountain flying (false horizons, rate of closure, big hand, etc.)
I know some who advocate a steep approach with power limited. There definitely are merits to this. If you can't lose one or all engines and avoid the LZ then being closer to an autorotative profile makes sense.
When I fly the flat approach, I know my single engine fly away speed and commit myself to the LZ if I lose an engine below that speed and don't have room beneath to dive for speed.
Matthew.
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Originally Posted by steve mitchell
I heard the pad on the Burj Al Arab Hotel is a bit tricky.
Andre Agassi and Roger Federer on the world’s highest tennis court
http://www.burj-al-arab.com/tennis/
Join Date: Aug 2003
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Updated Alcan Catenary Pics
Here are a few new ones...
The 350 landing there makes the job look easy with the Jetranger.
CDN RH
Old Alcan footage
http://www.livinglandscapes.bc.ca/no...portation.html
Brave Photographer and Great Aircraft Maintenance Engineer
Approach
On the pad
After Work
Home again
The catenary at Powerline Pass, between Kemano and Kitimat, British Columbia is owned and maintained by Alcan aluminum of Canada. Myself and two other pilots (Dave Newman and Clint Sarver) were the only pilots trained to do so until I left the VFR side and pursued a less stressful life. Since that time, another pilot did a few lifts there using an Astar, not fun or very smart if you look at the size of the pad.
The Catenary system holds the powerline conductor above the valley floor below, replacing six towers previously wiped out by avalanches. The only way to inspect and service the insulators is to be dropped off by helicopter on the pad you see below and to the left of the machine.
When I get a bit of time, I will post some more pics of that job. Very busy at home and work these days.
Bob Garnhum
Thanks for the prompt response Bob - and welcome to Rotorheads.
Heliport
The 350 landing there makes the job look easy with the Jetranger.
CDN RH
Old Alcan footage
http://www.livinglandscapes.bc.ca/no...portation.html
Brave Photographer and Great Aircraft Maintenance Engineer
Approach
On the pad
After Work
Home again
The catenary at Powerline Pass, between Kemano and Kitimat, British Columbia is owned and maintained by Alcan aluminum of Canada. Myself and two other pilots (Dave Newman and Clint Sarver) were the only pilots trained to do so until I left the VFR side and pursued a less stressful life. Since that time, another pilot did a few lifts there using an Astar, not fun or very smart if you look at the size of the pad.
The Catenary system holds the powerline conductor above the valley floor below, replacing six towers previously wiped out by avalanches. The only way to inspect and service the insulators is to be dropped off by helicopter on the pad you see below and to the left of the machine.
When I get a bit of time, I will post some more pics of that job. Very busy at home and work these days.
Bob Garnhum
Thanks for the prompt response Bob - and welcome to Rotorheads.
Heliport
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Collective
Once you're on the pad, are you still pulling some pitch, not put the full weight on this suspended pad? Seems like you would, but was just curious.
Thanks in advance!
R91
Thanks in advance!
R91
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Once over the pad, we keep about 99% of the power needed. You only drop enough power to lightly "stick" to the pad. It is a very difficult thing to do as you are in the middle of a cirque, half a mile from the rocks in each direction and abot 720 feet above the surface below you which is around 4200 feet above sea level. As the linemen disembark or embark, we are very busy smoothly making correction for the weight shift.
If you look at the pictures, notice where the centre of gravity is (directly under the mast), if you were to lower the collective on either type, you would subsequently roll the aircraft backwards off of the pad between the two 267 kV circuits. Now wouldn't that be fun?
Ask a civil engineer about the definition of a Catenary. Not a design that you want to place an unnecessary gravitational force in the centre of. It works out to an exponential relationship.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catenary
CDN-RH
If you look at the pictures, notice where the centre of gravity is (directly under the mast), if you were to lower the collective on either type, you would subsequently roll the aircraft backwards off of the pad between the two 267 kV circuits. Now wouldn't that be fun?
Ask a civil engineer about the definition of a Catenary. Not a design that you want to place an unnecessary gravitational force in the centre of. It works out to an exponential relationship.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catenary
CDN-RH
Last edited by Canadian Rotorhead; 26th Apr 2007 at 02:04.