Idle hands
 

Something to share with fellow AS350 drivers out there - I had a 20 minute dead leg today out over the water, and in an idle moment of curiosity stuck my arm out the window (as I like to, funnily enough) - never noticed this before, but if you do that, it can seriously play havoc with the pressure instruments.
I was experimenting with the effects of the 105 kt breeze on my hand when I saw the altimeter needle jump around like a punk in the mosh pit and the VSI waver crazily anywhere between +/- 1000 fpm. Thinking the static system might be playing up, I did some further exploration and found that, lo and behold, if you stick your arm out and move it around in various positions and angles of attack, you can confuse your static instruments no end - somewhat surprising when you consider that the static source is way down underneath the cabin, out of the way, you'd reckon. Obviously not!
Anyone else come across this phenomenon?

Are you sure you didn't inadvertently have the standby static selected?

The only thing I noticed when I stuck my arm out of a Wessex window at 110kts was the thunk of my elbow on the door frame and two weeks worth of physio to get my arm back again. S..t it hurt. Haven't done that trick again.:ok:

You could make a Bell 47 turn by sticking your arm out of the window.

Cup your hand into the airflow, and it feels like you're fondling a tit.

Less than 40 knots and it feels a bit slack, over 60 it gets quite firm........

You guys are killing me!!!:):):):)

totally the oposite with tits then

This is something of an amusing and interesting thread.
I once took my mother up for a flight in a warm climate with doors off. After giving her rather an extended pre flight briefing in the car on the way to the airport and again once seated inside the heli I figured I'd done my part.
Imagine my surprise when at 2000' feet and completely unannounced with camera in hand she threw her arm out the left side of the cockpit in an attempt to get a nice shot of the two of us whilst in flight.
Although I s*#t myself it was nothing compared to her. The airflow nearly ripped her clean out of the cockpit - the camera with lanyard round her wrist almost severed her hand off. Somehow she did manage to recover her arm and camera back into the cockpit but the battery compartment had loosed its contents like a couple of tiny drop bombs onto the unsuspecting world below and apparently not through the tail rotor!
Not much conversation for the remainder of that flight!
R1tamer

Cup your hand into the airflow, and it feels like you're fondling a tit.

Less than 40 knots and it feels a bit slack, over 60 it gets quite firm........

I dread to think what you were doing with you other hand :eek:

not a chopper driver, though when we had no pax on board the boys would let me drive our 222...as i fixed wing driver i am curious and have to wonder like droopy asked...have you checked to see if you outside static line is blocked or cracked and you're operating on the stand by one..???

the dean.

I seem to remember this as being a very good way of losing an expensive watch

Be careful! There was a case of an RAF pilot who put his head out of the window and couldn't get it back inside.

From experience, don't try and unfold a map when single pilot with the doors off.....:uhoh:

I don't think there is a standby static source on the BA - could be wrong, but I haven't heard of one.

We call 'sticking your arm out the window in flight' the 'intelligence test'. ie if you're intelligent, you don't do it again...:eek:

Keep at it AotW, maybe with one arm you'll be slower typing your answers to the music quiz, give the rest of us a chance. :)

Come on now, SSK - even though I've got two functional typing arms I seem to recall you blitzing me often enough! This week was a bit of a gift because of the Aussie theme.:ok:

I recall seeing some pictures of Keith Hartley flying a Tornado minus the canopy....There was some distrust amongst crew with the ejection sequence, shortly after the aircraft entered service. Think there had been a couple of unsuccessful abandonments. Hartley was tasked to fly the aircraft with no canopy and, the rear seat either removed or covered. Always remember the shot of Keith, arm resting on the edge, visor up, shades on, mask off and a cheesy grin. All at about 200kts! :ok: Anyone got the pics anywhere?

A17

Surely I'm Not the only one to witness a goon suit being inflated like a Michelin Man, through the wrist seal out the window!!!:E

Hey arm', the AS350 we used to have (your local ems crowd) used to read up to -20 KIAS if you extended the search light. Scared the crap out of me one dark night coming out of Palm I, thought the AI had just failed. Apparently it was a know effect (for that airframe) that no one thought I needed to know!

Saw ya ugly mug in the rag the other day, must catch up sometime, drop down at the shed. MM