Skids on a Sikorsky
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Skids on a Sikorsky
I realised the other day that Sikorsky don't seem to do skids so I got curious and modified this S76 photo.
I'm no engineer so not sure if the struts are in the right places, but how do S76 drivers feel about it? Maybe it would mean less maintenance, less empty weight, less remembering, more fuel capacity.
Bell did it with the 222UT and Agusta with the A119.
I'm no engineer so not sure if the struts are in the right places, but how do S76 drivers feel about it? Maybe it would mean less maintenance, less empty weight, less remembering, more fuel capacity.
Bell did it with the 222UT and Agusta with the A119.
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No VIP/corporate aircraft should be on skids.
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One of the most frightening incidents of my career was the collapse of the rear cross tube on a Bell 214 ST. Luckily nobody was underneath it at the time. I have also seen 212 rear tubes break on a couple of occasions.
The 214 was a contract maintenance job, When the first 214 demonstrate aircraft came to us, Allan Bristow took one look at it and said " anyone putting an aircraft that weight on skids wants their head testing".
The 214 was a contract maintenance job, When the first 214 demonstrate aircraft came to us, Allan Bristow took one look at it and said " anyone putting an aircraft that weight on skids wants their head testing".
I could never understand why the 76 has retractable gear instead of fixed gear and fairings. Flew one with the gear bolted down for weeks. We lost about 2-3 knots in cruise and that’s with gear doors blowing in the wind.
Last edited by albatross; 27th Oct 2021 at 11:22.
surely you lost more than that? Vne is 130 kts gear down.
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Maybe that’s why the doors were blowing in the wind? 
Maybe that’s why the doors were blowing in the wind?
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But not impossible, as the crash comics so often illustrate
One chaps argument between the options.
https://kaypius.com/2016/08/14/wheel...kids-who-wins/
Wheels never caught on with the 412.
Are there any skid equipped helicopters that can cruise at a Vne of 155 knots? I can't think of any. Run on landings at 40 knots in a 76 with skids would be interesting to say the least. As would arriving at the bottom after rejecting a vertical takeoff OEI from 50' up.
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From my army days, skid undercarriages were all about landing on rough or soft ground. For every time a 76 does that it will land 100 times on a runway/tarmac and have to taxi.
Are there any skid equipped helicopters that can cruise at a Vne of 155 knots?