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Healing The Wounds


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my final response to fuel tank thread ....no reply necessary

 

 

 

 

 

whew! fellas, fellas......we're all supposed to be on the same team here......i appreciate the support here aswell as everyones seperate views regarding the matter and believe it or not...i agree with all of them..........this topic is very much a personal matter for me as i had a buddy pass away in a firey car wreck a few years back, and to think about "going" while stuck in a burning helicopter and possibly still concious is an unbearable thought for me to comprehend. As i am understanding here, this is most likely a personal subject for Blackmac aswell due to his close encounter and im happy that hes still here with us today. I am also under the impression that this is a personal subject for everyone else here because im sure (due to the small industry that we live and work in) we unfortunately know or know of someone who has tragically died under these circumstances. The emotions are running high here! I've been in this industry for a year now and i have LOVED every second of it. Regardless of what the outcome is regarding this topic...i will get my pilots license after i finish my ame apprenticeship and i will fly my pants off......im well aware of the lifestyle and the risks involved in this industry and i am more than willing and prepared to face these risks because................i LOVE helicopters.......i definately agree with twisted spar in regards to even making small changes whether it be mandating helmets, reducing the clutter in the cabin, fire extinguishing systems, what have you ( and i can assure you...the day i leave for my first job...i will have nomex garmets with me regardless of how many people stare at me funny :P ). These small changes can and will also save lives. As i learned in a fun filled human factors course, the only way to prevent an accident (or in better terms, a fatality) is to break one or more links in the chain of events. Any one of these suggestions listed above will assist in breaking these links and ultimately will lead to saving lives. Again...a personal opinion..i feel that these fuel tanks are the biggest link in the chain and are not only the first link but the last link aswell (if that makes any sense)...In response to airbags in cars, etc... i think that even though there may not be a law mandating airbags (although something tells me there has to be some sort of law) every car manufacturer today uses airbags. The reasoning for this is the demand from the public....millions of people drive cars everyday and unfortunately hundreds of people are killed due to car accidents.....people became feeling uneasy and demanded that car manufactrers install airbags..soon enough...the manufacturers couldnt say no and ended up installing the bags....its all about demand for safety and i believe that the aviation industry will (unfortunately) act the same way. With the way TC seems to treat this...they will wait until enough people die and there is enough industry demand to mandate these safety regulations... And that is the whole point to my argument......as someone concerned for not only my own safety but for the safety of my fellow pilots and users of helicopters (if that is grammatically correct?) We as an industy need to stop and think about what can and will happen if something isnt done and get off our arses, be proactive and do something to rectify the problem! I see myself as an optimistic, and positive person and that is the attitude that i am trying to bring to the table here. Regardless of what a realistic outcome is..i want to be optomistic for a good outcome...if everyone starts thinking this way its only a matter of time before good changes come. I hope i covered everything :blink:

 

 

I appologize for my long rant but im speaking my mind and hopefully everyone can see what im geting at. thanks for taking the time to read this.

 

P.S. TC hasnt emailed me back yet

 

Fly safe,

 

Sincerely,

 

Taylor Morrison

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Taylor.....nice to see a newer member in the industry that actually shows some concern and thinks about others.

 

The relevent point I want to make here is not so much about aircraft improvments, but the people that operate them. As aircraft developed, they have, become more reliable (safer)........as the industry grew, demands on the aircraft and its flight crews became more complex and demanding.

 

Statistics show that its rarely a fault of the aircraft if an accident occurs, but it's the "human factor" that is the cause.

 

Crew resource management, pilot decision making courses, education and training, are things that help mitigate and reduce accidents/incidents.

 

Wise investments, to go along with those helicopters that we all love so much eh !

 

Bob Kellie

Marketing Director/HEPAC

S64 Captain/CAC

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Taylor.....nice to see a newer member in the industry that actually shows some concern and thinks about others.

 

The relevent point I want to make here is not so much about aircraft improvments, but the people that operate them. As aircraft developed, they have, become more reliable (safer)........as the industry grew, demands on the aircraft and its flight crews became more complex and demanding.

 

Statistics show that its rarely a fault of the aircraft if an accident occurs, but it's the "human factor" that is the cause.

 

Crew resource management, pilot decision making courses, education and training, are things that help mitigate and reduce accidents/incidents.

 

Wise investments, to go along with those helicopters that we all love so much eh !

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

i couldn't agree more helilog....correct me if im wrong but last i heard the statistics were a shocking # somewhere in the neighborhood of 70% of all accidents are a direct or indirect result of human error while the remaining 30% were mechanical failures, etc...

 

Its as easy as not checking a fuel drum for water and debris before fuelling up the A/C while in a rush that can lead to a catastrophic failure.....

 

That is exactly all of our beloved abbreviations such as HF,PDM,HPIM,CRM,SMS,etc.. along with some "thinking ahead of the aircraft" tactics and common sense come into play and could ultimately save a life.

 

 

Cheers,

 

TM

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i couldn't agree more helilog....correct me if im wrong but last i heard the statistics were a shocking # somewhere in the neighborhood of 70% of all accidents are a direct or indirect result of human error while the remaining 30% were mechanical failures, etc...

 

Its as easy as not checking a fuel drum for water and debris before fuelling up the A/C while in a rush that can lead to a catastrophic failure.....

 

Actually Taylor, the figures are closer to 80% for pilot error, 10% for other human factors (AMEs, pax, etc.) and only 10% for everything else (component failure, freak wx, etc,).

 

As pilots, we have a huge Damocles sword hanging over our heads all the time. Accepting to fly under pressure from our superiors or customers when we know we shouldn't for whatever reason (weight, wx, airworthiness, etc.) is considered pilot error.

 

We have to understand that an aircraft fireballing isn't a cause, it's a consequence. Something else usually happens before that.

 

I tend to agree with T-rex and 412D that it would be ludicrous to expect every old aircraft to be retrofitted with safer components on a mandatory basis. To do this would ground most aircraft flying in the bush today. The question is: Where do you start and where do you end ? If you mandate self-healing fuel cells, what next ? Airbags ? A rescue chute ?

 

Take the Bell 210 for example: BHT decided to do the right thing and integrate all of the new (and required) safety features. As a result, they couldn't give them away, as their limitations simply made them unattractive to the industry.

 

As with every industry, ours is market based: If customers were to demand it (like they're doing now with satellite tracking), then companies wouldn't have any other option but to either modernise their fleets or upgrade aircraft.

 

I've a question here: Is there a self-healing fuel tank retrofit kit available out there for the 206 ? The Astar ? The 500 ? I'm curious: If these kits exist, how much do they cost to install ? How self-healing would they be in a major crash where blades and landing gear can chop them to pieces ? I know the military have self-sealing fuel cells meant to take bullets. Doesn't stop military aircraft from fireballing in a crash though, does it ?

 

Knowing that human error accounts for 90% of accidents, shouldn't we be focusing on the human aspects of our industry ? Everyone tells us that as pilots we have the final word on whether or not we fly. Do we really ? How many pilots have gotten yanked from a job because the customer wasn't happy with the pilots decision-making ? How many AMEs have been pulled because they wouldn't sign off on that 500 hour inspection done in less than ideal situations in the bush ?

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I have another question: Why doesn't the civilian aviation industry use JP-4 jet fuel instead of Jet A-1 or Jet B ?

 

JP-4 is supposed to be less subject to ignition in a crash.

 

Wouldn't have anything to do with the fact it costs about twice what Jet A-1 costs, would it ? :rolleyes:

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As usual everybody except a few, take everything out of context. Try reading the thread again and see where it started to go downhill.

 

I do not dis agree with NOT making fuel cells mandatory (self sealing) on present day helicopters and I don't believe that was ever mentioned by any body, at least not by me. That would be like getting everybody to change rotor blades the same day.

 

WHAT WOULD BE WRONG WITH FUTURE HELICOPTERS????

 

WHY ARE THE INSURANCE COMPANIES NOT LOOKING AT WAYS TO PREVENT FIRES IN A CRASH???

 

AGAIN WHY WAS JET B BANNED FROM AIRLANES??? GREATER FIRE HAZARD.

 

I would also hazard a guess, that if you asked the Workers Compensation Board in every province, they would say it was a good idea.

 

But HEY, lets stagnate and beat on the first person that tries to take things in hand and send a letter to the powers that be.

 

This my last post on the subject, I'll leave the rest up to Skidz as there are very few threads that he does not have an opinion on. The only guy with forty years experience that's got it all.

 

Should TC Airworthiness ever consider this, it won't be over night.

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Guest Angry Egg Driver

"This my last post on the subject, I'll leave the rest up to Skidz as there are very few threads that he does not have an opinion on. The only guy with forty years experience that's got it all."

 

HAHAHAHAHAHA....... :punk:

 

 

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