Okay, time to give all y'all a respite from nail-bitery.
It's the Mi-17 pilot's-view mirror of his slingload. In this case, *my" view of the slingload. One of the advantages of the Mi-17's collective friction system is that it immobilizes the collective when it's engaged, thus allowing the pilot (me) to remove one hand and snap a pic. Which is what I didn't do (I may be nuts, but I'm not suicidal) , because the other pilot was flying at the time and my hands were otherwise unoccupied at that particular moment.
Ya see, the yellow object in the mirror is this:
That's 1,350 kilograms -- over 3,000 pounds, including the weight of the cables, clevises, and hooks.
The US method of picking up a slingload (and I've done a lot of slingloads in Huberts) is to hover over the load -- and the people dissipating the aircraft's static charge and attaching the load to the cargo hook. Instant catastrophe if you have an engine failure, unless you can autorotate forward far enough to clear the load (I always briefed the ground guys to run to the sides if they heard the engine noise stop).
The folks who use the Mi-17 have a more prosaic way of attaching a slingload. The helicopter lands next to the load, and the *cabin crew* gets out and attaches the load.
Sorry about the blurred pic. The lens got mist blasted onto it.
No danger of flattening anybody in the event of a malfunction, no need to dissipate the static sharge, *and* it's less manpower-intensive. It's marginally slower than our method, but only by about two minutes, if the crew is proficient.
Once the load is hooked and the crew back inside, the pilot comes to a high hover and repositions over the load to lift it straight up.
.
%$#@! mist...
Once the load is stable, it's off to the races.
As you can see, that's a l-o-o-o-o-o-n-g cable, which is why the load appeared so small in the mirror.
But why have the mirror in the first place? Simple -- if the load disappears to the rear, you're flying too fast. If it disappears to one side, then swings through to disappear on the other side, the load's gone unstable, and you have to stop the oscillation, or you'll TINS wind up with the load going up through your rotor system and then coming *down* through what's left of it.
Makes a big messy hole in the ground when you hit...
It's the Mi-17 pilot's-view mirror of his slingload. In this case, *my" view of the slingload. One of the advantages of the Mi-17's collective friction system is that it immobilizes the collective when it's engaged, thus allowing the pilot (me) to remove one hand and snap a pic. Which is what I didn't do (I may be nuts, but I'm not suicidal) , because the other pilot was flying at the time and my hands were otherwise unoccupied at that particular moment.
Ya see, the yellow object in the mirror is this:
That's 1,350 kilograms -- over 3,000 pounds, including the weight of the cables, clevises, and hooks.
The US method of picking up a slingload (and I've done a lot of slingloads in Huberts) is to hover over the load -- and the people dissipating the aircraft's static charge and attaching the load to the cargo hook. Instant catastrophe if you have an engine failure, unless you can autorotate forward far enough to clear the load (I always briefed the ground guys to run to the sides if they heard the engine noise stop).
The folks who use the Mi-17 have a more prosaic way of attaching a slingload. The helicopter lands next to the load, and the *cabin crew* gets out and attaches the load.
Sorry about the blurred pic. The lens got mist blasted onto it.
No danger of flattening anybody in the event of a malfunction, no need to dissipate the static sharge, *and* it's less manpower-intensive. It's marginally slower than our method, but only by about two minutes, if the crew is proficient.
Once the load is hooked and the crew back inside, the pilot comes to a high hover and repositions over the load to lift it straight up.
.%$#@! mist...
Once the load is stable, it's off to the races.
As you can see, that's a l-o-o-o-o-o-n-g cable, which is why the load appeared so small in the mirror.
But why have the mirror in the first place? Simple -- if the load disappears to the rear, you're flying too fast. If it disappears to one side, then swings through to disappear on the other side, the load's gone unstable, and you have to stop the oscillation, or you'll TINS wind up with the load going up through your rotor system and then coming *down* through what's left of it.
Makes a big messy hole in the ground when you hit...
So your training in Russia, enjoy yourself and stay warm. I do not know if anybody has told you or not, it does get brisk over there. Leave the vodka alone, like anybody needs to tell you.
8 ^ )
Well done, Bill!
A *fling wing* thing.
Keep the shiny side up!
Saw that happen once with an M1025 Humvee gun truck...which happened to have live ammo on board. Needed EOD help for the clean up.
Now, what's the tallest load that the Russian method works with? And I'd imagine the rotor disk is a bit lower with a UH-1 or -60 than a Mi-17.
The Ukraine, not Russia. Every time I mispronounce something, I get "Sorry, I don't speak Russian, just Ukrainian."
Or when the load starts oscillating, you cut sling load...
Yup. If you let the load get into a fugoid oscillation, you've got about a three-count to punch it off or you'll have it in the cockpit with you, HL. If it moves more than two meters off centerline, you need to slow down to allow gravity and inertia to straighten the load out again. Ground to the top of the mast with the rotor blades at full RPM is 4.75 meters, so I'd guess a load 3-meters high is feasible. Once the blades stop, though, anything over 2 meters gets *real* close to them.
I want points for that.
You get points just for the mind-boggling implications, Madame Smokin'-Hot Secretary. And my mind is not easily boggled.
But I'm a bit chagrinned BCR couldn't link it with a Death Ray of some sort...
I am not asking for points and you were clearly correct!
I have one hope or request, Find some way to enjoy your holiday.
You know, I always did get vertigo from looking into mirrors that reflected the ground whilst airborne.
That's not Ukrainian, that's Georgian...