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Close Calls


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As we are discussing close calls by pilots, let me relate to one as an engineer on the helicopter as the pilots do dumb things.

 

I had put a new installation of a #2 ADF into a S76 back in the day and the a/c had gone north prior to doing a quadarantal Error check/calibration.

Typical scenario for those who install things and the a/c disappears prior to completing all the required testing.............................

 

I go North a few weeks later to catch up with the a/c to sort out the QEC issue - no big deal; a few jumpers on the radio rack harness and I am ready for a test flight.

As this is "my" flight I instruct the pilots to fly the a/c and I will do all the observing and testing. the wx is so-so VFR with snow showers offshore. As we are trundling along (140kts or so) at about 400 feet I am doing my thing and requesting the appropriate changes as necessary.

I look up to see we are heading into a dimishing horizon and no forward visual ground reference. At this point I terminate the flight and ask the pilots to return to the camp. The low time pilot still flying VFR, turns left and starts to descend towards the ice. The Captain I see is busy watching my ADF display and as I try to get my finger on the ICS button we go thru 100 ft in this descending turn. Luckily the Rad Alt DH light comes on as they are using it for a gear warning. The captain grabs the controls, levels the a/c and yanks us up into the clag and we break out on top a minute or so later. All this with no discussion on the ICS. We go back and land. After I extract the seat cusion from inside my posterior and get out and ask him WTF he was thinking instead of monitoring the dials. I get a lame excuse that he was waitng to see how far into trouble the junior guy got. Yeah right.

I wonder if he learned anything from this? I learned to never fly with him again.

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Not sure if this story is true or not.. kind of a war time urban legend.

 

A Lancaster maintenance crew was working one day on the machine. At some point, during an engine run, but while the engine was at low idle, an engineer walked right through the prop arc, grabbed a tool, turned around and walked right back through the prop arc. nary a hair on his head was touched.... so the story goes.

 

Anybody heard this story before?

 

A close call if it's true.

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Not sure if this story is true or not.. kind of a war time urban legend.

 

A Lancaster maintenance crew was working one day on the machine. At some point, during an engine run, but while the engine was at low idle, an engineer walked right through the prop arc, grabbed a tool, turned around and walked right back through the prop arc. nary a hair on his head was touched.... so the story goes.

 

Anybody heard this story before?

 

A close call if it's true.

Seen this clip lots of times but check it out....how lucky!

Glad I'm a driver :)

 

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