"Low flying 500"

[crashresidue]

Cheers all,

 

Sorry I didn't get to post on the closed thread - Photo Flier or Rey, you can chew on me with PM's, but I've just got to say something about it.

 

I've done flights like that - just for FUN! You want a "woodie" - do one! Warning though, it's gonna last for WEEKS!

 

Is it dangerous - Hell yes!

 

Is the engine gonna quit - statistically NOT.

 

If it does, am I gonna be crippled or killed - killed.

 

Will I "know" it - no!

 

The H-500 is the MOST crash-worthy helo airframe EVER fielded. Check the accident records - it ROLLS and the rotors fold up or sheer off. If you ever crash, pray that you're in a 500.

 

As for "putting yourself into harms way" - most of you guys want to do long-line or fires eventually - look REAL hard about your time inside the "deadmans curve". If you're willing to spend the time inside the "curve" doing sling work, then doing a "river run" isn't going to raise a sweat.

 

I used to count bald egales in the Black Canyon of the Gunnison for the BLM. It was much more dangerous than the video that was presented. At one point, the canyon was 4 feet wider than my rotors. Want to talk about sweat!!!

 

Would I do this with passengers - HELL no! But I would with my wife.

 

If any of you guys were here when we were on the old server, you might have seen my diatribe about rapelling on fires. Talk about being unsafe.

 

OK, to end this post: Is the "low flight" dangerous - Hell YES. Would I do it every day - Hell NO. If, given the right a/c and knowledge of the river, would I do it again - YES. Would I enjoy it - can you say WOODIE!

 

I'm NOT advocating being reckless or pushing your limits too far. I'm just saying that I've fallen for "temptation" before, and I'm sure I will again. Hell, I rolled in for a water drop and had the entire area around me explode into flames. The crane, half a mile behind me, was shocked to see me fly out of the inferno. Hell - I was too!

 

Gentle winds,

Russ

[flingwing206]

 

I've done flights like that - just for FUN! You want a "woodie" - do one! Warning though, it's gonna last for WEEKS!

 

Is it dangerous - Hell yes!

 

 

OK, to end this post: Is the "low flight" dangerous - Hell YES. Would I do it every day - Hell NO. If, given the right a/c and knowledge of the river, would I do it again - YES. Would I enjoy it - can you say WOODIE!

 

I'm NOT advocating being reckless or pushing your limits too far. I'm just saying that I've fallen for "temptation" before, and I'm sure I will again.

 

It is the basic conundrum of the helicopter pilot. We fly the things because of all the amazing and exciting things the aircraft is capable of. Unfortunately, "amazing and exciting" generally means increased hazard. Everyone has their own risk management strategy...

[svtcobra66]

Where is this video? it says "removed by user" on youtube, I WANT TO SEE THE VIDEO

[Herbert]

Try this ...............

 

 

same ride (without music)

[Cat_eh]

If you want a thrill do it in your own machine

[dlo]

If you want a thrill do it in your own machine

 

 

Or if you wanna thrill, rent a heli, put the ten dollar insurance policy on it and go thrash on it. do some full down autos into a busy city. go hover in three inches of mud. Then watch the insurance ratings go up considerably. as if they wouldn't go up anyway.

 

If ten newer pilots crashed ten different helis on the same day. I doubt the insurance policies would go up any more than they would each year anyway....

[Linc]

That's only because the 10 newer pilots were gonna crash anyways, and the insurance rate change was going to happen as a result, anyways.

[LostHeliBoy]

Iknow it not a 500 BUT this is also military and really low... really low...

 

 

 

 

WOW...

[james28]

not your average flying. very impressive. dangerous yes, but they guy probably knows the river and his machine like the back of his hand.

[darwin]

Anyone know the name of, or location of this river?

 

Thanks.

[crashresidue]

Sorry, don't know the river. But with an areial recon - any river will do. Any steep gully will also.

 

Ths trick is to scout you route out!! Know where the powerlines are, how "big" they are and where they hide.

 

I was surprised to see this post surface again. It's been a while.

 

cr

[iflytandemrotor]

Great post about low flying. Check this link out and click on the link that says Tigris Style.

 

My crew and I were flying up the Tigris River in Iraq in a CH-47.

 

http://www.lightandflight.com/aviations.html

[Pogue]

Great post about low flying. Check this link out and click on the link that says Tigris Style.

 

My crew and I were flying up the Tigris River in Iraq in a CH-47.

 

http://www.lightandflight.com/aviations.html

Neat! I got a ride in a Chinook a couple years ago that looked a lot like that... That bird's a lot faster than most people think.

Different subject, I was curious, what kind of autorotation characteristics does the 47 have?

[iflytandemrotor]

The CH-47 autorotates like any other helicopter except it is easier to maintain directional heading because you don't put in the pedal inputs like in a heli with a T/R

 

Other than that, it pretty much falls like a brick. If you don't maintain your rotor RPM, the generators fall off line, which causes your electrical systems to fall off line, which means the computers that assist you in flight fall off line, which means the flight controls feel almost like a Robbie.

 

The good news is that when you auto rotate, you hit hard...but in a strait line

 

Unfortunately, the only time we train for autos is in the simulator.

[darwin]

crashresidue

Thanks. I didn't realize I was being so transparent.

Funny that you should say that, and it's so true... A guy I worked for regaled me with a story from his military [fixed wing] flying days (probably Korea)... He neglected to do a low, slow pass over the unfamiliar dirt strip he intended to land on, and when he did "land" on it, he discovered that prairie dogs had made "some" holes in the strip... Needless to say, after that he reconed every unfamiliar strip prior to landing on it.

 

iflytandemrotor

Would not the apu above the cargo door be running during flight, or start at main engine failure?.. I had the privilege of seeing a CH-47F start up and take off one time, and I was surprised at how fast that little T62 spun up.

[wild_blue]

Iknow it not a 500 BUT this is also military and really low... really low...

WOW...

 

Very cool video!

[darwin]

Apparently the river is in Northern BC according to

.

I didn't see that at first... BC == British Columbia, Canada?? Hmm.. Probably.

 

I did a google video search for "hughes 500" and found some interesting videos.

Ones of particular interest are;

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=937345122354486721 <- Flying low and fast, and doing what looks like a stall turn/hammer head... all from inside.

<- heli pickup some people in a river gully.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u09dh5krWbk <- flying low in Yukon

<- low, fast over a lake.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k1RXOaT4Nig <- fancy low level flying, and jumping out of heli onto ground, hook cargo to hook and climb back in all while heli hovers over head

 

Use www.keepvid.com to download any videos of interest... When downloading from google video, save the avi, not the flv. The avi is the high quality version and the flv is low[er] quality.

Edited February 26, 2007 by darwin

[iflytandemrotor]

Darwin,

 

We only leave the APU running during start up. Once the engines come on line, we shut them down. Then when we are done operating, before main engine shut down, we turn them on.

 

 

I haven't made contact with an F model yet, but I have seen an MH-47 a couple of times. There are some neat toys on those aircraft.

[darwin]

Hmm.. yea, I suppose running the APU constantly would cause it to rack up hours rather quickly.