Helicopter Crash Central London
Avoid imitations
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Actually, BOAC, to be perfectly correct, I should have written "between the high and low water marks", rather than the centre of the river. However, that is a distance of a few yards.
Here we have an approach to Heathrow which takes up everything down to 3,000 feet. Under that is the easterly approach to London City, which was indeed on easterlies this morning (although, being down there at the time, most of these ended up as missed approaches periodically audible in the fog up above). Squeezed under all this is H4, a standard helicopter routing which follows the river, maximum altitude 1,000 feet, and even for those not following this track, is the routing into London's principal heliport, which is riverside.
Then a developer proposes and builds a huge high rise (higher than the BT Tower), in isolation from the groups in The City and Canary Wharf, and which now dominates the skyline (when Cavok) in inner south-west London, 600 feet (181m) high, and right on the river (and the aforementioned helicopter route), and with a crane alongside which reaches well above this maximum.
And then we say we take risk assessments seriously ...... but somehow the tower is hit before it is even completed.
I wonder who the developer thinks they are going to let/sell the upper floors to now.
Then a developer proposes and builds a huge high rise (higher than the BT Tower), in isolation from the groups in The City and Canary Wharf, and which now dominates the skyline (when Cavok) in inner south-west London, 600 feet (181m) high, and right on the river (and the aforementioned helicopter route), and with a crane alongside which reaches well above this maximum.
And then we say we take risk assessments seriously ...... but somehow the tower is hit before it is even completed.
I wonder who the developer thinks they are going to let/sell the upper floors to now.
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I wonder who the developer thinks they are going to let/sell the upper floors to now.
All the prime stuff in the developments (i.e. "penthouse suites" at the top of the building etc.) are sold off-plan on day one to gullible foreigners (or even before day one at international tradeshows). Most of whom have probably not even visited the "marketing suites" which are the first thing the developers build on the plot.
So the question is not who the developer is going to let/sell to.... but rather who the poor sod who bought the thing is going to let/sell to.
Last edited by mixture; 16th Jan 2013 at 18:40.
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I see / hear a lot of media reference to the Police helo 'electing' not to fly.
Is this a fact that was officially & publicly acknowledged anywhere?
It seems to me that the 'media' seems to making this some sort of benchmark, as if METPOL helo's are some form of air gods and if they don't fly no one else should.
My general but limited knowledge of police helo work is generally in response to operational needs i.e. chasing the bad guys, and if vis is low and operating in a more 'random' fashion across built up areas as opposed to flying heli routes would make their decision making process very different from normal commercial ops wouldn't it?
And if the vis is low it renders the helo as an aerial observation platform rather useless as even the FLIR suffers from reduced vis doesn't it?
Is this a fact that was officially & publicly acknowledged anywhere?
It seems to me that the 'media' seems to making this some sort of benchmark, as if METPOL helo's are some form of air gods and if they don't fly no one else should.
My general but limited knowledge of police helo work is generally in response to operational needs i.e. chasing the bad guys, and if vis is low and operating in a more 'random' fashion across built up areas as opposed to flying heli routes would make their decision making process very different from normal commercial ops wouldn't it?
And if the vis is low it renders the helo as an aerial observation platform rather useless as even the FLIR suffers from reduced vis doesn't it?
Ref: the innocent victim, couldn't agree more. I think whilst natural that here the majority might moan about the media trying to blow this up in the end given the events it's hardly a surprise.
Ref: the innocent victim, couldn't agree more. I think whilst natural that here the majority might moan about the media trying to blow this up in the end given the events it's hardly a surprise.
Given that probably a handful of people will be killed on Britain's roads today then why don't they give those "innocents" similar coverage?
Don't misunderstand me I regard the loss of any life in this type of event as a tragedy but I have to say I despise the media and some of the reporting I have heard about makes me feel angry to say the least.
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I see / hear a lot of media reference to the Police helo 'electing' not to fly.
Is this a fact that was officially & publicly acknowledged anywhere?
Is this a fact that was officially & publicly acknowledged anywhere?
The flying boys in blue were grounded, and so whilst bored twiddling their thumbs they allegedly emitted a t-w-a-t that allegedly read as follows :
"Good afternoon. Well, as London's fog is keeping us on the ground at present, we thought we'd be here to answer any Qs you have about ASU..."
The reason it is in the meeeejaaaa is because, someone allegedly did ask a question....
"@MPSinthesky Funny you should ask. Cranes have red light so aircraft can see, yes ? Crane atop new tower at Vauxhall had none y'day. Problem ? "
To which answer came there none, hence the meeeja are wetting their pants at the prospect the light might have been broken since October !
Last edited by mixture; 16th Jan 2013 at 20:14.
It's not surprising in the sense that all most of the media are interested in are audience ratings rather than any altruism for reporting the "facts".
Given that probably a handful of people will be killed on Britain's roads today then why don't they give those "innocents" similar coverage?
Given that probably a handful of people will be killed on Britain's roads today then why don't they give those "innocents" similar coverage?
M1 Crash: The '140mph death race' that killed two | Mail Online
Given some of the other utter guff published in newspapers a helicopter crashing from the sky in central London was always going to grab attention.
That said I'm not all that sure what is in the media that gets people steamed up. Maybe there are some elements of detail that are not relevant but look someone died on the pavement doing nothing more than going about their daily business 25 mins after a pilot lifted and then called for a weather divert. How much do you think that family cares about the minutiae of aviation procedures?
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That said I'm not all that sure what is in the media that gets people steamed up.
Have you watched any of the major news channels ? Have you read the major papers ?
The way they cover aviation events is despicable, complete sensationalism, nothing else.
I mean, just look at some of the headlines from today :
Horror and chaos follow London chopper crash
A 'miracle' deadly chopper crash wasn't worse
Witnesses had to run for their lives as debris and flames rained down
Fiery chopper crash near British spy agency
Woman witnesses London 'copter crash horror
Copter inferno after pilot hits high-rise crane
2 die as chopper falls into crane on tower
And that's just the headlines from a few of the articles ! The articles themselves are strewn full of un-necessary padding to make the whole thing sound like it was the apocalypse.
Meanwhile, the TV meeja were doing the usual waste of time and resources "rabbit in headlight" tricks .... plus calling in 'experts' that were anything but !
Last edited by mixture; 16th Jan 2013 at 20:30.
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.....as if METPOL helo's are some form of air gods and if they don't fly no one else should
LONDON/CITY EGLC 160820Z 34003KT 0700 R09/0800 R27/0750 FZFG BKN001 M03/M03 Q1012
Mixture, has it been reported any differently from anything else?
Actually those headlines you post none of them are untrue are they. People did run for their lives and given the time and place it is a miracle more people didn't get caught up in it.
Actually those headlines you post none of them are untrue are they. People did run for their lives and given the time and place it is a miracle more people didn't get caught up in it.
Would you fly in this?
LONDON/CITY EGLC 160820Z 34003KT 0700 R09/0800 R27/0750 FZFG BKN001 M03/M03 Q1012
LONDON/CITY EGLC 160820Z 34003KT 0700 R09/0800 R27/0750 FZFG BKN001 M03/M03 Q1012
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The Oxford dictionary defines "news" as :
newly received or noteworthy information, especially about recent events
As far as I'm concerned, any manner of presenting news that involves words such as horror, chaos,miracle or inferno does not count as news. Its a pure attempt to increase audience/readership figures by purporting to have a more exciting story to tell.... because that is what it is.... telling a story .... not relaying the news.
newly received or noteworthy information, especially about recent events
As far as I'm concerned, any manner of presenting news that involves words such as horror, chaos,miracle or inferno does not count as news. Its a pure attempt to increase audience/readership figures by purporting to have a more exciting story to tell.... because that is what it is.... telling a story .... not relaying the news.
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It depends. Presumably a twin engined helicopter would have no trouble flying on top of this type of weather (am assuming radiation fog which isn't too thick) whilst enroute?
Last edited by TRC; 16th Jan 2013 at 20:40.
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Smoke, flames and death with video footage. It was always going to be sensationalised by the press. ****, unfortunately, happens to some of us. Getting upset about it is pointless. He had his nightmare day, and one day we will know why. 
It depends. Presumably a twin engined helicopter would have no trouble flying on top of this type of weather (am assuming radiation fog which isn't too thick) whilst enroute?
Did the weather degrade hugely in those 25 mins?
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Weather changed dramatically in London this morning. Cloud base descended whilst this flight progressed, continued to worsen until the tower / crane were lost fro sight, and by 10:00 CAVOK.
Going up? Cloud, temperature, aircraft performance in known icing conditions?
Going up? Cloud, temperature, aircraft performance in known icing conditions?