crab, I know what you're talking about, but all it takes is a bit of re-caging your brain to what a "stationary" hover is. If you center the cues and the hoist operator keeps telling you to stop right, then you figure out that a left drift is required to stay over top the raft. I've found the more I do night water, the less I rely on outside references and the more I rely on hover cues and the back-end talking to me. The normal hover height for a hoist is 40ft for us. I started using the higher heights in the Gulf of Mexico, where the waves are very small. Rotor wash seems to be a bigger problem in flat sea conditions than it does in higher sea states. Although I will admit, my experience in heavy seas is only about 3 months old.

My hover coupler comment was intended to reference the systems where the hoist operator actually controls the aircraft, of which I actually have zero experience since our system is basically an Atari brain and very poor at holding a hover.

student,

There have been many before you who have asked similar questions. Stand by for a torrent of abuse about not being the right sort of character to be a mil pilot if you are already thinking about going civvy. The mil lifestyle is such that to get to the point where you become 'useful' to a civvy company, either fixed wing or rotary, means a significant personal and professional commitment to whichever service you join. In other words dont even consider joining if your actual reason is to get free flying training before jumping ship...it simply doesn't work like that.

With regards to SAR, RN pilots have generally done a number of years 'front line' before being given a SAR tour. Some might then manage to stay SAR for a while, others will just do 2-3 years before returning to other duties. Post 2012 when SAR-H starts to take hold the numbers of mil pilots in SAR will be massively reduced. You can work it out for yourself but the chances of new mil pilots getting in will be equally massively reduced as the old boys who for whatever reason are not transfering to the new company will be hanging on in there.

Good luck and if you succeed in your ambition to fly for the RN you will be joining a fantastic family - you just need to make sure you join with the right attitude and expectations otherwise you may find fitting into the family more difficult. :ok:

HeliEng

I agree - particularly as the majority of the present civ engineers working the SKIOS programme are not / and do not require to be licensed. I would hope that once the winning bidder & aircraft are announced then those working in the SKIOS deal will be approached with an attractive training plan. At the end of the day these guys and girls are already based at the locations and working within the SAR ethos so seem an ideal source of engineering manpower....we shall have to wait & see.

SW

It will probably depend on whether the aircraft is CoCo, CoMo or CoMr.

Student - the RN regard SAR as a secondary role, the RAF regard it as a primary one - take your pick:ok::)

crab - not sure the RAF, outside the SAR Force, regard it is a primary role anymore either :ok::ok:

certainly, as things stand, post 2012 RAF manpower in SAR will be extremely limited too.

SW

HeliEng.
Recent advert in Flight for Engineers for SAR. As well as crews!! Someone is at least trying to think ahead! Soteria??:hmm: Air Knight??:hmm: But just where they are all going to come from is a mystery?
3D

SW - sad but true, the 'big RAF' will miss us when we're gone if only for the PR.

As for mil manning, I believe 2/3 to 1/3 RAF to RN and I'm not sure if that means the RN will be joining us for our increasingly regular trips to Mount Pleasant.

Crab, you know full well the RAF have the finnest PR machine of the lot! And they do't have to do a thing! It's all done for them!!!!!

Nice to see the 139 from Lee at Chiv today, thanks to the chaps for showing us round it:ok:

Sexy looking machine but not built for SAR (when people say the cabin is small they mean the cabin is small!) - however, Lee to Chiv in 45 mins isn't to be sniffed at, if we manage a return visit in the SK it will take an awful lot longer than that!

Crab!!! -You be careful, your heirs and betters will read this and lump you with one! - You know you won't like that!!!

3D try Qatar!!

Would that be a certain nasty little man with a massive Napoleon complex by any chance?? :* All this talk about the mis-management of CHC personnel et al is certainly worrying, which leads onto...


...Here's hoping, fingers crossed.

Just watched on Sky News, the 4 S92 SAR helos in the UK have been grounded following the Newfoundland crash......anyone got any info??

Something to do with this maybe...
http://bondpapers.*************/2009...ds-broken.html

smc33.
Have a look at the Newfoundland thread.

This, normally very active thread, has been very quiet for some time. Is there no news to report? In the absence of news I'll settle for rumour, no matter how unsubstantiated.

CD

Crab,

As the RN once trusted me to recover their super secret torpedo things up at Rassay.....as a civvie.....why not just contract out the most enjoyable posting down south. I am sure Bristow has a few SAR capable 61's left in the stable collecting dust.

Likewise....contract out the Chinook flying to Columbia and Bob's yer uncle!

SASless,
I think that the place that you mentioned has already been covered. It is still classed as an Operational Theatre for reasons that cannot be discussed here. The military guys are part of the bayonet strength ie they can be used as troops when the chips are down, that is why the civilian engineers are all military reservists.
The helicopters are not owned by the SAR force, but by the Permenant Joint Headquarters ie the guys who mount the deployed operations, the crews are on loan and the chinook has been withdrawn for some time.
I for one would be delighted not to ever go back to the place and I am sure that others would agree, but at the end of the day, the army want a platform that they "think" has military capabilities. Army, think !!!!!!!!!!!:p:p

Head down, look out for the flack

Breaking News - AIRKNIGHT propose new platform choice
 

AIRKNIGHT propose new platform choice to align with MOD funding profile.....


http://www.heirloomwoodentoys.com/Ai...-pr-18795.html

Don't tell them your name Pike
 

Is it true that Service SMEs reviewing the bids were asked to sign an undertaking not to join either of the bidders in the future and some refused? If so are the bids being reviewed by credible SMEs? Perhaps Crab could enlighten us?:confused: