Helicopter Life

Eastwell Manor February 1st 2012

2012-02-02T04:59:00.000-08:00

Flew in to Eastwell Manor in Kent for lunch in the 300. It was very cold -2 c and the helicopter had not flown much in the last couple of weeks, so we started it from the battery pack back at the hangar. All well and good and without a thought we shut down at Eastwell Manor.
Back to the helicopter ready to re-start and suddenly we remembered we had used a battery pack at the hangar and did not have one with us... oh dear!
Tried a start and gerbluump. No interest. We thought for a moment - then I suddenly remembered a trick we used with the old 300s in cold weather. I shoved the mixture fully in, as though it was a carburettor engine and pressed the starter. It worked. We were able to fly home. But it was a salutary lesson. Helps to carry a battery pack - if you have room!

Henstridge Airport in Somerset

2012-01-30T14:14:00.000-08:00

I have been doing some helicopter tests down in Henstridge in Somerset in the South West of England. What a wonderful airfield that is, more like a truck stop than a place for helicopters, and back in another era in time with its small villages and beautiful countryside for flying. However, my favourite thing about the airport was the greeting I got.
I walked into the club house to be met by a kindly looking middle-aged man
"Can I help you?" he asked.
"Thanks, I am coming to fly the 300 - helicopter."
"Oh! You having a lesson?"
"No, I am doing a test. I m the examiner."
He looked me up and down and said, "are you sure?"

I wonder if he still thinks I was pulling his leg.

November 12 2011, File a flight plan day

2011-11-17T07:06:00.000-08:00

The discussion panel for helicopters in the 2012 Olmpics

It has been a quiet time for helicopters in the recent months. However, there is still the ongoing discussion about what helicopters and private aviation can and cannot do during the Olympic period. One thing all aircraft will have to do, if they wish to enter or leave the restricted area (they are not allow into the prohibited area around the actualy Olympic site) is file a flight plan. So, to this end the CAA had a practice day on 12th November 2011, when anybody flying needed to file a flight plan. They are awaiting the results, but so far they seem very upbeat about the situation saying it proved a great success:
"Nearly 800 flight plans were filed by pilots as part of the File a Flight Plan Day practice on Saturday 12 November 2011, providing excellent data and feedback for both pilots and organisers. The Airspace & Safety Initiative (ASI) event encouraged GA pilots to file a test flight plan to familiarise themselves with the process and learn what they need to do next year to continue flying during the Olympics with the minimum of disruption."
Dawn Lindsey, from the CAA’s Directorate of Airspace Policy, said: “The response from pilots was excellent and I’d like to thank everyone for their efforts and feedback. Some people were so eager to participate that we had 12 flight plans submitted before the test even started!
“We learned some really valuable lessons around the RAF flight plan processing system, the automated flight planning systems currently available such as SkyDemon Light and some common flight plan errors that we can work on.”
All 788 flight plans received will now be analysed and full feedback will be provided later this year. Atlas Control and NATS will work with SkyDemon to further improve the interface between the systems and more educational material on successful flight planning will be published through ASI.

HeliTech 2011 Day Three

2011-09-29T11:46:00.000-07:00

Day three was a lot of fun, but not as busy as the previous days - it was also very hot - especially in the little cubbyhole at the back where the Helicopter Life booth was based, but for us it was a winning day with a load of new subscribers. That is always good news as it makes me feel people do like the magazine and it is worth doing.
Highlights of the day were hearing that the TLC helimover new version is likely to be finally out next year ... this has been a mamouth in the making and if it really comes out in 2012 it needs a special medal. The Gimbal Cabri which seems to be a winner, in their case the fight is whether the CAA will finally give it certification.
Then there is the question: when will the Robinson R66 finally get EASA certification. It was a good show and for more see the next issue of Helicopter Life: Christmas...

Day Two HeliTech Duxford 2011

2011-09-28T10:57:00.000-07:00

Lots of interesting things on day two - a presentation of the Cabri G2 by Bruno Gimbal to Cotswold Helicopters, who are going to use it in their school and also sell it in the UK. Interesting to see what happens there.
Also, a good talk on the growth of windfarms and how helicopters are used, complementary to sea vessels, to clean service and keep the wind turbines going, as well as rescuing injured men from the nacelles. Oil and gas experience has been very useful here.
Also interesting talks on the temporary SAR(H) in the UK. For more details on all these stories see Helicopter Life magazine in the Winter issue.

HeliTech Day1

2011-09-27T23:40:00.000-07:00

The first day at HeliTech was bustling with people and helicopters, many of whom flew in for the day. Lots of interest in Helicopter Life, which was good for me, and interesting new(ish) helicopters to look at, principally the Gimbal and the HAD-1T. Looks like I should be able to fly the Cabri Gimbal for an article in Helicopter Life, which is good news. Also, had a chat with the Russian Helicopter team about flying the Kamov, for a test flight for the magazine. Predictably, they wanted to know what they got in exchange - Russians still haven't mastered the art of PR. However, I remain hopeful. Day Two will have the windfarm conference and other excitements. See more tomorrow.

BGAD September 20th 2011

2011-09-20T10:49:00.000-07:00

The Business and General Aviation Day at Cambridge Airport 2011.
Very interesting conference on the aviation side of the British Olympics in 2012. Basically, the government have fluffed it regarding helicopters - they could have used them to take VIPs into the Olympic Park, and in many other ways. Instead VIPs will have to take a 'slow boat' and a bus into these 'Green' Olympics. There may not even be any use of helicopters for photography and television presentation. Olympic committees have sidelined helicopters - not green enough but, as they will discover when they don't have them, rather useful.
The the whole Olympic aviation scene still appears to be a bit up in the air (forgive me!) Or to put it in a more earthy manner - pretty confused. It does seem though, that the only use of the modern machine the helicopter will be by the police and the emergency services. Perhaps we in the old world could just take a peak into Brazil and see how sometimes the new world is doing rather better with their helicopter understanding.

Goodwood Revival Day Two

2011-09-20T10:03:00.000-07:00

Brantly, the only pre 1970 helicopter at the show

Dragonfly by De Haviland

Goodwood Revival 17th September 2011

2011-09-20T09:59:00.000-07:00

Every year Lord March hosts the Goodwood Revival at the airfield - and anything pre 1964 is included. So there are old car races, bike racing, and many vintage aircraft - including this year the Brantly helicopter, one of the few helicopters to qualify.
Twenty helicopters (modern - well post 1970) flew in on the Saturday, and there was a display of five Spitfires - seen here flying over the helipark.
Most people dress in pre 70s style - there were a lot of 50s dressers - and a few 20s flappers. I had a 50s satin dress and coat which belonged to my grandmother...
Here I am looking rather joyful because I have finally got the umbrella up! It was rather a wet day but worth it to see the Schneider Trophy seaplane, the old Moths and the Memphis Belle.

Helicopter Life Autumn 2011

2011-09-16T06:44:00.000-07:00

Helicopter Life Autumn 2011 is now available. See the website: http://www.helicopterlife.com for details or on how to subscribe.

Articles include flying in Sâo Paulo; the USS Bataan support ship off Libya; heavy lifting in Greece and many other topics, including updates on recent happening in the helicopter world and shows to come.

Follow Helicopter Life or be square!

Jerez Airport 26th August 2011

2011-08-27T02:16:00.000-07:00

Went to Jerez in southern Spain for two days to do skills test on two students who have just finished their helicopter ratings: Carlo Casentieri and Arno Demont.
Both guys flew extremely well and passed their licences, and we had some fun in the tests. Jerez is an excellent place to fly; there is always something interesting happening at the airport and the local area is full of helicopter-potential. For example, there is a huge lake with little islands scattered across it for pinacle landings, windfarms to use for advanced autorotations etc. Wonderful place.

Air Ambulance helicopter went on three trips while I was there

Carlo Casentieri who passed his test today

Arno Demont who passed today

Interesting Times August 9th 2011

2011-08-09T08:37:00.000-07:00

It is a strange time to be living in London, with fires everywhere and no certainty whether or not ones area will be safe the following night. The only good thing about having riots all over London is that they are showing how valuable the police helicopters are. In Peckham there have been two helicopters circling almost constantly, watch and filming the scene. I am glad to have them there, and I expect many others (although not the looters) are too.
This helicopter is not one of the police ones, but is the De Beres helicopter, making its way to one of the few helipads left in London. What a contrast to Sâo Paulo with its 215 registered helipads. Perhaps, when all the fires are out and London returns to some kind of sanity, it might be worth thinking if we couldn't use helicopters more effectively here if they had more places to land and refuel. Some good comes out of even situations as bad as this one: I hope.

Goodwood Free Landing fees July 2011

2011-07-27T14:14:00.000-07:00

DH82A Tiger Moth at Goodwood in Sussex

This is the Tiger Moth G-APFU that I flew today, and indeed fly quite often, at Goodwood.

Good news - Goodwood is now reducing landing fees to zero for pre 1966 planes and helicopters flying to Goodwood on non event days and for non-revenue (ie private) flights.

Come fly - it won't be free but it is fun....

Goodwood July 2011

2011-07-27T14:10:00.000-07:00

R44 on floats

Robinson R44 on floats -fixed floats like these reduce cruise speed by 10 knots, owing to the additional drag. However, they are for landing on water, not just for emergencies...

It has been suggested that is you wish to replace the floats it is more cost effective to buy a full new undercarriage rather than try and remove the floats from the R44.

Certainly looks cuddly!

Grupamento Aereo/Military Police Brazil July 2011

2011-07-25T08:26:00.000-07:00

Colonel Ricardo Gambaroni with EMS

In Brazil the military police do all the EMS rescue work through the fire service. They also do the usual police work, with the exception of investigative work, which is done by the civil police.
The Fire Department is part of the military police.
One reason for military police doing EMS is the lack of qualified pilots outside the military. Colonel Gambaroni explains that the Brazilian military do not have short service commissions so that most pilots trained in the military will remain there for 25 years. Because of this the best trained and most experienced pilots tend to be still in the military.
In Brazil the military police have 180 aircraft; 120 helicopters and 60 fixed wing aircraft.

Technicians working on the AS350

Although the military police do not yet have any female pilots they did have applicants for the last intake. Sadly, none were successful. There are female technicians.
There are 100,000 employees in the Sao Paulo state police of which 87 are pilots and 400 are employed in the air support unit on 11 different bases through the state. There are 4 or 5 pilots working on each base.

View from the ops room at Campo de Marte

The Sao Paulo city base is at Campo de Marte. The advantage of the 11 bases is that anywhere in the state can be reached in 15 minutes, reducing the length of time a patient must wait to get to hospital.
Ab Initio Pilot training is done on a Schweizer 300, at Campo de Marte, further training is done on each base. At the moment most of the helicopters are AS350s, but in the future they will be buying EC135s and EC145s.

Sao Paulo 20th July 2011

2011-07-20T17:03:00.000-07:00

Paulista bicycle

I thought this bicycle 'art' was here because in a town of 16 million cars a bicycle would be the emblem of love, but I was wrong - it is a memorial.
This bicycle commemorates a young girl - around 20 years old - who was killed on her bicycle; run over by a car.

I wonder how many cyclists are killed by cars here.

The picture below, I think, explains a lot; both why it is a dangerous place of cyclists and why there are so many helicopters flying businessmen to work.
In spite of that, I love San Paulo - it has a great atmosphere and life is vibrant and fun; much of life seems to take place above the ground - swimming pools; gardens; helipads and life...

Jardin's street

Roof-top life

Helicentro Sao Paulo, July 2011

2011-07-19T13:23:00.000-07:00

Helicentro, in a quiet part of Sao Paulo, is owned and run by Ricardo Zuccolo. In 1994, using many tonnes of earth, he literally built up a hill for the heliport. This, he explained, was to allow the helipad to be above the neighbourhood both for safety and to reduce noise and pollution.
Helicentro was the first heliport in Sao Paulo. It started with the Agusta dealership, and, although that has moved to Helipark, it still has a maintenance centre for the helicopters based there.

Zuccolo has been the Brazilian distributor and service centre for MD since 2000, and is a keen pilot of the MD 500 series, 600s and the 902.
He says there is a huge potential market for the Explorer in Brazil, as it is tough, durable and cheap to run, making it particularly suitable for the police service in both their law enforcement and EMS roles.

Helicopters in Sao Paulo: Sikorsky/Schweizer, July 2011

2011-07-19T05:22:00.000-07:00

S300/H269

Sikorsky has only two civilan markets here: off shore and training (with the Schweizer). In the military market, however, the Black Hawk is widely used.
As far as VIP helicopters are concerned, Sikorsky has only 1 S76 here which is owned by the Government of Sao Paulo. I was told that Sikorskies are too heavy for the helipads here, and that Agusta has that 'beautiful' market.

There are 104 turbine Sikorskies here, working off shore and mostly based at Macae City near Rio de Janeriro, with a few at Santos, near Sao Paulo. The oil and gas market, already well developed off Rio is in development in Sao Paulo, with, for example, the Brazilian company Lide selling 49% of its shares to the British company Bristow Helicopters.

For training the S300 is very popular but there are more schools using the R22 - cost of course.
There do not seem to be any training Enstroms here, although there were a few Enstrom 480s in the country, they do not appear to have had a good history here - with the exception of one or two in the countryside. My information on Enstroms is not particularly wide...

Helicopters in Sao Paulo: Bell, July 2011

2011-07-19T04:54:00.000-07:00

Bell Helicopters at Helipark

Historically, Bell were market leaders in Brazil with 52% of the market in 1979, however by 2010 they only had 25% of the market, and dominance had been taken over by Eurocopter who had 39%.

Although new Bell Helicopters are occasionally bought, and the Bell 429 recieved Brazilian certification early this year, in most markets they lost dominance to other operators. In the utility market the AS350 and the R44 are preferred operators, while in the VIP market AgustaWestland is in the ascendant. Off shore Sikorsky and Agusta fight for dominance and Bell is again left behind. Sadly, this seems to be a familiar story for Bell all over the world.

Helicopters in Sao Paulo: Eurocopter, July 2011

2011-07-19T04:22:00.000-07:00

Eurocopter started in Brazil in 1978, when Aerospatial (part of the present day Eurocopter) started Helibras in combination with a private local company. However, at the time Bell Helicopters were far more dominant in the local helicopter market.
Thirty or so years later this early interest in Brazil has paid off as Eurocopter have surpassed Bell, and the other helicopter manufacturers, to become the dominant helicopter company in the market with, in 2010, around 50% of the market share. Bell has the second largest fleet of helicopters in the country, mostly older helicopters, and Agusta has 120 helicopters, making it the third largest helicopter company here.
Eurcopter's market share increased in 2008 when they did a deal with the Brazilian Ministry of Defence to buy 50 EC725s. These EC725s will be built here in a newly built part of the Eurocopter factory at Itajuba.

Helicopters in Sao Paulo: Robinson. July 2011

2011-07-19T03:53:00.000-07:00

Robinsons at Helipark outside Sao Paulo.

There are 300 R22s and R44s in Sao Paulo, and 450 in the whole of Brazil. A large percentage of the 1538 registered helicopters in the country.

I was told that when Marco Audi, the President of Audi Helicopters, heard that Robinson had brought out a small helicopter (the R22) he got onto the first flight to California to ask Frank Robinson for the dealership in Brazil. An extremely successful decision as history shows.

Comandante Hamilton's ENG R44 taking off from Helipark to monitor the traffic going in and out of Sao Paulo. Hamilton said he used to have a AS350, but when the Robinson company brought out the R44 he changed as the profit margin is so much better.

Sao Paulo Helicopters: AgustaWestland, July 2011.

2011-07-19T02:55:00.000-07:00

AgustaWestlands at Helipark

AgustaWestland has a maintenance base and service centre at Helipark, Carapicuiba outside Sao Paulo.
Agusta is a growing company in Brazil with, so I was told, some 30 helicopters a year being bought for private owners who fly to their businesses in Sao Paulo.

Campo de Marte, Brazil 18th July 2011

2011-07-18T15:48:00.000-07:00

Left to right: Vera Berthault, Rodrigo Duarte and Carolina Denardi, from ABRAPHE, the Helicopter Pilot's Association of Brazil.
Rodrigo, President of the Association, says that ABRAPHE tries to work as a mediator between the pilots and ANAC, the civil aviation authority.
Problems that exist here include the reduction of the number of helipads because of noise complaints, which has seriously reduced some pilot's livelihood, and the length of time it takes to revalidate a licence - anything up to 90 days.
These problems, Rodrigo explains, are not unique to Brazil but exist all over the helicopter world.

The 'Helicopter traffic lights' at Campo de Marte.
Campo de Marte is the 5th busiest airport in the world - according to its website - and consequently has to regulate its traffic on the ground. These traffic lights allow separation between helicopters, aeroplanes, and cars.

Gualter Garcez Pizzi, Commercial Director of Audi Helicopteros the Robinson dealer for San Paulo.
Audi have already got firm offers on 60 R66s, even though the first one is not yet in the country and certification is not due until next month. Pizzi says he could sell 20 right now if they were here and the delay is the speed of getting them from the factory. At present buyers will have to wait until November 2012.

Jorge Bitar Neto, owner of Helimarte taxi aereo, with Claudio Agostini.
Jorge started his air taxi firm in April 1999, but it began doing well in 2003, and since 2005 had increased exponentially. He started with one R22 and half a Bell 206 and now has six AS350s, three Bell 206s, two R44s and four fixed wing aircraft. He currently has just under 60 staff, of whom 19 are pilots. Although the original business was air taxi, he is now diversifing into various other areas including pipeline and external load. He was deeply involved in the rescue at Nova Friburgo, the mudslides in southeastern Brazil.

Helibras is Eurocopter's Brazilian wing based at Campo de Marte (they also have a factory at Itajuba). I am standing between Sergio Roxo, the Offshore Salesman and Carla Metne, the Marketing Manager.
Eurocopter has been doing very well in Brazil, and the whole of South America, in the last fifteen years, mostly because it has an established base in the country which all of the other big manufacturers lack. Other manufacturers have dealers but, as they explained, this is not at all the same as being part of the culture like Helibras.

Street art in Sao Paulo

2011-07-17T13:57:00.000-07:00

Seen in Liberdade, SP

Sao Paulo has amazing street art and part of the popular culture. I even saw a girl with a Miro design tattooed on her arm.

This picture came from Liberdade (freedom in Portuguese), a Japanese part of Sao Paulo. The Japanese started coming to this area in 1912 and since 1950s the area has been growing exponentially. It now has the largest concentration of Japanese outside Japan.

I think street art must be 'legalised' as this man had no trouble with me taking a picture of him making his graffiti.

This piece was in the area near the university, between Liberdade and Avenue Paulista.

Some characters from the Sao Paulo helicopter scene

2011-07-17T13:43:00.000-07:00

Pictured at Helipark

Pictured at Helipark after flying the Bell 430 this is:
left Andreia Zwetsch from Helipark, Claudio Agostini from Rotor & Wing, a US helicopter trade magazine, and Ernesto Klotzel, an engineer who worked with Hiller in Paolo Alto back in the era of the flying platform and the rotor tip jets. After retiring as an engineer he became an aviation journalist.

Sao Paulo, Brazil 17th July 2011

2011-07-17T04:08:00.000-07:00

Comandante Hamilton

This is Comandante Hamilton with his Robinson R44. Comandante started ENG (electronic news gathering) twenty years ago, the first in Sao Paulo. He now has a fleet of three helicopters and employs his son and two other pilots. He originally started with AS350s but moved to the R44 and was involved in the layout of the ENG R44.
Look out for Radio and Television Record S/A

Sao Paulo, Brazil July 2011

2011-07-16T05:58:00.000-07:00

Helipark Sao Paulo

This is Helipark in Sao Paulo. Helipark started 10 years ago and has grown to being the biggest heliport in Sao Paulo, if not in the world.
When we visited there were 170 clients but they are about to expand, building another two hangars twice the size of the current ones, this will mean another 200 helicopters in the new hangars and a potential for another 180 in the current hangars. WOW

Flying the Bell 430 in Sao Paulo

2011-07-16T05:17:00.000-07:00

Aureo Bradley and me

This is the pilot of the Bell 430. It was particularly interesting to me because he comes from Recife in the north east of Brazil. My late husband, Hilaire Dubourcq, knew he had relations in Brazil but did not know where they were or how to trace them. Then, with the coming of Facebook, and a bit of luck, I did trace them - sadly, after he died - and they live in Recife. Nice coincidence ' eh.

Sao Paulo July 2011

2011-07-16T05:12:00.000-07:00

Sao Paulo city, Brazil July 2011

I thought this was a particularly interesting photograph because it shows how close together all the helipads are - but, of course, since they are on high rises you cannot just walk from one pad to the next - still it must be interesting flying for pilots when they are all busy!

NB although there are 'only' four helipads in the picture it looks to me as though they might be able to use the other high rise for emergency landings...

Flying over Sao Paulo in a Bell 430 July 15 2011

2011-07-15T16:31:00.000-07:00

Bell 430 at HeliPark

Went flying in the Bell 430 over Sao Paulo. Flew with Captain Bradley, in the back were 5 friends including Andreia Zwetsch, shown here with me and the Captain.
Amazing place - the traffic is terrible and estimates for the number of cars in SP differ from 16 million to 17.5 million - what is a mill and a half here or there? Coz of that helicopter travel is far more common than in other countries of the world. There are currently around 170 helicopters at Helipark and when they build the new hangars there will be another 200 or so... fantastic.

Helicidade Heliport in Sao Paulo

Estimates vary over the number of helipads in SP but I have been given the figures of 420 or 300 - so it is hard to say. I hope that by the time the article in Helicopter Life comes out I will have a more exact idea. But suffice to say there are a LOT and often, because they are on top of high rises, only metres between one and another.
There are also three large heliports - of which Helipark is much the largest - from where all these helicopters fly into SP

Sao Paulo 15th July 2011

2011-07-15T04:03:00.000-07:00

Phone box in Sao Paulo, Brazil. They are known locally as 'the Big Ear'.

They are all over the place, in spite of mobile phones.

A couple more helicopters from San Jose dos Campos 2011

2011-07-14T15:23:00.000-07:00

S300CBi

A training helicopter from Sao Paulo - we waited around for the owner of the school but he was busy giving presentations and didn't come back before we had to leave. But we did talk to a Ricardo Piccoli who sells Enstroms with Aerolink. He learnt to fly on the S300 in Sao Paulo although I'm not sure if it was on this helicopter - but it comes to the same thing dunne it. I'm not sure if it is possible to learn to fly on the Enstrom in Sao Paulo, but apparently it is quite hard to sell helicopters as the generally feeling is I want a helicopter if my friend has one, and I want the same type... Bit of one upmanship by the sound of it.. or perhaps one alongmanship..

This helicopter wasn't strictly speaking at the show, but was over the fence at the military part of the airfield... anyway it seems to be having something done to it but later one of the Squirrels/Astars etc went flying so it was either this one on a test flight or the one next door that is only slightly in the picture.

San Jose dos Campos: a few helicopters

2011-07-14T14:53:00.000-07:00

There are a few helicopters here but not many, and it is a very small show, although the salesman from Hillsboro Helicopters in Oregon said the show was good for him already, and it was only the first day. He is selling training in the USA - well Hillsboro in Oregon - to Brazilians.
I was told a better show for helicopters is LABACE - like EBACE but the LA stands for Latin America - as Dan Quayle said many years ago a good place to improve your Latin... Anyway, this is one of the three helicopters I saw... more below..

San Jose dos Campos Fixed Wing

2011-07-14T14:47:00.000-07:00

Disney land aeroplane

Aero Expo is more of a fixed wing than helicopter show but I learnt some interesting things - do you know what fixed wing pilots call helicopters? Rototards...

Registration in Brazil is PP - suitable for this one?
PT - presumably for the more agile aircraft and PR for those who sell the country's image well...

For ultralights the registration is PU - and I was told there are 3,000 ultralights in the country - taking then the Brazilian effect - halve everything you are told and divide by four - that is 300 or so...
This looks like a cross between and Piper Cub and a Cessna 150 on floats but it is actually a factory built ultralight belonging to the guy who helped build it in the factory - at least that is what I understood, although since I speak no Portuguese and only some limited Spanish it may have got confused in translation. Looked fun though and apparently there are lots of places to land a sea (river he insisted) plane in Brazil.

Ultralight on floats

AeroExpo San Jose dos Campos, Brazil 2011

2011-07-14T14:36:00.000-07:00

Buy one get one free?

This R44 was on the BMW booth at the San Jose dos Campos Show - it struck me that the idea was if you bought a BMW you would get an R44 thrown in.
The R66 had a lot of interest here in Brazil and I was told (not by the dealer mind you) that 60 had already been sold. Claudio Agostini, from Rotor and Wing and a Sao Paulo local, tells me that in Brazil you have to halve everything you are told and then divide by four - so shall we guess 5 or 6 possible orders?

Sao Paulo street art

2011-07-13T08:27:00.000-07:00

This is just around the corner from the Pet Hotel - nice ' eh . A place that has images like this and a pet hotel has got to be great. I'm looking forward to what I discover next.

Sao Paulo Brazil 13th Jul y 2011

2011-07-13T06:35:00.000-07:00

Well, here I am having arrived safely in Sao Paulo. Interestingly even I, normally so calm about travelling, was jinked up about SP. People kept telling me how dangerous it was - I mustn't drive alone; must be careful where I go... etc etc... well so far (with my experience of 5 and a half hours!) I would say that is rubbish. I haven't been hassled at all - would India were so easy, and everybody I have asked about things has been kind and helpful. I took the airport bus from Guarulhos and it was easy, clean, comfortable and quick. Quick may be because this is holiday season and so no traffic.

Now I am at my hotel, waiting for a room to come free. That is not their fault, only the flight from London gets in at 5am, and check in at most hotels in midday. Tant pis.

San Jose dos Campos tomorrow - I noticed I could have taken a bus there too from the airport - so really no need to hire cars if you know .... trouble is getting to know... more tomorrow.

Chinook Aerobatics at AeroExpo 2011

2011-06-28T09:02:00.000-07:00

This looks easy until you realise he is actually going backwards.

This was the Chinook display at AeroExpo 2011, a very good display inspite of horrible weather and heavy showers, which must have made just getting to the show pretty difficult.

I doubt this ever looks easy or is

OH-6A Differences Training

2011-06-28T08:55:00.000-07:00

This is the OH-6a, the Vietnam War version of the MD500. It has some differences but it looks just the same. When this gets together with the Huey and the Cobra it is going to make a brilliant show - let's hope it happens and the Campaign Against Aviation doesn't find a way to stop it...

Preston Lancs, OH-6A Flight

2011-06-22T08:58:00.000-07:00

Did a differences course on a OH-6A today. Difference, that is, from the H369/500 - actually not that many and some of them are OH-6A back-to-front, as it were. You fly the OH-6 from the right side but the 500/369 from the left. Both the anti-ice and the heater are push pull instead of pull push in the OH-6, as to the doors - if you don't believe me take a look- they close where normal doors open. Of course, most times in Vietnam they left the doors off!
I'll post some photos - but the last few days have been such a whirlwind of activity that I don't have my card reader with me and so will have to do the photos at home.

Paris Le Bourget airshow Day Two

2011-06-21T05:40:00.000-07:00

The big thing of the day was that Agusta Westland have bought Bell out of the AW609, and will now have 100% ownership of the civilian model. Bell, however, retain the rites to the V-22 Osprey, the military model. Intellectual property looks to be retained by Bell, so it may be this is some kind of licence effect.
Work on this division of the ownership and continuing development rites of the 609 has been going on for over a year, and has now been satisfactorially resolved. AW wants it, Bell does not...

As a leaving present the AW CEO gave John Garrison - Bell CEO a 609 in the Finmeccanica colours. Could that have been painful for JG?

Paris Le Bourget 2011 afternoon

2011-06-20T10:54:00.000-07:00

Ah, got a picture of the HAD1-T - looks like it will be an interesting machine and a competitor to the R22. Mind you if The Robinson Company decide not to keep building the R22, it could become the French R22 and have as its main competitor the Cabri G2. That would be interesting, suddenly putting the emphasis away from the USA and onto France.

Paris Le Bourget Airshow 2011 - in the clouds

2011-06-20T10:21:00.000-07:00

The Eurocopter X3 doing a display at Le Bourget

Even though it was raining off and on most of the day, they managed to get the air displays done and this was the best of the lot. The Eurocopter X3 doing its thing - lots of fun.

It is a helicopter but one that displays well. Mind you, as we all know, French display pilots are chosen because they are even madder than 'normal' French pilots!! Before I get something horrible in my onion soup it was a joke... really...

Paris Le Bourget 2011, Day One

2011-06-20T07:26:00.000-07:00

Tantalising us with windy covers - what is beneath?

Interesting day at Paris airshow: The day started with rain, more rain and rain. Luckily most of the events were able to take place between heavy showers or indoors!
Most important events were the unveiling of the AW189 prototype - which is an 8 tonne class helicopter due to be a larger version of the AW139 and, as Agusta no doubt hope, as successful.
The other big thing of the day was the flight (several between and dodging showers) of the Eurocotper X3 - it was a pretty meaty show with some severe movements both in climb and diving at the ground. Well worth watching, and (I thought) more interesting that the French fighter that followed it.
There were also a myriad of interesting little things at the show : one great surprise was that the HAD1-T the French turbine, 2 seat helicopter trainer was indeed up and running as a prototype. That is pretty quick going for the company, as it was first given a public mention at Helitech last year, when it was just a twinkle in the Alsace Lorraine company's eye!

Here it is: the AW189 - an 8 tonne helicopter

AeroExpo Sywell 2011 Day One Part Two

2011-06-17T04:51:00.000-07:00

The Gyrocopter Experience tent

Calidus in front of the Magni experience

Gyrocopters are very much the progressive thing here - with lectures, promotions and suggestions that it is not so difficult to train up as a gyrocopter instructor - nor so expensive. Even given that they are starting from a low stand-point (do you know there are NO female gyrocopter instructors in the UK) with this level of enthusiasm they should soon be increasing their numbers...
Impressively, there are three companies working together on the gyrocopter experience - clearly they think it is more important to get the message out - gyrocopters are fun and cost effective - than to compete with each other.
Good news...

AeroExpo Sywell 2011 Day One

2011-06-17T02:24:00.000-07:00

Air Ambulance from Sloane Helicopters

Day One at Aero Expo has started out a bit blowy, although not wet (yet). There is an interesting array of aircraft here though only five helicopters... However, we are promised both a Chinook display (that is a good one - I saw it last year) and a display in the R66, which should be interesting.
Gyrocopters are here - Magni has a booth and I saw a Calidus... i don't think they are doing any displays though.
More later - the wifi here is very slow.

European Business Aviation show in Geneva

2011-05-19T06:24:00.000-07:00

EC145 Mercedes Benz style

The 2010 EBACE laid the path for the 2011 show as far as helicopters were concerned; the major event of the show being the full sized Mercedes Benz EC145 helicopter which was trailered last year. Last year we had the model and the 'painted dreams' but this year we had the real thing. Not only that but Eurocopter had already sold the first one and were displaying it next to a gull-wing Mercedes.
However, the handing over ceremony was a real damp squid - the buyer was given a document to sign without any fuss and a couple of people drank champagne ... not a learning experience or even good photos.
Other good things at EBACE were more in the jet line than in helicopters, although Lees Avionics had some news - their Part 145 design works has been growing to include some other types and they have recently been working on 2 Bell 412s which are going out to the Faro Islands to do SAR.
Lunch was good and being an aviation journalist even getting lunch was a bit of a surprise and worth going for - oh dear, probably a journalist in the car world would be shocked at such modesty!

Flying the Calidus Gyrocopter

2011-04-27T11:51:00.000-07:00

Is it a bird? A plane? A helicopter ? A shadow?

No! It is Calidus.

Went flying yesterday in the beautiful Long Mynd in Shropshire, in a recently built Calidus gyrocopter.
The Calidus is probably going to change the reputation of gyrocopters - previously funny little flying bicycles flown by old men in wooly hats. The Calidus is something rather different: it is an enclosed cockpit, fast moving (top speed in 120 mph, which beats an R22) comfortable, warm tourer. It is stable, and you get places much more quickly than before without the feeling of being out in the air.
No doubt some will prefer the old 'fresh air' model but this one with its comfort version was also lot of fun and would allow you to carry baggage.
It is not a helicopter - it is a gyrocopter. I stress that and the fact that a gyrocopter is more like a plane only for safety reasons. This machine cannot hover; it needs room to take off and can only take off vertically in a strong wind (like an aeroplane) and it has a landing run, not a vertical descent. But if you consider it a hybrid, a helicopter-shaped aeroplane that will get you places quite quickly but needs some space, then you are going to have a lovely ride. See the full story in the Summer edition of Helicopter Life magazine out in June 2011.

Flying the Robinson R66 turbine

2011-03-24T03:04:00.000-07:00

Robinson R66 at Sywell in Northamptonshire

Yesterday, I flew the Robinson R66 at Sloane Helicopter for a flight test for Helicopter Life magazine. I flew with James Skinner, their chief instructor who, with seven hours on the machine, is probably one of the most experienced R66 pilots in the country!
For anyone who does not know, the Robinson R66 is a brand new design from the Robinson factory. Of course, while it is brand new it is also Robinson family, and therefore looks and feels like a Robinson.
It was fun.
I learnt to fly on the R22, I later graduated to the R44, and although I now fly the Hughes 300 and the JetRanger and Hughes 500 far more than the Robinson machines, I am nonetheless a Robinson family member. So, it is not a surprise that I like the machine.
There are things about the R66 that are different from the other designs. One is the starting system. As the R66 is a turbine, with a newly designed engine from Rolls Royce, the RR300, it has a turbine starting system. However, Frank Robinson has put his own Robinson touch on this, which makes it a much simpler start. That, after all, is the Robinson philosophy: keep it simple and cheap. This system, while not completely fool proof, does its best to be so.
As with the other Robinsons you use the key to start. In this case you turn the key to ENABLE, you then press a little black button on the collective, just once. However, should you inadvertently press the button twice or even hold it in like a JetRanger pilot, it does not matter - it will not hurt the turbine (and consequently your pocket!) at all. The turbine spools itself up to 15%, where the pilot applies the fuel through the normal 'mixture' control of the Robinson family. The turbine then takes itself up to 58% and self-sustaining speed. One minute warm up, wind up to flying speed and you are done. You can even put the generator on immediately without hurting the machine. Nice, and not alarming.

ENABLE start on the key

start-up button on the collective

Instruments on the R66 console (dashboard?) are all the same as the other Robinsons, with the addition of the turbine instruments, but even these are in the Robinson style. Thus, you have the tachometre of the R22 and R44 but it now has turbine rather than piston information. The green band is in the middle of the tachometre, not at the top, but these are minimal differences.

Flying the machine felt like a R44 with rather more power. Given that the price is roughly twice that of the R44, (the R44 is around 400,000 US dollars, the R66 around 800,000 US dollars) the question was asked: why would someone who is perfectly happy with a cheaper model go for the more expensive turbine?
The answer of course is yet to be discovered, but our conclusion after some discussion was that the R66 will probably start a completely new market. There will be some helicopter pilots who would like to have a turbine, but would not able to afford either the initial outlay or the running costs of the JetRanger, EC120, Gazelle, Enstrom models and yet will be able to afford the R66. May be true. These next couple of years will no doubt surprise us in many ways.
For more information on the R66, see the Summer edition of Helicopter Life magazine.

R66 crashworthy seats

Small differences in overall design:

a. far more luggage space
b. crashworthy seats, but no room under the seats to carry baggage
c. annunciator panel, instead of 'push to test' defects panel
d. bigger blades both main and tail rotor
e. mast has a hydraulic bay above the engine which makes it look shorter, though in reality it is not
f. aerodynamic plate on the tail
g. still has same fuel drain, but it is now on the right hand side.

Finale HeliExpo 2011

2011-03-08T16:10:00.000-08:00

Bell 407GX new Gamin console

Sadly, HeliExpo 2011 is over. It was a good show and although many exhibitors and punters laughed at the exhibitionism of the lights and smoke which surrounded the launch of the Bell 407 varients and the Eurocopter EC145T2, they also appreciated the reason it was done: the recession. The helicopter industry has been floundering in the last few years and although military sales have kept up the turnover of the large manufacturers the market as a whole has suffered. There have been helicopter repossessions, flying business closures, private pilots have reduced in number and there are many unemployed professional pilots, so we needed the lift created by the flamboyance of this show. As we start to believe that the helicopter market is improving so it will start to do so. And indeed it is already is; a straw pole of exhibitors said that they had done well out of the show; got orders, made many good contacts. We are looking for a real resurgence in 2012, but there may be a small amount of growth already.
One example of this growth is the Enstrom Helicopter company. Two years ago it seemed that Enstrom was on the edge, production down and orders few. Last year Enstrom produced five helicopters; hardly something to make CEO Jerry Mullins smile. But the tide has changed, Enstrom has acquired two big Asian orders and even sold the full production line for this year in advance - it is on the verge of getting a backlog. The company is saved and in a way Enstrom, is a forerunner of the recovery.

Enstrom 480B

One benefit of the recession is the new desire of the OEMs to work together to improve the industry both in terms of new technology and more cost effective manufacturing. The helicopter industry is an unusual one in this matter; in most other industries the public welcome competition as a way of reducing the price, but in helicopter manufacturing competition is not direct. As Jeff Pino of Sikorsky pointed out, those who train on Schweizers stay within the Sikorsky fold, while those who train on Robinsons move up through the Robinson family. Those who start on the Enstrom Shark (OK far fewer than the other two) move on to the 480B. For this reason companies like Bell and Eurocopter keep on their small helicopters even if they sell far fewer than their larger, more utilitarian models. We human beings tend to be conservative with a small C and find it risky to change companies if we can remain within the family. This in itself can only be good for training establishments. As long as there are a variety of training helicopters, helicopter schools will have a choice of trainers, punters will have choice, the price will stay competitive and bigger companies will see the value of supporting smaller ones. I hope this spirit of co-operation continues, it can only be good for the helicopter market.

Day three at HeliExpo at Orlando

2011-03-08T05:22:00.000-08:00

Eurocopter X3 demonstrator

Day three at HeliExpo - this is the X cubed as it is known - one of the visions of the future. The debate at the moment is tiltrotor technology versus vertical lift technology - the Sikorsky group follow the latter and the Eurocopter and AgustaWestland group are the preponents of the former.

I'm off to the show now, I'll write more later

Day Two HeliExpo 2011

2011-03-07T13:43:00.000-08:00

Today was a Sikorsky day. It started with Jeff Pino, CEO of Sikorsky Helicopters, giving a packed media room a company rundown. Eurocopter and Sikorsky are vying for the top slot in helicopter production and both have a turn-over of 6.7 billion. Not bad for companies that started with one small dream each. Jeff Pino said that for a few moments - due apparently to the exchange rate - Eurocopter overtook Sikorsky as market leader, but now Sikorsky has inched ahead. Who knows - 6.7 billion each sounds good to me. The profit, Pino said, allows them to continue their aggressive drive in R & D.
We then moved onto their new products and how the market is moving - this includes the X2 pictured and the electronic Schweizer 300. The electronic 300 has already been launched (and mentioned in Helicopter Life) but Sikorsky are working hard to make it viable - ie improving the flight durabily from its current 5 minutes!
The market is moving towards togetherness rather than competition he said - echoing an earlier statement from Agusta's Orsi. There is much more to write, however, since I'm off to a Bell Helicopter party you'll have to read about it in Helicopter Life, or if I have a quiet moment tomorrow. Hope to see you then.

Day one at HAI HeliExpo in Orlando Florida

2011-03-06T18:53:00.000-08:00

The Orange County convention centre in Orlando

Day one at HeliExpo started with the Eurocopter breakfast - information on the state of the company and an invitation to join them at their booth for the unveiling of the EC145T2.
The next press conference was Turbomeca, who make the engines for many of the Eurocopter products and who are closely involved in the new Eurocopter 'E' incentive to produce more environmentally friendly and cost effective engines.
This was followed by the ribbon cutting event to open the exhibition floor to the buyers, viewers and enthusiasts.

The SKYe SH09 Marenco Swiss Helicopter

11.15 was the unveiling of the SKYe SH09 'revolution in rotary aviation'. This turned out to be a 2.5 ton metric ton class helicopter with a full composite fuselage, bearing free rotor system of 5 blades and ... so they say - none were in sight - an electronically governed engine with a glass cockpit.
As one who has seen a few of this prototypes arrive and go nowhere we will see if anything happens - of course there is no doubt a wonderful Swiss Hedge fund or two behind the idea, but will it actually come to fruition or will the financiers pull out first?
The next excitement of light and smoke came from Eurocopter.

Eurocopter EC145T2

This was the unveiling of the EC145T2, an upgraded version of the EC145, which has a fenestron tail (the original EC145 had a conventional tail rotor) which will lower noise and increase safety (Lutz Berling said). Presumably, the technology to allow a helicopter the size and weight of an EC145 good tail rotor authority has now been developed. It has Turbomeca Arrile 2e engines and a new main gearbox, which give increased engine performance. It has a FADEC system and a new 4 axis autopilot, with a 20% increase in mission performance. The last bit is, of course, not a fact but an interpretation of possibility by the company. But, afterall, that is what marketing (or we call it spin in the UK) is all about.
Lights, smoke and another unveiling - the third in so many moments (well about 45 minutes) and in fact the third and fourth as Bell was unveiling two beautiful new helicopters. New? Well, ok no but new to you kids. It was the 407GX with a new super Garmin 1000 H console, which we were told was a beautiful machine, and then the 407 AH, a 407 with weapons, which was 'a beautiful machine' no lack of vocabulary there then.

Bell 407GX with the new helicopter Garmin 1000 H

CEO John Garrison, who is probably the fastest speaking man I have ever heard, introduced the machines, just as he later gave(a fast speaking) rundown of Bell finances. 3.2 billion revenues, one of the best years for a while, thanks to the rebound from military spending.
The next two press conferences were the HAI favourites: Robinson and MD Helicopters.
Robinson is just fun. This is now the Kurt Show, son of Frank Robinson, the old man of helicopter innovation, who is the new CEO, but we learnt that Frank still works 7 days a week, he just enjoys it more than he did when he was CEO. There was some chat about the Robinson R66 and - fascinatingly, the information that Robinson are already on the up and getting in orders - in fact 130 order to date on the Robinson R66. I get to fly it next week and I am told I will love it. I certainly hope so, and I will let you know.
And then finally the Lynn Tilton show. Why are we bothering with watching Charlie Sheene drooling and wombling about when we could have the lovely Lynn? Her press conference, like that of the Robinson family, was standing room only and she exploits us all, but who can blame her. It seems that the production problems in Mexico have been resolved, that the company that make the MD902 fuselage in Turkey has lost its way and the fuselages are returning to Mesa, and that if (and she seems confident here) they get the EMS contracts they have been promised in the Middle East (God willing) then MDs financial problems will be over.
Thus ended the first day of Heli Expo - roll on tomorrow.

HAI HeliExpo preshow day

2011-03-05T19:34:00.000-08:00

Swiss helicopter - a teaser for tomorrow

First day at HeliExpo in Orlando. There were only two press conferences and most of the show was still setting up in the main hall. However, we did get to hear about Thommen's new search light the HSL 1600.
Thommen is a Swiss company, which started making clocks and watches (there's a surprise 'eh) moved into aviation watches and then into search lights. This one is at the forefront of the market having integrated software and the ability to operate up to 200 knots in a static position or 150 if moving... more in Helicopter Life magazine.
The other press conference was Agusta Westland - who still hope for the US Presidential Helicopter - humm, bet you thought that dream had died, but guess they have some Charlie Sheen like tendencies. Anyway, they also see the vertical market as the hope of the future. Signor Orsi sees 2050 as being a world of verticality - towns will be revolutionized by vertical entry and exit and helicopters will no longer be for EMS, rescue and rich VIPS but general transport like buses... he may be right but we are notoriously bad at predicting the future.
Enough for tonight. Tomorrow is a long day starting with the Eurocopter breakfast.

Slippery snow and 300s

2011-02-16T08:19:00.000-08:00

This was last winter. We were trying to push the helicopter into the hangar after a beautiful flight over snow covered fields...
However, less romatically, when we tried to push the helicotper back into the hangar we kept falling over on the ice...even with my tough Timberland pink boots!
In the end I had to start-up and hover backwards until we were off the ice and in the edge of the hangar. Trickey but it worked!
I hope we are into Spring now....

LPC on H300

2011-02-16T07:30:00.000-08:00

Ok this is not a very suitable photo - but it would be fun to fly this would it not....especially in the snow.

The LPC was good - unusually nothing went wrong (!) but I did learn not to believe the weather forecast, which originally claimed it was going to be wet and windy. It was a babe of a day, with puffy little clouds around Southend, and 8 knots of wind. Lovely.

The only problem is the cost - I feel the CAA gets most of its income from pilots who can least afford to pay it - ie the ones who have to keep current to get work, however much or little work they get. A very odd system.

UK SAR, Soteria bid cancelled

2011-02-09T05:14:00.000-08:00

It is now slightly over a year since the Soteria consortium lead by CHC won the United Kingdom SAR contract. In that time doubts and worries have been gathering speed. First, we heard that the heir to the throne Prince William, himself a RAF SAR pilot, had ‘voiced concerns to the government’, then we heard that the Royal Bank of Scotland, an integral part of the consortium had pulled out. Finally, in February we were told that there were irregularities in the bidding process. On February 8th, 2011 we were told that the 6 billion privatisation programme had been cancelled and that the preferred bidder admitted that it had been helped by a former Whitehall insider and given access to “commercially sensitive information.”
There appear to have been other more basic concerns too, both around the co-operation and training aspects, and around the location of helicopter SAR bases. The first concern was voiced by rescuers who were nervous of the 70% reduction in staff in the new service, and the suitability of the Sikorsky S92, given its extra weight. The second set of fears was exacerbated by the news that RAF Kinloss is to close, closely followed by the likely closure of RAF Lossiemouth and RAF Leuchars. All going as part of the Coalition's cost cutting programme.
Now we have the leaking of commercially sensitive information and the knowledge that CHC is itself under investigation by the MoD police.
While we are told that the government is keen to reopen the bidding process and that they wish to continue with the privatisation of the SAR in the UK, the most likely outcome is a considerable period of reflection. Let’s hope that from this reflection comes a wise outcome. We can only continued to watch the news and see what happens.

Eurocopter in Aberdeen

2011-02-04T04:27:00.000-08:00

Would you recognise this as an EC225? Here we are in Aberdeen, flying the sim - it was a good day. Eurocopter chose an Indra sim from one of the biggest Spanish companies as it was 'much better value'. Indra do a lot of sims including Harriers - ha not much use here any more! They also do buses and police car sims - wonderful eh-

The reason why we are not flying right now

2010-12-20T05:28:00.000-08:00

Minus 10 and 1 foot of snow!

Dubai Heli Show Mark 4

2010-11-03T21:49:00.000-07:00

For some reason my server in the hotel will not let me bring up the pictures I want to use on my blog, which rather encapsulates everything about the Dubai HeliShow.
To give an example of the lack of forethought by the organizers I would show - if the server had let me - rows and rows of empty booths, most of which were for companies who had told the show some weeks before that they were not coming to Dubai. In between these empty booths are occupied ones with so little space that their posters are crushed and their magazines sitting on top of each other....
I could also show you a static park with only 3 helicopters in it, or halls with exhibitors talking to each other because there are no visitors - but apparently I cannot .

On the good side there was a press room which had wifi for a day - sadly it broke down on day two. And there were ample amounts of coffee, though the buns ran out on day two.

For me, I was able to talk to anyone I wanted because they surely were not busy. That at least has allowed me to discover what is happening in the helicopter market in the region which is interesting and will be good for the magazine. So, I am not unhappy, just puzzled why a little bit of care and attention, which could have turned this from a disaster into something understandably quiet in a recession time, was not given to the show and its exhibitors.

Flying with AeroGulf over Dubai in the LongRanger

2010-10-31T04:44:00.000-07:00

Went flying with AeroGulf today in their B206 LongRanger. We took off from the airport, but in future AeroGulf is moving its sightseeing helipad to the golf course, this is because there is (and there was) a certain amount of difficulty accessing the main airport for tourists. Anyway, I got through eventually, and was able to go flying.
My pilot was Steve Johnson, a civilian trained Australian who has been flying at AeroGulf for 17 years, during which time he has seen some changes.
AeroGulf started as an oil and gas transporter, taking oil workers and others out to the rigs. They then added construction work, much of which takes place in Oman and the other Emirates, and are now building up a tourism fleet. They fly Bell 212s out to the rigs at the moment but will in the next few months bring AW139s on to the fleet for the oil and gas work, while keeping the 212s for construction and leasing them out to other companies. The tourism is done in the JetRanger and LongRanger.
For more on AeroGulf and its work see the winter 2010 issue of Helicopter Life magazine out in December 2010.

AeroGulf pilot Steve Johnson in the LongRanger

Sarah Currie and Dave Butler, Chief Pilot AeroGulf

It was a good flight, although a little hazy. We flew over the coast, seeing some construction sites that had failed to make a success and others, like The Palm, which were very successful. The well-publized World, wherein Michael Jackson and other celebs had been going to have a retreat, did not look anything like the world of my atlas, and has not been a great success. I guess the timing was a bit off. We flew over the former camel racing course and the present horse racing course - marvellous as you would expect of anything to do with horses belonging to Maktoum. Back over the foreigner freehold area, the creek and home.

Sarah is one of two female pilots at AeroGulf. Interestingly she says there has been no local opposition to her as a pilot and the only sexist remark she ever had was from a British oil worker. Humm, makes you proud to think these male Brits can come half way round the world and still stick to their cultural attitudes don't it!

Come to Dubai for the Helicopter Show

2010-10-30T02:04:00.000-07:00

Arrived in Dubai this morning - staying Al Bustan Rotana, which is near the Airport Expo where the show is being held.
Swimming, sightseeing and resting today, tomorrow I hope to go flying in the AeroGulf JetRanger over the city - should be good if the weather isn't too hazy. It was hazy when we arrived this morning but by 10 am that should have burnt off - I hope.

The show starts on Tuesday.

More to come....

Bond seen at Battersea

2010-10-26T06:04:00.000-07:00

Nothing scares a Yorkshireman

Sean Connery uses the rejuvenation spar at the Verta Hotel in Battersea

Why you should not answer a mobile phone in the cockpit

2010-10-18T12:13:00.000-07:00

Last week I was flying the JetRanger with a new student. I have quite a few hours on the B206 but I still use the checklist when I start-up as I always impress upon my students the importance of doing so: that you do not miss items. I was a few lines from turbine start when the phone rang and I answered it. My mother, who suffers from dementia, had gone missing and the lodger had phoned to tell me. We reconciled the mother problem and then, apologising to the trial lesson, I returned to start up.
I pressed the start button and nothing happened. Uhh? I looked up at the circuit breakers and discovered I had not put in the start circuit breaker. I tried again. Start ok. Got up to 15%, put in the fuel, but then I could hear the fuel sloshing and no ignition.... Uhh? I kept motoring the turbine and closed the throttle. Once I reckoned the chamber was empty I looked up at the circuit breakers again - the ignition breaker was sitting out like a wagging finger - and yet I had missed it when I pushed in the start breaker. I pushed it in.
I started again and this time the turbine spooled up in the normal way. There was no damage done, apart from looking foolish in front of the Trial Lesson, but... well what a fool! I must have started this engine a couple of thousand times, and yet a little distraction on the phone made me miss essential items... It is something I would impress upon a student!

EH 101 Merlin

2010-10-07T07:12:00.000-07:00

Day three at Heli Tech Portugal. I was thrown off the Merlin by a member of the Portuguese Air Force - mind you I was sitting at the controls going vroom vroom, so you might sympathise with him!
Fully digital displays, which I was surprised about given its first flight was in 1987. When I admitted that I was a pilot, the PAF man, who was about 12 years old, said, "I believe you!" Cheeky monkey. Not many female PAF pilots, I guess.

Also, interviewed Pedro Silveira, the President of Heli Portugal, part of the recently created United Helicopter Services. UHS is a company covering a myriad of aviation services, mostly helicopter, through Europe, Middle East and Africa. Interesting interview. He gave his opinion on the difficulties and advantages of merging several companies under one banner- read the next edition of Helicopter Life for full text.

Heli Tech Cascais day two

2010-10-06T05:04:00.000-07:00

Day two started with pouring rain, which has now been replaced by low cloud and mist; disappointing for all - will there be another fire fighting demonstration this afternoon?
This Kamov was tantalising us this morning by starting up and shutting down innumerable times - so far all they have done is a compressor wash.... I hope it will flying this afternoon and perhaps do some fire fighting demos.
It is quiet here, but there are some potentially interesting things - for example there is a new concept helicopter HAD + T, a three blade small turbine helicopter. If it makes a prototype or more then it will be interesting - at the moment they have the assembled parts but have not yet done ground runs, which are scheduled to happen in November.
I will write more about this in the print version of Helicopter Life out in December.

HeliTech Cascais, Portugal

2010-10-05T10:25:00.000-07:00

Good day at HeliTech in Cascais, with an excellent fire fighting demonstration. Two very colourful Squirrels helped the ground fire fighters put out the fire - it was fun, the only drawback was that they did a very similar demo two years ago. None the less, enjoyable and good pictures.
Not enough people at the show though - at least the weather was lovely - it is worth leaving the UK and coming here for the sun alone and dinner on the beach...
Sadly, thanks to the recession there are no parties this year at HeliTech....

More tomorrow.

Eurocopter Innovations X-3

2010-09-27T08:05:00.000-07:00

This is the new Eurocopter X3 - high-speed, hybrid long range helicopter. It has two turboshaft engines and a 5 blade main rotor, with two propellers installed on short-span fixed wings.
They have done a test flight and it has reached 180 knots. They are aiming for 220 knots.

Alan Mann Open Day

2010-09-22T03:09:00.000-07:00

Alan Mann had an open-day this week to let the world know they are still there (there have been lots of Pprune rumours) and bursting with new ideas.
They still have the Bell 47, they have now also got a Schweizer 300 for training and they have R44s, a Bell 407, a JetRanger, Agusta 109, plus a Twin Squirrel and a simulator for IR training.
Alan Mann is now merged with Fast Helicopters (Thruxton and Shoreham,) Sterling Helicopters at Norfolk and Skydrift, a jet company also in Norfolk. They are now opening at weekends as well as during the week, and lobbying the airfield to try and get a R22.

And they still have the Bell 47, (did I say that already?) for which Alan Mann has always been so famous.
They say their doors are always open for anyone to drop in, so go and visit their base in Fairoaks.

EFIS on the Cessna 172

2010-09-21T11:58:00.000-07:00

Today I did my fixed wing instructor renewal. Normally I fly the Tiger Moth, so it was a bit of a shock to fly the Cessna 172 with EFIS. However, it was great - someone designed that very well and it is extremely user friendly. I only fly 50 or 60 hours a year on aeroplanes (compared to some 300 - 400 on helicopters) so any aeroplane is a novelty to me, but I found the whole EFIS system easy to understand and use, and in fact, with the enormous artifical horizon in front of you, it was actually easier to do instrument flying...
I am thinking that the new Sikorsky X-2, with its recent speed of 250 knots in cruise flight, will now also use EFIS or some varient of it, and it will be no problem to change to using it instead of analogue instruments. I really look forward to the day when that will be available for us (journalists/pilots) to fly. OK 250 knots is nothing in an aeroplane but in a helicopter there is something exciting about the extremes - from a fast speed to nothing and all in the air.

You learn a lot from students

2010-09-10T04:07:00.000-07:00

As an instructor you never know how much a student understands or remembers what you say. But sometimes they show you in quite dramatic fashion. Yesterday a student of mine was starting the 300 ready to go off solo. He is a high time student, has already completed his Qualifying Cross Country and is someone who understands engines and technical matters. However, when he started the engine he inadvertently left the throttle slightly open, the engine started and then began to surge as the rpm soared and was reduced by the starting governor. After a few surges the helicopter gave a huge back-fire and the engine cut out. The poor student was totally bemused, but this would not have happened if he had started the engine with the throttle closed, or closed it when the governor started to cut in. He won't make that mistake again.
Interestingly, another instructor was standing nearby and he suggested a new starting technique after this kind of problem. He said, don't prime, mixture fully in and start it as though it was a carburettor engine, instead of fuel injected. It worked.

2010-09-01T08:55:00.000-07:00

Flying the Bell 429 with Henry Wilson

I flew the Bell 429 just after Farnborough. What a brilliant powerful machine that is. It feels like a JetRanger but it is a twin, has FADEC and, of course, has bags more power - flying it you feel like you can do anything.
Bell took a long time to bring out the 429 because they were asking pilots, mechanics, engineers and owners exactly what they wanted in a new helicopter. The result was this composite body helicopter with four blades, very unusual in a Bell, and a four blade scissor tail-rotor, which makes it a lot quieter than most helicopters of its size, while not reducing the manoeuvrability. There are a lot of special features too, for example the fuel system which allows all four tanks to flow into both engine, so even if you lose one engine you won't find yourself running out of fuel on the other engine! For the full test flight have a look at my article in Helicopter Life magazine.
And if you get a chance to fly it - grab it, you definitely will not regret it.

Instructor renewal

2010-08-25T01:10:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I did my helicopter instructor renewal. This has to be done every three years, to keep the rating current and while I don't like tests any more than anyone else, I do find I always learn a lot. Yesterday, in spite of the 30 knot winds, I learnt a couple of very interesting things. One was how really difficult wires can be to see.
We were doing confined areas, the subject of my main brief, and the examiner was sitting in the student's seat allowing me to patter him through Exercise 26. As we recced the area we noticed wires to the side of the landing area, but nothing appeared to go across the actual area. The sun was positioned so the field was slightly in the shadow, and we made a note of the possibility of wires and the position of the nearest pole (in the trees abutting on the area). However, even on the lower recce the area looked clear of wires. Then we made our approach, there, suddenly, about 40 or so feet above the wires it was possible to see them, and they went right across the descent path (luckily we had remained high because of the possibility).
This was made particularly poignant for me as I had just put an accident report in Helicopter Life magazine in which the highly experienced pilot hit wires because they were hidden in trees. He was not hurt, but the machine (a Hughes 500) was written off. At this time of year, with leafy trees and shadows, wires are really, really difficult to see. Take care.

The other interesting point we discussed and practiced was power settings on coming out of confined areas.
I tend to teach using full-power leaving a confined area, this is per the CAA standard. However, the examiner said; WHY? You have done a power check, you know how much power you have in hand. Why not take note of those margins and use the power you need, instead of getting the student to use everything, when he may over-torque and certainly will have his head in the cockpit worrying about RPM rather than outside - which is where the trees are going to hit you. It was a good point, and we flew it gently right along the trees - no hassle.
So, sometimes I ask myself - why do we worry about tests, they are good learning experiences. Thanks.

Ozzie sniffs at the chance of learning to fly

2010-08-20T03:54:00.000-07:00

Although Ozzie thought flying was well lekker she opted for map reading as the easier option

Helicopter Life Autumn 2010

2010-08-18T01:38:00.000-07:00

This is a sneak preview of the next magazine, out in September.
Articles include: Helicopters in Haiti - how a German team of helicopters went out to Haiti after the earthquake to help the survivors by Rainer Herzberg.
Fire-fighting training in the Kamov Ka-32.
Matt Conder writing about the helicopter pilots work on the power lines.
Alan Norris on the SAR competition in Kiel-Holtenau.
Arjan Dijksterhuis on the last competition in Kiel-Holtenau.
Ralph Arnesen on his time as a military pilot in Vietnam.
Dino Marcellino on SAR training in Ireland on the AW139.
The highlights and spills of Farnborough.
My test flight of the Bell 429 - great little machine with bags of power, especially for someone used to the Bell 206.
Answering a question from Henny Fagg, Do I need to get an Instrument Rating to work in the helicopter industry.
And all the regulars such as House and Helicopter - the new hotel at Battersea Heliport- book reviews, helicopter shows past and future etc

History of Helicopter Life

2010-08-18T01:27:00.000-07:00

Helicopter Life was started in 2004 by my husband, a graphic designer and author, and me, an instructor pilot and a part-time writer. Our aim was to get people who had never even thought about helicopters interested in the subject, and perhaps even encourage them to learn to fly. I had been flying since I was 20 years old, and I loved it. I taught my husband to fly, although he never got a licence, and he realised how much more there is to flying than just going from A- B in more style than the train - he never learnt to drive either!

As the magazine grew we found more and more interesting subjects to write about, all involving helicopters. There were the US helicopter teams out in Laos who were searching for any remains of Americans who had fought in the Vietnam War. This was following a promise made by the US government to the war widows that Americans who fought for their country would always be returned to US soil: alive or dead. There were fire-fighters, all of whom were so modest - we only support the real ground fire-fighters, they insisted: and yet helicopters do make a great deal of difference. There were the medical pilots, flying the EMS machines, sometimes in the deadliest of weathers, many of whom lost their lives determined to save others. Coastguard, Search and Rescue, Mountain Rescue, Military pilots on both war and peacetime missions, police pilots, corporate pilots, film pilots - the list is endless.
We also discovered people who just enjoyed playing with helicopters: 'gamers' taking part in Helicopter Championships, just like tennis! People who flew back and forth from their work. Schools, trainers of all types and levels. Different attitudes to flying in different countries, different regulations, different politics.
There is so much more to helicopter flying and the uses of helicopters than most people realise.

Then, in the summer of 2006, my husband suddenly began to get tired. At first he thought he was just ageing - a little earlier than most people. He began to have difficulty walking, breathing and even eating. He went to the doctor, and they sent him for various tests. No one told him what it might be. Eventually, he went to an acupuncturist and she said he had Raynaud's disease, associated with something else - as we were in Japan at the time she wasn't able to tell us the English name. I looked it up on the internet. Raynaud's disease is often associated with Motor Neurone Disease, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease or Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. He died a month later, in October. Before he died we decided I would continue the magazine in his memory.

Since winter 2006 I have brought out the magazine myself, with the help of some excellent people including Dave Smith, a pilot on the oil rigs, Malvina Nicca, a jet jockey, Robert Edmonds, an airline pilot and many freelance writers and photographers, and many supporters and friends. No one works full time on the magazine, but we all love aviation and want to infect as many others as we can with the delight of flying. This is the reason for bringing out the magazine. I hope you enjoy it.