would you be alarmed ?
 

...if you were flying at 1000ft above terra firma and came almost face to face with a kite ???

Yes! But not surprised, they are regularly NOTAM'd (grammar and lexicology buffs please accept my humble apologies)!

Aaah...anyone got a moment to retro check...Sat 1st Dec 2012, approx 15.45, Tilbury, Essex area ???

Was someone naughty, not reading Notams. There are bloody hundreds of them, up to some mahoosive heights as well!!

flew right past one at about 600ft a couple of years ago near brands hatch! Very lucky that we missed it as it zipped down the side of the aircraft... looked to be tethered to a Land Rover too?!

MADY

"Was someone naughty, not reading Notams"
I couldn't say...I was a passenger :cool:

I once flew in a 4 ship close formation of Pumas for a flypast during a "Freedom of the Town" ceremony.

When we returned to base, the aircraft next to me in the formation had about 400 metres of Terylene kite braid wrapped tightly around the tail rotor pitch change rods. The pitch rods had begun to bow inwards. There was no sign of either a kite or a small boy.

Another worrying episode was a large radio controlled aerobatic aircraft that shot right across the front of my aircraft, only a few yards in front, same height. I was crossing Northolt's main approach, at 1100 feet, well inside the Heathrow CTR, under radar control.

Model aircraft for me as well v.v.close above chobham common at 1000ft inside Heathrow CTR, it would probably have brought down my R22 but carried on flying had there been contact !!

Used to have to dodge kites regularly when flying down the Norfolk coast from Bacton to North Denes in the Wessex 60 in the early 70's :eek:

I hit a kid's kite at 800ft north of LHR back in the 70's - the line wrapped itself round the M/R pitch change rods but I didn't know until I landed at Battersea. Fortunately it was a Bo105 with sturdy short rods but I seem to remember a 206 somewhere in the world around that time was not so lucky and the rods were pulled in tight with catastrophic consequences.

Went over a ridge in Germany once, at about 50', straight over someone holding a radio control unit. :eek:

I heard first hand from someone who, on a powerline patrol in Essex came over a ridge, or what passes for a ridge in Essex at maybe 50ft right over four legs, two buttocks, one back an two very surprised faces. At 10 in the morning.

Apparently it took the linemen some time recover and get on with the job!

Helium balloons (kid's variety) are my personal dislike. Met my first whilst still training, solo at 2200 ft, east of EGKK. Dot in the distance.... what is it?.... Balloon down the RHS 110knt!

Less dangerous than kite strings - I suspect - still would not like to gather one up into either rotor.

Kite over London
 

Hi,
Years ago I had a privilege to be on board of Met Police helicopter, flying over central London. About 700ft AGL we had a near miss with a kite - but with video turret on board the offender (not a little boy) was quicky spotted in the park below and two bobbies - happend to be nearby - were dispatched - I was explained that it was an offense so crew responded promptly. It took us two or three minutes of orbiting.

Also I remember an incident wher during preflight check of our B-412 I found about 10 metres of fishing line wrapped around tail rotor controls-counterweights on pitch change mechanism. Luckily nothing was bent or otherwise damaged, hovewer it remained a mystery how this line came there, as crew from previous day could not remember anything unusual.

700 feet......near miss

Another dangerous offender locked up and another statistic for the boys in blue.

I wonder if the miscreant had a clue what he had done

Probably not until told. I believe 180' is the highest you can normally fly a kite.

Small change!

When you lurk around the southern borders of the US you need to pay close attention so you don't run into one of these.

TARS

Up to 15,000' !!!

http://wanderingairstream.com/onther...eppelin-22.jpg

http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2771/4...933_z.jpg?zz=1

One Sunday last year I scanned the NOTAMs and set off for North Norfolk. Talking with London Info I found I had mis-read one about kite flying, I saw it as 1300' it actually went to 13 000!

Hd a near miss with a radio controlled plane at Kew Bridge at 800' eight years ago.

SND

Akrotiri, early '70s, Whirlwind10. Low level past the sailing club and just before reaching Ladies Mile saw a flash of something past the window. Suggested an immediate landing. On shutdown there were yards and yards of terylene type cord wrapped around the main and tail rotor pitch rods and both were banana shaped.:eek: The remaining cord stretched away out of sight and took a lot of recovering. Fortunately, there was no-one on the end! Needed some major engineering before we could recover it.:ooh:

Not even close! The afghans would get their bamboo and tissue kites regularly to at least 1000'.

Amazing how much damage a little 'string' can cause.

The aerostats themselves are even hard to spot, they blend into the sky remarkably well, but the cables are VERY hard to see unless the baloon tips you off.