Question re. capability in bad weather
 

Just a fixed wing visitor to these pages:) A question re. something I saw last night; I live in Sheffield and as in most of the country a cold front came through yesterday evening accompanied by very strong gusts, hail followed by heavy snow for a short period of time. About five minutes *before* this event I could see a helicopter over the city (can only assume it was the police helicopter). Lost sight there after as visibility went to ~250m.

I was amazed it was safe to be up in that - is it normal and something that most helicopters could deal with?

For reference this was the Manchester EGCC metar when the same front passed through there:-

EGCC 082020Z 25027G37KT 8000 R23L/1500 SHRA FEW008 SCT013 03/02 Q0997 TEMPO 2000 +RA BKN012CB

Remember it was the visibility where you were that went to 250 m.

For interest, over a congested area, with a 'police' pilot experienced in flying over that area in a police helicopter, the weather you noted down (ignoring the fact that it was the weather in Manchester), would not have precluded flight!

Only posted the METAR as the observed weather was pretty similar as the front moved over Sheffield.

I am impressed with the capability shown though - assuming those sort of conditions would a landing have been possible or would it have been a case of keep flying until an improvement?

One of the benefits of a helicopter is that landing is always an option! As long as he stays visual with the ground, the conditions can become very bad while still being safe (might not get back to base, though!).

I wondered why you would assume it was a police helicopter


police helicopters get blamed for a mulitude of events unfairly

Probably because everybody else is going somewhere!!!

I don't think the OP is placing any blame or even being derogatory in anyway; it could even be taken as a compliment to police pilots!

Cheers

Whirls

Absolutely, the post was because the conditions were the exact opposite of anything I go flying in:) I assumed it was the police helicopter because it was hovering over the city as it often does, rather than transiting.

BTW would they have weather radar to spot embedded CB cells?

Agree with handysnaks the metar is just that, an airfield report and very rarely will the weather be the same, even all over the same airfield let alone one that is tens of miles away. Thank you though, for thinking of the VFR rotary community when you fixed wing chaps are either in or above the foul weather, with the AP safely engaged when we are occasionally scrabbling around under it!

MS :ok:

Michael,

I don't believe any of the Police EC135s, MD902 or AS355s have weather radar (Not sure on the Bond machines?). I believe the Met EC145s, Devon and Cornwall's BK117 and Dyfed Powys 109 all have it.

That front last night was quite exciting. I went into the IOM just before it and generally the cloud base and visibility was good out of the showers. There were lots of CBs around but they were easy to avoid on the weather radar. Another aircraft followed me in as the front was on us and they reported the same. They also had 74kts of wind on finals.

The only problem with helicopters in wind is starting and stopping the rotors, most medium helicopters have a limit of 50kts. This can be reduced if you shutdown in the lee of a hangar.

FNW

The Sheffield one is an MD902 so I guess not then.

We have a weather radar on our 902 Air Ambulance. Not much use for day VFR HEMS, admittedly, but great for on-scene X-raying of patients.:)

Hear hear, us rotary chaps don't need some fancy multi-coloured screen to tell us about clouds... we just look out of the window :eek:

Actually the main worry in that METAR is the temperature. For an ICAO standard day that would put the freezing level at 1500'. C*** weather is not such a problem as icing the beastie up and then looking for a way out of it.

Speak for yourself MINself. :E We use it a lot offshore.

Sorry helimutt, I should put my last post into context present company excepted :ok:

First time I've seen a tempo on a metar......:}

I know, and the freezing level seems to be more of an issue for us.

Tempo on a metar
 

Mr Wellington said...
"First time I've seen a tempo on a metar..."

That's because this is a landing forecast, where the Trend (covering a 2hr period) is appended to Metars at certain selected airfields. The most common seems to be NOSIG which I'm sure you've seen many times.

Brom

MJP
Why didn't you just ring the unit, most Police units will tell you if they were flying and what they were upto within reason. When you lost sight, that could have been when it landed?