JANUARY 2018 VOL 46
ONVENTURA THE FRONT LINES CO SHERIFF
BATTLING THOMAS FIRE
ANATOMY OF
AN ACCIDENT MAKING ACRONYMS
WORK FOR YOU
FO LAD RF EA W E L L I T H F U L LYNX RETIRES AFTER 40 YEARS
2 | heliweb magazine
50
INSIDE
THIS ISSUE
COVER STORY:
THE SUN SETS ON THE LEGENDARY LYNX
AFTER 50 YEARS OF VENERABLE SERVICE By: Darren Willmin
44
ANATOMY OF AN ACCIDENT
ON THE FRONT LINES VENTURA COUNTY SHERIFF BATTLES THOMAS FIRE
NTSB CASE FINDINGS REVIEW
By: Scott Dworkin
By: Andy Evans, Aerossurance
MONTECITO MUDSLIDE RESCUE URBAN SEARCH AND RESCUE EFFORTS SAVE HUNDREDS By: Jason Jorgensen
COLUMNS & FEATURES
64 76
Helipix
6
From the Desk of
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Helinews
28
Making Acronyms Work for You
72 January 2018 | 3
is a publication of Airborne Productions P.O. Box 3134 Alpharetta, GA 30023 TOLL FREE: 844.435.4932 PHONE: 770.308.6648
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The setting sun silhouettes a Royal Army Lynx JANUARY 2018 VOL 46
Meet the team: Ryan Mason
Publisher & Editor
ryan@heliweb.com
Ryan has worked in aviation media for almost a decade, providing photography, story content, and videos for multiple U.S and international aviation publications before purchasing Heliweb Magazine. Also a former police officer, he has written for numerous law enforcement publications, specializing in technology, tactics, police equipment and airborne law enforcement. Ryan’s goal is to provide story content on the issues that truly matter to the industry and to promote and support a safer industry.
ONVENTURA THE FRONT LINES CO SHERIFF
BATTLING THOMAS FIRE
ANATOMY OF
AN ACCIDENT MAKING ACRONYMS
WORK FOR YOU
Jason Jorgensen
Deputy Editor
jason@heliweb.com
Jason is a well established aviation photographer and journalist, a career that he pursued after completing his service in the United States Navy. Based in the Los Angeles area, Jason is also known in the architectural arena where for over a decade and a half, he worked with custom home builders, marketing teams, luxury interior designers and some of the largest real estate companies in the country. Jason specializes in business avaition, military aviation and investigative journalism, he also serves as the magazine’s Los Angeles Bureau Chief.
Colt Roy
Online Content Editor
colt@heliweb.com
Colt is a writer and photographer in the emergency services field. Colt is also the editorial director of SConFire.com a website dedicated to first responder news around the country and is the primary correspondent for coverage of helicopter aviation relating to helicopter air ambulance services and aerial firefighting.
FO LAD RF EA W ELL I T H F U L LYNX RETIRES AFTER 40 YEARS
ISSUE COVER: A Royal Army Lynx performing an aggressive take off Image Provided by: Darren Willmin - Aviation in Action
Additional Contributors: Dan Foulds
Jacinta Cummins Dan Foulds retired from flying in 2015 after a 30 year career in flying in military & civilian aviation. Dan now runs HelicopterEMS.com and spends his time dedicated to helping improve air medical crew safety and single pilot operations.
Matt Johnson
A freelance journalist residing in rural Queensland, Australia, Jacinta currently specializes stories focused on regional Australia, She has worked for daily newspapers in Australia for over a decade and has served as a media advisor to two government administrations covering agriculture and aboriginal affairs.
For advertising inquiries, please call our advertising sales team at 844-435-4932 extension 802 or email sales@heliweb. com for more information on how we can help you showcase your business.
Ralph Blok Helicopter FAA Designated Pilot Examiner, conducting Private through ATP level exams in numerous types. His experience spans; Air Medical, Law Enforcement, Flight Instruction and ENG Flying. Johnson is a 3 time Master Instructor, FAA Gold Seal Instructor, USHST Rep Human Factors Group and FAASTeam Rep Greater Cincinnati Ohio region.
Ralph started with aviation photography in the early 90’s after he was introduced to military aviation by a family member. Since then he gained a lot of experience and has been to a lot of countries worldwide. DutchAviationPhoto.com
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January 2018 | 5
An AStar from St. Marys Air Flight on approach to its pad. Photographer: Dennis Pierce.
A Travis County, TX, STAR Flight EC145. Photographer: Brian Papke. 6 | heliweb magazine
#helipix A Phrog Phlashback with a USMC CH-46E fthat was attached to HMMT-164 “Kinghtriders.” Photographer: Damon Duran.
An Air Green Leonardo AW139 landing after a rescue mission in Northern Italy. Photographer: Daniel Bertagnolli. January 2018 | 7
BHI Squared’s H-60X resting atop hot exhaust columns over the water. Photographer: Antonio Gemma Moore. 8 | heliweb magazine
#helipix Feetu, the Jack Russel Terrier is crazy about flying and loves wearing his Mutt Muffs. Photographer: Mikko Nevalainen. January 2018 | 9
A Sydney Helicopters BK117 flying low over the Australian countryside.
Photographer: James Williams.
A Robinson R-44 from Mauna Loa Helicopters is photographed at sunset while flying over Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. Photographer Josh Han. 10 | heliweb magazine
#helipix A worker attaches a long line to the belly of this MD500 to fly personnel and materials to and from a tower top work site in this traffic congested area. Photographer: Doug Hatcher. January 2018 | 11
A visit to the “front office� of a Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm, AugustaWestland EH101 Merlin. Photographer: Ray U. 12 | heliweb magazine
#helipix January 2018 | 13
One of SFS Aviation’s Leonardo AW139s used for offshore transport in the Gulf of Thailand. Photographer: Michael Rocks-MacQueen.
A pair of Eurocopter EC135s operated by different German Police forces. Photographer: Sarah Pfannkuch. 14 | heliweb magazine
#helipix A low flying Royal Air Force (RAF) Aerospatiale SA-330E Puma HC2. Photographer: Dan Griffiths.
High above the snowy peaks in the front seat of an EC130 Photographer: Hank WIlliams. January 2018 | 15
A pair of UH60 Blackhawks belonging to the Swedish Armed Forces. Photographer: Gunnar Ă…kerberg. 16 | heliweb magazine
#helipix January 2018 | 17
An Airbus H135 departing the HAI Heli Expo 2017 in Dallas, TX. Photographer: Jason Jorgensen.
A Police MD50 practices landing on a bridge in Erbil, Iraq. Photographer: Gabriel Fest. 18 | heliweb magazine
# hh ee ll ii pp ii xx #
An AW159 Wild Cat during an aggressive take off. Photographer: Simon Pryor. January 2018 | 19
COLUMN
PUBLISHER
From the Desk Of... Reflecting on the Past Year
January for us, is a month for reflection on the year g o n e b y. B o y h a s i t b e e n a big one. I remember this time last year sitting at my inmost kitchen table writing this very column and wondering what the next year would bring for the magazine. As usual, it bought the usual plethora of work, late nights, thousands of phone calls, emails and what seemed like never ending travel around the country and several other continents to capture what was some epic photography opportunities in areas not yet seen in helicopter industry publications. 2017 brought with it challenges for us, as it did c h a l l e n g e s f o r t h e i n d u s t r y. Although the industry is slowly climbing out of the oil and gas downturn that saw tightening of belts and a ripple effect across all areas of the industry – we kept our heads up, and like any storm, we collectively as an industry found new opportunities and capitalized on old ones to keep our heads above w a t e r. The year that was saw us participate in some firsts for us. Being part of the first cross country flight of the Bell 505 and seeing first hand just what the company had been raving about in person was something I will not soon forget. The 505 was for all the detractors across social media, the
20 | heliweb magazine
little single that could. It was a surprising machine, confirming that the company moved in the right direction with this one. Attending the CHC Safety and Quality Summit in Dallas was a n o t h e r f i r s t f o r u s t h i s y e a r, as the conference moved from its Canadian location, to the company’s headquarters location, held at the Gaylord Te x a n . L i k e o t h e r y e a r s , t h e summit offered a range of great material for operators to discuss and learn from each other and share best practices for both oil and gas and other industry segments c o m m i t t e d t o s a f e t y. The summit for me, was like the educational courses offered at other conferences, but offered in a much less chaotic environment without the distraction of a trade floor to draw people away from the core framework and reason for the summit. The common theme among all attendees, one that we also share – what can we do to help make the industry safer? It was another year of work for the USHST team, which we also commit time to assist in pushing the safety goals of the organization in an effort to reduce the number of worldwide helicopter accidents, both fatal and non-fatal. The good news is, on that front – the industry seems to be listening. The USHST/ISHT website and social media usage continues to grow and the accident rate has also lowered. Although more can be done.
It was touch and go with a fairly horrible last few months of the year as far as accidents go that put the number at a place that made many of us nervous that we would not see the reduction w e h o p e d f o r, b u t w e m a n a g e d to make it happen, even if by a smaller margin than initially expected. Thanks in part to the dedicated commitment of all the USHST and IHST members and group chairs around the world that give of their time to help try to affect global accident rates. As I spent time with countless p i l o t s , a i r c r e w, a v i a t i o n c o m p a n y management representatives and public relations staff throughout t h e y e a r, I w a s r e m i n d e d t h a t there are those who simply w o r k i n o u r i n d u s t r y f o r a “ j o b ,” and there are those for which aviation is either a passion or a v o c a t i o n . Yo u d o n ’ t h a v e t o b e a p i l o t t o b e s o m e o n e w h o e xc e l s in this industry or someone who considers aviation or helicopters their passion. Yo u j u s t h a v e t o l o v e t h e i n d u s t r y, its quirks, the deep relationships that form over time that become life-long friendships and learn to roll with the ebbs and flows of our forever changing industry as it continues evolving into several n e w a n d e xc i t i n g a r e a s t h a t m a y prove to be at least in part, the future of vertical flight. Fly Safe,
Ryan Mason Publisher & Editor
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HELINEWS
Iron Bird Power On: CityAirbus Reaches Next Milestone
A rtist re nd e ring of C ityA irb u s. Pr o v id e d b y A i r b us H e l i c o p t e r s .
The CityAirbus program has reached another important milestone: the completion and “power on” of the “Iron Bird” ground test facility in Taufkirchen, Germany. This enables the verification of the entire electric propulsion system of CityAirbus, developed by Airbus’ E-Aircraft Systems unit. The first full electric propulsion test bench has the capability to operate the propulsion system chain from flight controls to the dynamic loads of the propellers. This allows the verification of the electric,
mechanical and thermal dynamics. After being maturated and verified on the iron bird, the propulsion system will be embedded on the demonstrator by mid2018. The test bench configuration reflects the CityAirbus architecture including motors, power electronics and distribution boxes developed and produced by Siemens in the frame of the cooperation agreement between Airbus and Siemens on electric propulsion. Meanwhile the development of the CityAirbus demonstrator itself is
on-going. The first structural parts have already been produced and are on the way to being assembled. These important development steps pave the way to the CityAirbus’ first flight before the end of 2018. CityAirbus is a multi-passenger, self-piloted battery-powered vertical take-off and landing vehicle designed for urban air mobility. It is designed to carry up to four passengers over congested megacities in a fast, affordable and environmentally friendly way.
Stronger and Leaner Airbus Helicopters Displays Solid Commercial Performance in 2017 Airbus Helicopters delivered 409 rotorcraft and logged gross orders for 350 helicopters (net: 335) in 2017, with a strong commercial performance on the heavy and super-medium segments. The company booked 54 orders for helicopters of the Super Puma family and 19 orders for the super-medium H175, confirming those types as best-sellers on their respective market segments. Bookings also included 168 orders for light-single engine helicopters and 105 orders for the H135/H145 light-twins. At the end of 2017, the overall backlog stood at 692 helicopters. “We are now closing the first chapter of the company-wide transformation launched in 2014, which has allowed us to become stronger and leaner in a challenging market environment. Our 2017 results are a testimony to the great work done by our 28 | heliweb magazine
teams to transform our industrial operations, improve our products & services, while delivering an ambitious innovation roadmap to prepare the future of vertical flight”, said Guillaume Faury, Airbus Helicopters Chief Executive Officer. “As we launch a second wave of company transformation this year, our main focus will be to speed up these efforts through increased digitalisation of our products, services and operations – for the benefit of our customers and the safety of our fleet.” Last year saw major progress being made on new products, including the H160 – first of the “H Generation” – with three prototypes now in flight-testing ahead of certification in 2019. A full-scale firing campaign of the HForce weapon system was also carried out successfully on the H145M, which will benefit from
improved and modular military capabilities by the end of 2018. The year was also marked by the launch of ACH (Airbus Corporate Helicopters) through which the company is able to offer high quality design and specifications across its range of helicopters to private and business customers. In 2017, Airbus Helicopters completed the implementation of its revamped industrial model with the inauguration of its blade production facility in Paris-Le Bourget, which will be fully part of the new site specialisation strategy integrating the Marignane, Donauwörth and Albacete plants. On the international stage, the company delivered the 400th UH-72 Lakota to the US Army and broke ground on its first helicopter final assembly line in China, with initial deliveries expected in 2019.
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January 2018 | 29
HELINEWS
First Tiger HAD retrofit delivered to the French Army Aviation sight system complete with a laser designator that allows the Hellfire II airto-ground missile to be fired. This retrofit is the first of 36 retrofits from HAP to HAD ordered by the French Ministry of Defence. For this Tiger retrofit program, Airbus Helicopters has set up a new industrial organization, combining both teams from its Military Support Center France and from its Tiger serial production Final Assembly Line.
T he T ig er Attac k H e lic opte r. Pho t o : Air b u s He lico pt e r s .
Airbus Helicopters has delivered the first Tiger retrofitted into the HAD version to the French Army Aviation, after having previously completed its formal acceptance process with the French Defence Procurement Agency (DGA). This retrofit from the HAP to the HAD version involves performing over 100
airframe modifications and installing over 1500 new parts and 250 electrical cables. Compared with the previous HAP version, the HAD Tiger benefits from an increased maximum take-off weight (MTOW), and is equipped with two new enhanced MTR 390 E engines and with a new STRIX roof mounted
“This retrofit is considered a priority for the French Army and will allow us to have a perfected weapon system and a homogenous fleet. The first HAD Tigers have been combat-proven since 2014 and have shown their wide range of capabilities daily in demanding theatres of operation” said the French Army Aviation Command. “We are pleased to have achieved this first delivery in accordance with the specifications of our customer” said Alexandra Cros, head of governmental affairs France at Airbus Helicopters. “This Tiger retrofit program will give the French Army Aviation the additional capabilities they require in order to perform their most demanding operational missions”, she added. The Tiger HAD is Airbus Helicopters’ multi-role attack helicopter. It is designed to perform armed reconnaissance, air or ground escort, air-to-air combat, ground firing support, destruction and anti-tank warfare, day or night and in adverse conditions. The Tiger attack helicopter has proven its capabilities during operational deployments in Afghanistan, the Central African Republic, Libya and Mali. In service with the armed forces of France, Germany, Spain and Australia, the global Tiger fleet has logged over 92,000 flight hours to date.
30 | heliweb magazine
Airbus Completes Delivery of Final Two Multi-Mission Panther Helicopters from Ten Ordered support team available to them a r o u n d t h e c l o c k i n Ve r a c r u z . Some 30 pilots have also been trained, many of them receiving specific training in SAR and n i g h t v i s i o n g o g g l e s ( N V G ) .”
Th e Mex i can Navy o r d e r ed te n o f the ne w AS565 Panth e r M B e mod e l. Pho t o : Air b u s He lico pt e r s .
Airbus Helicopters announced November 6th from the company’s headquarters in Marignane, France, that the Mexican Navy has now received its final two AS565 MBe Panther helicopters. The announcement was made during a delivery ceremony held at Airbus Helicopters in Marignane. With their order for ten units in 2014, the Mexican Navy became the launch customer of the new version. The first four helicopters were delivered in 2016 and the remaining six d u r i n g t h e c o u r s e o f 2 0 1 7. Stationed at three naval bases in the Mexican states o f Ve r a c r u z , S o n o r a a n d Michoacan, the helicopters perform an average of 300 flight hours annually for reconnaissance, patrol missions and training flights. “The arrival of the MBe Panther has enhanced the Navy Aviation’s operational c a p a b i l i t i e s ,” e x p l a i n e d Admiral Jose Maria Garcia Macedo, the Mexican Navy’s General Director of Naval Aviation. “It is a modern, multi-mission helicopter that we can use in both maritime and land environments for a wide range of missions, including maritime SAR,
d i s a s t e r r e l i e f, e x t e r n a l l o a d operations and even air a m b u l a n c e .” To c a r r y o u t s u c h a r a n g e o f missions, the MBe Panther makes use of advanced mission equipment that includes a cargo hook, a rescue hoist, forward-looking infrared (FLIR) for night-time rescue missions and a total of four stretchers for medical evacuation.
The AS565 MBe combines new and proven technologies to offer more value to operators. It is equipped with two Safran Arriel 2N engines, which enhance its performance in hot & high conditions and enable it to achieve a top speed of 278 km/h and a range of 780 kilometers. It also boasts a new main g e a r b ox , a l a t e s t - g e n e r a t i o n tail rotor and a 4-axis autopilot that reduces crew workload and makes the most demanding missions, such as SAR, easier to perform. More powerful and efficient, the AS565 MBe is also s a f e r, m o r e c o s t - e f f e c t i v e a n d easier to operate.
“I would like to thank the Mexican Navy for their confidence in our h e l i c o p t e r s ,” said Mesrob Karalekian, Airbus Helicopters’ Vice-President for Latin A m e r i c a . “ To help ensure success for their critical missions, we have made a technical and logistical January 2018 | 31
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Douglas Kitani, CEO and Director of Erickson said, “This was a global competition, and we were competing with manufacturers from around the world. We are pleased to bring the work and jobs to our Southern Oregon facility and apply Erickson’s unique skill set to augment Korea’s firefighting capabilities.” The KFS was the first foreign government to purchase the S-64 from Erickson in 2001, and to date, it has operated a total of five Aircranes in Korea while maintaining a contract for parts and service support. With this new contract, the fleet of KFS Aircranes will total eight, with the seventh and eighth airframe expected to be delivered by the end of 2019. The S-64 Helitanker is equipped with a 2650 gallon (10,000 liter) tank capable of rapid snorkeling of either fresh or salt water that helps provide a valuable asset for firefighting crews in both the initial attack phase of firefighting operations and also providing protection to structures in harm’s way. It has internal foam mixing capabilities and provides water or retardant dispensation utilizing eight coverage levels. The aircraft can be configured with a water cannon for high rise and structure protection. As populations and development expand, aerial firefighting over residential properties and structures becomes a more crucial part of the equation. Erickson’s S-64 excels at supporting ground firefighters in the Wildland Urban Interface (WUI), as well as high volume firebombing on large fires.
Probable Cause Determined in Bell 525 Crash
Chief Flight Instructor Receives Award from the United States Park Police Skilled helicopter pilot and Chief Flight Instructor of the Bell Helicopter Training Academy (BTA), Marty Wright was conducting a normal training session with the U.S. Park Police pilots in a Bell 412 when one of his trainees witnessed a fighter jet crash. After seeing the “fireball”, Marty said, “Training is over for now,” and flew towards the crash. Thinking quickly, Marty and his co-pilot called the Andrews Air Field tower for help.
Bell 525 Relentless. Photo: Bell Helicopter.
Severe helicopter vibration was the probable cause of a July 2016 crash that killed two pilots of a Bell 525 helicopter, according to a report from the National Transportation Safety Board. Jason Grogan and Erik Boyse died when their aircraft broke up mid-flight and hit the ground near Italy, Texas, which is about 45 minutes south of Dallas along I-35 East. “An in-depth analysis of the flight data resulted in a thorough understanding of the corrective actions necessary, and appropriate changes to the aircraft have been implemented,” Bell said in a prepared statement. During the accident, traveling at speeds of 212 miles per hour, the pilots reduced the power of the aircraft’s two engines to simulate the loss of one engine to see how the aircraft would respond. The helicopter then began vibrating and the main rotor blades started flapping out of plane. Twenty-one seconds after the test began, the main rotor blades flapped low enough, the NTSB
Marty located the jet pilot as his parachute was floating down, made sure he was okay after landing and lent the pilot a cell phone to call his wife. The flight instructor also coordinated with the rescue aircraft to show them where the jet pilot and the wreckage was located. For his quick assistance, the U.S. Park Police awarded Marty an appreciation award.
said, to impact the tail broom. That caused the aircraft to break up in-flight. The NTSB said Bell was not required to have either a flight data recorder or a cockpit voice recorder in the aircraft, as it was an experimental research and development helicopter configured to carry two pilots and no passengers. But the NTSB added that devices like these “would help give manufacturers more information about experimental flight tests and would also help manufacturers and investigators better understand the circumstances of an accident.” Bell independently addressed this before returning to flight of the 525 program, the NTSB said, as the Fort Worth company records cockpit audio in all flights. “We remain committed to the 525 program,” the company added. “The continued work of the program team will result in a reliable, innovative helicopter with advanced rotorcraft safety features when it comes to market.”
Photo: Bell Helicopter.
Marty is no stranger to rescue missions. His 22 years flying in the Marine Corps have taught him how to handle each situation with a calm demeanor. “The biggest thing to do when conducting a rescue mission is to stay calm and be there to help,” he says. “Try not to get in the way once the experts get on site and do your best to coordinate efforts until they ask you to leave.” Marty came to Bell Helicopter to work on the V-22 Osprey program and became a supervisor for the development of a pilot training course. After a few years, he was named the Chief Flight Instructor of the BTA, a role he currently holds today. “The interesting thing about the Bell Helicopter Training Academy is that we do training here that you can’t get anywhere else in the world,” said Marty. “It is due to the quality of flight instructors we hire and the amount of training we put them through before they work with customers. All of our flight instructors have no fewer than 2,500 flight hours and they provide a safety net for our customers and students to learn.” January 2018 | 33
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Bell Helicopter Delivers 20th Helicopter Emergency Medical Services Configured Bell 429 Bell Helicopter announced the delivery of a Bell 429 to Heliand. The delivery took place at the Bell Helicopter’s Prague facility. The aircraft is configured to support Helicopter Emergency Medical Services (HEMS) and Search and Rescue (SAR) in Andorra. This marks the 20th HEMS configured aircraft delivered in 2017. “We continue to see strong growth for the Bell 429 in Europe, particularly for HEMs and SAR mission segments,” said Patrick Moulay, executive vice president, Commercial Sales and Marketing. “The Bell 429 offers the best readiness rate of any aircraft it its class making it the HEMS and SAR Configured Bell 429 operated by Heliand. Photo: Bell Helicopter.
choice aircraft when minutes matter.”
Bell Helicopter’s Mirabel Facility Celebrates Completion of 5000 th Aircraft look forward to working with SHC to bring this aircraft into service in China and ensure the smooth delivery of the rest of the 407s on order.” To celebrate this significant moment in BHTCL’ history, all Mirabel employees proudly gathered around the 5000th aircraft in the facility’s Delivery Center for a special ceremony.
Bell Helicopter Mirabel Facility Personnell. Photo: Bell Helicopter.
B e l l H e l i c o p t e r, a n n o u n c e d that the company’s Canadian facility located in Mirabel, QC has completed its 5,000th aircraft. The aircraft, a Bell 4 0 7 G X P, w i l l b e o w n e d b y China’s Shaanxi Helicopter Co. Ltd. (SHC), which had signed a purchase agreement for 100 Bell 407GXPs earlier l a s t y e a r. 34 | heliweb magazine
“This is an incredible m i l e s t o n e f o r Bell Helicopter and a testament to the talent and dedication of everyone here at Mirabel and across the company,” said Cynthia Garneau, president, Bell Helicopter Textron Canada Ltd (BHTCL). “We are confident this new 407GXP will live up to the high performance that SHC expects from the aircraft and we
There are almost 1,400 Bell 407s in operation around the world today performing a myriad of missions in the corporate, Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS) and energy sectors. Bell Helicopter opened its Mirabel manufacturing operations in 1986 and the facility is the final assembly and delivery site of the majority of Bell’s commercial product lines including the Bell 505 Jet Ranger X, 429, 412EPI and 407GXP.
East/West Industries Earns Part 145 FAA Repair Station Certification foot facility. The company, which is located in Long Island, New York was founded in 1968.
East/West Industries announced today that they are the recipient of the Federal Aviation Administration’s certification under FAA Part 145 as a Repair Station. East/West Industries, a woman-owned company, which manufactures and maintains aircraft seats and other products that are critical to crew safety and survival operates inside a 50,000 square
With the Repair Station approval, East/West Industries is now authorized by the FAA to perform Photo: East/West Industries. maintenance, inspection, and repair of aircraft components. In order to receive a Part 145 Repair Station certification, the company had programs, practices, training, quality control, personnel, management, and more reviewed and approved by the FAA. Currently, there are 5,000 Part 145 Repair Stations worldwide, according to the National Air Transportation Association.
“This is a great achievement and a reflection of the hard work and dedication of our entire team,” said East/West President Teresa Ferraro. “Earning this FAA certification as a Part 145 FAA Repair Station adds an important new dimension to the work we do every day in support of aircrew safety.” Original Equipment Manufactures (OEM) such as Bell Helicopter, Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, and Sikorsky to name only a few install East/West seats and other critical crew safety products on the aircraft they manufacture including some of the newest commercial and military platforms still under development. The company has received an extensive list of honors and recognitions, both in the industry and the community, including the prestigious Performance Excellence Award (Gold) from the Boeing Company in both 2015 and 2016.
Universal Avionics Announces 2017 Top Dealers: Avmax & Heli-One Norway Universal Avionics announced its Top Dealers of 2017 to be Avmax for North and South America (Americas) and Heli-One Norway for International Dealer of the Year. Each year, Universal Avionics recognizes two dealers out of several hundred in its Authorized Dealer Network who have achieved outstanding sales performance for the year. Both companies’ expertise and commitment to pursuing Universal Avionics upgrades were instrumental in their successful performance this year. “It has been a positive and exciting year for Universal with several key dealers contributing to our success,” said Robert Clare, Universal Avionics Director of Sales. “Avmax’s ADS-B Out program that includes the Universal SBAS-FMS as well as their established STC packages have been key factors to their overall achievement this year,” he added. “HeliOne Norway has retained their top dealer status for the second year in a row. Their sustained work with mission retrofit programs such as the Sikorsky S-61, S-76, and Airbus AS332 continue to gain momentum in their emerging markets.” “Avmax’s relationship with Universal Avionics has been a cornerstone of our regional aircraft STC solution and product offerings for decades,” said Mark O’Hearn,
Avmax, Business Development – Avionics and Special Projects. “The synergies between our two companies has allowed us to combine Avmax’s robust globally accepted kits and STC solutions with the bulletproof avionics provided by Universal Avionics,” he added. “Our shared values, dedication, and collaborative approach to the ever-changing regulatory environment and technology advancements has benefited our customers and has proved to be a winning combination.” “We are proud to win the 2017 International Top Dealer Award from Universal Avionics,” said Tor Baustad, Senior Manager, Design Engineering with Heli-One Norway. “Universal’s products are well-suited for retrofit upgrades - specifically in helicopters,” he added. “We appreciate the excellent collaborative and cooperative relationship we have with Universal Avionics and their agility in adapting systems to different aircraft configurations. Universal provides excellent support during design, installation, and testing which is
essential to our success. We are big fans of the EFI-890H Advanced Flight Display, MFD-640 Multi-Function Display, and SBAS-FMS which are a part of the Super Puma fleet upgrade as well as the Sikorsky S-61 project. In addition, we have actively promoted EFIS and FMS upgrades for a number of military and civilian helicopter customers including the SA330 (Puma), AS332 (Super Puma), and EC155 platforms.”
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LCI Receives First Airbus Helicopters H175 and Places on Lease with CHC Group covering almost $1.5 billion in new deliveries to date.” Michael Platt, Chief Executive Officer of LCI, says: “We believe that the new CHC is well positioned in the market and we are very pleased to be part of their re-fleeting and growth strategy.” “With our extensive experience in placing helicopters for use in the oil and gas sector, as well as the many other sectors in which we are operating, we are confident we can add value to CHC’s operations in the long term.”
Airbus Helicopters H175. Photo: CHC Helicopter.
CHC announced that LCI had received the first H175 to be put into service with the company. The aircraft will be based out of Aberdeen, Scotland, supporting oil and gas production activities in the North Sea. Crispin Maunder, Executive Chairman of LCI, says: “This is an important day for LCI as we take delivery of this excellent, new generation helicopter. The H175 is now becoming established as a proven and versatile aircraft which efficiently is serving the growing oil and gas sector around the world. “We are delighted to be accepting our first H175 from Airbus Helicopters, building on LCI’s long-established working relationship with the Airbus
The H175 is a new generation 7 ton, 16 passenger aircraft, in the super- medium category. Its primary mission is to support off-shore oil and gas activities but it is also an excellent search and rescue (SAR) aircraft. The H175 is configured with the reliable and proven Pratt & Whitney PT-6 engines, a Helionix avionics suite with 4-axis autopilot, and fully certified to the latest FAR/JAR 29 certification standards. “The addition of another H175 to our fleet in EMEA is another key step towards our
goal to offer our customers a productive, safe and reliable fleet that can best meet the needs of our global customers,” said Karl Fessenden, President and Chief Executive Officer of CHC. “LCI is an experienced lessor when it comes to placing aircraft in the oil and gas sector and we are proud to partner with them on this new aircraft.” There are currently 18 H175 aircraft supporting oil and gas activities with an accumulated flying time exceeding 16,000 hours. Ben Bridge, Executive Vice President Global Sales at Airbus Helicopters, says: “The handover of LCI’s first H175, and the imminent start of operations with CHC, confirms the aptitude of this aircraft for the oil and gas market.” LCI’s helicopter fleet is currently made up of approximately 60 helicopters in service and on order. In addition to the Airbus Helicopters H175, it also includes the manufacturer’s H130 helicopter, and Leonardo Helicopters’ AW139, AW169 and AW189 family
CHC Announces Partnership with Art Williams and Harry Wendt Aeronautical Engineering School CHC Helicopter and the Art Williams and Harry Wendt Aeronautical Engineering School announced the beginning of a local partnership in Guyana (South America) that will include four scholarships for deserving students to continue to pursue their Aircraft Maintenance Engineer’s Licence as well as the provision of additional educational resources, such as timeexpired helicopter parts and airframes, in the future. The partnership may also be expanded to include instruction from CHC engineers as well as internships and future placement opportunities for graduates of the school.
The partnership formally began with the selection of four deserving students that will receive financial scholarships worth $1000 USD each. They were chosen using the Art Williams and Harry Wendt Aeronautical Engineering School’s ISO 9001 QMS procedures for student performance. CHC has also created a local internship position that will allow one student the opportunity to join the operation for three months while building their skills in both maintenance and ground operations through both work experience and additional safety and operational training and educational opportunities.
“We are proud to be the first helicopter company to make this type of investment in the future success of the Guyana Aviation community,” said Karl Fessenden, president and CEO of CHC Helicopter. “We have made a commitment to invest in the communities we operate in across the world and remain committed to helping build a passion for safety and professionalism in aviation and the rotorcraft industry everywhere we operate.”
“I want to congratulate our students on being the first to receive this scholarship reward and thank CHC for their support of our school,” said Capt. Malcolm Chan-a-Sue, A.A., M.S., CEO. “We look forward to building additional programs and opportunities for our students to receive financial support, add new opportunities for hands-on training for helicopters and open up new career opportunities with CHC as they grow their careers at and beyond our campus.”
36 | heliweb magazine
The Art Williams and Harry Wendt Aeronautical Engineering School housed at the Eugene F. Correia International Airport, Ogle, Guyana, School is accredited and certified by the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority, the Caribbean Aviation Safety and Security Oversight System of CARICOM, Jamaica Civil Aviation Authority, Trinidad and Tobago Civil Aviation Authority and the Civil Aviation Safety Authority of Suriname. The United Kingdom Civil Aviation Authority audited the School in February 2008 and has found the school acceptable for certification within the British Overseas Territories in the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean, inclusive of Bermuda and the Falkland Islands. The School was certified on July 24, 2006 by the Trinidad and Tobago Bureau of Standards to the ISO 9001 Quality Management Systems Standards. This School is the First Tertiary Educational Institution in CARICOM with an ISO 9001 Certified Quality Management System and has maintained this approval to date. This School is also a full Member of Flight Safety Foundation, based in Virginia, USA and the International Federation of Airworthiness based in the UK.
CHC Completes First Flight for Ørsted’s Hornsea Project One CHC announced from Humberside in the U.K. that the first flight on January 24, 2017 of the company’s transportation contract servicing Hornsea Project One, a wind farm departed Humberside at 11:30am U.K. time, signalling the beginning of work on a project that will become the biggest wind farm in the world, capable of supplying clean electricity to over one million homes. It will be built 120km (74 miles) off the coast of Yorkshire, UK, where CHC helicopters will be used to transport workers and equipment both during the construction and operational phases of the project. CHC will use a combination of Leonardo AW139 and AW169 helicopters to cater to the transportation needs of the contract that will begin flying out of Humberside heliport from April 2018 supporting the construction and support phases of the project. Both the services and operations for this contract will be based from Humberside, contributing to the expansion and development of the service base and surrounding area. Working with Uni-Fly, CHC will deliver the six -year deal covering the construction phase as well as the first five years of operations and maintenance of the wind farm. This includes a transfer service to take people from shore to the wind farm, and also smaller helicopters to transfer
Leonardo AW139. Photo: CHC Helicopter.
people and tools between the turbines and substations. CHC’s Regional Director for Europe, Middle East and Africa, Mark Abbey said: “I am delighted to see our service get underway. It is a privilege to be part of this landmark project. “We continue to invest in our Humberside facilities, our equipment and training to take on unique projects just like this one and are eager to show how our business and technical skills can support this mission. This also helps drive CHC’s long-term strategy to broaden our range of services to the energy market and continue to grow our renewables service alongside our oil and gas, and Search and Rescue service.” Duncan Clark, Hornsea Project One Programme Director, said: “This is the
first ever wind farm in the world to be built at this scale, and it’s bringing great benefits to the UK and the Humber region.” “We’re thrilled to see UK companies being able to offer their services as we take huge strides in expanding the offshore wind sector here in the UK. It’s also great to see companies like CHC adapt their expertise from existing sectors to be part of the growing renewables industry, pioneering new working practices further offshore.” “The Humber region is also benefitting greatly; we’re investing millions in building the largest ever offshore wind operations and maintenance hub here, bringing skilled jobs to the area and engaging with young people to inspire them into STEM subjects.”
Med-Trans Now Operating from New Headquarters at Denton Enterprise Airport National air medical transport leader Med-Trans Corporation has moved its headquarters operations into a new building at the Denton Enterprise Airport. The new 31,500 square foot facility includes 24,000 square feet of office and classroom space in addition to 7,500 square feet of hangar accommodations. The facility becomes Med-Trans’ principal base of operations, including the company’s operational control center, maintenance control center and communications center. The facility also houses flight operations and maintenance training capabilities along with human patient simulation laboratories for clinical crew training. More than 70 Med-Trans leadership and staff personnel have moved into the new
building from facilities in Lewisville, Texas, that they shared with parent company Air Medical Group Holdings, Inc. (AMGH). AMGH is expanding into the space vacated by Med-Trans. “This expansion of our capabilities and footprints will serve both AMGH and MedTrans well into the future,” said AMGH and Med-Trans CEO Fred Buttrell. “Both organizations are now better positioned for our expected growth and partnership with our new sister company AMR. Med-Trans President Rob Hamilton said, “This is a major development for our company and is a reflection of the hard work of all the Med-Trans professionals who are dedicated to savings lives all across the country. The new Denton Enterprise Airport location for Med-Trans
supports our initiatives to establish and maintain the cultural focus that drives our mission across all disciplines.” The new facility will allow centralized training for team members, while remaining near the Dallas-Ft. Worth International Airport for personnel travel and supply chain efficiencies. In its 35th year in business, Med-Trans has grown into a leading national medical transport provider, focused on establishing intimate relationships with leading health systems, medical centers, and EMS agencies. Med-Trans offers a broad range of solutions to help its partners achieve successful patient outcomes. January 2018 | 37
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AW139 Global Helicopter Fleet Sets Outstanding Milestone of Two Million Flight Hours
Leonardo AW139. Photo: Leonardo.
The AW139 intermediate twin engine helicopter global fleet has reached an outstanding milestone of two million flight hours, across all operational scenarios on five continents, while performing a wide range of missions with commercial, government and military operators. This accomplishment was reached just three years after the achievement of the first million showing impressive reliability, effectiveness, safety and supportability across a range of missions. With the AW139 fleet leader having exceeded 12,000 hours on a single aircraft, nearly 900 units are today in service out of over 1000 on order by more than 300 customers in 80 countries worldwide. The global reach of the AW139, assembled in Philadelphia and Vergiate, has resulted in the type becoming a benchmark as the best-selling helicopter in its weight category and the most successful helicopter program in the last 15 years. The type covers the widest range of applications with high flexibility including SAR, EMS, law enforcement and homeland security, patrol, firefighting, disaster relief, offshore transport, VIP/Corporate transport, utility and military duties. 38 | heliweb magazine
This latest operational achievement is the combined result of the AW139’s design, quality, performance and market success as well as Company’s capability in supporting the worldwide fleet. The two million flight hour milestone was made possible through the variety of Leonardo services and support packages and the extended support network distributed in geographies around the world. The AW139 complies with the latest certification and safety standards, offering outstanding overall performance with impressive power margin and one engine inoperative capability and also with a certified 60+ MGB ‘run dry’ capability which provides the highest standard in terms of safety. Designed to allow high versatility and customized solutions, the AW139 is available with more than 1000 certified equipment options. Among some of the latest innovative systems available for the type are the LIPS and FIPS (Limited and Full Icing Protection Systems, respectively), and the OPLS (Obstacle Proximity Lidar System) that enhance mission capability and safety.
The AW139 has significantly grown its capabilities in years. This includes a maximum take-off weight extension (MTOW) to 7,000 kg for newly built and retrofitted aircraft, and as a result, new Cat A offshore enhanced procedures, avionic suite releases delivering ADSB-Out (automated dependent surveillance-broadcast), TCAS II (Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System), RNP performance (Required Navigation Performance), EGPWS update (Enhanced Ground Proximity System), Wide Area Augmentation System/Localizer Performance with Vertical Guidance, and many other features. Supportability has also been strengthened. A 30% reduction in maintenance time has been achieved with a dedicated Service Excellence initiative. Leonardo has established a Reliability Data Sharing Group (RDSG) and has launched a Flight Crew Operations Manual (FCOM) as additional services. Since its certification in 2004, approximately 5300 pilots and 7700 technicians have been trained with over 150,000 simulator hours logged to date. The AW139 helicopter is part of the family of new generation helicopters produced by Leonardo that also includes the AW169 and AW189. These models all possess the same high-performance flight characteristics and safety features whilst sharing the same common cockpit concept and design philosophy. This approach facilitates synergies for operators of these types in areas such as training, maintenance and support. The AW139 design, success and experience have been key to the development of these latest additions to the product range and the family concept itself.
First Leonardo EMS AW169 Begins Operations for Scandinavian Air Ambulance powerful Pratt & Whitney engines as well as the latest in avionics and flight safety features. In addition, it has a large and spacious cabin with large windows and a functional EMS interior, as well as a low floor to allow smooth patient transfer. The model is currently used in a wide range of operations worldwide, including EMS and rescue services, oil and gas, wind farm support, offshore pilot transfers, etc.
Babcock operates a majority of the Scandinavian Air Ambulance bases across Sweden and Finland with a mix of Airbus and Leonardo helicopters. Photo: Johan Rydham.
Babcock Scandinavian Air Ambulance (BSAA) announced January 16th, 2017 that the Babcock operated service had launched the first state-of-the-art AW169 helicopter into active Emergency Medical Service (EMS) duty in the Nordics. The helicopter is operated on behalf of Region Jämtland Härjedalen in Scandinavia and replaces an older Airbus Helicopters AS365N2 Dauphin that had been operated in the region since 2006. Shortly after 10:00 on Saturday, January 13, the new helicopter took off on its first mission assignment – a long-distance patient transport. Later that afternoon, a very satisfied crew returned to Östersund after more than four hours spent in the air providing critical care during the patient transport flight.
The base in Östersund is the first of four Swedish EMS helicopter bases that will replace its existing helicopters with the Leonardo AW169s in 2018. Next in line are Gällivare, Lycksele and the newly awarded base in Gothenburg, Sweden. Simultaneously, work is also underway to replace the current helicopters at the company’s base in Stockholm with two new Airbus H145 this spring. “Overall, we are currently embarked on the most extensive upgrade of Sweden’s EMS helicopter inventory ever,” says Waplan. ”We manage this task with great confidence and respect, and we are also very grateful for the trust we are given.” The Leonardo AW169 is a brand-new medium-sized helicopter that flew for the first time in 2012. It is equipped with two
Babcock Scandinavian AirAmbulance operates the EMS helicopters at six of nine bases in Sweden, as well as three of seven bases in Finland. In Sweden, the company has helicopters in Gällivare, Lycksele, Östersund, Uppsala, Stockholm and Visby, and from June also in Gothenburg. In Finland, the company has helicopters in Rovaniemi, Oulu and Kuopio. In addition, the company has fixed-wing air ambulance aircraft in Luleå, Umeå, Arlanda and Landvetter, as well as offices in Östersund-Frösön, Stockholm-Arlanda and in Luleå. The Swedish airplane fleet is presently undergoing an extensive renewal process. BSAA has recently been awarded the Norwegian air ambulance contract, which means that the company is currently setting up a Norwegian head office in Tromsø, placing a flight training simulator in Oslo, as well as establishing seven aircraft bases around Norway.
“It’s a big and historic event for us and for the region to finally get airborne – in active duty – with the AW169,” says company Production Manager Thure Waplan. “The launch has been preceded by a long period of customization and training to ensure the highest quality and safety right from the start, which means that we are very delighted to start our operations with such a capable helicopter.” The medical environment is greatly improved in this brand-new helicopter, while providing a host of customized solutions that are optimized for EMS. The list of advantages is long, but the most important ones include enhanced performance and improved safety. The sophisticated cockpit delivers better situational awareness while allowing more advanced flight automation.
The AW-169 from Leonardo offers the latest in digital cockpit technology, along with advanced systems to assist in ease of operations. Photo: Johan Rydham.
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HELINEWS
AW109 Trekker helicopter achieves EASA certification one stretcher with three/four medical attendants or two stretchers and two medical attendants. Capable of single pilot operation, an additional passenger can be carried in the cockpit if required. The AW109 Trekker incorporates many safety features including a cocoontype airframe; crash resistant fuel system, crew and passengers seats, full Cat A / Class 1 performance in hot environments and a 30 minute ‘run-dry’ main gear box. AW109. Photo: Leonardo.
The AW109 Trekker helicopter was issued with type certification by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) yesterday. Deliveries will start in the first quarter of 2018. The milestone marks the entry into the market of the newest light twin-engine helicopter designed by Leonardo, further strengthening its leading position in a key market segment, in particular to meet the growing demand for greater capability, versatility and cost effectiveness for public services and utility duties. The AW109 Trekker, based on the bestselling AW109/Grand range of helicopters, is equipped with skid landing gear and a state-of-the-art Genesys
Aerosystems “glass” cockpit. The cockpit display system provides pilots only with the necessary information to help reduce their workload while flying in challenging environments and in demanding weather conditions. The AW109 Trekker retains the same characteristics of high productivity, excellent performance and flying qualities, high maneuverability, robustness, advanced navigation capabilities and high inherent safety of the other light twin helicopters produced by Leonardo. Power is provided by two FADEC equipped Pratt & Whitney Canada PW207C turbine engines. The spacious cabin, the same size as the Grand/GrandNew, can accommodate up to six passengers or
The aircraft is designed with a modular configuration approach in order to meet different needs, from single pilot VFR to dual pilot IFR. A wide range of role equipment is available including a cargo hook, external rescue hoist, searchlight, external loudspeakers, FLIR (Forward Looking Infra-Red) camera, video downlink, snow skis and emergency floats as well as a wide range of interior layouts to meet various customers’ operational requirements. The AW109 Trekker can be easily configured for a wide range of roles and is the ideal solution for EMS, SAR, law enforcement, utility, surveillance, passenger transport and government duties. Orders for over 40 AW109 Trekkers have been placed by customers worldwide to date.
China’s AVIC 312E Completes Plateau Testing
The Chinese AC312E manufactured by AVIC Photo: AVIC.
Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) announced that the company’s new AC312E helicopter that is currently in the process of civil certification, completed all plateau test flights. The AC312E, a light twin-engine civilian helicopter, completed plateau testing at Ninglang Luguhu Airport in southwest China’s Yunnan Province, that sits at an altitude of 10,800 feet (3,293 meters) located in southwest China’s Yunnan Province. 40 | heliweb magazine
Powered by two Safran Arriel 2H engines, the AC312E, a locally built civilian version of the Harbin Z9, based off the then Aerospatiale AS365 airframe built under license since the 1980s, has now completed all requirements for highaltitude flight testing, according to AVIC. “The AC312E has shown reliability and good performance on all types of plateau environments. It can now meet demand for emergency rescue and earthquake relief helicopters in plateau regions,” said Li Shengwei, deputy chief designer of the AC312E. The AC 312E has a maximum take-off weight (MTOW) of 4.25 tons, with a maximum payload of 1.7 tons and can carry nine passengers. The AC312E is touted to have a fully digital cockpit with a majority of instrumentation provided by Rockwell Collins. The aircraft has reached a reported flight altitude ceiling of 20,600 feet (6,300 meters) above sea level. The AC312E is
also reported to have a maximum range of 310 miles (500 kilometers) in optimal conditions at a cruise altitude of 5000 feet. AVIC has also hinted that there is the potential for the AC312E series to eventually include four specialist models for emergency medical services, search and rescue, VIP transport and law enforcement. In September 2016 shortly after the helicopters announcement in August, the AC312E received its first order from the Ministry of Land and Resources China geological Survey. In September, Tibet Development and Investment Group signed an intention agreement to buy four AC312E for the Tibet emergency rescue network. Chinese manufacturer Harbin produced as miltary variant of the AS365/AS565 Panther called the Z9 from the early 1980s.
Hillsboro and Windells Academy Team Up for World First Flight Training Program for High Schoolers X-Games prospects, but now we are able to offer our students the opportunity to train for a career in a blossoming industry,” stated Kevin English, President of Windells Academy. “We are truly pleased to be working with Windells on this project,” stated Jon Hay, CEO of Hillsboro Aero Academy, “the synergies are phenomenal— both organizations have a very clear focus on offering a personalized approach to coaching and training for every student,” he added.
Helicopter flight training with Hilsborogh Aviation Photo: Hilsborough Aviation.
Windells Academy, a famed action sports boarding school, and Hillsboro Aero Academy (HAA), the largest combined helicopter and airplane pilot training school in the US, announced a partnership on January 24th, 2017 that aims to create the first high school boarding program in which students can earn their professional pilot certifications while completing a high school diploma. Students enrolling in the Windells Academy Aviation Program will have the potential to earn their licenses and ratings to become professional airplane or helicopter pilot, and continue on into a college degree program in aviation through HAA’s unique partnerships. This new program will kick off with the Aviation Discovery Program, a sevenweek course providing students with an introduction to multiple areas of aviation, starting at the beginning of the first semester of the new school year for students in the United States, commencing at the school on June 18, 2018. This introductory program will then evolve into what will be the commencement of the full program starting in September 2018.
Windells Academy, is referred to by some familiar with the school as an “extreme stem” school, and classifies itself as an “Action Sports Boarding School” that provides a unique student life experience. Windells Academy, located in Sandy, Oregon, offers a non traditional education experience that also includes a camp program that can see students visit some of the premier winter snow sporting locations in the United States, such as Lake Tahoe, CA and Park City, UT among others. Enrollment in the Aviation Program opens in January 2018 for those who may be interested in enrolling students in the school’s initial seven-week Aviation Discovery Program. The unique program is targeted at both international and domestic students between 14-18 years old, stating in a press release sent out to all media outlets that students participating in the program had the potential to enter into an aviation career forecasted to continue growing over the next several decades. “Our students are driven and talented athletes with Olympic and
Windells Academy, started in 1989, is a premier name globally as an action sports boarding school and Hillsboro Aero Academy has trained thousands of airplane and helicopter pilots since 1980—together they will bring a truly unique program to 14-18 year olds. “The beauty of this program,” continued English, who is a certificated pilot himself, “is that we will be able to train high school student to become airplane and helicopter pilots preparing them for a career that has tremendous growth prospects well into the future.”
Robinson R44s sit on the ramp at Hillsborough Aero Academy who will provide the flight training in the new program from Windells Academy. Photo by Hillsborough Aviation.
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HELINEWS
NOW AVALIABLE FOR PURCHASE ON ITUNES AND AMAZON VIDEO
42 | heliweb magazine
FX LLC Secures CAL FIRE S-70i Training Contract is working with an industry partner that will be providing training aircraft.
Sikorsky S-70i Black Hawk from PZL Mielec on display in Berlin in 2012. Photo: Julian Herzog.
On August 3rd of this year Cal Fire awarded a hotly contested contract to replace the departments aging Super Huey fleet of twelve helicopters to Sikorsky who pitched the Sikorsky S-70i. Competitor Leonardo Helicopters, fielding a variant of the widely used AW189 swiftly filed a protest on the award the following day, which was formerly dismissed this week, paving the way for the contract to move forward.
pilots as they transition from the Super Huey Fleet into the Sikorsky airframe. Speaking in an interview with Heliweb Magazine after the last hurdle to the contract progressing was cleared after Leonardo’s protest was dismissed, Aaron and Bredenbeck detailed that the Cal-Fire contract states that all training will not take place in the new departmental aircraft and that FX LLC
“We look forward to beginning work with Cal-Fire and training their pilots to continue to protect the citizens of California from wildfire threats,” said Aaron. “The Blackhawk and especially the Firehawk have, and continue to play such an important role in so many humanitarian operations around the world for many years. It is great to see this transition finally taking place so that now the civil sectors of the industry are able to see how this airframe can further enhance operations and safety with the capabilities the Blackhawk brings. Which is something those who have flown them in the military already know, but is still something being demonstrated as the civilian market begins to have more access to these helicopters.” said Bredenbeck. In addition to FX LLC providing physical training and evaluation of aircraft, simulator training will be provided by Flight Safety for all Cal-Fire pilots also as part of the contract award.
Sikorsky, who partnered with Air Methods subsidiary United Rotorcraft on the fit out of the helicopters will supply S-70i helicopters made in Poland by Sikorsky subsidiary PZL Mielec. Other providers of components to fit out the S-70i helicopters include Becker Avionics, UTC Aerospace, Breeze Eastern, Churchill and Kawak Aviation. FX LLC’s founder Chuck Aaron and business partner Kevin Bredenbeck, who recently retired as chief experimental test pilot for Sikorsky worked relentlessly to provide the ultimately successful bid to provide services that include all test and evaluation flights of the new S-70i helicopters as they are received, all initial and recurrent training in the S-70i for all of Cal-Fire’s fifty current
FX LLC Founder Chuck Aaron (left) and business partner Kevin Bredenbeck (right) . Photo provided by Chuck Aaron.
January 2018 | 43
Fatal Engine Power Loss: NTSB ACCIDENT NUMBER: CEN16FA171 Dynamic roll over at LGB, both pilots unharmed. Photo: John Murphy
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ANATOMY OF
AN ACCIDENT
Story by
ANDY EVANS, AEROSSURANCE January 2018 | 45
Fatal Engine Power Loss:
Helicopter Not Modified to OEM Recommendations
Source: NTSB Accident Number CEN16FA171 We look at a fatal accident that demonstrates the criticality of assessing recommended service bulletins. On 4 May 2016 MD Helicopters MD369E / MD500E helicopter N629JK operated by Rotor Blade suffered an engine failure while approaching a 125ft high electricity pylon near Reedsville, WI to collect two linesmen using a 50ft long line. It impacted trees and terrain. The pilot was killed by blunt force trauma to the chest and head.
Wreckage of Rotor Blade MD Helicopters 369E N629JK turned upright.
Internal view of the PTG
Photo: NTSB
Safety Investigation The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) reported that the main shaft of the Rolls-Royce M250C20B engine’s Honeywell power turbine governor (PTG) was found fractured. 46 | heliweb magazine
Photo: NTSB
Disassembled spool bearing with labels (Credit: NTSB)
The NTSB found that a: ‌portion of the fractured drive shaft remained embedded in the spindle of the spool bearing assembly. The fracture surface features of the shaft were consistent with overstress The outer cap of the spool bearing assembly was removed, and the ball bearings and spacers were found coated with voluminous, powdery, black particulate. Much of the powder fell from the assembly upon removal of the cap. No grease was observed. Disassembly of the bearings revealed that the ball retainers were fragmented, the inner surfaces were found coated with a powdery, black particulate, and no grease was observed. The inner bearing surfaces were rough and frosted. January 2018 | 47
C omp onent H ist or y
R otor Bl a des’ C onti nui n g A i rworthi ness Mana gement
Honeywell introduced this type of dual-spool bearing in 2003 “to lower cost of ownership and commonize the design”, replacing an earlier single-spool bearing. While the
At the time of the accident, the engine, built in 2007 (while the dual-spool bearing was still being fitted), had accu mulated
original design had no previous service
1,048.7 hours Time Since New
issues, the NTSB report that the dual-spool
(TSN). On 3 April 3, 2016, at
bearing “had experienced a total of 23
987.4 hours engine TT, a 150-
failures before this accident.” These resulted
hour engine inspection was
in either engine oscillations, uncommanded
completed along with a series of
engine acceleration or, as in this case, a loss of engine power.
repairs.
The TCH’s April 2008 recommendation was f or this
Due to this adverse service experience the NTSB say that:
spool to have be changed by 750 hours TSN. Despite operating at low altitude missions in a
Honeywell issued SB [Service Bulletin] GT-
single engined helicopter the
73-344, Revision 2, on October 30, 2008,
operator had not followed the
to replace the bearing assembly on PTGs
recommendation and the PTG
used on Rolls-Royce 250 series engines in order to increase PTG reliability. The SB applied to several PTG models including
remained fitted with the dualspool bearing with the known adverse service experience. The NTSB record no information
the AL-AA2 model on the ac cident engine.
on how the operator assessed
Revision 1 was issued March 7, 2008.
recommended service bulletins and other safety information.
The Engine Type Certificate Holder (TCH), Rolls-Royce, issued Commercial Engine
N T SB Pro ba ble C a use
Bulletin (CEB) 1402 on 21 April 2008 that referenced Honeywell SB GT-73 -344 and specified compliance times. The Federal
48 | heliweb magazine
The failure of the power turbine governor’s dual-spool bearing due to a lack of lubrication,
Aviation Administration (FAA) did not
which resulted in a complete loss
howeve r elect to make this mandatory with an
of engine power and s ubsequent
Airworthiness Directive.
impact with terrain
Saf et y Action The NT SB explain that: Rolls-Royce issued a Commercial Service Letter (C SL), revision 1, on November 11, 2016, to remind customers that there are e ngines operating in the field that have not complied with CEB 1402 and other CEBs. The C SL recommends that customers should review the referenced CEBs to determine if they are applicable to their engine. The C SL also stated: Rolls-Royce has been involved in investigations where failure of the user to comply with the identified bulletins resulted in an uncommanded engine power reduction. It is the owner/operator’s sole responsibility to comply with the identified bulletins within the specified tim eframe or risk a potential for loss of aircraft or loss of life. Rolls-Royce is not responsible for an owner/operator’s failure to comply. No safety action by any other party is reported.
Safety Observation If operators only adopt modifications that are subject to Airworthiness Directives and ignore the safety value of modifications that are highly relevant to their specific operations, fatal accidents will continue.
Wreckage of Rotor Blade MD Helicopters 369E N629JK
Photo: NTSB
January 2018 | 49
THE SUN SETS ON THE LEGENDARY LYNX
AN ICON RETIRES AFTER 40 YEARS OF SERVICE
A Lynx helicopter is silhouetted by the sunset. 50 | heliweb magazine
Story & Images by
Darren Willmin January 2018 | 51
An AAC Lynx configured with skids, sits as a static display at an air show.
A L e gen d is B or n The Westland Lynx (Agusta Westland since 2000) is a British designed and developed multi-purpose military helicopter built by Westland Helicopters at its factory in Yeovilton, Somerset, UK. The Lynx was first intended for both naval and non-military (civilian) usage, which led to the design and development of both land-based and naval warfare versions. The Lynx began operational service in 1977 and was later adopted by other armed forces from over a dozen nations globally. Its key roles in service were destined to be combat utility, anti-armour, anti-submarine and search and rescue missions. The Lynx was the world’s first fully aerobatic capable helicopter with the ability to perform loops and rolls, then in 1986 adding to its accolades, a specially upgraded Lynx set the current official Federation Aeronautique Internationale 52 | heliweb magazine
airspeed record for helicopters at just under 220 knots, which to this day remains unbroken.
Multi -Mission A i rf ram e The British Army Air Corps (AAC) ordered over one hundred Lynx helicopters to fulfil several distinct roles including transporting troops, armed escorting,
An AAC Lynx during a demonstration flight above Salisbury Plain.
An AAC Lynx landing at Salisbury Plain.
reconnaissance, evacuation and an ti-tank warfare with BGM71 TOW missiles mounted on the side of the aircraft. The airframes were designated at the time, the Lynx AH.1. The Lynx began its service with the AAC back in 1979, followed by an order from the Royal Navy for a sea born version of the Lynx to join the Fleet Air Arm in 1981 whi ch was designated the HAS.2. The Navy’s Fleet Air Arm upgraded the Lynx to the HAS.3 model during the 1980s and then further to an HMA.8 model in the 1990s.
An AAC Lynx landing at Salisbury Plain.
Many of the AAC aircraft were upgraded and enhanced to the Lynx AH.7, then later the AH.9 an d AH.9A. The prototype of these variations flew in the mid1980s before the aircraft was commissioned into Army Air Corp service during 1991.
C old War D ut ies During the Cold War era, it was proposed that AAC Lynx would work with Westland Gazelle helicopters to counteract any issues with Soviet armoured vehicles. The Naval Lynx variants HAS.3 and HMA.8 conducted
An AAC Lynx trails an AH-64 Apache over Middle Wallop.
January 2018 | 53
anti-submarine warfare and maritime attack missions armed with Sting Ray torpedoes, Sea Skua anti-ship missiles and depth charges whilst operating from Royal Navy warships. T he Lynx also served with 3 Commando Brigade Air Squ adron of the Royal Marines and the Commando Helicopter Force of the Navy’s Fleet Air Arm, operating as reconnaissance and attack h elicop ters to support the Royal Marines. The Royal Navy’s fleet of Lynx helicopters has been indispensable to maritime patrol operations, including non-military roles such as countern arcotics missions in Africa. Additionally, the 54 | heliweb magazine
Lynx helicopter operated and undertook a vast spectrum of tasks in The Falkland Islands plus counter-drug operations in the Pacific where The Royal Navy boasted helping their allies to seize more than six tonnes of contraband. The Army Air Corps Lynx served with both 670 and 671 Squadron’s at the School of Army Aviation, Middle Wallop in Hampshire under the command of 7 (Training) Regiment. Their role was to conduct “conversion-to-type” training on the Lynx, Gazelle and Bell 212 for graduates undergoing operational training stages. The Lynx also saw a period based at AAC Dishforth
An AAC Lynx landing at Salisbury Plain.
in North Yorkshire, UK. AAC Dishforth housed three sq uadrons of Lynx, 659, 669 and 672 falling under the command of 9 Regiment AAC, a combined force of both the AH.7 and AH.9A variants. Sadly though, the Lynx force at Dishforth was disbanded in July 2016 with the closure of all flying activity.
Glo b et rott er Throughout its service life, the Lynx has proved itself globally in con ditions such as the freezing lands of Northern Canada, the jungles of South East Asia and Central America, the frozen
territory of the Arctic to the deserts of the Middle East whilst supporting British troops on active duty. It has seen combat in the conflict locations of Bosnia, Kuwait, Afghanistan and Sierra Leone. The Lynx also spent many years in Northern Ireland based at RAF Aldergrove when the IRA were predominate causing a number of issues, there to support the British Army throughout the unrest.
Standard C onf i gurations The Westland Lynx houses a two-man cockpit for a pilot and co-pilot sitting side by s ide. The AAC January 2018 | 55
“It is hugely emotional saying goodbye to the Lynx after six years of flying, and it carves out a big chunk of your heart.� Major James Peycke, Commanding Officer 657 Squadron
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A Royal Navy Lynx during a demonstration flight at Cosford.
January 2018 | 57
An AAC Lynx during a training evolution at Salisbury Plain.
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Night operations with an AAC Lynx on the ramp at Nordholt.
usually operated their fleet with a three-man crew, a door gunner being the third member. In the Lynx, the door gunner was responsible for overseeing the movement of personnel in and out of the aircraft plus the evacuation of casualties whilst having the ability to operate the impressive 7.62mm machine gun. The rear cabin located behind the cockpit could be accessed through a pair of large sliding doors on each side of the fuselage, capable of accommodating up to ten fully equipped troops depending on the seating configuration of the aircraft. An alternate configuration often utilised saw radio equipment positioned in the rear cabin area when the aircraft was used in the airborne command post scenario. The cabin can also be used to house additional fuel tanks for
conducting long distance missions and ferrying troops. Each configuration could be converted from one mission-type to another within an impressive 40-minute time span. Typically, the Lynx adopted a range of offensive and defensive equipment on board during combat missions, such countermeasures and door machine guns when it was being used in the anti-tank role. The aircraft was also capable of being armed with BGM-71 TOW missiles to counteract threats such as infraredguided missiles when the situation dictated. Additionally, for the Royal Navy, the Sea Skua short-range air-to-surface missiles could be utilised in the maritime anti-surface Lynx variant, plus additional armaments that have were interchangeable including rockets, 20mm cannons, torpedoes and depth charges. January 2018 | 59
AAC Lynx helicopters during the final “Valhalla” formation flight.
An AAC Lynx helicopter in the Black Cat livery during the final “Valhalla” formation flight.
The shape of things to come, this Leonardo Wildcat of the Royal Navy is the progeny of the Lynx. Seen here, landing at Yeovilton
60 | heliweb magazine
Royal Navy Lynx helicopters during a formation demonstration flight over Yeovilton.
A distinguishing feature of the Lynx was that of the undercarriage, both the AH.5 and AH.7 variants were equipped with skids, but the AH.9 model saw the skids developed, or more accurately replaced with a tri-wheeled undercarriage. The AH.9 was marketed by Westland as the combat Lynx in the late 1980s, with deliveries beginning to the AAC in 1991. On the other hand, the Navy variants of Lynx were fitted with wheels as standard due to being requirement for easy ground h andling on the deck of a warship.
S er vice on the H i gh Seas The first variant of Lynx for the Royal Navy was known as the Lynx HAS.2 when it entered its service career with the Fleet Air Arm. At the time, it was distinguishable from the AAC Lynx AH.1 with its tri-undercarriage and deck restraint system, folding main rotor blades, emergency flotel system and nosemounted radar. The Navy quickly developed the Lynx to a HAS.3 standard which was an improved variant receiving various updates. The Royal Navy continued to upgrade and develop the Lynx throughout its time in service as technology progressed and mission sets evolved. The Fleet Air Arm eventually upgraded to a January 2018 | 61
S uper Lynx model which was known in service as the Lynx HMA.8. As of 2002, Flight International reported more than 40 variants of the Lynx had been developed and put in service, with almost 400 aircraft deliver ed to various customers. The agility of the Lynx led to its use as a display aircraft, having been the AAC’s helicopter of choice with the Blue Eagles display team. However, they unfortunately suspended the team from the 2010 season due to financial and operational circumstances. The Royal Navy’s Black Cats display team also used the Lynx HMA.8 up to 2014 , but with th e introduction of a new platform converted to the Agusta Westlan d Wildcat and continue to display to this day.
An AAC Lynx on approach at Salisbury Plain.
The Legacy of the Lynx Moving into the 21st Century the new and improved Agusta Westland AW159 Wildcat helicopter will replace the Lynx as it continues to be produced in Yeovil, Somerset. The British MOD intends to incorporate these bot h for the AAC and the Royal Navy with the purpose to be a multirole combat helicopter. In August 2014, the Wildcat AH.1 formally entered service with the Army Air Corps and in March 2015, the Royal Navy’s first Wildcat HMA.2 began its initial operational deployment on board HMS Lancaster. As of September 2015, a total of 48 Wildcats have been delivered between the AAC and Royal Navy.
An AAC Wildcat during a demonstration flight at Yeovilton.
62 | heliweb magazine
To celebrate the withdrawal of the Lynx from British Army service, on the 16th January 2018 the Army Air
An AAC Wildcat on the ramp at Yeovilton.
Corps last four remaining airframes took to the skies from RAF Odiham in Hampshire with a call sign of Valhalla Flight on what would be a final farewell and memorial tour. The route would see them cross much of the country, heading to some of the sites and locations which the aircraft was associated with. AAC Middle Wallop, Upavon on Salisbury Plain, Yeovil, Duxford, RAF Wattisham, RAF Shawbury and many other connected points of interest witnessed a flypast from the four aircraft during the day. The flight flew in a box formation throughout the flight, with the final stages seeing the formation fly down the River Thames over Central London. After this, the formation returned to RAF Odiham for the final time. The lead Lynx (ZG917) was flown by the Commanding Officer of 657 Squadron Army Air Corp, Major James Peycke who said that bidding farewell to the iconic machine is a huge moment for everyone who A Royal Navy Wildcat during a demonstration flight at Yeovilton.
has flown the Lynx over the years. January 2018 | 63
Story & Images by
Scott Dworkin
ON THE FRONT LINES.. VENTURA CO SHERIFF BATTLING THE THOMAS FIRE One of Ventura County Sheriff’s Department Bell 212s.
64 | heliweb magazine
January 2018 | 65
One of Ventura County Sheriff’s Department Bell 205 Hueys. In the distance the Thomas Fire is actively burning.
The Thomas Fire broke out in the early evening of December 4th near Thomas Aquinas College above Santa Paula at the beginning of what became a prolonged extreme Santa Ana wind event in Southern California. The blaze fanned by the strong Santa Ana winds, and fueled rapidly by dry brush and extremely low humidity spread into the city of Santa Paula, Fillmore, Ojai and into the City of Ventura where entire neighborhoods were destroyed.
Photo: VCSD
ANSWERING THE CALL Within minutes of receiving that first call of fire on the evening of the 4th the Ventura County Aviation Unit, based at Camarillo Airport dispatched their helicopters to the area. According to the members of the unit, they could see the flames outside their hanger door miles
The fire then crossed into nearby Carpentaria, Montecito and Santa Barbara and is now burning in the Los Padres National Forest. Unfortunately, 1,063 structures have been destroyed, 280 structures damaged there have been two fatalities, one being Cal Fire Engineer Cory Iverson who sadly lost his life in the line of duty battling the fire. Inside The Ventura County Sheriff’s Department Hangar.
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A few Hand Crews fighting the Thomas FIre receiving a briefing on the day’s objectives and plan.
away above Santa Paula as they received that first call and began launching the helicopters. The Aviation Unit is operated jointly between the Ventura County Fire Department and the Ventura County Sheriff ’s Department and has a fleet of four Bell “Huey” helicopters along with one Bell Long Ranger helicopter, it is the only public safety aviation unit in the county. The unit flies over 1000 hours per year on missions varying between law enforcement, search and rescue,
emergency medical services, and fire suppression. Being within reach of most of the county within minutes the air unit is often the first emergency services resource to arrive at the incident scene, and when faced with rugged terrain unreachable by other means it is often the only unit that can provide quick response and rescue. In the case of the Thomas Fire it was the first unit on scene and provided firefighting and law enforcement units ground, along with Ventura County government leadership with some of the very first assessments of the fire.
AFTER HOURS
Personnel preparing one of the Huey’s to go out on a Helitanking mission during the Thomas Fire.
While the unit typically staffs daily for one full air squad, which includes manning for two helicopters, with a pilot, and two crew chiefs, typically one will be fire crew chief, and the other is a sheriff crew chief, in the case of the Thomas Fire the unit was staffed 24/7 over the first two weeks. January 2018 | 67
One of only two commands responding to the Thomas Fire, VCSD has night time operation capabilities making an invaluable addition to structure and fire fighter protection.
After the first two of nights, and as the fire grew rapidly from Ventura County into surrounding counties and National Forest area the incident shifted from local command to that of a larger Unified Command and the Air Unit was tasked strictly to provide night support, initially via water drops and later for any night time rescue that may arise. Ventura is one of only two agencies that were on the Thomas Fire that has night vison goggle (NVG) capabilities, (the other being Santa Barbra County), therefore the Unified Command requested to use this asset specifically in that capacity once other air assets were called in. During night water drops the helicopters fly with a pilot and fire manager who strategically 68 | heliweb magazine
coordinate the air attack based on their experience as well as the requests and needs of the fire crews on the ground. As the incident went on into its second week and beyond, the unit also provided rescues for the firefighters on the front lines in inaccessible areas, as well as continuing their mission of supporting other calls throughout the county
HELITANKING All four of the units Bell Helicopters can carry the 375-gallon Simplex Fire Attack Tank however during the Thomas Fire there were two helicopters fitted with the tank and working the fire. The tanks are
“I’ve seen a decent amount of fire in my career and this has been the most challenging fire by far that I have ever seen.”
equipped with a snorkel device that can pull water up from any local body of water, however snorkels were not used, as night operations are restricted to landing and refilling operations only. The tank is also equipped with cam-lock feature which allows the helicopter to land in a remote location with a fire engine on scene, where crews will set up a hose that connects directly to the tank to offload water. A separate fuel tender is also forward deployed to certain locations to refuel the helicopter when required. These landing spots are carefully selected to allow for the fastest and safest transit time to and from the front lines. The incident command established nighttime water and fuel points, geographical areas where the helicopters could
land and there would be a fire engine or tender that resupplied the water and fuel throughout the night. Initially the air attack used baseball fields in Fillmore and then as the fire spread began utilizing fields farther north in Carpentaria. Once established, those forward operating areas became “home plate” for the helicopters as they were deployed away from Camarillo for multiple nights in a row, otherwise the turnaround time back to the airport to refuel was too long, (roughly thirty minutes between drops), which was deemed ineffective based on the severity of the fire, so the closer the helicopters could be positioned to the fire the more effective the Air Unit was to the incident commanders and ultimately to the fire fighters fighting on the front lines. January 2018 | 69
One of Ventura County Sheriff’s Department Bell 205 Hueys performing a waterdrop from their 375gal. belly mounted Simplex tank.
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One of Ventura County Sheriff’s Department Bell 205 Hueys completing engine run-ups.
ROCK-AROUND-THE-CLOCK Everyone at the Air Unit worked the Thomas Fire from those first few moments of day one, to the last days, but during those first two harrowing weeks the crews were working their shifts round the clock and sleeping wherever they can in and around the hanger, then going back out again to battle the blaze. Alex Keller one of the unit’s pilots described what it was like on the first two nights and the extremely difficult conditions on they faced as the fire raged out of control, “The winds made it extremely challenging, especially on that first night. The fire was jumping ahead so rapidly that from the beginning we were already on the defensive, where rather than trying to put out the fire we were just trying to save lives and property.” At times firefighters were reporting that the fire was advancing at a rate of an acre a second. Keller added “I’ve seen a decent amount of fire in my career and this has been the most challenging fire by far that I have ever seen.”
As of this writing, on January 17, 2018 the Thomas Fire has been 100% contained after burning for over a month. It is now the largest fire in California’s history at over 280,000 acres. The Air Unit is no longer assigned to the fire and has resumed its normal operations supporting the county and its citizens. January 2018 | 71
Story by
Matt Johnson
GODDESS in the MAKING ACRONYMS WORK FOR YOU Inset: Pilot and Co-Pilot discuss the preflight checklist.
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Photo: US Air Force
Cockpit January 2018 | 73
A UH-60 Pilot goes through his post-flight checklist.
Research has shown that use of the word “acronym” has grown exponentially since the 1950’s. One can only surmise that the rapid growth in aviation training over a period of time is one of many reasons for the ubiquitous nature of acronyms. An acronym is merely an abbreviation formed from the initial letters of other words and pronounced as a word. Anyone that has a pilot certificate at the student pilot level or higher has invariably been inundated with an assortment of these “study aids” during their training. Essentially, an acronym is a form of a mnemonic. A mnemonic is traditionally a pattern of letters, ideas, or associations that assists in remembering something; the word itself is derived from the Ancient Greek “goddess of memory” Mnemosyne.
Time and Place Acronyms have their place in aviation but not all of them belong in all phases of flight. Let me explain; as a flight examiner the test standards require that I quiz applicants on questions pertaining to airworthiness and specifically the necessary equipment required to be operable during day, night, VFR and IFR flight. Generally speaking, applicants are “spot-on” with these questions. Their response normally includes one of the classic acronyms used to remember required equipment. (TOMATO-FLAMES, GRABCARD, etc.) These particular acronyms are several 74 | heliweb magazine
Photo: US Army
letters in length and require one to take their time in reciting each piece of equipment associated with each letter. Again, this generally works well while sitting at the conference table during the oral portion of the exam. However, ask something like this while in flight and applicants often get 6-7 letters into the acronym before their mind drifts to a point where some begin to start over and over. I have no science to back it up, albeit it may very well exist, but trying to recall information by means of an acronym with way too many letters can be difficult for many people while flying a helicopter.
Practical Use What applicants seem to do better with is those acronyms that are shorter in length, 3-4 letters maximum; something that they can mentally rapid-fire at the appropriate times. It was this observation of the “practical” use of acronyms that gave birth to developing 3 key acronyms of my own that I use on a nearly daily basis, outside of the exam room and as a professional pilot. The first acronym that can save a lot of headache is “PAD”. It stands for Power, Altitude and Destination.
Whether air medical flying, law enforcement or any other type of flight profile getting from point A to point B in a safe and expeditious manner is typically the main priority. After takeoff, set Power to maximum allowable “cruise” power to ensure you get to the destination as quick as possible. Next, ensure you are at the correct Altitude necessary for the flight, taking into account obstacles enroute, airspace considerations, etc. Finally, ensure that you are correctly tracking to your Destination. All of this sounds simple in nature but air medical flying entails numerous distractions that must be mitigated. Any air medical pilot that hasn’t found themselves a bit “off course” on one or more occasions would likely be fibbing.
Don’t kick the Can There has been debate about the safety aspects of Dual Pilot IFR flying compared to Single Pilot IFR helicopter operations. I can appreciate the crux of the debate but having flown single pilot in the IFR environment during air medical operations I can attest that it can safely be accomplished. I can also attest that helicopter single-pilot IFR flying can be a “handful” for the most skilled pilots; especially while conducting Point In Space (PinS) instrument approaches. This high workload environment brings me to the next acronym that I rely on a great deal in the single-pilot IFR arena. The acronym is “CAN” and I continually do a “CAN” check while flying IFR. This particular acronym, stands for Course, Altitude and Next.
Point in space departure procedures and approach procedures involve a lot of flying from waypoint to waypoint in rapid succession. To stay ahead of the proverbial curve required for these procedures try doing a “CAN check”. Ask yourself, what is the correct Course I should be on? Am I on it? What is the correct Altitude I should be at? Am I at it? And finally, what is Next?
Where will my autopilot turn me next? What course and altitude should I expect at the next leg? Respected and highly acclaimed fixed-wing instructor and author Rod Machado in his must have “IFR Survival Manual” summed up some necessary self-talk dialogue that he feels is necessary for safe instrument flying; it consist of three simple questions one should ask themselves. Where am I going? How do I get there? And, what do I do next? Following the CAN check can essentially answer these questions. Some surprises in life can be great, like a surprise birthday party; to the contrary, some can be less than desirable. I can’t think of one surprise I would like to get while in the clouds! Utilizing the CAN acronym can help prevent you from getting any unwanted surprises while in the high workload single-pilot IFR environment.
We all have scars Like the previous acronym the next one I will discuss is also one that I frequently rely on during IFR operations. It can be used as a quick “go-to” for numerous scenarios including the follow-up to an inadvertent entry into instrument meteorological conditions (I-IMC) after basic rotordisc level procedures have been accomplished and you need to execute an instrument approach. Additionally, this particular acronym (we are getting to it) is an excellent tool to utilize when you have set up an instrument approach in your GPS/VLOC receiver and things just aren’t matching up with what you expected; a troubleshooting “tool” if you will. Several instrument rating applicants could have easily avoided a notice of disapproval on their flight exam had they used this one 4-letter acronym on the practical flight portion of their exam. This final acronym is “SCAR” and it represents Source, Course, Altitude and Radios. The Source comes into play when you decide on what type of approach you are going to execute; is it GPS/RNAV based or is it a traditional ground based approach like an ILS approach? Or, is it
precision approach as a backup reminder. But remember, the radar altimeter may and most likely will audibly alert you prior to reaching the actual decision altitude (DA) where terrain leading up to the approach end of the runway is less than level. This is elementary, but it’s worth underscoring here; obtaining and setting the correct altimeter setting is paramount for safety.
an approach that will utilize GPS/RNAV guidance for a portion of the approach and then switch to V/LOC mode? (the subject of a future article). The bottom line is, to fly an instrument approach correctly; you must be getting the appropriate information from the correct “source”. Next comes the Course. What is the inbound course for the approach you are executing? If it is a ground based approach (VOR, LOC, ILS, etc) you will need to set that particular course on your OBS, HSI or navigation display screen. Altitude is next and for obvious reasons is critical to the successful outcome of an instrument approach for a plethora of reasons. You must know your decision altitude (DA) for the precision approach you are flying or the minimum descent altitude (MDA) that you can legally descend to for a non-precision approach. If you are flying an IFR certified ship you will most likely have a radar altimeter available and you should set it to the decision height (DH) for a
Finally, we come to Radios for the last word in our list. It includes setting the radios for the appropriate navigation frequency for those ground based approaches you may be using. And finally, setting the needed and anticipated communication frequencies for any type of approach to include ATIS and AWOS frequencies in the standby.
What were we talking about? It has been said that the memory is one of the first things to go. I don’t even remember what this article was supposed to be about! In all seriousness, acronyms can be a real life saver, literally and during a flight exam for an applicant with checkride-itis. Feel free to use what has worked for me as outlined in this article, but remember it has to work for you, and the laws of acronyms (if there was such a thing) says that you can tweak anything you need to make it work for YOU. As with so many things in life, what goes in has a direct effect on what comes out. Make it a good one!
A Police Pilot and Tactical Flight Officer (TFO) navigate through the busy airspace over Los Angeles, CA.
Photo: Jason Jorgensen
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MUDSLIDE
MONTECITO
RESPONSE
HUNDREDS SAVED IN URBAN SEARCH AND RESCUE MISSION
The view from “Udkow’s office”
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Images by
Matt Udkow
Story by
Jason Jorgensen
January 2018 | 77
Smoke rising over the disaster zone
TWO HUNDRED YEAR EVENT Early in the morning of January 9, 2018, unpredictably heavy rainfall in the mountains directly above Montecito, CA hammered the fresh burn scars of the Thomas Fire which had afflicted the town just a few short weeks earlier. Even though evacuation warnings had been issued and heeded, it is doubtful that anyone could have imagined the severity of flash flooding and mudslides to come next, as its has since been described by experts as something that hasn’t happened in over two hundred years.
Udkow is no stranger to flying in poor weather conditions. Having spent 20 years as a helicopter pilot between the US Navy and later the Coast Guard, many of his over 5400 hours were missions in tough conditions and have included performing scores of rescues, including flying rescue missions in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. Understanding the gravity of the situation unfolding in Montecito, Matt realized the need for more assistance and
Shortly before 5am, Santa Barbara County Fire Department Pilot, Matt Udkow was woken up by the first call for assistance. After arriving at the hangar, he and his flight crew had to delay the departure of their firefighting and rescue equipped Vietnam era Huey, “Copter 308” due to the poor weather conditions. Even though he joined the Sheriff ’s Department only six months ago, 78 | heliweb magazine
A Royal Army Lynx during a demonstration flight above Salisbury Plain.
used his Coast Guard connections to request more helicopters to the scene.
IT’S GO TIME After the sun rose, they made the decision to launch, even in conditions that otherwise may have left them grounded. “This was a crisis,” Udkow said. “I’ve been flying a long time and this is definitely some of the most challenging, if not the most challenging, conditions that I’ve ever hoisted in,” he added. Staying about 200’ above the highway and threading their way slowly through the overcast and rain in canyons, finding small breaks in the conditions to remain in VMC conditions.
Transferring a patient at Cottage Hospital
After crossing through the mountains they were finally able to make their way directly to the location of the devastation. The airspace above Montecito was a buzz with the sounds of rotors as Udkow’s Copter 308, along with Copter 3, joined in the rescue efforts with Ventura County Squad 6, and a pair of Coast Guard helicopters. “We all communicated between our helos to coordinate the rescues,” Udkow says. Having arriving on scene, Copter 308 was called almost immediately to conduct a medevac flight from a school baseball diamond. When they landed, they were met by paramedics who loaded a seriously injured woman onboard, whom they then flew to Cottage Hospital for treatment.
Path of Destruction
Looking back at the hills above Montecito
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A Sheriff’s helicopter pefrorming a hoist recovery.
Because of the mass casualty incident that was going on, and the rapidly changing weather conditions, the helicopters taking patients to the hospital had to bypass the usual ingress and egress patterns as well as the hot-offload their patients, instead of abiding by the standard shutdown protocols. While on the pad at the hospital, it began to rain so hard that that Matt and his crew had to wait about 10 minutes before the crew deemed the conditions had “cleared enough” to depart, though he hinted that clear was an exaggeration.
EVERYONE IS IN SHOCK Later, after departing Santa Barbara airport for fuel, the crew spotted a woman waving her 80 | heliweb magazine
arms for help, standing on the roof of her nearly submerged (in mud) home. Udkow says, “At first there was just utter destruction and we just picked up someone who looked like they were in distress,” adding that later, they were assigned calls as calls reached dispatchers. As they hoisted the woman from her roof, she pointed at her neighbor’s house where they then repositioned and rescued her neighbor, suffering from a broken leg, hoisting him to safety. After they returned to the airport to drop off the two they’d just rescued, the man, likely due to shock, stated matter of factly, that his wife had been
swept away in the initial slide “That hit me pretty hard,” Udkow said.
FROM BAD TO WORSE After departing the airport from another fuel stop, the crewmen’s radio became inoperable but after cycling the Master Avionics switch, some functionality was restored. After a few more hoist rescues it began to rain so heavily that Matt couldn’t see more than 100 feet in front of the helicopter. He briefed the crew that if conditions didn’t improve by the time the third rescue was completed, that they would have to find an open field to set down in until the rain and visibility improved. Udkow says, “It was the hardest rain I’ve ever encountered in a helicopter. It started leaking in the helicopter.” Water was dripping onto the now blank
transponder panel from the upper greenhouse windows, and the center console panel had a steady stream of water dripping from it. After lowering a firefighter to rescue one woman, the rain shorted out the radios and the crew was without internal communications for over 5 minutes. During the second of this series of hoists the crew chief had to locate and don another headset to be able to communicate with Udkow, to complete the last two hoists, one of which was particularly difficult due to the large trees. Even at 120 feet, the tops of the trees were very close to the skids of the helicopter. During the return flight to the airport only the pilot’s radio was still functioning and all external communications had to be made by Udkow, by the time they landed the cabin of the helicopter was completely covered in mud and water.
The scene inside the helicopter once all the victims had offloaded
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Drying out at Santa Barbara Airport
RINSE, DRY, REPEAT After about an hour of the mechanic airing out and drying the electronics, the FM radio in the crew chief’s station began functioning again, and the crew agreed to launch again to perform a medevac mission they had just been tasked with. While in transit, the crew chief’s radio again went out and Matt needed to perform all radio tasks. After arriving on the scene, it was determined that since a ground ambulance could reach the victim, the risks involved in undertaking a hoist rescue of the patient were not warranted. While leaving the scene, Udkow noticed a faint smell like something electrical burning and informed the crew. One of his firefighter crewmen put his head upfront in the cockpit and detected the smell as well. It was about then that the smell greatly increased and Matt decided to make an emergency landing on the golf course directly ahead of them. “We completed the emergency landing and emergency shutdown checklist without incident” said Udkow. Their mechanic later determined that the breakers were not functioning properly and causing the smell. Matt Udkow (left), Bryce Wible (center), Glen Dupont (right)
EVERYTHING THAT COULD BE DONE, WAS “We were working on pure adrenaline for the first day of the incident, but conducted
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Mix of weather conditions over Montecito
all our hoists methodically and safely” Matt recounts. Normally, his aircraft would have had three firefighters on board for a mission, but that day they operated with just two since the County Fire Department staffed two aircraft for the mudslide rescues. Readily crediting his crew as well, firefighters Glen Dupont, running the hoist and Bryce Wible, rescuer. Udkow’s team of three completed 12 hoists and 6 rescues. “I think everyone that could have been saved was saved because of ground units and air units,” Udkow said. “But, again, I can’t ever be sure of that.” All in all, from dawn to dusk that day, air rescues saved 131 people, 42 dogs, 11 cats and three birds, according to county sources, and that doesn’t include the hundreds of rescues that took place ground.
In summary, Udkow explains, “The devastation was wide spread and epic in its proportions. During the entire day, it was very difficult to fly and de-conflict with the other helicopters in the small area, all within close proximity to each other, let alone rescue people… The fact that all our agencies train to similar standards and practices helped make the crowded air space and difficult rescues possible and safe… We’re here to support the people on the ground, the men and women who are first-responders, fire, law enforcement, and those guys are out there in the mud doing it. Especially to be able to help some of those directly with the firefighters who got stuck is pretty awesome. But those guys are the real heroes who are out there slogging it out in the trenches.” January 2018 | 83
Photo credit: Dan Megna, Mesa Police Aviation Unit. Mesa, AZ
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