Ornge

[Mike Reyno]

I saw an Ornge AW139 fly by my window here in Kitchener the other day noticeably faster than the S-76A. Besides the increased speed, is the 139 working out as advertised for Ornge?

 

Mike

[R22Captain]

Mike,

not sure if you'll get the truth out of anyone......I think a lot of the CHL crew are hoping to get hired by Orgne once they take over the show. Might be some zippered lips for a while.

 

Now get them out for a beer and the truth will come out

[Mike Reyno]

Good point! I'm sure with every new helicopter type there will be teething pains for a while. I know weight is an issue with these 139s, but It is nice to see some new equipment after flying the S-76As for as long as they have.

 

Mike

[longliner]

Good point! I'm sure with every new helicopter type there will be teething pains for a while. I know weight is an issue with these 139s, but It is nice to see some new equipment after flying the S-76As for as long as they have.

 

Mike

In order to know whether the 139 is working out as advertised I think you'd have to have a copy of the original propaganda sheets

I think a better question would be-- Is the 139 going to provide a better more cost effective service---Would a 76 c++ been a better aircraft to continue the service in Ontario

I understand crew training costs are going to run close to 10 million dollars... speed improvments are minimal, maintenance costs are going to be very high due to the need to get into the higher gross weights, increased range is questionable because of the high gross weights,,etc. etc

I know many crew members working within Ornge who have expressed surprise at where this program seems to be headed..

I for one do not believe this aircraft has been a cost effective enhancement to the air ambulance system in Ontario and in fact has been a poor use of the Ontario tax dollar

[Heliian]

10 mil for training is a conservative number, the costs for the whole program are quite high but the money is already spent so we might as well have the best. Although not a terrible use of tax dollars it comes at a rough economic time so it's perceived to be more of a waste. The only thing i can tell you for sure is that the 139's are much louder than the 76.

[SuddenStop]

how have the noise complaints been for the 76 thus far?

[Winnie]

how have the noise complaints been for the 76 thus far?

 

Don't know so much about the complaints, but I live right next to the Victoria/Childrens hospital in London, and my view IS the helipad... I notice it most when the wind is from the south west, and they come in between my building and the hospital. Not too terrible, but then again, I am one of the few that will actually stand on the balcony and watch... while sipping beer and burning steak...

 

But as was mentioned before the 139 is notieably louder, and if there were to be complaints I would not be surprised. Even so, I believe most people understands that these guys land here because of illness/injuries rather than Joyriding.

 

Cheers

H.

[flyheli]

Just in general I am really surprised someone could run this expensive equipment cost effective at all for EMS. You would never find a machine like this in Europe or in the US where they seem to do fine with Ec135/145 or at some places even with single engine aircrafts.

I am with longliner that an upgrade of the S76 fleet to something more recent would probably have done the job as good for far less money.

[Skidmark]

What about this noisey chopper???????

 

http://www.krisabel.ctv.ca/post/Orange-County-Choppers-Arrives-In-Canada-For-Ornge-Chopper-Air-Ambulances.aspx

[SuddenStop]

I'm about 2km from a landing pad myself and I hear the 76 several miles out on their approach. Definately wind direction plays a role in how much I hear it, but all the same I am compassionate to their means knowing it could be a critical care patient.

 

 

However, we all know that the bulk of Ornge's work is patient transfer, so hopefully they aren't floggin late night patient transfers into the most noise sensitive areas.