Jeez, Eltons chopper would be a mother to track and balance.

Russian bears who are so addicted to aviation fuel they sniff it until they pass out!

http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2013/...45_634x357.jpg

"I hope you've got plenty of fuel with you"

http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2013/...38_634x388.jpg

"I love the smell of Jet A1 in the morning"

http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2013/...22_634x373.jpg

"I think I'm flying!"

Bear-ly conscious! Russian creatures pass out after developing aviation fuel addiction from sniffing discarded gas barrels | Mail Online

Any real helicopter pilot should find this very easy. A full run straight through without crashing.

Test your helicopter flying skills

When you're skills are sufficient you can progress to this.

A wonderful contribution, taken just a couple of days ago by Anthony Osborne, of a Royal Danish Air Force Merlin flying in Wales:

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8250/8...48d7c958_b.jpg
AgustaWestland EH101 Mk512 Merlin M-516 of the Royal Danish Air Force (Flyvevåbnet) at Caernarfon in Wales in March 2013 (Photo: Anthony Osborne)

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8096/8...ce606e26_b.jpg
AgustaWestland EH101 Mk512 Merlin M-516 of the Royal Danish Air Force (Flyvevåbnet) engaged in low flying training in Wales en route to Snowdonia in March 2013 (Photo: Anthony Osborne)

I didn't ask Anthony which route the Merlin was following but .. if its the same as for the planks then I'm guessing its the Machynlleth 'Mach' Loop.

I can only imagine that the First Officer is helping his colleague to decipher British road signs?

But the co has got a union jack on his bone dome?!?

Great image though.

Interesting that for all the avionics, the hand held chart is still popular.

Should be posted under the caption thread.

"Nope, cant find anywhere called Pergyl"

Anthony has just written saying that there was a British exchange officer on board although they seem to be wearing the same coveralls!

He's obviously showing the Dane a bit of Welsh countryside.

I thought the real give-away was the Flt. Lt. stripes on his shoulder.

Indeed.

But why do they share the same style of jacket .. and helmet for that matter?

Because it is normal to use the flying clothing and helmet pertinent to the the operator of the aircraft. Whilst (in this case) they are both in Alpha Eagle helmets that will be the helmet that is compatible with the Danish 101. Fairly pointless wearing a helmet with the wrong impedance, mic jacks, etc :hmm:

Is this the same machine that spent time on the ground at Rochester 19/3/2013? I heard hydraulic problems, but that may not be true.

Rochester, UK. 19/3/2013. Merlin "turning & burning" with an EC120 in the background for scale.
http://i785.photobucket.com/albums/y...st1/Merlin.png

Nice EC20 John :ok:

Yup! Just like my old one G-FEDA. I now have a "quieter" paint job.
http://i785.photobucket.com/albums/y...t1/Arrival.jpg

Very smart paint I must say :ok:
.

Even nicer - was that done in Thruxton?

Will call you - need a catch up :ok:

Classical paint schemes (in my view) tend to possess an 'enduring' quality which some of the newfangled efforts lack. I remember when Bell first came out with a series of 'flashes and squiggles' among their factory options .. the looked 'trendy' at the time but .. a decade or so later appeared positively heathen!

As an example of the enduring appeal of classical schemes .. in 2008 when Air France celebrated their 75th Anniversary they painted-up an A320 in their 1940's livery and which (to me) looked just splendid! See here.

Its all down to personal preference (obviously) but .. I prefer John's latest scheme .. in particular the colour-coded pop-outs! :ok:

Re: the Merlin .. the Danish craft appears to have a yellow flash on the tailboom which is lacking in the Rochester photo so, I'm guessing she's a different craft.

Savoia - agree completely. That A320 is classically beautiful. Unlike this...

One sees that Britain's trash media is just as good as Italy's!

Daily Star: Simply The Best 7 Days A Week :: News :: Helicopter pilot saves pals in damaged chopper

Check out the photo of the 'heavily damaged chopper' in Afghanistan! :ok:

But your 'Mirror' does a better job of reporting British heroics .. in this case to help Les Français:

Sergeant Rachel Robinson: RAF helicopter crew's dramatic rescue of stranded fisherman - Mirror Online

Surely that could pass for a Chinook on a dark night, if you have a squint, have left your sunglasses on and don't know anything about helicopters!

From the 2012 Military Photographer of the Year Competition.

First awarded in 1960, the Military Photographer of the Year honours (issued under the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense [US] for Public Affairs) recognises excellence among military cameramen.

This photo (below) was placed second overall:

http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/...p_2523206k.jpg
Dust lights up the rotors of a CH-47 Chinook helicopter as paratroopers with 3rd Squadron, 73rd Cavalry Regiment load for an air assault mission near Combat Outpost Ab Band May 23, 2012, Ghazni Province, Afghanistan (Photo: Sgt. Michael J. MacLeod, US Army)

Biggles was for real!

The RAF Museum at Hendon has found evidence that the literary hero was in fact a real pilot.

For decades, Biggles has held children in thrall with his fictional exploits as a dashing Royal Air Force pilot.

But now it has emerged that his unlikely adventures may have been based on fact – in the shape of a real airman from the First World War.

A 1918 combat report by a pilot called Major James Bigglesworth has been found at the RAF Museum Hendon in a collection of papers that once belonged to Biggles author WE Johns.

Cripes! Biggles was real: Adventurer hero named after Great War airman | Mail Online

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-I...ys+the+206.jpg

It was said that Biggles used to enjoy flying the 'A' model 206

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-d...s+it+Rough.jpg

And that Bast0n's favourite Biggles book was the now non PC titled "Biggles Takes It Rough" !