Floatation bags? Given the area of operation

It's quite legal to take non-paying passengers on trial lessons.

I have to say, a last-ditch attempt at using them as cushioning airbags would be a smart - if unconventional - reaction to the looming ground!

BBC sadly just announced 3 fatalities

Latest is that sadly 3 people did not survive.

Ok, three fatalities. Tragic for family, friends and those of us involved in aviation.

Tail rotor failure, aircraft doomed (unless height helps with auto rotation).

RIP.

Now wait for the report.

John

BBC News is now reporting three dead and one seriously injured. Very sad.

Yes. But how much was paid for the flight?

A 6 minute lesson then 2 flights as an observer.

I commented on the other thread that it looked like a very heavy vertical impact. Tragic.

BBC news report: "Four people were on board, one of which was the pilot."
Genius.

one like this

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....30afde86d5.png

Regulation work around
 

Back in the days when I was still actively flying, joy rides were always classed as trial lessons. They were then deemed to be aerial work rather than public transport in order to get around to requirement for a full AOC. Maybe things have changed now, but I’m sure the passengers believed they were paying for a joy ride.

This morning four people woke up, drew back the curtains and saw clear blue sky, perfect flying conditions.

Doubtless they were all excited at the prospect of flying. Maybe it was their first time, maybe it wasn't. The pilot might have flown 1,000 times before, maybe 10,000.

Three of them won't be waking up tomorrow. One, assuming they pull through, will wake up to a different world.

Not one of them foresaw this. Not one of them deserved it. And I'll bet the pilot was at his absolute best when it mattered the most.

Those left behind - the badly injured survivor, the partners, the children, the parents, friends and wider family have all got spaces at the dinner table tonight, empty desks in the office tomorrow, and most important a hole in their lives.

As an aviation community, whether a PPL student with a handful of hours or a 10,000 hour fixed wing pilot, we owe it to those departed as well as those left behind not to post the way that some have above.

RIP. It could be me or you next time.

Why would there be four people onboard for a "flying lesson" - is this normal ??

Sad indeed. However I question whether Sandown, as an unlicensed aerodrome should be hosting the variety of fee paying 'experiences' that it regularly advertises across its social media and website. This month they are promoting operators who themselves are offering paid wing walking and pleasure flying experiences. Many of you will no doubt have seen that one of the airport owners regularly posts social media 'memes' of being anti-CAA, anti-rules, no high viz, no miserable people and puts a anatomical skeleton in front of the microphone when there is no human in the tower to answer a radio call. All fun and games until someone loses an eye, as the saying goes. The wider picture needs to be looked at here.

I think it was a 'Trial Lesson', and that often involves back seat spectators.

It seems 3 students were taking turns at hands-on flying under instruction, the ballast of a full aircraft making for some difference in handling, part of the initiation to an R44. The witnessed “spiralling” indicates a tail rotor malfunction or mast bumping, the latter a sadly not uncommon cause of the demise of these and other teetering rotor helicopters, carburettor icing being a common cause of engine flaming out. When I was doing al little R22 training, the flying school had a big block lettered notice stuck on inside “NO PUSHOVER MANOEUVRES!”. They had sadly lost one of their aircraft through a pushover when it was hired out. These aircraft don’t forgive mistakes, but aside from that they are in themselves fundamentally reliable.

Another BBC report stated all 3 (apart from the pilot/instructor) were helicopter students, seems taking turns at the front. Aircraft can behave differently when laden, and I expect this might be even more the case in a helicopter so getting familiar with handle an aircraft at max permitted weight is part of it all. Possible that they had all training or even maybe full private license in the 2 seater R22 which is said to be very similar.

a witness described it as “spiralling”, which means it lost it’s entire rudder authority, either tail rotor malfunction or a boom strike be side of an inadvertent pushover manoeuvre by somebody on the controls. There could have been a mechanical failure of a gearing controlling this, linkage etc, although these are not such common causes of failure in the Robinsons compared with boom strikes. There’s also the possibility of colluded with wires, a mast etc.

Looking at the photo, impact was : high vertical speed. low fwd speed, low rotor rpm.
How that situation arose is, at this time. mere speculation.
Of course these daze there will probably be GoPro and cell phone video of the event.
Strange about the deployed floats.