HELICOPTER LIFE SPRING 2010 / £3.99 www.helicopterlife.com Emerging Markets

HELICOPTER LIFEis theHIGH LIFE Spring 2010

HELICOPTER

LIFE COVER STORY Show & Tell Guide 4 Emerging Markets: Aviation shows and conferences. 1. India 32 Georgina Hunter-Jones The Editor’s Letter 5 looks at civil helicopter flying in India, exam - Aerial Forum 6 & 10 ines the incipient inter - Herman Spiring on the Russian helicopter market est in a helicopter industry and how the Letters to the Editor 7, 11, 15 private and government companies are trying to Flying Crackers 8, 9 fulfil that need EC175/Z-15 12 Alternative Fuels 40 Georgina Hunter- Helicopter Life looks at the alternative fuels Jones market around the world. 1. India reports on the build - ing and develop - Panama 42 ment of the latest Benny Ditschler Eurocopter, the whose background EC175, which was was flying in unveiled for its first Germany, comes to flight December 09 Panama and sees a very different type of New Technology 16 helicopter usage NASA’s Kevlar helicopter cushion is tested and Sikorsky Innovations is formed Vietnam Training 48 Ralph Arnesen Houston USCG 18 writes about his expe - Alan Norris riences learning to fly with Obama in his helicopters in the six - 2nd year of office, ties and training for the the US suffering a Vietnam War as one of downturn and their the US military heli - worst ever econo - copter pilots my, Alan Norris vis - its the Coast Guard German Eagles are in Houston to see Blue 54 what they can do Dino Marcellino visited and flew with International Military Helicopter 22 the German police Wardorf Hilton Hotel host the conference Police Helicopter Support Unit, saw how Serving Squirrels 24 they fight terrorism Antoine Grondeau looks at the AS350 and Helicopters Past and Future 62 355 Squirrel helicopter and examines its work role, Book Reviews 63 particularly with the French police and why it Accident Reports 64 has been such a popular helicopter for so long House & Helicopter 66

HELICOPTER LIFE,Spring 2010 3 SHOW & T ELL G UIDE 8 April - 11 April 2010 AERO FRIEDRICHSHAFEN Friedrichshafen, Germany SPRING 2010 http://www.aero-expo.com Contact: www.aero-expo.com/aero-en/visitors HON. EDITORIAL BOARD Captain Eric Brown, CBE, RN 26 April - 28 April 2010 The Lord Glenarthur, DL INTERNATIONAL MILITARY CONFERENCE Jennifer Murray Wardorf Hilton Hotel, London, UK Michael J. H. Smith http://www.asdevents.com Wing Cdr. Ken Wallis, MBE, RAF Contact: http://www.asdevents.com EDITOR-IN-CHIEF / PILOT 20 May - 22 May 2010 Georgina Hunter-Jones HELI RUSSIA 2010 [email protected] Crocus Centre, Moscow CREATIVE DIRECTORS Contact Olga Sheveleva, Int. Sales Manager [email protected] Telephone: +7 495 958 94 90 COPY EDITORS email olga@helirussia.ru http://www.helirussia.ru Evangeline Hunter-Jones, JP John Wilson 25 May - 27 May 2010 CONTRIBUTING EDITORS HELI TECH BRASIL 2010 Ralph Arnesen, Benny Ditschler, Alan Norris, Herman Spiring, Antoine Grondeau, Dino Anhembi Park Exhibition Centre, San Paolo Brazil. Marcellino [email protected] CONTRIBUTED PHOTOGRAPHY http://www.helitechevents.com/brasil/ Ralph Arnesen, Benny Ditschler, Antoine Grondeau, Alan Norris, USCG, Dino Marcellino, 28 May - 30 May 2010 Deccan Helicopters, Pawaan Hans, Global Vectra, Monarch International, RWSI, United Helicharter, AEROExPO EUROPE 2010 Gerben van Beck Pribram Airfiled, Prague SPECIAL THANKS TO Contact the Aero Expo team Dave Smith ATPL(H)IR, Robert Edmonds Telephone: +44 (0) 2085493917 Olivia Walker(Schofield) Sumita Vilayan, email: [email protected] www.expo.aero Guneet Kaur ADVERTISING 17th July - 18th July 2010 Telephone: +44-(0)20-7430-2384 [email protected] CHOLMONDELEY PAGEANT OF POWER Cholmondeley Castle SUBSCRIPTIONS Go to our website or turn to page 54 Malpas, Cheshire [email protected] Telephone: 01829 772432. website: www.cpop.co.uk WEBSITE www.helicopterlife.com Email: [email protected] COVER PHOTOGRAPHS 19 July - 25 July 2010 Courtesy of Monarch Aviation (Heli Doli) FARNBOROUGH IINTERNATIONAL AIRSHOW and Global Vectra, (Birdie Pilgrimage) Farnborough Airfield, UK Contact Farnborough Airshow Team Telephone: +44(0) 1252 532800 HELICOPTER LIFE is published quarterly by FlyFizzi Ltd. Email: [email protected] 59 Great Ormond Street London, WC 1N-3 Hz . Copyright © FlyFizzi Ltd. 2010. 5 October - 7 October 2010 ISSN 1743-1042. HELITECH EUROPE 2010 All rights reserved. Opinions expressed herein are not neces - Cascais, Portugal sarily those of the pub lishers, the Editor or any of the editorial Telephone: +44 20 8271 2134 staff. Reproduction in whole or in part, in any form whatever, is strictly prohibited without specific written permission of http://www.helitecheurope.com/ the Editor.

4 HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 T HE EDITOR S LETTER

elicopter Life is running two this, so I report it as hearsay only) new series of articles, one on that even spots on the pavement are Halternative fuels, the other on rented out by the Mafia, and no dona - the ‘Emerging Helicopter Markets.’ tions given to child beggars are free Both series are starting with India, a of gang influence. Even the drinking country whose size and complexity and washing water, which is trans - make it impossible to give a simple ported by and sold from tankers answer to the question why there are (there is central plumbing but not for not more helicopters in a land with the slums, which have a stand-by pipe such potential. However, we have in use for only a few hours a day) is tried to give possible reasons for that part of a Mafia network. True or not, complicated question and to look there are a lot of child beggars in on two parallel lines of tyres. The ahead to what may happen in the Mumbai, and living on the streets report makes fascinating reading, not future. includes cows, goats, dogs and horses. least because of the action (or I went to India for these articles, For a visitor, one of the strange obstruction) by the ATC at Redhill. and had the unusual experience of things about India is its ability to The AAIB has even suggested that being on a flight that finally arrived make you amused and shocked at the had the pilot not been as strong-willed at its destination (Delhi) 13 hours same time. While shocked by the as he was in his refusal to listen to the late. I flew from Mumbai on one of incredible in-your-face poverty, you Redhill ATC, what was an incident of the low-cost airlines and my fellow are simultaneously admiring of the engineering might have become a dis - passengers told me that the reason we beautiful saris worn by the women on aster, injuring several people. I sus - had two go-arounds on the flight (on the streets: how do they keep them - pect it was as much of a learning the first attempt Delhi Airport had selves looking so elegant when they experience for those on the ground as 75m visibility and on the second live in the slums? Partially clothed for those in the air. 150m) was that, although the airport children play poker outside a fence, Finally, just as the magazine went and the planes had first class equip - inside which children in uniform play to press, we got the long awaited ment, the pilots were not trained to sport. You pass a stunning but dilapi - results of the Search and Rescue con - use them. I might have thought this dated old colonial building, turn a tract (SAR-H) for the UK. The two was just passengers ‘ragging,’ a popu - corner and find a woman feeding her remaining contenders were Air Knight lar sport in Indian universities, had I cows alongside a Mercedes in the and Soteria, and the winner of the not just read Hormuz P. Mama’s Civil courtyard of a modern block of flats. contract was Soteria. Aviation in India , in which he notes You visit the temples of Hampi, Quentin Davis, Minister for that: “Every winter, dense fog brings and see them being used for storing Defence, said the contract was worth Delhi’s airport operations to a halt. pots and bicycles. You visit Old £6 billion over 25 years. The new The airport has the country’s only Delhi, where you know all public contract will start in 2012 and the mil - Category 111 ILS system, and the air - transport vehicles must run on com - itary Sea Kings will be phased out lines’ aircraft are equipped to utilize pressed gas, and see a stable of horses over the years up to 2016. Soteria will it. But the airlines are not willing to - some of the streets in Old Delhi are be flying the Sikorsky S92. spare their pilots for the expensive so narrow that only horse transport Silverstone Motor-racing circuit and time-consuming training for the can carry the building materials need now has a new heliport controller. brief winter period at Delhi airport.” to renovate them. You visit the Motor HeliAir a UK flying company and During my visit to India I came Show and admire India’s ability to be Robinson dealer are setting up a per - across some other remarkable facts. in the forefront of technology, come manent base. The Silverstone HeliAir a partnership promise some interesting w The Mumbai Metropolitan Area, for out and run into an ox-cart on its way o r b example, the home of Bollywood home. Fantastic! events later in the year - perhaps a a D

n movies, has a population of over 21 In this issue we also have the acci - British winner on the Heliport and in i b o the circuit !

r million, of whom 55% live on the dent report (although it turned out not h P

a streets. However, living on the streets to be an accident) of the Rotormotion r g o is not a simple thing itself, as I am Agusta 109’s gear failure, and the t o h told (it was obviously hard to verify subsequent landing at Redhill airfield P HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 5 A ERIAL FORUM

Flying Windmill Hits the Economy, Herman Spiring on the Russian Helicopter Market

by Herman Spiring with photographs by Alan Norris

n November 2009, information about a tender for eight requirement was suspiciously similar to the specifications light helicopters destined for the biggest corporate oper - of the AW139 helicopter, a fact that displeased American Iator in Russia, Gazpromavia, was leaked to the Russian Eurocopter. As a result, the tender was cancelled, and the media. Both the circumstances of this contest, and its over - budget assigned for the replacement helicopters was tones, would normally have been widely debated in the reduced, and reallocated to upgrading and extending the Russian media, but initially they went barely noticed operational life of the existing helicopters. because of the secrecy of the process. The scandal involved It is fair to say that some tender conditions may seem the tendering stage. It was revealed that all but one of the suspicious, but this does not always imply collusion bidders had recalled their tender documents, including between the customer’s needs and a supplier. Sometimes AgustaWestland and Bell Helicopters. The last company to the national or federal law of a country may require a cus - recall its bid was Kamov, leaving Eurocopter with its tomer to make a choice through the competition process, EC135 as the only remaining bidder. even though they may already have decided on a particular The requirements of the tender excluded any single- aircraft, and so are obliged to put out a tender. engine or coaxial types, thus eliminating the Russian built The EC135 is one of the best helicopters in its class, and Ka-226, the Bell 429 and the Kazan Ansat, the latter two it is operated by Police and EMS operators across Europe, because they had no Fenestron tail rotor system. The take - and its numbers in the United States are increasing, albeit off weight requirement for the contest was in the range of slowly. However, it is a helicopter that operators rarely use 2800kg to 3500kg, which itself all but eliminated most of to support worldwide offshore gas and petroleum produc - the helicopters usually associated with oil and gas operators tion. Gazpromavia is required to function under Russian worldwide, and favoured a few light helicopters that exist Federal laws that govern the distribution of contracts, and in the market place. the fact that the Russian Government has a controlling The first reaction of observers was that this tender was interest in Gazpromavia means that it should comply even written with one helicopter in mind, and was therefore more strictly with the open competition rules set out by the unfair to other manufactures. This type of tendering is not state. The main monopolist, however, often oversteps its uncommon, and a similar tender, for the supply of new hel - authority, because another section of federal law states that icopters to a United States based EMS operator in product-sharing agreements for operators in Russian Maryland, was challenged in 2009. In this case the tender continued on page 10

Eurocopter EC135 Agusta Westland AW139

6 HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters continue on page 11 and 15 59 Great Ormond Street, London WC1N-3Hz, England. nent, I can only hope that the RAF Telephone: 020-7430-2384, Email: [email protected]. Please include your name, and email or phone. and RN SAR crews will not be sum - marily jettisoned, and that common sense will prevail. The article rightly states that Soteria SAR Yours sincerely, the Sea Kings are ‘aging’, but David Carey (ex-202 Sqn) they still provide the mainstay Dear Georgina, Sqn.Ldr retd. of the UK SAR. This was May I say how much I enjoy demonstrated recently when your magazine. Coming from We did not intend to give the impression five Sea Kings (including one an RAF helicopter background, that the military were no longer giving a from the RN) assisted during I have been educated and enter - SAR service and I apologise if that was the floods in the Lake District. tained by many of the articles. how it was seen. However, I would like to Looking to the future, it may Perhaps I may comment on the point out that the Air Knight also be considered fairer if you piece which starts on P46 of the Constortium’s rival bid was indeed men - were to inform your readership Winter 2009 edition. This refers tioned in line 14 of the article, and there about the Air Knight to the Soteria Search and have been previous articles about their Consortium’s bid. Rescue bid. Line 16 starts use of the Eurocopter EC225. Ed. During my 30 years as an RAF “Search and Rescue in the SAR pilot I have seen many UK...” and gives me the changes to Government and 100 Years of Mountain Rescue impression that the investment Coastguard attitudes towards of the Army (in a limited SAR. Perhaps 5000 hours on Dear Georgina capacity) the RAF and the Navy the Sea King makes me biased, I was very pleased with your presentation is a thing of the past. This is due but I do hope that whoever of my article on 'Mountain Aviation' in to use of the word ‘formerly’. wins the SAR-H contract pro - the Winter number of Helicopter Life but You should be aware that Nos vides a service of which this I should like to correct the attribution of 22 and 202 Squadron maintain country can be proud. the illustrations which were merely a 365 day standby, 24 hours a Finally, can I be sure that you assembled by me. All the photographs of day. This RAF cover has been are unbiased when I read the rescue operations were published cour - provided by a succession of last paragraph of the article? tesy of REGA, the Swiss Rescue Service dedicated air and ground crews, CHC have indeed secured the described in the article, the 'Pictorial' since the 1950s and will contin - Coastguard contract, but, with a cover picture by courtesy of Colin ue until at least 2012. change of Government immi - Cruddas/Cobham Archive and the paragliders photograph by F. Lee. I was very interested in the article on The stress showing in Soteria's bid for the Search and Rescue their faces (SAR-H) contract and hope you will be publishing a similar account of the com - peting bids. Looking forward to the next issue, Sincerely, y t Leslie Symons t u r n i t Long Distance Flying r a

M Dear Georgina f o I'm in northern Italy (again - this is the y s e t third time this January!) We are r u o

c heading to Marrakesh, leaving Italy on s h

P Sunday in our R44, G-BzMG. a r g o t o

h continued on page 11 P HELICOPTER LIFE,Spring 2010 7 FLYING

10,000 Flying Hours Hummingbird is hovering Thames Valley Police was one of Santa arrives at Martin with FAA approval the first in the country to use a heli - House Hospice The FAA put on hold the evaluation of copter for police operations and by Amateur Built Kits in the USA for 1988 had a full time Air Support more than two years while they re- Unit. 1999 CASU’s western base at evaluated current policies. Now, RAF Benson, Oxfordshire, took Vertical Aviation Technologies of delivery of a next generation Orlando, Florida is happy to announce, EC135T1 advanced police helicop - that the company has received official ter, G-CHSU , prepared by FAA notice that the new Hummingbird McAlpines (Eurocopter UK) at 260L Standard kit and Quickbuild kit Kidlington. In October 2009, the are eligible for the Amateur Build kits aircraft reached the landmark figure criteria, meeting the 51% rule. The of 10,000 flying hours, the second Quickbuild kit was developed two highest flying hours of its type in wanted to give the children and their years ago to assist builders through the the world. In those 10,000 hours families a Christmas to remember sheet metal construction of the the helicopter and crew attended a with an extra special visit from Santa Hummingbird fuselage and tail cone. total of 24,000 incidents resulting and it was wonderful to do this with “When you purchase the Quickbuild in over 1650 arrests and assisted in Multiflight.” kit you receive a factory built fuselage another 2000. Stuart Andrew, Fundraising Manager and tail cone,” says Brad Clark, at Martin House Children’s Hospice, President. This includes the lower said: “Martin House Children’s cabin, upper cabin, firewall, nose, Hospice provides care for children windshields, chin windows, center con - and young people with progressive sole, instrument panel, tail cone, tail life limiting illnesses and provides vertical and horizontal stabilizers, all support to their families. A visit to the assembled and sitting on preassembled landing gear The Hummingbird 260L hospice by Santa in a helicopter was a is a four place Lycoming powered heli - wonderful and special event for the copter that was previously certified by children and their families and a the FAA. Twenty three years ago memory they can treasure.” Vertical Aviation Technologies chose to Santas Helicopter sell the Hummingbird in kit form in Yorkshire private aviation company Silverstone HeliPort News t HeliAir is to set up a permanent base h

Multiflight helped make it a g lieu of certified because they felt that i l f i

Christmas to remember for children at Silverstone and will be controlling t the helicopter-kit market lacked a reli - l u

at Martin House Children’s Hospice the heliport. A joint venture between M

able design. h P

in Boston Spa by providing a heli - the British school and the Motor rac - a “The Hummingbird was designed to be r g o

copter to fly Santa - with presents. ing circuit will ensure that the heli - t

a certified helicopter, so this is an o h advantage over conventional experi - Multiflight, helicopter owners Total port has full facilities including train - P P o

mental kits” said Brad Clark. Asset Finance and Leeds Bradford ing, charter, fuel, pleasure flights and t e c International Airport got together to helicopter handling. Richard Phillips, i VAT will be displaying at Sun n Fun, l o

provide a Dauphin helicopter from MD said, “we will be offering avia - P April 13th to 18th 2010. y e l

Multiflight’s fleet of charter helicop - tors a wide range of new products.” l www.vertical-aviation.com. a V

ters for the special Christmas flight s e M a

to the hospice. Leeds Bradford Every Snow Cloud has a h t h

International Airport provided the Silver Lining P a r

presents for the children at the hos - g

While commuters fumed and busi - o t o

pice and their siblings. John Parkin, nesses ground to a halt in the snow, h P

Chief Executive of Leeds Bradford M

PremiAir, the UK's largest executive o t t

International Airport, says: “We helicopter charter operator reported o b 8 HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 FLYING C RACKERS

Go! Teach it to the Marines In Afghanistan fifteen Marines are taking advantage of a chance to complete a free FAA PPL ground school. Their V-22 Osprey pilot, Captain Gabriel Glinsky, who is also a certified flying instructor, volunteered to teach the aviation ground school when about a dozen members of his squadron expressed an interest in learning to fly. AOPA helped by shipping over to Afghanistan a variety of plotters, flight computers, VFR sectionals, and other training aids, as well as books and reference materials. PremiAir’s AS355F However, in this computer age the interesting thing was showing how to use the that the tried-and-true printed materials were preferred for snow to your advantage use in the field, where internet connections and computer an upturn in operations as executives needing to get access can't be taken for granted. on with their normal business recognised the unique Capt. Glinsky said. “We will do our best to keep GA value of helicopters and their ability to get them strong, even halfway around the world.” quickly around the UK, even when major and region - Not only GA, it underlines the importance of paper and al airports were disrupted. Thus many UK businesses ink, so put those palettes and computers back in the box have turned to executive helicopters to get them and get out your books - special offer - books work any - around the gridlocked UK road network in the where, even if you don’t have a router, server or internet unprecedented winter weather. The picture above connection. shows PremiAir’s Eurocopter AS355F Twin Squirrel (for Company News see page 62) is seen taking off from Denham Aerodrome in Buckinghamshire, UK courtesy of Helicopter Film Services. 9`kjZ_eXlJk\\cXe[ Putting the Bull in New York New York City has been selected to host a Red Bull 8cld`e`ld:fejkilZk`fe Air Race in 2010. New York will run the 5th race of

the 2010 season, on June 19 and 20. The other nine 9`kjZ_eXl[\j`^ej#dXel]XZkli\jXe[ `ejkXccjk_\dfjkgif]\jj`feXc_\c`gfikj& _\c`gX[jfek_\dXib\kkf[Xp%N\_Xm\ jg\ekdXepp\Xijg\i]\Zk`e^fli Xcld`e`ldiff]kfg_\c`gX[jkfZljkfd\ijË i\hl`i\d\ekj%

i `ejkXccXk`fej`jflib\pkfjlZZ\jj# M

e i\jlck`e^`eX]X`cli\]i\\`ejkXccXk`feXe[ r Zfdgc\k\cpjXk`jÔ\[Zljkfd\ij% P h

P ƒ \ok`eZk`m\jk\\c&Xcld`e`ldZfejkilZ$ a r k`fe[\Zflgc\[kfk_\Yl`c[`e^fi g o ^ifle[ t o h ƒ 8cld`e`ldgcXk]fidZfiifj`fe]i\\#efe P

P jc`gg`e^ I() jli]XZ\#]`i\$ o

t i\j`jkXekXe[dX`ek\eXeZ\]i\\%

: k ƒ gi\]XYi`ZXk\[df[lc\j]fi]Xjk\i\Zk`fe c e fe$j`k\ b n a ƒ ]lcciXe^\f]_\c`gfikXZZ\jjfi`\jjlZ_ V

n Xjg\i`d\k\ic`^_k`e^#fYjkilZk`fe e cities include Abu Dhabi, Perth, and Lisbon. The b c`^_kj#n`e[Zfe\j#n\Xk_\ijkXk`fej# r e course will be placed in the lower Hudson visible M?=Zfddle`ZXk`fe#_\Xk`e^jpjk\dj# g ]l\c&nXk\ij\gXiXkfij#Xe[]`i\ h

P from lower Manhattan and across the river from New

a jlggi\jj`fe\hl`gd\ek% r g

o Jersey's Liberty State Park. “Staging a Red Bull Air t o h Race in New York City and Jersey City marks an :fekXZk1NXck\iI•jZ_\i9`kjZ_eXl>dY? P 8$-.('E\eq`e^ 8ljki`X&

HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 9 . continued from page6 many people see no real need to import manufacturers, although Gazpromavia helicopters. As recently as August 2009, continental shelf development projects had originally declared, two years earli - the Tatarstan Minister of Industry and must use no less than 70% of Russian er, that they would acquire fourteen new Trade, Ravil zaripov, said that aircraft equipment and services. Currently the Mi8s for the contract. from the Kazan Company were of spe - ratio of these projects is in fact the In Russia, building up an effective cial interest to Gazpromavia and other reverse of this figure, and critics of the economy seems secondary to the top oilfield developers. Officials at Kazan product sharing agreement continually management of these monopolies, and admit that demand for the Ansat helicop - decry its constant infringements, with purchases often have more to do with the ter has been unexpectedly high, with loud rhetoric. comfort of the company bosses than with orders from both the Russian Ministry of It is common knowledge in the indus - how Russian companies develop and Defence and overseas customers. The try that companies participating in off - prosper. Practice shows that the majority Ka-226 is a modular design, and is also shore development projects continue to of orders are placed simply by negotia - the first Russian helicopter to be certified use foreign equipment, despite the tion. With the Gazpromavia manage - under the new stricter flight rules. In mandatory tender rules. An example of ment, which is far from open and trans - addition, the Ka-226T model is fitted this is the negotiations between parent about its transactions, this means with two Turbomeca Arrius 2G2 tur - Eurocopter and Gazpromavia for the that the statistics regarding equipment boshaft engines, the same engines as the purchase of five EC225 helicopters for supply attributed to “Russian participa - EC135. the Shtokman oil and gas field in the tion” cannot be trusted. Tenders such as The Russian helicopter industry is Barents Sea. Other helicopters, the these are now seen as examples of the now showing signs of stable growth and Sikorsky S92 and the Russian Mi-17, real attitude of public officials to the development after many years of stagna - were included in the tendering process issues surrounding the economic mod - tion. This is why Russia’s new industrial but the Shtokman tender drove the devel - ernization proposed by the Russian activities require responsible co-opera - opment of the EC225 version fitted with authorities, and this is a public image tion from all its participants. When doing long-range fuel tanks. Part of the tender issue both for the government and for its business, public officials and the CEOs required that the helicopter be able to core departments. of state-run companies must take into depart from Murmansk, fly to the Russian helicopters are technologically consideration the interests of all the Shtokman field and return without refu - advanced, not obsolete, and are capable growing branches of the economy elling. The customer denied any negotia - of meeting all the operational require - instead of restricting their growth. In the tions with Eurocopter or other foreign ments in tough conditions, and thus long term this will benefit all of Russia.

Russian Kamov Ka-226 P h o t o g r a P h b y a l a n n o r r i s

10 HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 M ORE LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

continued from page 7 the conditions are ‘not good’, but the weather forecasts again and I had one of the most traumatic it's very strong. By not going, I again before we left, I knew that trips down to Italy - all weather knew that we'd add at least a day there was no chance of us going related of course, and it took 4 to the journey time, the weather the direct route, which was to the days instead of the usual 1 or 2. window was forecast to close on east of Paris - they'd closed the It was made a lot worse by the Tuesday night, and my two mates airport at Paris and that tells a tale fact that a chap who left the same needed to be back in the UK by in itself. Fog and snow. time as us from Cheltenham in a Thursday evening at the latest. So, we headed due south and we microlight en route to Australia Anyway, it didn't do much for our planned to get to a place called decided to cross the channel on morale nor our confidence since Blois, near Tours. Having been Monday afternoon, and didn't on Tuesday the weather was only doing this for a while, I have con - make it. They found his body the marginally better. We waited until tacts all over the place and at next day. about 13:00 and then headed out Blois we could rely on my mate It was all very poignant for me: he into the murk. Flying across the Patrick to help us out. Assuming was the same age, shared the same water at 350ft in near freezing we could get there, of course. name, was doing exactly what I conditions in light fog is never As we passed Le Touquet, I had did 10 years ago, we were flying fun, and when the French coast another decision to make - do we at the time he was. The difference appeared some 30 minutes later fly above the clouds in glorious was that I made the decision to we were relieved, to say the least. sunshine, or fly below the clouds stay at Lydd, near Dover, rather We headed down the coast in the drizzly gloom? I elected to than cross the Channel since I towards Le Touquet. Along the go above, since there were some deemed the weather too bad to coast we had lovely weather - sun - gaps in the clouds, so we could get to the other side. Clearly, and shine, a bit of cloud here and see the ground just in case we had very sadly, I was correct. It's hard there, but we knew it wasn't to land in an emergency. to explain the pressure to go when like this for long. Having checked continued on page 15 EC175 Revealed

W ORDS AND PHOTOGRAPHS BY G EORGINA H UNTER -JONES

ust before Christmas, and on with Pratt and Witney, who made the schedule, Eurocopter unveiled engines, but was relieved that all these the new EC175 and invited the EC175 taxying challenges were overcome and that J back to its stable world to see the first flight. they ‘raised their game’ and met all the Announcing the first flight Lutz markers on time. Bertling, CEO of Eurocopter said, “A Le Fan Yung, Chairman of new helicopter has a lot of parents... Aviacopter, co-producers of the Customer input led to a lot of the EC175/z-15 spoke about his gratitude design, we asked for opinions from to the Europeans and how greatly he the oil and gas market, SAR and cor - enjoyed the co-operation between porate missions and this is what they China and Europe. (Eurocopter is a gave us..” French, German and Spanish conglom - The EC175 is made in co-copera - erate). He expected much profit from tion with China, and their z-15 is a the z-15 and he was impressed the way

version of the same helicopter. European Chinese relations have P h o t

Lutz Bertling said, “Co-operation improved through the years of making o g r with China began in 1980, with pro - helicopters together. a P h duction of the Dauphin, then with the Francis Combes, the Project s g e

EC120... Today we have the EC175 Manager, then spoke about the chal - o r g i and z-15, there are some differences lenges and successes of the project. n a h

but we kept our promises and ful - One of his team’s greatest concerns had u n t e

filled our mission.” been to meet all the ‘deadlines of the r - J Bertling said that one of the main o

bureauracracy’. However, he was n e challenges for the EC175 was the delighted to say they managed to do s gearbox. He also spoke of problems this and everything was ready on time.

12 HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 Outside the hall, the EC175 was ready The tail rotor is set at for its first flight, which it made accompa - an angle to improve nied by all the types of the Eurocopter performance fleet still in production. The eleven heli - copters gave a flypast and formation dis - play of great agility and grace, including cross-overs and three ship passes. Jacques Larrin, the longest serving test pilot and on his last mission, did a loop in the Puma. Alain de Bianca, the EC175 test pilot, who has been with the helicopter since its first trial said, “it is amazing what the EC175 can do already. Considering this is a prototype it is quite amazing.” The EC175/z-15 is a seven tonne heli - copter in the medium utility class. A Eurocopter spokesperson said, “The new generation EC175 has a multirole design and can carry out a wide scope of civil

Alain di Bianca test pilot of the EC175

Wide skids make the EC175 good on sloping ground

6eg^a-Ä&&!'%&% I]Z

 5eeAbeAqYheeqqQehqYb Ndjg9Zhi^cVi^dc#

EaVi^cjb"Hedchdg/

HELICOPTER LIFE , Spring 2010 13 There was a flypast by one example of all the Eurocopters currently in production missions. It slots perfectly into the Eurocopter range between the AS365 Dauphin (4/5 metric tons) and the AS332/EC225 Super Puma (9/11 metric tons) families. It benefits from a mix of proven and advanced technolo - gies, making it both a neat performer and very reliable helicopter. Depending on its configuration, it can hold up to 16 passengers. A total of 114 EC175s have already been ordered by 14 different customers. Certification of the EC175 by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) is slated for 2011, and the first deliveries are scheduled to follow in 2012. Eurocopter expects to sell 800 EC175s over the next twenty years, creating nearly Alain di Bianca (second from 2000 new direct and indirect jobs.” right) and other pilots and Eurocopter employees

Certification by EASA is Lutz Bertling revealing expected in 2011 and the the EC175’s first flight first deliveries 2012 and production history

14 HELICOPTER LIFESpring 2010 M ORE LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

continued from page 11 As we headed south, I made an "X" on the map each time we saw a sensible gap in the cloud, just in case we had to turn back if it became untenable to continue, or if the weather deteriorated further. But after an hour and a half of extremely stressful flying, we were within reach of Blois, and I'd had a text from Patrick telling me that he had "swept the sky at the airfield". I found a gap in the clouds and slipped though it and continued the last few miles underneath the clag. Again, we were very pleased to have arrived at our intended destination: we'd made the correct decision - the weather below the View of the clouds from the R44 clouds would have made the journey impassable in places. So we went out for a lovely meal, and we all slept like Crossing the Alps babies that night. on one of the few Guess what the weather was like on Wednesday? Yep, clear days more fog, this time with quite heavy rain. It was at this point that David and Andy had to bale out. It was pointless for them to continue to head south in these conditions, with no certainty of getting to Cuneo at any time soon. So I said A bientot to them and wait - ed. And waited. And waited. By about 12:00 the fog was lifting, but I knew the weather was going the same way as me, so had I taken off, in just a few miles I'd catch the fog and rain up and be grounded again. At 14:30 it was time to go. I said goodbye to Patrick

and h eaded o ff. I had a tailwind, and was covering the ground at nearly 150 miles an hour. Fantastic! continued on page 17 JETJET A1A1 AAVGASVGAS 100LL100LL

Supplied, all over the British Isles in Bulk and Drums and around the World in ISO Tanks (23,000 litre stainless Steel) and Drums (200 litre, Mild Steel Epoxy Lined)

Speedy delivery service Competitive prices Quality assurance

We operate a Quality Management System, which complies with the requirements of BS EN ISO 9001:2000 in the Procurement, Importation, Storage and Distribution of Aviation Fuels. P h o t o We are DCL registered (Defense Contractors List) and we have recently been awarded, with a further two g r a year contract to supply the Ministry of Defense with Aviation Fuels, until 30 September 2010. P h s c o

u For more information call Damian at: 020 8440 0505 or E Mail: [email protected] r t e s y o f P i M D e r 242-248 High Street, Barnet, Hertfordshire EN5 5TDT h o

o Telephone: +44 (0)20 8440 0505: TELEFAX : +44 (0)20 8440 6444 D e Email:[email protected] www.cymapetroleum.co.uk s N EW T ECHNOLOGY

NASAs Helicopter Cushion Sikorsky Innovations

fter analysing the statistics of serious injuries in ikorsky Aircraft Corporation has launched its new helicopter accidents NASA scientists have technology development organization – Sikorsky Adesigned a ‘helicopter cushion’ to help reduce SInnovations - at the Connecticut Science Center the impact of hitting the ground. in Hartford. Using an MD 500 donated by the US army, testers at The mission of Sikorsky Innovations is to develop NASA's Langley Research Centre in Hampton, Virginia, and mature the technologies, products and processes dropped the dummy filled helicopter from 35 feet to see that will redefine the future of vertical flight, building whether the cushion could lessen the damage. on Sikorsky’s 90 years of innovation. It will expand its On impact, the helicopter's skid landing gear bent out - collaborative arrangements including government tech - ward, but the cushion under its belly kept the 500’s bot - nology agencies, academic institutions, other UTC tom from touching the ground. The test dummies were facilities and entrepreneurial businesses where research unhurt, including one that has ‘simulated internal organs’. and product development will take place in cooperation The cushion is made of expandable honeycomb and is with Sikorsky’s engineers and technicians. called a ‘deployable energy absorber’. Created by engi - Projects are currently under way at more than twenty neer Sotiris Kellas at Langley, the device is made of locations nationwide. Kevlar and has a unique flexible hinge design that allows Sikorsky plans to align more than $1 billion of the honeycomb to be packaged and remain flat until investments and contract R&D in the organization’s needed. It was originally created by Kellas for next gen - work over the next 10 years. To accelerate growth s

eration astronaut-carrying space capsules. When Kellas Sikorsky plans working with agile high-technology e i g o

and NASA saw the potential for helicopter applications it companies with aligned interests such as Eagle Aviation l o n

became part of a helicopter drop test for the Subsonic Technologies LLC of Hampton, Va. h c e Rotary Wing Project of NASA's Aeronautics Research Mark Miller, VP Research and Engineering said, t n o i

“We are currently working on challenges in the areas of t

Mission Directorate in Washington. a i V

Tests will have to be further analysed, but the oversee - high speed flight, optionally piloted aircraft, systems a l a c that enable safe operation in blinding, brown-out condi - i ing aerospace engineer, Karen Jackson, was optimistic, t r e

saying that she hoped the research will end up in air - tions, and many others that only a few years ago might V D n

frames and potentially save lives. have been considered technologically and economically a s e

The MD 500 was equipped with instruments that col - unfeasible.” n o J -

lected 160 channels of data. “Pioneering the future, accomplishing firsts, and r e t

establishing world records are in our DNA,” added n The flight path angle was about 33 degrees and the u h

Chris Van Buiten, Director of Sikorsky Innovations. a

combined forward and vertical speeds were about 48 feet n i g per second or 33 miles per hour (14.6 meters per second, “Sikorsky Innovations is poised to continue and accel - r o e

53.1 kph). erate this legacy by engineering new process technolo - g s h

gies that will result in new rapid-prototyping tools, P

Jackson said they use real conditions to simulate the a r

advanced manufacturing automation, virtual reality g accidents. The 500 survived relatively well as a result of o t o using the honeycomb cushion. simulation, high-performance computing”. h P 16 HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 M ORE LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

continued from page 15 avoiding the mountains hidden within. Pilots call this type of cloud "Cumulus Granitus", with the usual droll As I got down towards Lyon, the weather was back to humour that seems to be prevalent in aviators of all what, for me, had become normal. Layered cloud, generations. light rain, terrible visibility. I had intended to So I head south, towards Valance, hugging the moun - land at Grenoble, but the lovely Air Traffic Controller tains, trying to turn east as soon as I can. I've got a at Lyon told me that it was snowing, with a cloudbase tailwind again, which under usual circumstances of 200 foot and almost zero forward visibility. There would please me greatly, but heading over these big are very big mountains all around Grenoble so I lumps of rock with a 30mph wind makes the trip very diverted to another airfield, and once again, called it a bumpy and unpleasant indeed. And you are always day. That night I got 10 hours sleep - indicative of waiting for the Big One - the updraft that takes you just how hard this type of flying is. I wasobviously into the exhausted. cloud above or worse, the downdraft, that knocks you Thursday, I get up to slightly better conditions, and out of your seat (yes, it has happened). take off at around 10:00. I've only got 100 miles to go, But this time all is OK, and the further east I get, the but the Alps are in the way. The Alps are perhaps the nicer the weather most challenging part of the trip - the weather of becomes, and by the time I get to Gap, it's blue skies, course being the main problem. Nicely lodged in your calm wind and glorious scenery. And it remains like mind, though, is the thought that if the aircraft goes this for the rest of the trip! wrong, it's a long, long way down with very little On Sunday we are leaving for Morocco, and the air chance of you being alive, let alone rescued! show in Marrakesh. Heading directly across the Alps is impossible: I make Yours sincerely, one attempt, but have to turn back - the cloud is too Martin Rutty thick, and there are no gaps to climb through whilst MD Fly-Q

Price List from 1st July 2009 Come and fly our wonderful (Flights from Southend Airport) Schweizer 300CBi Trial Lessons TOTAL (INC VAT) 30 minute trial lesson £147.00 We offer PPL training, type conversions and 40 minute trial lesson £187.00 60 minute trial lesson £280.00 Commercial training via our various training providers Rochester Flight (35 minutes each way, 70 minutes total) £315.00 Prices listed above are the total price for trial lessons and no additional Want to know why we feel this is the best piston trainer in charges apply such as landing fees. the world? Well here are just a few reasons: Dual Training (wet) with pilot Lee Burling* 1 4 0 years of airframe development, 5 F ully articulated three bladed rotor Per 1 hour Hobbs £276.00 over 60,000 pilots trained, over 4 system giving greater stability, which Solo Hire (wet) million training hours logged, over allows students to progress faster 12 million auto-rotations over 20 6 M odern fuel injected engine based on Solo hire per 1 hour Hobbs £242.00 million hours flown proven design Other Charges 2 P ilot and instructor have their own 7 S pacious cockpit, in the correct Landings £20.87 set of controls, no ‘shared stick’ configuration has enough room and Circuits £18.40 3 G reat power and carrying ability, up power to carry three people to 600lbs cabin weight with great 8 S tart over speed limiter to protect against *Lee Burling is a Helicopter Flight Instructor qualified power reserves engine damage to train under both the 4 P urpose built for the training role 9 F our point UK (JAR) and US (FAA) certification. Lee trains and used by twenty three air forces harness on the Schweizer 300CBi around the world as their basic trainer 10 Great price!! from Southend Airport.

Tel: 01702 456330 Iris Aviation Ltd. 7th Floor, Maitland House, Warrior Square, Southend-on-Sea, Essex, SS1 2JN, United Kingdom [email protected] www.irisaviation.co.uk United States Coast Guard in Houston

WORDS AND PICTURES BY ALAN N ORRIS, AND COURTESY OF USCG

he orange helicopters of the in having a maritime law enforce - with anything from collisions United States Coast Guard Air ment mission with jurisdiction in between small pleasure craft, cap - TStation Houston have been a both domestic and international sized ships, heart attacks on offshore familiar sight in the skies providing waters. Each USCG district has its rigs and biological hazards such as search and rescue assistance since own Rescue Coordination Centre oil spills throughout any year. Spring 1963. Operating out of Ellington air - (RCC) with Houston's based in New and summer months are usually the port, 17 miles south east of Houston, Orleans. Houston is surrounded by a busiest for the crews when people the United States Coast Guard diverse range of commercial mar - are just getting their boats out for the (USCG) air station Houston responds itime activities, ranging from fishing, first time or it’s their first time in a to over 150 missions annually cover - offshore oil and gas production, boat and they don’t really know what ing an area stretching from the leisure boating, beaches and large- they are doing. In 1999, the crews Colorado River to White Lake in the scale cargo movements on the achieved a new record for the num - neighbouring state of Louisiana. Houston Ship Channel. The channel ber of SAR cases in one 12-month Their operational area also covers is part of the Port of Houston one of period, responding to 301 missions. most of the Gulf of Mexico coastline the United States busiest sea ports Surrounded by a large number of s i along north east Texas. and a conduit for ocean going ves - oil refineries and offshore platforms r r o

The USCG is one of seven uni - sels between the Port of Houston and many rescue missions involve recov - n n a formed branches of the United States the Gulf of Mexico. ering casualties from these offshore l a s

Armed Forces and has a long history On call 24 hours a day, 365 days a facilities. Lieutenant Mike Moran, a h P a r

of operating helicopters, it is unique year a typical mission is hard to pilot with the USCG, explains that g o t amongst the other military branches define but the air station can deal there are advantages to having petro - o h P

18 HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 The great thing about the Gulf of Mexico is the helicopters can go and get fuel in the middle of nowhere

leum production on their door step “The great thing about embedded control display units and two multifunction the Gulf of Mexico is that we can go and get fuel in the flat panel displays was retrofitted to the newly desig - middle of nowhere, because of the number of offshore nated HH-65B. petroleum rigs which are serviced by helicopter and are Spurred by an unacceptably high incidence of in- also often used as helicopter fuel stops.” In their control flight engine power losses the coast guard imposed room they have a database and maps that plot the location operational flight restrictions on its HH-65A/B heli - of the rigs and allows them to pin point platforms they can copters and in 2004 it began a priority program to re- land on and get fuel. This allows them to extend the range engine its fleet. This was undertaken by the USCG air - beyond the normal 120nm of the Dolphin helicopter. "We craft repair and supply centre, in Elizabeth City, North will go out on a mission and get fuel on the way home but Carolina. The helicopters were upgraded with the we can also hop from rig to rig to extend the range almost Turbomeca Arriel 2C2-CG turboshaft engines which limitlessly, but in reality we will rarely go more than two provided approximately 40 percent more power than thirds across the Gulf of Mexico if needed." says Lt. those they replaced—resulting in improved endurance, Moran. payload, and performance. The aft engine compart - Coast Guard Air Station Houston originally started heli - copter operations in 1963 at Ellington AFB operating two HH-52 helicopters with seven pilots and 18 aircrew all based in a hangar built in 1942. In 1979 the USCG choose the Eurocopter HH-65A Dolphin as its new short range res - cue helicopter, eventually acquiring 102 airframes. Over the years following its introduction the Dolphin helicopters have under gone a number of upgrades and today the USCG one of USCG station at Houston operate three HH-65C models 7 uniformed out of a newly built hangar. s i branches of r r The original HH-65A was powered by two Textron o the US Armed n n Lycoming 734 shp (547 kW) LTS101-750B-2 turbo-shaft Forces a l a engines providing an 8900lb (4000kg) Maximum Take off s h

P Weight (MTOW). In 2001 a number of the helicopters a r g

o underwent an avionics upgrade, when a NVG-compatible t o h integrated flight management suite consisting of two GPS- P

HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 19 The USCG is the importance of safe maintenance first to the crew enhancing its ability members. Despite the obvious increase in training costs by using the Rescue the USCG proudly boast that they have had no class 'A' 21 system accidents and only two class 'B' accidents throughout the entire helicopter fleet. A normal crew consists of four people: Pilot, Co-pilot, Flight Mechanic and Rescue Swimmer and to ensure that all flight crewmembers from air stations across the coast guard use the same techniques and terminology the whole air station undertakes an annual standardization inspection. The USCG motto is ‘Semper Paratus,’ Latin for ‘Always Ready’ or ‘Always Prepared,’ and to achieve this 40% of all flying hours are dedicated to training. Pilot proficiency training is carried out every six months to the minimum requirements laid out by the FAA to maintain their skill levels in instrument flying and night take off and landings as their base line. This is ment was also modified to compensate for the hotter then taken one step further with six instrument approach - exhaust generated by the new engine. In addition, the tail es to the water each with the automatic flight system rotor dynamics were also upgraded by replacing the tail engaged and disengaged. In addition, a number of rotor blades with a new profile design and reducing the winching exercises to a boat with a rescue swimmer number of Fenestron blades from eleven to ten which using Night Vision Goggles are required. The majority of helped to lessen the noise signature. An upgraded main emergency procedure check flights are done on the air - rotor gearbox and an extended avionics compartment in craft but the pilots also complete a one-week training the nose completed the upgrade to the current HH-65C course at USCG headquarters in Mobile, Alabama on a model. The USCG expects this recent work will extend full motion simulator. This allows the pilots to carryout a the service life of the Dolphins into 2022. full autorotation to touch down onto the back of a boat Safety plays a big part in USCG culture where every - which would not be possible in real life. Lt. Moran says one is encouraged to report everything; near misses, that they have so many missions that it’s really easy to minor incidents, both flying and in the maintenance get more than six hours of operational time “whether it’s hangar, so that everyone can learn from someone else’s a SAR case or a security patrol or something else those mistakes. The whole USCG aviation section has a fix and missions drive a lot of what we do. So when we sched - fly policy where the engineers that maintain the aircraft ule ourselves 40% training really we have to schedule will also test fly the aircraft which is aimed at instilling more than 40% because the unscheduled things are what

2004 USCG began

an upgrade of all g c s

their engines u e h t D n a s i r r o n n a l a y b s h P a r g o t o h P 20 HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 Pilot proficiency training is carried out every six months

our missions is all about.” already benefitting from the system. The Coast Guard is now enhancing its ability to reach The Gulf of Mexico is a central hurricane area and the the location of a rescue by using the Rescue 21 system. hurricane season is at its highest in the summer months. The system uses receivers positioned at the top of towers If a hurricane is notified as imminent then everyone will located along the coastline to pinpoint the exact origin of be evacuated from the station and the helicopters are a radio call. They can then plot a direct line from a tower flown to a safe area away from the storm, even if it’s to the point of the radio call Rescue 21 allowing an RCC classified as a low category storm. They return once the to determine a bearing between the vessel in distress and all clear is given. The USCG at Houston played a major the tower that received the emergency transmission. role in the aftermath of the devastating hurricane Using a single line of bearing, the RCC can begin a Katrina, and more recently hurricane Ike that hit the search along that line, if a second bearing line can be Galveston and the Houston area in 2008, rescuing hun - identified this can reduce the search area and time to dreds of lives in both cases. reach the incident. The USCG is currently expanding the Although the United States Coast Guard is part of the Rescue 21 system across all continental US Coast Guard military structure its core role is to protect the public and districts, replacing the National Distress Response the environment, something the air station at Houston System installed and during the 1970s, and should be has been doing successfully for many years and is dedi - complete by 2012 with Coast Guard Air Station Houston cated to continuing for many more.

The Gulf of Mexico is a central hurricane area g c s u e h t D n a s i r r o n n a l a y b s h P

a An upgraded main rotor gear - r g

o box and extended avionics led t o h to the HH-65c model P HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 21 International Military Helicopter -confer ence 26-28 April 2010

One of the first four upgraded Lynx Mk 9As to be used by the Army Air Corps at their Dishforth base in Yorkshire

he International Military in immense demand. Two Akula class extremely tight programme schedule. Helicopter conference will be submarines recently surfaced off the We know the enhanced operational Theld at the Wardorf Hilton east coast of the United States – show - capabilities these aircraft will deliver hotel in London. ing sub-hunting is more important now will be of great benefit to our troops in The theme of the conference is: than almost any time since the end of Afghanistan and we are now working theCold War. around the clock to ensure we deliver Have helicopters ever Players in the military market the remaining aircraft not just on time include Agusta Westland, (a show spon - but ahead of schedule.” been more crucial to the sor) which has delivered the first four Following the flight of the first air - success of a campaign upgraded Lynx Mk.9A helicopters for craft in September 2009 the Lynx the British Army, just 12 months after Mk.9A completed its qualification test since the end of the contract award. programme successfully demonstrating Vietnam War? Three of these four aircraft will be the airframe was capable of maximising used by the Army Air Corps for conver - the improved performance provided by Questions to be asnwered are: sion to type and conversion to role the LHTEC CTS800 engines, thus Have the hot, high and dusty operat - training at its Dishforth base in meeting or exceeding the customers’ ing conditions of Afghanistan placed a Yorkshire. In 2010 the Lynx Mk.9A Key User Requirements. greater strain on capabilities and main - helicopters will deploy to Afghanistan A further three aircraft will be deliv - P tenance operations than almost any to support British and coalition forces, ered by April 2010, followed by the h o t where its exceptional hot and high per - final batch of five aircraft by o

other theatre? g r a

Has the exponential increase in pub - formance will enable the aircraft to September 2010, giving the British P h

operate year round in the demanding Army 12 Lynx Mk.9A helicopters three c lic scrutiny of helicopter availability o u r

placed even further pressures on environmental conditions. months ahead of the contracted date. t e s

Commanders and the support supply Nick Whitney, Senior VP - UK y o f

chains? Government Business Unit, said at the Come to the conference, meet and a g

handover of the fourth aircraft question members of Agusta Westland, u Away from overland operations, the s t a

growing threats (such as piracy) in the “Everybody involved ..is.. to be con - and speakers from the US, Canadian w e

gratulated for delivering the first four and British defence teams. s maritime environment mean that heli - t l a copter surveillance capabilities will be aircraft in just 12 months against an We look forward to meeting you. n D

22 HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010

The Squirrel

How the AS350 and 355 continues to serve as the staple helicopter of gendamerie and other forces

Words and Photographs by Antoine Grondeau translation by Robert Edmonds ATPL/IR

onceived by Aerospatiale during the 1970s, the Right from the beginning some purchasers have used it Squirrel is a light machine whose simplicity, versa - for rescue and surveillance. At the forefront of medical Ctility and reliability have led to exceptional com - help in times past when the number of engines mattered mercial success. Thirty-five years after the first flight it little, it is still in daily use with many armed forces. As an remains the best-seller in its class and it has been optimised enthusiastic user of rotary wings since 1954, the French over the course of 3,400 production aircraft. Gendarmerie quickly acquired a number of them. also Serves The Squirrel is used at one of the most multi-faceted bases in France, the DAG

Although its replacement in blue mission and lifts off with a doctor searchlight can be installed below the livery by the EC135 has already on board. Its operational zone cov - fuselage for night missions. It is oper - begun, this article concerns how the ers the whole Atlantic seaboard ated by the on-board mechanic via an Squirrel is used at one of the most south of Mimizan, the southern part internal console. One of the most multi-faceted bases in France, the of the Landes district and the powerful on the market, this light can DAG (Detachement Aerien de Atlantic Pyrenees. illuminate a wide area at a consider - Gendarmerie, or police aviation able distance, making it indispensable detachment) at Bayonne. DAG's helicopter. for night searches. Created as a permanent entity in A base with a strategic position. 1980, the Bayonne detachment has A wide operational range. A glance at a map helps one to under - been using a Squirrel since 1983. The detachment is based at Bayonne stand the region's problems: this para - The aircraft occasionally rotate airport and operates autonomously dise of surfers and hikers regularly between bases according to their thanks to its own refuelling point, a becomes a nightmare for tourists who availability, onboard equipment and maintenance hangar and a permanent have little awareness of the dangers maintenance programmes, but the team. Operationally, the three pilots posed by the biggest waves in Europe one usually to be found at Bayonne and the apparent ease of the Pyrenean is F- MJCB, an AS 350BA. With The helicopter peaks. As regards the frontier with 540 litres of kerosene it has an is useful for Spain, well that is important for trade endurance of two-and-a-half hours, deploying gen - and traffic and requires supervision but pilots often prefer voluntarily to darmes into areas without throughout the year. limit that: one hour of fuel is suffi - road access The gendarmes have a double role; cient for most missions and the they are primarily charged with police weight saved helps to improve per - missions but also act as a reserve for formance or to carry more passen - emergency helicopter missions. gers. This Squirrel is permanently SAMU (Service d'Aide Medicale fitted with a winch, operated by an Urgente, a nationwide rescue service) on-board mechanic, as well as a has an Agusta 109 locally, but if that is flotation system. This allows it to unavailable, or the help required operate out to sea without installa - involves winching or mountain flying, tion delays. then the Squirrel is charged with the A Spectrolab SX16 "Nightsun" 26 HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 Maintenance is done locally

there can take off at any time of day or night with the only constraints being meteorological. Depending on their lev - A tool at the dis - els of skill and experience, newly-drafted pilots are posal of the trained on the spot by their colleagues on the specifics of forces of law the territory and are supported for the first six months by and order an experienced pilot. are detached to the DAG; this is a very useful special - Maintenance is completed locally, with only heavy ism in view of the numerous missions out to sea. maintenance, programmed for every thousand flying hours, requiring time at the Gendarmerie's engineering The police mission: primary and permanent activity base at Blanc in the Indre region. The detachment under - The blue helicopter is, above all, a tool at the disposal takes about 350 missions annually, about 400 flying hours. of the forces of law and order. The Gendarmerie unit Each mission carries one of the four on-board mechan - present at an intervention decideds upon an unsched - ics. During the flight they operate the winch, the search - uled mission if it deems the helicopter's presence useful. light or the camera and help the passengers and doctor. Scheduled missions are ordered by the Gendarmerie Additionally, each year two certificated first aid divers region with hierarchical authority from the Gendarmerie's aerial section at Cazaux, to which the Bayonne detachment belongs. Police flights have a fair - ly constant level of activity throughout the year, but comprise very diverse missions. ‘General surveillance’ consists in establishing a pres - ence, reassuring the population, observing and interven - ing and gathering information. Numerous trails criss-cross the Pyrenees and follow the border, giving rise to varied traffic well away from This paradise of controlled roads. The helicopter is useful for deploying surfers and hikers gendarmes charged with this mission into areas without regularly becomes a road access. It can also be used directly as a platform for nightmare as confirming the commission of crime. A marked out - tourists have little break of night-time thefts of merchandise and fuel from concept of the dan - motorway service stations has induced the Gendarmerie ger of the biggest to plan regular nocturnal overflights. In conjunction waves in Europe with two vehicles on the ground blocking the service station's entrance and exit, the helicopter rises up and sweeps the area with its searchlight. The object of this manoeuvre is more to dissuade offenders than to catch them red-handed, although this does sometimes happen. Night-time theftsdecline substantially for some time after these missions. The crews can also help confirm HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 27 The DAG assists units involved in ongoing crime scenes

dangerous driving offences such as ground transport. coast and in the mountains. tailgating, crossing solid white lines The Gulf of Gascony is sensitive Being amongst the most famous or overtaking on the wrong side. in many respects. In permanent col - surfing spots and reputed throughout The DAG also comes to the assis - laboration with the Customs and the world for their waves, Biarritz and tance of units involved in ongoing Maritime Affairs agencies, the gen - Hossegor attract numerous holiday- crime scenes. Vehicle pursuit and darmes supervise ships' seaworthi - makers. Supervision from the beaches searching for villains have been ness, fishing zones, clandestine is insufficient to dissuade them from popularised in television broad - crossings and maritime traffic. The venturing into the waves, so every day casts; improvements made to cam - DAG sustains units of the the helicopter is called upon to help eras and searchlights has made Gendarmerie Maritime; these have tourists carried out to sea by the strong these tasks much more effective. exclusive competence for handling current. The detachment's most frequent criminality at sea. From its regional base at Etel, near mission is searching for persons and The Spanish equivalent of the Lorient, the CROSS organisation this has been greatly facilitated by Gendarmerie, the Guardia Civile, is (Centres Regionaux Operationnels de gyrostabilised infrared cameras also equipped with operational heli - Surveillance et de Sauvetage) autho - which are, nowadays, the norm for copters (some EC135s). The rises and co-ordinates rescues along police helicopters worldwide. Vivid Schengen accords allow the forces the Atlantic coast. It provides the radio colour discriminates a certain range of law and order in the two countries watch and decides which units to of temperatures of any bodies that to penetrate up to 30 kilometres deploy for a rescue, calling on the resemble those of a human being. A across the border if neecessary. DAG when required. CROSS also man hidden in a wood is instantly directs rescues at sea: a ship in diffi - located by the latest-generation of Rescue, a secondary, seasonal culties whose crew require winching, a Wescam cameras installed in the activity yachtsman having a heart attack who blue EC135s. Although DAG's Squirrel only inter - urgently requires evacuation from his The current SAGEM units are of venes when SAMU's A109 is either boat, a fisherman fallen into a heavy a previous generation, less precise unavailable or incapable of the mis - sea... there are numerous cases where a and less efficient, but they still give sion, this nevertheless represents a motor-boat could not accomplish the

good service on the Squirrel. The considerable part of the detach - mission. u a e

ment's activity. The gendarmes can In the mountains, it is the D

helicopter is regularly called to con - n o tribute as a result of enquiries, either intervene at sea and in the moun - Gendarmerie's mountain troop r g e n as a means of deployment in inhos - tains, places unsuitable for the (PHGM, Peloton de Gendarmerie de i o t pitable terrain, or for land surveys, Agusta as it has no winch. Thus they Haute Montagne) that leads rescues n a s

are given all the winching tasks, h taking photographs, or for preparing and has access to the helicopter. The P a r

an intervention on unfamiliar terri - these representing the greatest of peaks of the Atlantic Pyrenees are dan - g o t

summer's rescue needs along the o tory that is barely accessible by gerous precisely because they appear h P 2828 HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 Rescue work is second to public security

so easy to amateur hikers. Many of them venture into the fleet's surveillance and intervention functions. They are mountains each summer without appropriate kit, some - spread across the urban and lower- lying regions and times even in beach gear. The pilgrimage route to are equipped with gyrostabilised Wescam cameras and Compostella crosses the region and itself gives rise to SX16 searchlights. The last of the first 12 EC135s numerous evacuations caused by the ill-preparedness of ordered will be delivered shortly, as a prelude to the certain pilgrims, some of whom even impose nutritional complete replacement of the Squirrel fleet in the com - restrictions on themselves and so encounter difficulties in ing decade. the higher passes. The author would particularly like to thank LCL Although rescue work is a substantial part of the DAG's Duclos and the DAG team at Bayonne tasking at Bayonne, it is still secondary to public security work, the principal mission of the Gendarmerie Nationale. Rescue work is At a national level, rescue work represents 17% of its 17% of national flights. The government has launched a general review of flights public policy and should soon fix new objectives for the centralised grouping of police aviation units (GCFAG, le groupement central des formations aeriennes de la Gendarmerie), especially with regard to combining main - tenance and operating fleets of similar helicopters. It is also expected that the location of helicopter bases will be reconsidered for optimal coverage in accordance with regional needs. The Squirrel is soon to be replaced by the EC135. The ageing of Allouettes and Squirrels and the need for mod - ern capabilities and performance have led to the current renewal of the Gendarmerie's fleet. Presently comprising 30 Squirrels, 10 EC135s and 15 EC145s, in the medium s e

n term there will only be EC135s and EC145s, the latest o J -

r generation of helicopters, twin-engined to conform to e t n European legislation, having a greater payload and far u h a superior range, able to fly in cloud (IFR) and better n i g r equipped for night flying. o e g The EC145 is tasked with transport and intervention s h

P work and will be distributed to those geographical areas a r g

o needing the power and the ability to winch, ie the moun - t o h tains and Guyana. The EC135s are inheriting the Squirrel P HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 Indian Contrasts

Hampi, the 16th century city set amongst boulders

The main street in Hampi village

Bangalore: Much of the Casa Piccolo water supply Hotel and a in Mumbai is street scene delivered via tankers s e n o J - r e t n u h a n i g r o e g s h P a r g o t o h P 3300 HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010

Emerging Helicopter

India is slowly realising the potential of its helicopter market by Georgina Hunter-Jones

ndia has the second largest pop - tem, (in Mumbai, for example, the that some 70% of the population ulation in the world (1.15 bil - traffic is so bad that a 10 mile jour - still live in villages and at some con - Ilion) and is projected to overtake ney can take 2 hours,) elderly trains, siderable distance from major trau - China as the largest by 2030. Its per with basic facilities, that run late ma hospitals, and that the country capita income has doubled in the and have frequent incidents, and an has frequent flooding, land slides, last 10 years, it has a poor infra - emerging but somewhat troubled earthquakes and other major disas - structure with an appalling road sys - airline industry. Add to this, the fact ters and it becomes clear this is a 32 Markets Spring

country where helicopters are vital: As a point of comparison, New icopter for every 7,000 people as a r t c and yet there are only 240 civil heli - zealand has a population of four and compared with India’s one for every e V l copters in the country (there are a quarter million, a good infrastruc - 479,000 people. The question asked a b o considerably more military helicop - ture, is financially stable although it by many is why. l g h ters) no fire-fighting helicopters and is not growing at the pace of India, While there are some positive P a r only a couple that can be used for and has around 500 helicopters in signs, 2008 was a boom year for g o t o emergency medical services (EMS). the country. This is roughly one hel - helicopters and the number in the h P Pictures courtesy of Deccan Helicopters, Global Vectra, RWSI, United Helicharters, 33 Pawaan Hans, Monarch International Enstrom 480B dressed as a Heli Doli, the vehicle in which the groom collects his bride for the wedding ceremony

country rose significantly with Bell alone importing copters to give a boost to the industry. fourteen new helicopters, but, as with everything in This was slowly followed by the growth of private India, there is no simple answer to the question. operators, with 2006 and 2008 being particularly good One of the factors behind the poor use of civilian heli - years for the import of new helicopters. However, 2009, copters is history. with both a global recession and terrorist problems at As in the majority of Asian countries most helicopter home, was a poor year for the importation of helicopters, flying in India before 1986 was military, and the fledg - which virtually stopped. 2010, however, looks like being ling civil side of the market was entirely run by foreign a good year, with economists forecasting 9% growth and companies. In 1986, the government of India realised the several companies ready to import new helicopters. value of their growing helicopter market, particularly in However, even in the field of importing itself there the oil sector, and the foreign companies were, as Sanjay are complexities. There are two ways of importing a Kumar from Pawaan Hans joked “booted out of the new helicopter into India (second-hand helicopters may country”. They were replaced by a PSU (Public Sector also be imported but must not be more than 20 years Undertakings – government based enterprise, 78.5% old). The first is as a Non Scheduled Operator (NSOP,) owned by the government) helicopter company called the second as a private operator. A NSOP does not have the Helicopter Corporation of India, later this was to pay import duty on the helicopter or spare parts, but a P l o a renamed Pawaan Hans. The government bought 42 heli -

private operator must pay 20% import duty on both the t n l o I a t

original importation and on any further spares needed. n a o n i t r a e Simple though the idea is in itself, this has led to some n t Pawaan Hans Bell 206 r n I e t h doing the power line wash complications in the system, owing to problems in dif - n c i r h a ferentiating between what exactly constitutes a NSOP c n r o a m and what makes up a private operation. Because of this n o P o M t there are currently several cases in court between the , M s o n t a customs office and the NSOPs, who feel that this is an t h o b n impediment to further helicopter growth given the length a s a n w a

a of time a court case takes in India. One joked to me that h P n m if America had the same legislation system they would - a a o t w t a o n’t have to worry about insurance claims as all the P b s h h P

grandchildren of the beneficiaries would be dead long P a a r r g g before matters were resolved . o o t t o o h h Another problem is the lack of licenced heliports and P P 34 HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 One of the contrasts of India; cows wandering through a religious ceremony at Hampi Inset: Couple preparing to go on a pilgrimage to Vaishno Devi in the AS350

dedicated ‘helilanes’. When a helicopter is required to fly the initiative and did trials creating their own helilanes. to a destination without a helipad a ‘temporary helipad’ These have proved satisfactory and at Juhu helilanes are may be set up, the area examined and approved by the now being implemented. company and pilot but without any dealings with the There have been other attempts to establish a fully DGCA (the aviation authority in India). Such a helipad functioning heliport. For example, Deccan Helicopters may be used for seven days. However, if it is needed for built a base at Bangalore, but, either because of the posi - more than seven days there must be an inspection by the tion of the heliport (half way between the domestic and DGCA, prior to giving approval for further landing. international airports) or because it still took time to get Approval is usually given, but obtaining a permanent to get to the heliport, owing to traffic and the lack of a helipad increases the time and cost of the operation. supporting infrastructure, the heliport was not successful Operators say that although this is fine for helipads out and Deccan returned to their base at the main airport. in the field, for example in places like Sanjhi Chat (a There have also been attempts to build heliports in helibase for pilgrimages to the Vaishanavdevi Shrine in Mumbai, to ease the flow of traffic. For example, a drive the Himalayas) there are insufficient fully-fledged heli - from the south of Mumbai, where many Embassies and ports with their own ATC and facilities. Instead, most tourist venues are based, to the airport in the north of the a flying is done either from major airports, or from smaller city, can take two hours during the day even using the r t c e airports under the air traffic control of major airports and ‘sea-link’ toll route, because of traffic congestion. V l a although their are some published heliroutes out of the Heliport trials have been taken at the Oberoi Hotel and b o l airports they are often unknown to the ATC. One exam - on a residential housing estate, but although they were g f o ple is Juhu Aerodrome, which handles 70% of all heli - built and ready to be used both were finally prevented t r a

P copter flying in India, mainly out to the oil rigs off the from being fully implemented, one because of residen - e i

D west coast. tial noise complaints, the other owing to security fears r i b

t Juhu Aerodrome is controlled by Mumbai from the nearby Naval base. However, Sanjay Kumar e s n i International Airport, and the biggest complaint here is

says that there are still options on the building of a . s e delays in getting clearance to take off. Operators have n much-needed heliport in Mumbai. The emphasis is now o J - complained about delays as long as 40 minutes and on

r on building on reclaimed land off the south point and e t n rare occasions have even had to return to the base to flying over the water to reduce noise for residents. PSU u h

a refuel having been held so long prior to take off. To try Pawaan Hans CMD, Mr RK Tyagi, is taking the lead in n i g r and ease this situation the RWSI (Rotary Wing Society of this initiative. o e g India) has been holding talks with the DGCA and the On the positive side, both Pune and Greater Noida s h

P ATC, trying to establish helilanes out of the airfield over have partially independent heliports. a r g to the oilrigs. One operator told me that they had been in Another challenge cited was the lack of understanding o t o h talks for six years, and then the companies at Juhu took of helicopters by the ATC and the need for each flight to P HELICOPTER LIFE,Spring 2010 35 Hampi during the auspicious meeting of the New Year and a full moon. Inset: chariot temple

have a flight plan, even if it starts charge 10% less than the PSU to win ters must take off down the runways and ends on a private operator’s land. any of the contracts. However, regardless of the direction in which In the UK, by contrast, you may fly Sanjay Kumar of Pawaan Hans says they were flying. This is starting to from your own land to another per - that this is no longer the case, and change as new methods of using heli - son’s land (or airport to airport etc) that since 2008/9 all contracts have copters highlight their special quali - without a flight plan, provided you been tendered on an equal footing. ties. For example, Pawaan Hans are flying under visual flight rules. Operators complained the DGCA recently brought in a couple of New Fear of terrorism was one reason still tended to treat helicopters like zealand pilots to do power-line given for this regulation, and even fixed wing and misunderstood their washes. The cleaner cables provided those operators who were losing rev - unique abilities. One example of this better conductivity, and reduced the enue because of the length of time it was the insistence that the helicop - number of power surges and cuts, takes to file a flight plan and receive approval, were not against the idea of having every flight recorded, they s

merely wanted a quicker response e n o J

from the agencies dealing with filing - r e t

the flight plan and less bureaucracy n u h

in getting permission to fly. a n i g

Over-regulation, unequal regula - r o e

tions, lack of understanding and lack g P

of fair competition were also cited as o t r e

a reason for the paucity of general t r a

contracts. When the Indian helicopter h c i l market first bloomed, and the e h D

Helicopter Corporation of India (now e t i n

Pawaan Hans) was set up, it was u M o

immediately given a competitive t t o

advantage in government contracts; United b s h

Helicharters at P

most had a 10% preferential clause a r

Juhu Airfield g favouring the PSU, thus the non-gov - o t o

ernment operators would have to north of Mumbai h P 36 HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 Global Vectra’s Bell 412 flying from Juhu airfield in Mumbai. Inset ox-cart viewed from a motor rickshaw

and thus showed the considerable commercial advantages of are flown single pilot and insurance companies using helicopters. require at least 1000 hours flight time. Hence the Another non-competitive condition mentioned by operators majority of pilots come from the military, where was the Rule 60, which allows former military pilots to fly in they are likely to leave the service with more than PSUs without doing a civil CPL, while non-government com - 3,000 hours or are ex-pats, some of whom come panies must employ only pilots who have done a full CPL. to India with the new types of helicopter being Helicopter pilot training is a problem for all helicopter imported. companies and consequently there are only some 700 to 750 This lack of training facilities is something that helicopter pilots in the country. There are currently three the operators themselves would like to tackle, ways of getting a helicopter licence, through military service mainly by setting up a school that would lead to (either full term or a short service commission), doing a CPL employment in a co-pilot capacity with one of the course at Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) or training in a larger operators. Jyoti Gupta from Monarch foreign country such as America, Australia, South Africa or International, which imports Enstrom helicopters the UK. However, as all the operators pointed out, once a said, “we all want to do it, it just needs someone pilot has finished his civilian training he has 150 hours and to initiate the scheme.” the chance of getting a job is very slight as most operations However, training is expensive and there is cur - rently no simulator in the country. Jyoti is looking a r t

c at the potential of the Enstrom 480B as a training e V

l base. The current training machine used by HAL a b o

l is the Schweizer 300Cbi. g

P One unexpected reason for not using helicop - o t s ters relates to the large size of the population, and e n o

J in particular the large amount of manual labour - r e

t available. For example, Captain Uday Gelli of n u

h United Helicharters was asked to quote on trans - a n i porting materials up a mountain for the construc - g r o e tion of a dam. When the builder read the quote he g

M pointed out that he could get a team of manual o t t o labourers to do the job for a considerably lower b s h cost, although with a slightly longer time scale. P

a Entrance to the r

g Population size was also given as a reason for not

o monkey temple t o having a National Health Service and hence the lack of h in Hampi P 37 HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 Heli-Pilgrims at Kedarnath

Religious sites are man - aged by the Shrine Board

EMS helicopters for the general populace. always available, but here again the source of funding “There are just too many people killed on the roads for was a problem. this to be feasible,” said one helicopter pilot. However, there are helicopter areas in which flying is There have been trials of EMS helicopters, including a expanding. One of these is religious tourism, such as pil - Dhruv, which was set up to do hospital work and possi - grimages, where helicopters are increasing their own ble emergency rescues, but here too the problem lies with market, and another is in weddings. funding. In the majority of European countries EMS Many of the religious sites are in the mountains and work is done in relation to public hospitals and has some are accessible only by a long hard climb up the moun - government input, whereas in India there is no such tain (sometimes as much as nine or more hours walk - funding and any EMS helicopters would have to be fund - ing). Clearly many older pilgrims are unable to under - ed by a combination of the insurance companies, the pri - take this type of climb. However, as the actual distance vate hospitals and the helicopter operators. At the is very short, and mainly vertical, such a flight could moment there are various suggestions, such as using the take only 10 minutes or less by helicopter, and is, at a

tolls collected on toll roads as a possible source of price of around 1200 rupees, about £17.50, quite afford - s r e t

income to pay for the helicopter, in case of an accident able. Once the pilgrims discover that the service is avail - P o c i l

on one of these restricted roads. So far nothing has been able even those who thought the pilgrimage was beyond e h

agreed but the will to get this type of helicopter function - their powers because of age or infirmity, become inter - n a c c

ing is definitely there. There was also considerable dis - ested and the market increases. There are two types of e D

cussion of the possibility of using the civil helicopters in religious site, those managed by the Shrine Board (the D n a s s n

national disasters, something that is currently covered by majority) which sets the price of flights, landing fees and e a n h o

the military. The advantage of using civil helicopters in so forth, and private shrines that set their own fees. Both J - n a r a e t

such cases is that military pilots and equipment are not welcome helicopters. w n a u P h D a n n a i a g r r t o c e e g V

, l r a e b t o r l a h g

c , i l s e e n h o D J - e t r i e n t u n u f h o a y n s i e g t r r o u e o g c s s h h P P

Engineering for Global a a r r g g

Vectra is done at Greater o o t t

Bangalore street o o Noida Heliport h h P P 38 HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 Using helicopters for weddings is a growing market around Delhi and other cities where land prices have spi - ralled thanks to the growth of the towns. Landowners now have the means to use helicopters, whereas in the past they might have used a horse and cart to enable the groom to transport his bride to the wedding ceremony. The heli - copter is decorated with garlands and religious tributes, and then flies the short journey to the temple. In the com - petition that makes marriages the fabulous ceremonies they are, the helicopter is becoming a vital status symbol. Deccan Helicopters The potential for both the use and growth of helicopters Bell 206 is there. All that seems required is for the authorities to understand this and a more general acceptance of the need for helicopters, because they will improve not worsen the quality of life for the majority of India’s citizens. As ever, India has its own way of dealing with things and helicop - ter flying is no different. The operators remain positive. India has its own way of succeeding, and you need only to remember that India is the longest lasting democracy in the world, to have faith that one day it will be the largest user and perhaps also producer of helicopters. Sanjay Kumar, the Dy General Manager of Marketing, said: “the helicopter industry is expanding and the problem is lack of focus. However, there are good intentions and the need Elephant house is recognized and ultimately God will help us.” Hampi This faith is something you notice again and again in India. Although everything takes much longer than it does Surprisingly, India does not have a thriving heli - in other countries, provided there is acceptance of the copter manufacturing industry and its only helicopter need most things do eventually get done, and there are manufacture is HAL (Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd) some interesting exceptions to the ‘double time’ rule. One with no serious competitor. After partition Jawaharlal is Akshardham, a recently built Hindu Temple in Delhi, Nehru, the First Prime Minster of India, felt it was which in spite of its huge size took only five years to vital that the newly partitioned India should become a build, on time and on budget hotbed of engineering excellence (so much so that the universities now complain that the Humanities are almost ignored) and this did happen in the booming car industry, for example. However, so far the only manufacturer to attempt a tentative flirtation towards competing with HAL was Tata, who for a while con - sidered doing something with MD. Unfortunately, this was in the era before Lynn Tilton, when MD was in financial trouble, and nothing came of his flirtation. Tata does still make some parts for Sikorsky, howev -

er, so there could be a possible future there. India is also very pro-active is in alternative fuels. It currently imports 75% of its energy and this is growing to 80%, so there is a desperate need to find alternative sources. The obvious one is solar power since there are some areas in India that have sunshine virtually 360 days a year. This raises the question: is it possible that India may be the first country to build 70% of all the helicopter and finance a helicopter that runs on alternative fuel? flying in India goes from I speculate that the ability and the finance are there, Juhu Airfield all that is required is the will.

HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 39 India Powers forward with Alternative Fuels

ndia currently imports 75% of its energy, unsurpris - boxes for worker in Tripura. This was a black wooden ingly therefore, there is considerable pressure to case with a glass panel on top which trapped the sun’s Ifind alternative sources of energy at home. Hence heat and kept the food warm until lunchtime. the government’s recent announcement that it is creat - Chaudhuri continued his work with a solar irrigation ing trading certificates to reward producers of clean pump in West Bengal in 1988, and a solar housing com - energy. plex which heated homes in the Sagar Islands in 1992. At present renewal energy accounts for only 8% on In 2006, Anil Joshi won the Padma Shri award from India’s energy needs, but the government aims to dou - the Indian government for his work in the Himalayas ble this in the next four years. installing watermills that work with the environment to Among those rewarded for renewable energy produc - generate power. The watermills, which originally ground tion in the past are Harish Hande from Bangalore, who wheat, were reformulated to supply hydro-electric power won the Ashden Award for Sustainable Energy in 2005, to local homes. They currently generate more than and the world’s Green Energy Award from Prince 20MW of power. Charles. These are only a small part of India’s nationwide Hande is MD of Selco Solar Pvt Ltd a company spe - attempt to lower their emission and increase energy. cialising in bringing cheap solar energy to those who Others include a directive that all taxis and public trans - could not normally afford it. They do this by providing port system vehicles in the capital Delhi, and Ahmedabad , s

a complete purchase package including microfinancing in Gujarat, must run on CNG (compressed natural gas). e n o J

and installation. Current clients include silk farm facto - CNG run vehicles (called NGVs - natural gas vehicles) - r e ries and even street vendors. They hope to reach anoth - have lower running costs and are considered safer than t n u er 200,000 households by 2011. petrol fuelled cars, drawbacks however are the space h a n i

Another award winner was SP Gon Chaudhuri who taken by the gas canisters and the lack of acceleration in g r o won the National Science Academy gold medal in 1996 the vehicles. e g s for his 30 KW mini solar power plant. With a growing population - it is predicted to be the h P a r

Chaudhuri originally started his solar energy move - most populous nation by 2010 - and an increasing hunger g o t ment in 1981 when he produced solar powered lunch for energy India needs to become a leader in this field. o h P 40 HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 Page 1

Presents the 9th International

ᔡ Venue: Waldorf Hilton Hotel, London ᔡ Two Day Conference: 27th-28th April 2010 ᔡ Pre-Conference Focus Day: 26th April 2010

Early Confirmed Speakers Include:

Colonel Brian C. Perris (Ret’d), Deputy Director, Electronic Warfare Division, US Army Colonel Keith Robinson, Project Manager, Armed Scout Helicopter, US Army Colonel Neil Thurgood, Programme Manager, Utility Helicopters, US Army Michael Sears, H-60 International Features of this year’s new and much expanded Deputy Programme Manager, US agenda include: Naval Air Systems Command Major Dave Holmes, Directorate Air ᔡ Military helicopter requirements and programme updates Requirements, Air Staff, Canadian from around the world: Presentations by decision makers rom key Forces programmes in nations such as US, UK, France, Germany, Wing Commander Chris Pitt (Ret’d), Canada, NATO will keep you informed on the cutting edge of the Director, Cycnia Consulting helicopter market Peter Doig, Technology Business ᔡ Detailed focus day: A whole day dedicated to issues in platform Development Manager, ESL Defence self protection and repair and maintenance will ensure you get to Elfan Ap Rees, Editor, Helicopter grips with the most pressing issues the helicopter community faces International ᔡ Unrivalled networking opportunities with the global helicopter community: A much expaned base of military delegates with repre sentation from, South America, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, Asia-Pacific and the Middle East gives you unparalled contacts and opportunties that no other event can deliver ᔡ Platform capabilities and performance: Comprehensively explore the strengths and weaknesses of the helicopter types that matter to you including – Medium-Heavy Lift, Utility, Attack, Scout, Personnel Recovery/Casualty Evacuation, Maritime, Sub Hunting, ISR and more www.helicopter-conference.com Military Helicopter Sponsors

Pre-Conference Workshop Day | 26th April 2010: PLATFORM SELF PROTECTION FOR ROTARY WING CRAFT Please quote your registration code: REPAIR AND MAINTENANCE OF HELICOPTERS IGB_11463.004_HELILIFE_AD

TEL: +44 (0) 207 368 9300 FAX: +44 (0) 207 368 9301 EMAIL: [email protected] The Adventures of

42 HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 My Uncles Nephew in Panama

Benny Ditschler reveals the beauty of flying in Panama where the terrain varies from beaches to Primeval Forests and Skyscrapers, and where you are free to fly where you will

Pictures courtesy of Benny Ditschler. Translated by Robert Edmonds

r lthough the construction of the Panama Canal American crewing regulations, and the country is also a e l h c started in 1881, it was not until 15th August 1914 drugs emporium located between South and North s t i

D that the first ship sailed through it, at last achiev - America. y

n A n ing the dream of reaching the Pacific Ocean by a route That is the downside of its story, but Panama is also a e b

n between the two American continents. Disease and acci - fabulously beautiful tropical paradise, and a truly superb a J r dents took the lives of 28,000 workers, and some of the place to fly helicopters. Helicopter operations here range a s h bodies were shipped back to Europe in barrels of vinegar. from sightseeing trips, VIP transport, filming and photo - P a r g Panama's is the flag of convenience for numerous ship graphic work, external load carrying, transporting freight o t o owners anxious to circumvent rigorous European and and moving sick people, through to pilot training. h P HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 43 No restriction on landing on the beach

Helicopters are perfect for enjoying nature

All this may seem fairly standard, but much the most along the banks of the Chagres, a wide river with crys - exciting difference from European operations is the possi - tal-clear water, surrounded by the impressively tall trees bility of landing anywhere, regardless of whether you of the Panamanian jungle, but also offering numerous have a PPL(H) or a CPL(H). This opens a great range of landing opportunities in secluded bays. Each landing site opportunities, and it means that sightseeing flights, for is a small, still paradise, perfect for enjoying nature, or instance, are quite different from those in Germany. for refreshing oneself in the river. Sightseeing flights are mostly undertaken in Robinson Even though we could spend hours here, it is time to R44s and EC120s. The flight generally begins at Marcos return to base. This stretch takes us over Panama City's A Gelabert airport, situated in the capital, Panama City. impressive skyline. Over the last few years a great many Directly after lifting off we fly northwards, and follow modern skyscrapers have sprung up along the coast, the canal, with its locks and lakes. Even after numerous rather as they have in Dubai. such trips it is still thrilling to see the gigantic cruise and VIP transport here also differs from that in Germany. container ships manoeuvre through the locks, sometimes It is quite routine to go off to an industrial site under with no more than a hand span between a ship’s hull and time pressure, having just obtained landing permission the lock walls. from the site owners. Flights to the dream-like Pearl Soon we reach the Atlantic coast, near Colon. Islands are a highlight, and a trip to San Blas, an archi - Hundreds of ships wait here daily for permission to travel pelago of 365 islands in north-eastern Panama, is espe - the popular shortcut between North and South America. cially so. Sometimes a customer wants to be taken out to r e l

We follow the Caribbean coast with its numerous islands, his yacht. This offers the chance of a deck landing, h c s t each an open invitation to land on the beach, either to which is always something of a challenge for pilots, and i D y swim or to eat grilled squid in one of the many restau - an exciting undertaking. n n e rants. Eventually we head south to the mainland. The Film flights in Panama have their own attractions. b s h P

hilly landscape is breathtaking, with large stretches of The most impressive example was the TV show a r g primeval forest, lush meadows and small settlements of “Survivor Israel” (similar to a jungle camp). Before the o t o straw huts belonging to the various Indian tribes. We fly show, twenty participants were plucked from everyday h P HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 44 A helicopter is still a crowd puller

Anyone fancying a game of golf is in luck

Even the hotel has welcoming helicopter parking spaces

life, with no chance to make any preparations, and they thrilling as it is varied. The poorly developed infrastructure were transported by our team to Saboga, one of the in the hinterland offers opportunities for such relatively Pearl Islands. They arrived by bus at the airport at five simple tasks as transporting cement sacks for foundations. o'clock in the morning, and were dispatched at sunrise This is because, without a helicopter, you would need a in four R44s and an EC120, accompanied by another whole day with a donkey to move two sacks of cement, R44 as the camera ship. We flew to our goal in forma - whereas the SA315B Lama can shift 25 sacks in a few min - tion at 500 feet. We stopped briefly, to allow the cam - utes. Daily business also involves more demanding tasks, era teams to prepare on the ground, and then resumed such as transporting expensive mobile electronic equipment formation flight, to emerge out of the horizon and to clearings, or the very latest drilling gear to the many allow the show's participants to jump about ten feet mines above 8,000ft. into the water, and then struggle up the shore of Amongst the most fulfilling tasks are supplying the pop - Saboga. The flying part was not the only challenge. So ulation in the hinterland, and providing disaster relief. In too was all the planning, for example agreeing the posi - November 2008, strong rains caused landslides in the less- tions of the machines in formation, developing a safe developed regions of Panama. The villagers had to be evac - procedure for breaking formation in the bay, and oper - uated and provided with emergency aid, using a Chinook ating an agreed holding pattern for the other helicop - and two Black Hawks of the American military. Such ters. This exercise was an unforgettable experience for moments are amongst the most emotional, especially when each pilot, with a tropical paradise as backdrop. How you can put faces to the events. It leaves you not a little r e l

h many authorisations this would have required in proud and happy to have been able to help these people. c s t i Germany doesn't bear thinking about, nor does how The Health Ministry also requires doctors and medicines to D y

n long the process would have taken. be flown out to underdeveloped regions, to care for the n e b External load carrying is also big business here, people there, or to transport the sick and injured to hospital s h

P whether for the construction of broadcasting masts and in Panama City. I particularly remember a pregnant girl a r g electricity pylons, or for supplying one of the many who was expected to have complications giving birth. Her o t o h copper mines in the mountains. Flying here is as contractions had already started when she was flown to P HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 45 Construction on the Panama Canal started in 1881, but the first ship did not pass through until 1914

The variety and free - dome of flying in Panama makes it a dream place to live hospital in Panama City, where she delivered safely. Such variety and freedom make Panama a dream place both to live and to work. The full range of pilot training can be undertaken at very favourable rates at Panama's only flying school, Heliplan, which is also a Robinson dealer and maintenance organisation. This is not the unstructured or uncontrolled set-up you might expect in a "banana republic". There are operations manuals, servic - ing schedules, training programmes, an operations man - ager, a quality manager and a chief instructor. There is a healthy mix of FAA and JAA regulations, strictly over - seen by the Autoridad Aeronautica Civil, Panama's CAA. There are flying instructors from across the globe—two Germans, an Austrian, a Spaniard and a Panamanian— with over 30,000 hours of flying experience between them, and they offer excellent training in English, German and Spanish across the whole spectrum of flying in Panama. For example, here you soon learn power management in the often hot and high regions. The free - and mountain flying are also offered. In total, there is a dom to land anywhere is a great advantage, and one that fleet of three R22s, four R44s, an EC120, an Alouette turns training for landings out into a varied and exciting III, a Lama and a Cessna 172, all of which can be char - experience. Moreover, simulated emergencies can be tered by private pilots. practised realistically right down to the ground. Private pilots in Panama live in a veritable paradise. Added to that, all this takes place in a stunning coun - The beaches and islands can be reached in a short time try. Flying students can obtain private and commercial by helicopter. San Blas alone, with its 365 islands, offers helicopter licences, and even flying instructor and instru - the whole family a different dream beach for each day of ment ratings. Additionally, turbine ratings can be the year, giving a whole new meaning to helicopter obtained on the EC120, SA319 Alouette III and the tourism. Stunning Caribbean beaches, far from mass SA315B Lama, and courses on external load carrying tourism, are on offer to all who come to Panama, either 46 HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 Panama has one flying school, Heliplan

with a PPL(H) already, or intending to combine a holi - day with PPL(H) training. Everyone is familiar with the question "who or what r e would I take with me to a secluded island?" Here you l h c s can turn the dream into reality. t i

D The currency in Panama is the US dollar, and the cost y n n e of living is very low. For me, Panama is a newly discov - b s

h ered paradise with far more to offer than appears at first P a r sight. For further information do please contact me at g o t

o [email protected] h P HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 47 Future pilots in training

48 HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 Vietnam Training Ralph Arnesen looks back photographs courtesy of Ralph Arnesen and the 1st Aviation Brigade Library can’t remember seeing a helicopter before I joined the whole place upside down. This was part of the get - the US Army and finished my basic training at Fort ting to know ‘attention to detail’: everything in the room IPolk, Louisiana. Those of us who were headed for had to be spotless, and according to the very strict helicopter school were put on a bus and driven to Fort requirements. If you were unfortunate enough to have a Wolters, Texas, 70 miles west of Dallas. As helicopter fly die in your display while you were out, then this pilot candidates we were known as snowbirds, no wings. required a military funeral for a fellow aviator. This The course was almost a continuation of basic training meant getting a burial squad, and burying the offending and, as there was a backload of students, my training was insect in a matchbox at the back of the barracks. Having delayed for a few months. accumulated many demerits or negative points for sub - After the summer of 1967, I finally started, and was standard appearance or room condition, I did not see the assigned to Class 68-503. The program was known as the outside of Fort Wolters until the end of November. Warrant Officer Helicopter Candidate Course and we Another part of the training was to get us individuals n e were now known as WOCs. The day started with a run to work together as a team. As soon as we realised this s e n

r before breakfast, classes, and finally flight training: these life became a lot easier, but only after a required number a h alternated every week so that we all got a chance to fly of months. They were not letting us off that easy. P l a

r in the heat of the day. The classroom courses consisted Looking back, I now see the reasoning behind the exer - f o of technical training on the OH-23D, the military model cise, but today it might be seen a little antiquated. y s e t of the Hiller 12D, map reading, navigation, weather, and We moved along the program, getting a little more r u o

c such. In addition, we were expected to know how to be freedom as we gained seniority after soloing, and doing s h

P Warrant Officers, so a quick study of military law and cross-country flights during the day and at night. We had a r g various other interesting things was on the curriculum. one situation that came on totally unexpectedly, a night o t o

h It was not uncommon to return to your room and find cross-country that ended in a wall of fog rolling in across P HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 49 Gunner in a huey

The Air-crane was used substantially in Erickson Air-Crane the Vietnam conflict lifting a chinook the area. There were helicopters Savannah, Georgia instead of Fort Unfortunately I had to return to the landing all over the place, although a Rucker. We figured that the new pro - barracks after the ceremonies, few budding pilots had landed safely, gram at Savannah might be a touch because I had been arrested on the walked to a road, and hitch-hiked easier, but we were wrong, for it was beach at St Simon’s Island in an back to the base. But the next day just as hard. We transitioned into the orange flight suit and holding a large they couldn’t remember where they UH-1D and started instrument train - bourbon and coke. I was under house had left the helicopters, and it took ing for a month or so, and then the arrest. The brigade commander gave two or three days to find them all. real thing, tactical flying. This me a month confined to quarters We lost a few students to night included low-level navigation, for - when not at classes, and two months autorotation after the engine failed in mation flying, artillery spotting, and at half pay. But I didn’t lose the unforgiving terrain, and I can recall survival training. money because he was not able to one student that flew into wires. On Survival training started with lec - transfer a punishment to another the lighter side, one of my class - tures and a nice bowl of rattlesnake posting, Vietnam. mates got the instructor’s seatbelt soup. The course ended with an I met my parents in Singapore. around the collective controls, escape and evasion trial. We were My father was working in Indonesia because he hadn’t secured it as he put into groups with a chicken or a and had arranged some time off. I should have, and then when coming rabbit. These were to eat, of course, was also able to visit some of my old in to land he could not get the collec - but some groups just couldn’t and let school friends who had stayed on tive down, thought it was a mechani - them go: so much for the killer after school, or had come back to cal problem, and declared a mayday. instinct. We were captured with reg - work after university. We had some It all ended well but he got a stern ularity that night and interrogated, time together and then I got on a talking-to from the chief instructor, then released to be caught again. We flight to Saigon. After being assigned and we never missed any chance to finally made it to the bus, and then to a unit, I later tried to get back the remind him. back to the barracks, led by our cap - money for the plane tickets. There From primary flight school a turers; the seriousness of what we were three regulations that I had not group of us decided that we would had enlisted for had not yet sunk in. known about that prevented the army prefer to take advanced flight at Graduation was a grand affair. from paying the money back, and I

50 HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 Troop carriers broke all three. If I had been in the U.S., I think I might Life was, if not good, then as good as it could be. have had some words with the personnel sergeant who said The shit burners were a daily annoyance. There was I could just go, and the army would reimburse me. I can no sewer system in the camp, so every morning the now boast that I paid my own way to Vietnam. Anyway, I hooch maids, local women, came into the camp and had more than enough on my plate now and not much use cleaned the latrines. The facilities were an outhouse for money. with half a 55-gallon drum under the drop zone. These I can’t remember that we got a lot of information once drums were pulled out and diesel was poured on each we got to Vietnam: we had to learn by ‘on the job train - and burned. I can still remember how it smells. We lost ing.’My first assignment was to the 120 AHC, the Deans. our padded socks, and the hooch maids used them for I was lucky again: in this unit a lot of pilots were finishing sanitary towels. What can I say? War is hell. But at the their tour so it was pilots from my class who were selected other end of the scale, the officers club had cold beer for this plumb job. We flew VIPs, generals, and lower and we ate well. We had it a lot better than the others, brass if they had to go somewhere. Our flights took us who slept in tents and ate C rations or LRRP rations. over a large area around Saigon, and also to the Mekong After eight months I had had enough of this opu - Delta region. We also had the midnight courier flight into lence and requested a transfer to our gunship platoon Saigon with the mail to the US from Long Binh, the US in Saigon, the “Razorbacks,” better known as the Army Headquarters. This could be very exciting on special “Pigs.” Anyone from the southern states of the U.S. occasions like New Year and other times, when the sky can tell you that the Razorback pig is the mascot of was filled with fireworks. We flew blacked out so that the Arkansas State University, but “The Pigs” suited us drunker people would not be able to use us as a target. better. More on them next issue.

HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 51 German Eagles are Blue

Dino Marcellino writes about the German polices ongoing fight against terrorism ne of the strategies created in recent years by by directing the vote to a political party more inclined to international terrorism is undoubtedly the disengage the forces deployed abroad in that country to Oattempt to influence the conduct and outcome of aid nascent democracies in the fight against terrorism. elections both in Arab countries, such as Afghanistan and As the election period approaches, the state of alert of Iraq, and in Western countries. the forces responsible for safety increases progressively, The execution of terrorist attacks, as happened in and makes use of all their resources. Spain in March 2004, aims to influence voters’ choices In September 2009, Germany held general federal

Photographs courtesy Dino Marcellno elections (Bundestag). This event provided an oppor - Despite this modest reduction in the number of aircraft tunity to visit one of the organizations in charge of the our operational capacity has increased substantially, territorial control and protection of German citizens: thanks to technological leaps and the potential offered by the ‘Bundespolizei’, Federal Police, and its air service. the new generation of helicopters. An area near the Bonn-Hangelar airport, in the In 2005, we also made the choice to change the name of town of Sankt Augustin (St. Augustine), was chosen our organisation from Bundesgrenzschutz (Federal Border as the venue for the largest Bundespolizei base, which Police) to Bundespolizei (Federal Police). In fact our tasks was designed to accommodate not only the headquar - have not changed, but the new name better exemplifies the ters of the Air Support Group (Fliegergruppe), but also variety of activities undertaken, which are not restricted to the departments of land and specialized units, such as border control work, as the old name suggests.” the famous GSG9 (the so-called assault squads). Mr. Helbig then pointed out that “the spectrum of oper - At that time Bonn was the federal capital and the ations is very broad, from typical police activities such as choice seemed obvious. But it remains valid despite the search for criminals, control of sensitive installations, the capital being moved to Berlin after unification boundaries, railways, support for local police, the trans - with East Germany. port of members of the Government and their guests, the Overview of Fliegergruppe transport of persons in distress, missing person searches, Upon our arrival in St. Augustine we were received by and support during incidents and disasters.” the Commander in Chief of Fliegergruppe, Thomas They are also involved in medical emergency work, and Helbig (Assistant Chief Constable / Head), who began we operate the Helicopter-EMS service, which is based in the visit by explaining that "it is near the end of the 12 centres located throughout German territory. Sixteen period of complete renewal begun in 1996, with the EC-135 helicopters are dedicated to this service, and they launch of a program to acquire new helicopters, the first of which (an EC-155) was delivered in 1999. This program foresees that by its end, in 2011, there will be a completely renovated fleet, with a reduction of the 102 helicopters in the force in 2001 to 88. are easily distinguishable from the rest of the fleet by Flying Training Organization for the Police Service their orange livery." (Luftfaherschule fur den Polizeidienst), and the At present (August 2009) the Fliegergruppe has 85 hel - Maintenance Centre. icopters, spread over five Aviation Squadrons As can be seen, every Staffel has its inherent special - (Fliegerstaffel), employed as follows: - 6 EC-120 used ized geo-competence, which is of course in addition to exclusively for Training its main police operations. - 41 EC-135, of which 25 in blue livery for police duties, Before starting the tour of the base we can do no less and 16 in orange for EMS than look at a picture/painting that depicts a Puma with - 15 EC-155 (5 others will eventually replace the Bell a bucket on its cargo hook flying over a forest fire. The 212s still in service) subject seems strange, perhaps a tribute on the occasion - 18 AS332L1 Super Puma (2 others will be delivered in of support given to another Mediterranean country? Autumn 2009 / Spring 2010) As Mr. Helbig said, “in Germany, especially in the - 5 Bell 212 used exclusively by the Maritime Squadron Alpine belt, forest fires are more numerous than you The bases, with their respective Fliegerstaffel, are might imagine, although they are not comparable to Fuhlendorf, near Hamburg, the Baltic Sea and the North those disasters that plague countries such as Italy and Sea, and specializing particularly in monitoring sea areas Greece. The Super Puma can be equipped with the well- - Blumberg, in Berlin, with the border to the east, and the known Bambi Bucket system. location of most VIP Transport However, if necessary, we can also operate abroad if - Fuldatal, close to Kassel in the Central Area, which pro - required, and we specifically do so, as happens in cur - vides particular assistance to the railways police rent police duty: for example, we recently fruitfully - Oberschleissheim (near Munich) in the south, the Alps cooperated in Italy with your Guardia di Finanza, under area, with high competence in mountain rescue and forest fire activities - Sankt Augustin, where an Aviation Squadron is based. It is also the home of the Fliegergruppe Headquarters, of the

There are two control towers on the airfield, the smaller one used for ‘special events’ such as the G8 forum A range of different helicopters allows a fluidity of jobs

the auspices of the European Agency FRONTEX, which mounted on most of the EC-135s. coordinates control and security activities on the EU We had to overcome some initial difficulties in inter - boundaries).” preting the information provided by the system, and in The Sankt Augustin Base gaining the pilots confidence in the system, but now the We are in the heart of Fliegergruppe, the most complex and Hellas is extremely useful, and is a reliable enhance - specialised base. For the visit the Commander briefs us on ment because it can fly safely in confined environments. the skills of the sector managers. The tool scans the area in front the helicopter with the Our first sight of the operational area impresses us. It is laser, and it is able to detect the presence of cables up to 10 a.m. and a quick look at a ramp shows 12 helicopters 1000 meters distant. Obstacles are shown in red on the deployed, consisting of all the models in service. Soon the screen, to emphasize the possible danger to the crew.” ramp will be empty: here you fly, and so do many others. The most recent acquisition is the flight simulator. We The chief-instructor pilot Andreas Maurer (a Police were not only shown it, but also allowed to see and Chief Inspector) begins by pointing out that helicopters of experience it in operation. It is now fully certified. the Bundespolizei have a civil registration,which means Provided by Frasca International Inc., the simulator is our pilots obtain a CPL here in Sankt Augustin, at the relatively small (it occupies approximately the area of a Luftfahrerschule fur den Polizeidienst (Flying Training small building), and it is the playback of the cockpit of Organization for the Police Service). the EC-model 135, with two front seats for the pilots, “The school is a certified FTO / TRTO (Flying Training and a rear location for an instructor or technician. and Type Rating Organization) in agreement with The cabin is fixed, but the images projection system European regulations JAR-FCL2, and it offers basic and simulates the effect of a flight very realistically, and also advanced training, not only to pilots but also to the flight reproduces the external environment with vision of 200 technicians (specifically, a German licence that qualifies the holder to operate like a co-pilot without training, by handling or controlling the helicopter manually), and also to specialists and maintenance personnel. Since 2007, thanks to a collaborative agreement between the Federal Police and the police forces of the 13 federal states that have their own air service, the flight crews of the state police forces have been trained in Sankt Augustin. This produces important benefit not only regarding costs but also in standardizing training, and it has increased operational efficiency.” The school also trains police crews from European countries, and it has 24 flight and 14 ground instructors. “The EC-120 Colibris are used for training activities, while for the renewal of licenses, which involves more than 500 flights per year, we use helicopters from the oper - ational squadron.” Andreas Maurer notes that, “we test new equipment, “..we have specialized work - and put it into service. Examples include the Hellas-sys - shops for mechanical, electrical tem, a Laser-Radar obstacle detector that is currently and electronic equipment..” 56 HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 Dedicated hangars degrees horizontal and 60 vertical. It is possible to select from a wide range of flight environments: for example, our simulated flight took off from where we were (Bonn-Hangelar) and we trained on the surrounding area, then flew over the city of Cologne, which was recognizable by the imposing silhouette of the cathedral. Pilots who train here will find the same scenar - ios when they undertake a real flight. To make the training even more realistic, it is possible to simu - late daytime or night flights with city lights and moving cars; and with the sun, or rain, or clouds or snow, and any other reproducible effect. The set of scenarios, the instrumentation and the ized workshops for mechanical, electrical and electronic equip - sensitivity of command give the feeling of being ment. Assistance by technicians from the house manufacturer is on a real flight. This tool makes it possible to cut rarely necessary.” the costs of training, and to reduce the risks In an adjoining area, the aircraft are washed: water, dirty oil, involved in real flight operations. soap and cleaning residues are collected under the floor, where Mr Axel Hertrampf (Senior Chief the various substances are separated for disposal later, and the Superintendent), the head of the Technical water is then purified and returned. Department, which includes the acquisition and After the helicopter has been serviced and washed, it moves maintenance of the helicopters, led our visit to the into another hangar where, Mr. Hertrampf explains, “the heli - operational areas of the base. copters are equipped and supplied to make them ready for flight. In the first of the large hangars we saw a clear From the floor emerges an electrically operated column, which sign of how the times are changing: spare parts for serves as a filling station tsupplying hydraulics, oil, compressed helicopters taken out of service are neatly stored, air, electricity at various voltages, and a gas alarm detector.” pending possible sale to other users still active The hangar currently houses three EC155 and two Super elsewhere in the world. Pumas, the latter in two different liveries, one green and the Some Alouette SA318C are waiting for transfer other blue. Mr. Hertrampf explains that “acknowledging EU to museums, in memory of another pioneering era. standards, the Bundespolizei adopted a new blue colour to Axel Hertrampf explains, “we are completely replace green, and is doing the same thing with the staff uni - self-sufficient in the management of forms. Fliegergruppe, as we saw in the training of the hel - In particular, the green Super Puma is one of three equipped icopter crews. In addition to the pre- and post- for VIP transport, with more comfortable armchairs, and a com - flight checks, we carry out all the post-flight main - pletely soundproofed environment that makes it possible to con - tenance cycles planned for all the models in use. verse without headphones during flight. There is also air condi - We have in-store spare parts, and we have special - tioning, the heat exchanger of which is positioned externally on

Helicopters of the There is a collaborative Bundespolizei have civil agreement between the registrations Federal and local police forces

HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 the left side, and is very evident). IFR flight is the only IFR is the only activity that activity that always requires two pilots at the controls, always requires two pilots at although it may also be required for special missions. the controls The Super Puma can fly in icy conditions, and it is equipped with fastrope, for use by the GSG9 special unit. The highly specialized unit is used frequently both in training and in operational activity, and their headquar - ters are based here, adjacent to our structures. The fas - trope is just one of the techniques. There is also training in parachute jumps, conventional air operations and other deployment procedures. The helicopters are not armed, although the GSG9 staff carry armaments, but in their entire operating history they have needed to fire only four times (two of these occasions because of combat dogs) showing their preparation. In fact criminals prefer surren - der to confrontation, or are neutralized before they react.” The cabin floor of each helicopter has an identical sys - Some helicopters are always ready for immediate take tem of tracks, which provide all the equipment necessary off, in response to a request by GSG9.” for the different types of mission. On the ramp in front of the hangar we approach an Each set of instrumentation is arranged on a support, EC135 that is about to take off. Mr. Hertrampf demon - and so, for example, we simply drop the support for the strates the instruments, ready for a monitoring mission: hardware observation system and position it on another “The bubble located on the right side of the helicopter helicopter, or move medical equipment from helicopter contains a FLIR, a camera and a telescopic lens, through to helicopter, with a simple click.” which the board operator can film any suspicious activi - The tour is almost over, but one last thing makes us ty on the ground, take photographs and collect the coor - curious: there are two control towers! This is fine if you dinates; and can also forward all such information and fly a lot, but perhaps a little exaggerated! images immediately to police ground stations, and Joking aside, Mr. Hertrampf explains, “the smaller simultaneously record a copy of it. tower, consisting of two virtually overlapping containers, The resolution is such that, at a distance of 2 kilome - is deployed in the field in support of special events (such tres, you can read the number plate of a vehicle, or iden - as the G8 forum), where the movements of aircraft, and tify the face of a person. Evidently such distant observa - not just those of the Bundespolizei helicopters, are tions of as yet unsuspecting offenders allow the police numerous and require coordination, as they are not on a forces on land to benefit from the element of surprise in traditional airport.” their intervention.” Conclusion We also watch an orange EC135 take off, and Mr. The Germans are well known for their strong sense of Hertrampf observes that “the roles of the EC135, orange organization, technological development and respect for for rescue, and blue for police, can easily be exchanged. the rules. The Bundespolizei Headquarters reflects all these clearly. The most recent acquisition is a flight The German government is investing significant simulator resources in maintaining and renewing the forces devot - ed to national security, and the high level of satisfaction and motivation that we found in all the staff is the direct result of this policy. We would like to add some more personal considera - tions: as Italian tourists and visitors in Germany, we appreciated very much a sense of friendliness that was very different from the stereotype of coldness that iden - tifies the German people. We also appreciated the great serenity of their social life. This too is probably the result of the strong but dis - creet presence of the police, whom we found to be pres - ent and visible everywhere. Congratulations Germany.

58 HELICOPTER LIFE,Spring 2010

Easter at Fly Fizzi Books

selection of books are available from Fly Fizzi books, including: www.helicopterlife.com A Peckham Diamonds HELICOPTER a helicopter adventure flying LIFE across the forests Russia SSAVINGS CC ERTIFICATE Benjamin Franklin Book of Recipes YES P LEASE ! Send me two full years - 8 exciting issues - of Atlantic Warriors HELICOPTER LIFE Dear Best Mother 2 Years (8 issues) only £22.00 (30% savings) and I prefer 1 Year (4 issues) only £14.00 (15% savings) many children’s books Please add £8 for each foreign order and prepay in UK funds. www.flyfizzi.co.uk

YOUR NAME: Name (PLEASE PRINT) Address City Postcode

GIFT FOR: Name (PLEASE PRINT) Address City Postcode

SEND ALSO TO: Name (PLEASE PRINT) Address City Postcode

Payment enclosed (Make cheques out to Helicopter Life ) Send form and cheque to: HELICOPTER LIFE Magazine 59 Great Ormond Street, London WC 1N 3Hz , England Savings are off the £3.99 per issue price. Please allow 6-8 weeks to receive your first issue.

HELICOPTER LIFEis theHIGH LIFE

60 HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010

q-flyadFeb10 2/2/10 15:06 Page 1 D&Gquartad 21/4/07 3:49 pm Page 1

R22s and R44s bought and sold We'll help get the best deal for you

Showrooms in Wales, England and Italy. Come and see us and our helicopters Lots of choice at: www.Fly-Q.co.uk probably the internet's favourite Heli-shop

Part-exchange always welcome. Contact Martin Rutty: 0044 7973 750 795 [email protected] Fly-Q.co.uk - Selling Aircraft By the Pound. D&G AVIATION dgaviation.com SUPERLATIVE GROUND MOVEMENT AND RECOVERY Always open and available Used by government agencies 25 years experience All terrain, any destination Storage facilities Devon Air Ambulance is now based at Pilot and enthusiast run company Eaglescott Airfield thanks to a free CALL: 01708 225 800 (OPTION 1) anytime 125year lease by the Airfield, its Owner

CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY MIDDLE EASTERN ARCHAEOLOGIST

seeks support for excavation of major Assyrian site in southeastern Turkey. Total required £ 70,000. All contributions welcome. Contact Dr. John MacGinnis on 07875-776681 or jm111.cam.ac.uk

HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 61 Helicopter Futures

COMPANY NEWS FOR 2010

Fast Helicopters Eurocopter’s Challenges

are celebrating their 20th anniversary in 2010. Facing an unpredictable market situation, Eurocopter has launched an internal programme designated SHAPE The company operates from two southern UK bases and with the following aims: offers a broad range of helicopter charter, training, sales and engineering services. 1. Save cash (short term), implement cost reductions to Prospective students and other interested parties are save Euros200 million per year, and reduce inventory, invited along to the company’s open days at Thruxton both to generate the cash for investing in the company’s and Shoreham to learn more about helicopter lessons and future. courses. These include introductory Trial Lessons, 2. Improve productivity and efficiency, implement faster, Private Pilot, Commercial Pilot, Flying Instructor and simplified processes. Instrument Rating courses. 3. Invest into new projects such as the X4 (successor for Aircraft will be available to view, along with a FNPTII the Dauphin), the Aerial Armed Scout proposed to the simulator at Thruxton, and staff will be on hand to US Army together with Lockheed Martin, and the Future answer any questions you may have. Transport Helicopter. In addition, Eurocopter will boost As a special offer, any lessons booked at either event environmental, safety and performance/cost technologies

will receive a 10% discount. for the benefit of its customers. With bluecopter® by P h o t

Eurocopter, environmental friendliness has become a o g r

Dates are as follows:- focus for Eurocopter’s innovation works. a P h

Thruxton: Sunday 21st March 2010, 1pm to 4pm g e o

Shoreham: Sunday 28th March 2010, 3pm to 5pm The company’s SHAPE programme is the right step r g i n

towards implementing the Eurocopter Vision 2020. With a h u

For further details and to register, visit www.fastheli - these targets, combined with its strong order backlog, n t e r

copters.com

the years to come. e s 6262 HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 BOOK R EVIEW

Developing British Military Helicopters The Memoirs of a Helicopter Designer by Jim Schofield £12 plus p & p Available from Fleet Air Arm Museum, Yeovilton

n his introduction, Jim and 4 Huey Cobras a day, Schofield says that he had a total of 3,000 a year. Inot intended to make the Something that Westland book personal, but in the would only be able to event it was impossible to dream about. write it any other way. Bell, he says, never had Thanks to this we learn about to advertise its products in his daughter’s problems with the civil market - they lent American spelling during his a Sioux to a film company time with Bell in Texas, and for the TV series his Naval Surgeon daughter- ‘Whirlybirds’ and that did it in-law’s complaints about for them. having to work hanging out After a year in Texas he of a Lynx. But these are not returned to Westland to deficits at all and rather add work on a propospal for the to the depth of the book. Tiltrotor and later became Jim Schofield was both a the chief designer of weapons . helicopter engineer and a At Westland and while weapons expert. His working working in weapons engi - life was broad, starting in the neering Schofield did a early 1950s and encompass - large amount of travelling ing design treats like the and often to far away Fairey Rotodyne and the places where it was hard to early, piston powered, make contact with the Westland Wessex, as well as home base and many deci - the Lynx and a variety of sions had to be made on the weapons from the Hellfire spot, something so different Missile to the Exocet. from today with its instant Schofield worked during communication. the time of the amalgamation It is a fascinating mem - of the British helicopter com - these wonderfully curious ‘spy stories’ that give the oir both in its historic per - P h o panies and has interesting book its slightly ‘Jim Bond’ feel, and allows him to spective and in his insights t o g insights into some of the show a wry sense of humour. After one foreign visit, into the helicopter industry r a P h decisions made about which having just had a whole chapter of espionage and ‘con - both at the time and in ret - s c helicopters to build and tacts’ with Pakistan he comments: rospect. It also has some o u r which to mothball. “We did not sell the Lynx to Pakistan.... I was told the interesting pictures, for t e s y On more than one occasion USA had given Pakistan 100 Huey Cobras free.” example one of a Sea o f

J he was approached by foreign In 1968, he moved to Bell at Fort Worth, Texas and Eagle being installed on i M s agents desirous of getting was impressed by the size and number of helicopters and another of an Exocet c h o more information, or even they were able to produce. This was the time of the missile being released from l f i e l long term information. It is Vietnam War, and Bell were producing 6 UH-1 Hueys a Sea King. D

HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 63 A CCIDENT R EPORTS

Robinson R22 Beta, G-ODJB from Jakkur aerodrome and en-route up to approach to The helicopter was flown by the student with an instruc - land at Infosys helipad, Mysore was normal. The pilot tor to Nottingham City Airport for a training exercise on experienced abnormal yaw to the right while at about 10 hovering and hover taxying. After a one hour training feet above the helipad. In order to offset it the pilot low - detail, the helicopter was shut down for a thirty minute ered the collective lever and applied left rudder. However break. This was followed by a further, similar training helicopter continued to yaw right till contacted the exercise. After about 15 minutes they positioned on the ground. The helicopter toppled to the left before it grass south of the runway. At the time of the accident the stopped. Two of the passengers were seriously injured, student was hover-taxying the helicopter downwind at a however the other occupants escaped with only minor height of about 5 feet. In the instructor’s opinion the stu - injuries. The helicopter sustained substantial damage. dent was performing reasonably well for the conditions. The probable cause of the accident: During landing pilot Then the student began over-controlling and, without experienced loss of tail rotor effectiveness at hover and warning, made a large forward cyclic control input. entered in to right yaw due changing wind conditions Before the instructor could intervene the helicopter which resulted in loss of control and crash landing of adopted a pronounced nose down attitude and the front helicopter. Wrong location of the windsock at the helipad of the skids hit the ground. It then rolled onto its left was the contributory factor to the accident. side, sustaining considerable damage. Both occupants Factor: Improper maintenance of the Helipad. were unable to exit unassisted and had only minor The pilot was 43 years old with 3700 hours. injuries. The pilot was 29 years old and had 1,011 hours of which 742 were on type. Robinson R22 Beta, G-INKY The helicopter was being operated rom a private site in a Bell 430, VT-REO rural location. The reported surface wind at Edinburgh, Bell-430 owned and operated by M/s Ran Air Services 10 miles to the south, was for 220˚ at 16 knots. The pilot Ltd was operating a non-schedule flight from Hyderabad stated that the wind at the site was similar to that at Begumpet Airport to Jagdalpur. There were two crew Edinburgh, and that wind direction on start-up was 90˚ to member and two passengers on board the helicopter. The the right of the helicopter nose. As the helicopter lifted pilot took off without any meteorological briefing even into the hover the pilot reported that a gust of wind though they were operating the flight sector for the first caught him by surprise and while correcting for this, the time. They remained in contact with the Hyderabad ATC right skid and main rotor struck the ground. The helicop - for about 27 minutes after take off. The crew encoun - ter then settled back onto both skids and remained tered bad weather and continuously kept descending the upright, having turned 90˚ to the left. The pilot reported helicopter. It finally collided with the hill when it had that the main and tail rotors and the right side of the fuse - descended below the minimum safe altitude due to the lage were damaged. He was uninjured. The pilot was 43 presence of bad weather. The helicopter was destroyed years old and had 374 hours, or which 366 were on type. on impact and post impact fire. All the persons on board received fatal injuries. Agusta A109A2, G-ELTE The probable cause of the accident: Helicopter descend - The helicopter was planning to operate a passenger flight ed below the minimum safe altitude due to bad weather between Barton Manchester and Battersea Heliport, and collided with the hill en route. London. The commander, seated on the right, was Contributory factors: 1. Crew did not obtain the meteor - accompanied by the helicopter owner, a CPL(H) who ological briefing before departure. acted as co-pilot. When the commander selected the gear 2. Selection of the improper route by the crew. up lever on departure he noticed the lever operation felt Factor: Pilot-Non adherence to laid down procedure. unusual, in that the handle rotated in his hand. After The pilot was 62 years old and had 10,906 hours entering the cruise he decide to confirm that the landing gear could be lowered again and asked the co-pilot to Bell 206B, VT-DAK investigate. The Bell-206B owned and operated by M/s Deccan When the co-pilot pulled the handle prior to selecting Aviation Pvt. Ltd was operating a Charter flight from landing gear lever down, the handle and spindle became Jakkur Aerodrome to Mysore. There were five persons detached from the lever. Noting that the end of the spin - on board the helicopter including the pilot. The take-off dle was threaded he attempted to screw it back into the

64 HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 A CCIDENT R EPORTS

lever, but was unsuccessful. Several attempts were made to lower the gear by pushing down on the stub of the they were in the fire truck in readiness to respond to lever, but it failed to move. the emergency. With the helicopter still in a low hover, The co-pilot then contacted the maintenance organisation he instructed the co-pilot to disembark to liaise with by mobile phone. They consulted the available docu - the engineers. ments, before contacting the helicopter manufacturer, The engineers realised they would not be able to lower who confirmed that selecting the lever down was neces - the landing gear as the uplocks could not be released sary both for normal and alternate methods of landing without depressurizing the hydraulic system. By now gear operation. The co-pilot subsequently managed to both fuel lights had illuminated. The commander esti - insert the threaded portion of the spindle back into the mated that he had about 15 minutes of fuel remaining. lever, but the lever still could not be moved. A small it was decided that the safest course of action would be panel to the left of the lever was removed to gain better fore the helicopter to land on pre-positioned car tyres. access, but this was of no benefit. In accordance with the These were obtained from a local garage once it was commander’s instructions, the co-pilot then pulled the clear that no other course of action was available. The landing gear warning circuit breaker and then removed commander’s major concern with landing gear-up was that the tail rotor could contact the ground, control would be lost and the helicopter might roll over. He therefore decided to disembark the passengers in a low hover; this was completed successfully with the assis - tance of the company personnel. In order to minimise the risk to others, the commander then selected a remote area of the airfield in which to land. The car tyres were place in two parallel lines and the helicopter landed on the tyres, with the aid of an engineer giving hand signals. The helicopter remained upright and the commander shut it down in the usual The 109 landed on two manner, except that he waited for the rotor blades to parallel lines of tyres stop before turning off the electrics, as the rotor brake his collective lever to make it easier for him to exit the is inoperative with a weight-on-wheels signal from the helicopter. landing gear squat switch. In the area of Bovingdon, the commander informed the No one was hurt in the operation and the helicopter passengers that he would be diverting to the helicopter’s sustained only minor damage. base at Redhill, where maintenance and operating per - On disassembly, it was found that the spring circlip in sonnel familiar with the helicopter type were available. the landing gear assembly had come out of its locating Staff from the helicopter operators’s operations depart - groove, permitting the locking collar to move longitu - ment informed the emergency services and ATC at dinally and disengage, freeing the handle and spindle to Redhill of the problem, advising them that, if necessary, rotate. The unit had recently been fitted. the commander would disembark the passengers with the The AAIB concluded that it would appear likely that helicopter in the hover. ATC suggested he divert to the circlip was not located in its groove when the unit Biggin Hill, but the commander elected to continue to his was last assembled. home base. Furthermore, the AAIB concluded that the commander He approached the apron normally used at Redhill, made the correct decision to divert to the helicopter’s where engineers were waiting, and entered a low hover. home base at Redhill as expertise and assistance were He continued to hover for some 15 minutes whilst dis - readily available there. Although the Aerodrome’s cussions continued with ground personnel on a practical General Manager was not in favour of the comman - and safe course of action. ATC again informed the com - der’s actions, the passengers were safely disembarked mander the Aerodrome General Manager did not approve in the hover. Engineers at Redhill were able to assist of his intended action. the pilot in effecting a safe landing on pre-positioned Aware that his fuel was becoming low, the commander car tyres. Had the helicopter diverted elsewhere, these requested that the helicopter be refuelled in the hover. facilities would not have been available and the landing ATC informed him that no fuellers were available, as may not have been so successful.

HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010 65 H OUSE & H ELICOPTER

Juhu Aerodrome north of

eventy percent of all the helicopter flying in India is BOAC DH 106 Comet, which was stripped down and done from Juhu Aerodrome north of Mumbai (previ - flown out nine days later. The other, in 1971, was a JAL Sously known as Bombay). This is mostly out to the oil DC8, which over-ran the runway and was damaged rigs off the west coast of the country. beyond repair. Juhu airfield was the first civil airport in India, it was Operators based at the airfield include Pawaan Hans, opened in 1928 and was then called the Vile Parle Flying United Helicharters, Summit Aviation, Mesco Airlines, Club. It was Bombay’s major airport until 1948, when the and Global Vectra. The airfield is run by the Airports government decided that it was too small for an internation - Authority of India. al airport and opened Santa Cruz instead. The Bombay Flying Club, which trains fixed wing JRD Tata, who is known as the ‘Father of Civil Aviation pilots, is also based at Juhu, but was not flying in in India,’ made the first long-distance flight from the air - January this year as the runway was being renovated. field, flying to Ahmedabad, where he re-fuelled before con - Security on the airfield is also being updated. tinuing to Karachi (now in Pakistan). The aerodrome was used for several scenes in Twice international airliners have landed at Juhu instead Slumdog Millionaire, including the opening scene of Santa Cruz International by mistake, one, in 1953, was a where the boys run away from the police.

United Charters Bell at

Juhu Aerodrome P h o t o g r a P h s b y g e o r g i n a h u n t e r - J

Mumbai, from o n e

Marine Parade s 66 HELICOPTER LIFE, Spring 2010