Has anybody reading the report come to any mention of the evolution of mustering techniques?

The last 20 years has seen significant changes that may very well be a factor.....

No i still have not examined the data sheets, neither do I need to i reckon.

yes mustering has become a lot easier;

1) all the hard, hard work was done by '47's it is now much easier, and

2) there has been a certain adoption of the Bud Williams LSSHS (Low stress stock Handling Skills), which makes for much easier and gentler maneuvering.

The only thing is, before anyone jumps to conclusions that the R22's were not tested in a real environment, I am sad to tell you that the testing was done at / before the real easy work and well before the LSSHS courses.

quite obviously for Reverse flights' sake, the million or two or three hours mustering that the R22's have done quite safely did accumulate quite some AD's along the way.

But to my mind did not have anything to do with the blade delam problems. The metal fatigue problems in the blade area are a separate issue, probably more to do in most cases with serious hours overflying, or over weight limits of their stated limitations.

And yes I will finally agree that Frank did not design the helicopter to be used for flying training. i mean it's quite obvious he was never going to sell any as he never wanted anyone to learn how to fly one.

Mustering, as I have said heaps of times before was going on right outside his front door not far from Burbank so I guess the thought never occurred to him that the machine might be sold, for more cash for Franks pocket, to indulge in that pastime as well.

i mean why indeed was the aircraft ever registered in the utility catergory, I ask you / what a blunder?

oh well it is nearly time for the northern intruder, strange things are bound to happen.

If that were really true, then he'd never accept pay queues for selling helicopters with utility hooks and camera pods installed at his factory.

Not to mention dual controls! (sorry if it's been mentioned already)

Does anyone know when a robbie first rolled off the line fitted with dual controls? Or were they retro-fitted for a start?

I had an idea they were fixed at the beginning, not sure.
On matters Robinson;

I note in the latest 'Robinson News' an article honouring the late Barbara Robinson. I think she was a marketing genius and although I never knew her she was always mentioned in high regard to me by those who did. Please add my sympathies.

I also see that there is an article honouring Simon Spencer-Bower, an instructor of high experience from New Zealand. in fact they mention that he may evn be the highest R22 driver around. remarkable!!

I know of at least one gentleman who had logged 18,000 hours by 2003, every one of 'em in R22's (mustering, or going there to muster) and since then has been probably not been doing much less than 6-900 hours per year.

Of particular interest is that I do not think that he has had a single emergency requiring immediate landing.

Yep terrible aircraft these robbo turnouts eh?
tet

In response to tet's comment about Simon Spencer-Bower.
Going by a comment made by an Instructor/ATO doing a recent Ag rating for a low time helicopter pilot trained by Simon Spencer-Bower. I would have to say Simon's reputation is well deserved, going by the high standard of flying skills demonstrated by the pilot he trained.

Not an issue agrotor, in fact it is an excellent story about an obviously capable person, perhaps the award could have been institued in his direction several times in the past.

My point was, for your sake and for those who did not read the article that it was suggested that with only 10,000 hours on Robinson's that the good gentleman may have been the highest R22 time driver around.

With respect that is not a very well researched comment, as I pointed out.
cheers tet

Tet, I get your point. But you and I both know that 10,000 hrs is not a lot of hours when you are in the company of mustering pilots in Northern Australia, these sort of guy's rarely talk much about this, so their recognition seldom comes to light.
Where as 10,000 hours is a more noted achievement in most other fields of helicopter flying.
Cheers
Ag-Rotor