飞行员操作飞行手册Pilot Operational Flying Manual

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The rear doors need to be removed

so that used harnesses can be placed

inside quickly from either side—very

often dropoff points are in places

where you can't land but only come

to a very low hover. Also, there is a

little less weight for the machine to

carry (50 lbs on a 206, I believe). If

you’re doing vertical reference, you

will need your door off as well so

you can stick your head out of the

side. However, taking any door off

will mean checking weight and

balance and performance figures,

and your VNE—going too fast may

pressurise the cabin and blow the

windscreen out, which is particularly

serious in the AS 350. You will also

have higher fuel consumption and

slower flight times.

You need a mirror so you can see

the behaviour of the hook and the

load. The hook mechanism must be

checked for consistent electrical (and

mechanical) operation, as must all

180 Operational Flying

standby release methods. All hooks

must be enclosed, that is, there must

be no opportunity for the load to

come out of the mouth of the hook

when flying.

Check the manual and electrical

releases, and don’t accept the fact

that the solenoid clicks as evidence

of it working. If there’s no-one else

around, put a rope in and pull on it

when you operate the mechanism.

After you operate the manual

release, check that the Bowden cable

between the hook and the body of

the helicopter doesn’t bind and stop

the hook from rearming. All witness

marks should be aligned on the

knurled knob or lever and the hook

body, make sure the hook moves

over its full range of travel and that

the bungee cord keeps it tight against

the bottom of the fuselage, so you

don’t land on a vertically extended

hook, which may get snagged.

Garbage on the landing site has been

known to pull the manual release

enough to allow the load to work

itself free.

Condition of sling equipment

Because of the direct connection to

the aircraft and the potential for

damage, it should only be used on

helicopter operations, and any worn

or frayed items should be discarded

(you’re generally allowed up to 10

randomly distributed frayed wires on

a steel sling, or 5 in one strand).

Nylon deteriorates when exposed to

petroleum, and wire rope rusts and

doesn’t like being mistreated, so

protect them from moisture and

heat, and inspect them regularly.

Cables without their internal grease

will snap readily. The maximum

length for nylon or poly rope should

be 6 feet.

There must be an eye in each end of

a sling, preferably reinforced with

steel, to protect the rope, and the

shackle that goes inside the eye must

be the right size for the hook,

otherwise it may come out by itself,

or not come out when it’s supposed

to (as a guide, the shackle pin should

be the same thickness as the rope –

DON’T use a bolt instead; it will

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bend). Using a swivel will stop the

load from spinning and unravelling

the line. That is, you put the swivel

in the hook, then attach the load to

the swivel (which, by the way, has a

thrust bearing in it). When using a

screw-pin shackle (clevis):

with a rope of whatever description,

don’t have the shackle downwards

(as shown above), because the rope

will slide from side to side and have

a tendency to open the legs (if it rolls

fore and aft, it will also undo the

pin). Rather, place the screw-pin in

the helicopter hook, padding the

empty space either side with washers

or similar, and use it upside down.

Chokers, technically, are lanyards

that hold loads with a slipping noose

which tightens under tension – the

harder the pull, the tighter the grip.

Use chokers at the end of a line

rather than by themselves so that, if

they break, they are kept away from

the blades by the line (this also helps

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prevent collective bounce—see

below). Be aware that a choker has

25% less safe working load because

of the bend in the rope at the noose.

The sharper the bend is, the less the

SWL will be.

Long lines (see below) have an

electrically operated hook at the end,

which really makes them an

extended hook, so there will be an

electrical cable for the release

mechanism, which should be

carefully looked after; that is, the line

and cable must be detached properly

by ground crew, otherwise you will

strip the cables, which won’t impress

the engineers. If the insulation

comes off, you may also get a short

circuit. Lines made of Spectron or

Kevlar are strong, but light, so will

trail after you more than a steel line,

hence the maximum external load

speed. These lines also get longer

when new, so, if you can’t prestretch them, allow a good length of

extra electrical cable.

Use barrel hooks on a sling for

lifting fuel drums, although you

might find varying designs to suit

different helicopters. For example, a

206 might have one for 2 drums

while a 205 might have one for 5.

Whatever you use, use the bungee

cord to keep them together when

there is no tension. Again, don’t

connect the hooks directly to the

aircraft, but to a sling.

Minimum Sling Specifications

0-

1500

lb

1500-

3000

lb

3000-

5000

lb

5000-

10000

lb

Lanyards

(steel core)

7/16” ½” 5/8” ¾”

Lanyards (poly

– 6ft)

5/8” 1-

1/8”

1-

1/4”

1-3/8”

Cables &

Chokers –

7/16” ½” 5/8” ¾”

0-

1500

lb

1500-

3000

lb

3000-

5000

lb

5000-

10000

lb

single point

Cables &

Chokers –

multi point

3/8” 7/16” ½” 5/8”

Shackles,

Clevises

½” 5/8” ¾” 7/8”

Nets (lb) 1500 4000 5000 10000

Ext hooks 7/16” 5/8”

Use heavier than normal shackles to

accommodate multiple lines.

Loading and unloading areas

Non-involved people should be

absent, and there should be no loose

articles to be blown around by the

downwash and cause damage (it is

possible for slash to snag and

inadvertently operate the manual

release). Approach and departure

lanes should be into wind.

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Performance planning

Check your Hover performance Out

of Ground Effect (HOGE), in case

it places a ceiling on your Max All-

Up Weight, although most

helicopters have a higher Gross

Weight anyway for external loads.

Here are charts of suggested

payloads for various types according

to Pressure Altitude:

Preparation of loads

There are 4 basic types of load –

rectangular, cylindrical, heavy

compact and nets, and five ways of

lifting them, starting with nets and

ending up with a four-point sling

(through 1-, 2- and 3-point). Nets

are used for loads consisting of

many small pieces, and are very

useful for killing lift with loads that

can act like a bucket as you fly (like

an Argo). On a 206, one about 10-12

feet square with a 2” square mesh is

182 Operational Flying

quite suitable. Items should be

carefully and evenly stacked in the

centre, with the net stretched round

the load on the ground before

pickup. Individual light loads, such

as jerrycans or containers, ought to

be lashed together, since the net may

not completely enclose them at the

top. If there are many small items,

consider a tarpaulin as a liner, which

will stop them falling out. Be aware

that lifting points already attached to

anything may have been designed for

cranes, which don’t, as a rule, fly

sideways or get caught in

updraughts, etc.

The weight of each load should be

known, with sand and stuff kept dry

and, if possible, weighed

immediately before loading, as a

good soaking will increase the weight

dramatically and give you a surprise

when you lift it. What happens most

often, however, is that the guys just

bundle stuff into a net, and as long

as you don’t overtorque the machine

you’re OK. Although convenient,

and mostly used for nets, a singlepoint hookup is not always the best

plan, particularly for short loads, and

should only be used on loads

designed for it, with a swivel, to stop

the line unravelling. You also need

to be particularly careful about the

load’s C of G, or it may tip and start

rocking, so keep the heavy end

down. The shorter the cable, the less

the tendency to swing.

For a single pole or log, wrap the

rope or chain twice around the end

of it and carry it vertically (steel rope

grips best):

A 2-point sling is a common

method for long loads, such as drill

collars, pipe stems, lumber, etc:

The ideal angle would be 45°, since

the weight is then taken evenly on

each strand with the least stress. In

those circumstances, a 400 lb load

would have a strain of 200 on each

side. If the central angle becomes

120°, it doubles, and at 150°, it's 800.

Double-wrap the cables, and maybe

slip some wood between them and

the load to stop them slipping.

Three-point hookups are not

common, and are usually for loads

designed for them, but boats are

lifted this way. 4-point slings, on

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the other hand, are quite common

and used for box-like loads, attached

to each corner—where the sling may

catch or damage the load, use

Special Use Of Aircraft 183

spreader bars to keep the rope away,

as well as for stability:

Beware of loads with a high C of G,

as they may tip over.

Tag lines (short lines underneath a

load) are for loaders to grab on the

setdown. They should have a safety

latch and be heavy enough to stop

waving about, but long enough to

catch if the load is swinging too fast.

Argos and Quads can be moved

with strops underneath. Just wrap a

strop around the Quad engine,

ensuring it goes inside the pedals (or

they will get bent). Then choke it

and attach it to the hook.

Personnel briefing

All concerned should be aware of:

· The hook-up

· The setdown

· Hand signals

· Proper use of radios (i.e. don’t

hog the airwaves)

· Direction to move in case of

engine failure*

· Not standing under the load

· Number of trips between

refuelling stops

· Retrieving slings and nets

· Use of protective equipment

· Accident procedure

*This depends on which way the

rotors spin. With North American

rotation (anticlockwise as viewed

from above), the helicopter has a

natural tendency to drift to the left

when the engine stops, so ground

crews should always work to the

right of the helicopter and be

prepared to go that way if they think

anything untoward is happening.

Astars go to the right.

Hooking Up

Ground crew are nice to have, but

you often have to do it yourself:

Note: Always lay it out in front!

If you have one, the marshaller

should be at least 25m from the load

with his back to the wind so you can

see him from your high position. If

he needs to change places, he should

cease marshalling first, so he doesn't

move backwards into unseen

obstructions. Using standard

184 Operational Flying

marshalling signals, you will be

positioned over the load, where the

loaders apply the static discharge

probe to the hook and place the eye

of the net or sling inside it.

As mentioned above, loaders should

always work to one side of the

helicopter, and should also keep

clear of the exit and approach paths,

just in case you have to drop a load.

The loaders then give an affirmative

signal to the marshaller, who gives

you the "move upwards" signal until

the slack has been taken up. You will

increase hover height slowly, until

the strain is taken, with the loaders

guiding the strops as necessary,

taking care to be free to move away

quickly should the need arise. At all

times in the event of engine failure,

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the ground staff must move in the

opposite direction that the helicopter

would go, e.g. JetRanger to the left,

staff to the right, or the opposite for

a Squirrel (it depends which way the

blades rotate). They should not turn

their back on the load, or get directly

underneath it, or the flight path.

Neither should they wrap lines

directly around their wrists or

bodies. When finished, they should

clear the area as soon as possible.

As you take up the weight and the

rope stretches, the difference in

performance will immediately

become obvious—it will feel as if

you're attached to a large rubber

band. Once you're hovering, and the

marshaller is sure that the load is

clear of the ground (and you are sure

you can lift safely, flashing the

landing lamp once to indicate this),

the marshaller should check behind

you for other aircraft and give the

affirmative signal, as you will find it

difficult to do a half-turn to check

for yourself. Keep a close eye on

your Ts and Ps at this point – if you

don’t have a power reserve, the load

is too heavy and you will have less

control at the destination. You will

find that once a Bell reaches its limit,

that's as far as it will get, but an AS

350, if you sit for a few seconds at

full power, will corkscrew up a little

more (don't confuse this with a Bell

taking a few extra seconds to gather

up its skirts, so to speak).

For extra lift in the 204B, reduce the

RPM to 98%. For a 500D, change

the lateral angle of the rotor disc.

Another tip for using less power

when lifting (for N American

rotation, anyway) is to place the nose

45° to the left with the wind on the

right, and move forward, to

straighten into wind with the right

pedal. This uses a little less torque

and allows you to take a little more

fuel or be easier on the machine.

A load should "spring" slightly into

the air, or at least come off cleanly

(experience will tell you the

difference). If it just about makes it,

or is a strain even to get it to move,

don't do it. Once off, the machine

will feel quite sluggish, as if it's tied

to the ground.

Move forward slowly, giving due

regard to the load's inertia, without

alternately slowing down and

speeding up, or you will confuse it.

Rather, move forward and keep

going to allow the load to follow,

which sometimes takes a bit of

courage, to see how it flies. Make all

control movements smoothly and

evenly, keeping the downwash inside

the rotor disk – if you have to, take

out your aggression on the collective

(see also Longlining, below). Try not

Special Use Of Aircraft 185

to allow the load to sink, as, if it hits

the ground or gets tied up in a tree it

will trip you (there is a natural

tendency to sink as you go forward

anyway). The torque used at this

point will give you a good idea of

what is needed for landing, so be

careful if you are going to a higher

altitude (it reduces at about 2-3% per

1000 feet in a 206).

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One technique used in New

Zealand, when you are near all-up

weight and lifting the load into the

hover would be difficult, is to stretch

the longline out behind, attach it to

the helicopter and, keeping it taut,

build up some speed in a parabolalike manoeuvre before lifting the

load (it's called the slingshot and I’m

told it requires some practice).

However, if a log lifted this way

starts spinning, it will undo the rope,

so another way is to get a 300-foot

line, get into the hover as far back as

possible with a taut line and take off

straight ahead to get some

translational lift. This tends to crack

the blades, though.

Once in flight, remember that the

load is the part that should be kept

straight and level, not the helicopter,

and keep away from anything

underneath that could be damaged

(well, try anyway!). Only with

imminent danger to the aircraft

should a load be jettisoned, usually

from excessive swinging

(commercially, dropping loads is

regarded as a non-macho thing to

do, but it's your backside the

helicopter is strapped to). As a point

of interest, 10 gallons of fuel from

500 feet will go straight to the

basement of a 3-storey house. If you

drop anything obnoxious in water,

expect your company to pay for the

clean-up and testing.

Unless in rough air, beeping the

RPM down helps with the lift and

the fuel burn.

If you get an engine failure in the

mountains with a load attached,

consider not jettisoning it. This may

sound daft, but it may stop you from

falling down a crevice or something

– just try to keep the line taut so you

don’t get a nasty jerk at the end.

Load Behaviour

Every load has its own VNE,

unfortunately usually only found by

experiment, which is why you should

always start off slowly and build up

to a point where it starts to give

trouble, then back off, as low as

possible, so there is less height to get

rid of in a hurry. Most helicopters

will carry loads at quite high speeds,

but the load itself might not be able

to handle it—a sudden input of drag

when something falls off could

become quite a problem. Although

customers don’t like to pay for

unnecessary flying, there’s no rush.

Take it easy. Also, remember your

machine’s VNE with the doors off!

External loads increase the frontal

area of the whole aircraft, which

naturally increases drag, so you will

need more power overall. A load

may be easy to lift, but present

enough drag to cause severe

difficulties, particularly where you

reach power limits too quickly to

maintain forward flight, and the load

overtakes you and pulls you along. A

long-line needs more anticipation, so

you need a high degree of coordination and patience. It's not the

sort of thing that can be learnt in any

other way than with lots of practice.

186 Operational Flying

Unevenly shaped loads will tend to

spin and, if they're slung without

reference to their centre of gravity,

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could tip over. A drogue chute can

stabilise them, but use a windsock

type rather than a pure parachute,

which will bounce around trying to

spill the air out (or punch holes in

it). Naturally, these must be kept well

away from the tail rotor. Logs or cut

timber usually fly poorly unless a tail

is installed, which can be made out

of a bough or piece of plywood, so it

sticks out of the back.

Oscillation or excessive vibration

can come from a number of places,

usually a combination of the stability

characteristics of the load and

forward speed. Heavy or dense

loads, such as bags of cement or

drums of kerosene, will not usually

present problems due to their mass,

but large-volume loads of low

density can oscillate at a certain

critical speed, again usually only

found by trial and error.

You can dampen oscillation by

reducing your airspeed to at least

10% below this critical one, going

slower if necessary while increasing

power. Turning could provide

enough centrifugal force to stop it as

well, which is also the usual remedy

when the load starts to swing, but

this will increase its effective weight,

possibly to more than your lifting

capabilities (a good reason for not

being too tight on payload), so

applying centrifugal force in these

cases could make things worse.

Load swing is proportional to speed

and the length of the sling – the

faster you go, the more it occurs

because of the load’s own lift and

drag. Put simply, the load will always

move further in a swing than the

aircraft does – if you move 4 feet to

the right, the load will travel eight,

after a short pause, as it moves four

feet to the other side of you. As it

takes as long to swing through 15° as

it does through 45, like any

pendulum, if you move the opposite

way, as is natural, you just make the

load swing faster. Going with the

swing, that is, load to the left,

helicopter to the left, will stop it

quickest (do it on your side so you

can see what’s going on, but it works

both ways). This has the effect of

moving the fulcrum point from

under the helicopter to over the

load, which removes the directional

vector. If you want it to in a

particular direction, wait till it is

going that way before correcting it,

then you will be almost pushing it

into place. Put simply, don’t pull the

load the way you don’t want it to go.

You can do the same with a fore and

aft swing, but watch out! Very often,

a load can suddenly produce more

drag, if something breaks off, for

instance, which puts the nose down,

which you correct with aft cyclic that

simply puts the tail rotor nearer the

line. If the load starts forward again

(as it will), and pulls the nose further

up for you, correcting with forward

cyclic may set you nicely up for mast

bumping, or at the very least leave

you hanging with the stick right

back. The correct thing to do here is

to apply collective, which will also

add an upward force (assuming the

clouds aren’t too low). Using a

longer line will help. Tail rotor

pedals can also be used – when the

ball is out to one side, use the

opposite pedal when it starts to

come back (not before). It is always

a good practice not to rush the

Special Use Of Aircraft 187

takeoff and to lift without a swing in

the first place.

Scaffolding and planking can swing

violently with only a few knots

change in airspeed, and aerofoil

shapes could even generate their

own flying characteristics. Bulky

loads with a tendency to float, such

as empty containers, will benefit

from leaving doors or panels open,

which will reduce drag and keep the

load facing in one direction.

Setting Down

Approach into wind as much as

possible, coming into the hover high

enough not to drag the load, so you

might be slightly steeper than

normal. You’re best to undershoot

rather than overshoot, as it’s easier

to creep up to a target than go round

again if you miss it. To preclude an

airflow change making the load

unstable, slow down before

descending. If the load hits the

ground, stop moving forward.

Because of inertia, all manoeuvres

should be anticipated well in advance

and made smoothly (not suddenly)

with reference to the speed of the load over

the ground. In a confined area, the

load will tend to pull you down as

the wind effect is lost, so a couple of

knots in hand under these

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circumstances may be desirable.

Keep a constant scan going, because

you need all the information you can

get, especially when it comes to

depth perception. If everything goes

pear-shaped, it’s because your scan

has stopped, as it might if you get

fixated suddenly tense up on the

controls. Relax and start looking

around again, it will soon get better.

Once in the hover, you again come

under the guidance of a marshaller,

who signals descent until the load

touches the ground and the cables

become slack (if you haven’t got a

marshaller, you can judge your

height from whether the ground

crew are looking up or down).

Release the cables after moving to

one side so they do not foul the load

or hit someone on the head. Don’t

drop cables from anything more

than normal hover height, and

especially not under too much

tension, or you’ll get somebody in

the eye (also, whatever is in the hook

shoots downward at a fast rate, and

the hook itself will be opened

violently and may be damaged). A

manual release is provided if the

electrical one doesn't operate, and,

once it has done so, you should see a

"load released" signal from the

marshaller, whereupon you hover by

the side of the load while the

replacement sling is placed inside the

cabin, having moved away vertically first.

Behave at all times as if the load has

not been released.

If you can’t hover, keep max power

in and let the aircraft settle, without

overtorquing – you will only be

pulled down as far as it takes for the

load to reach the ground, so just try

and give it a gentle arrival. If you are

delivering the load by yourself, land

behind it, as far back as possible so

you don’t get the sling under the

skid, and to provide a little tension

for the hook mechanism to work.

There is a phenomenon called

Collective Bounce that occurs when a

sudden vertical force is placed on the

helicopter, making you think the

load has reached the ground.

Although really relevant to larger

machines, it can occur on smaller

ones as well, and arises when the

188 Operational Flying

resonance of the blades matches that

of a vibrating rope. The collective

movements to correct this get out of

phase, due to the response lag, and

the answer is simply to stop moving

the collective or go into

autorotation, as the machine will

self-destruct about the fifth bounce.

A little extra friction will help.

If a load starts spinning in flight, and

continues in the hover (or your

downwash sets it going), gently put it

on the ground and pick it up again.

If you have to hold a load while it is

being secured to something else, take

care to ensure that ground crews

don’t get themselves into positions

that could be dangerous if you have

to release it - be conservative with

allowable side winds.

It's a good idea, particularly with a

long line (see below) to unhook if

you shutdown, as it is very easy to

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take off and forget it is there.

Vertical Reference (Longlining)

Longlining is slinging with a line

over 75 feet long. To do this

successfully, you have to maybe look

downwards out of the door or a

bubble window, and not through the

front with a mirror, which is the

more traditional method, hence its

alternative name of Vertical Reference

(having said that, in some machines,

notably the Astar, it's quite difficult

to look out of the door, and the

weather often means you need the

doors on, so using mirrors is

sometimes the only way). The long

line has a hook at the end, which is

inside a metal brush cage, to both

protect it and provide weight when

you are flying around with only the

line attached. As the extended hook

needs an electrical supply, there will

be an extra cable to control it, taped

to the longline or incorporated

directly into it. It will have a couple

of spare feet at either end, which

should be kept well away from the

manual release. You may also find a

couple of changes to the airframe, in

the shape of bubble windows, or

instruments being repeated to the

side (don’t kick them on your way

in) so you can see them, although

you soon get used to the sound of

machinery getting near to the

overtorque stage (don’t ask!).

A metal line is made of two strands

of wire rope, wound around each

other, to help prevent spinning.

Kevlar (i.e. Spectra) ones are

extremely light by comparison, but

just as strong, although they can

stretch. The only real pain with them

is ground handling, because they

have a tendency to get tangled up

into knots if they don't have a

protective covering (one suggestion

is to get a large bucket, place the

hook in and loop the line around the

inside). However, they can also pick

up twigs, etc., and grease from drills

is apparently not good for them -

they can also snag on trees, as I

found out once. Being light, they can

be hard to punch off in those

circumstances, and tricky to position

for the crews in a wind when empty.

You need to be particularly careful

not to kink any line, which means

not driving over it, landing on it,

dragging it along the ground, or

dropping it from great heights.

Long-lining (or vertical reference)

proficiency to some customers

involves putting a small load at the

end of a 100 ft line onto a 4 x 8 ft

sheet of plywood three times from

Special Use Of Aircraft 189

different approach angles, or even

putting a load into a barrel.

The human eye is actually a very

poor optical instrument (you would

get a better picture from a pinhole

camera), and it is your brain that is

responsible for turning the image the

right way up in the first place, and

for resolving the many colours the

eye is capable of distinguishing.

What this boils down to is that

above about 40 feet, it is very

difficult to judge height properly,

especially through your central vision

(the weakest part), and handling

depth perception needs some

practice. It is for this reason that you

should always look at the load

through the same medium

(preferably none at all) so you give

yourself the best chance. For

example, you are not helping

yourself by looking at the load with

one eye directly and the other

through a panel. Having the Sun on

the opposite side of the machine to

you is a useful tactic as well, so you

can use the load's shadow to tell its

height from the ground better.

The Astar is particularly bad for

looking out of as the pilot's door is

further away from the fuselage than

other machines. As a result, it needs

a minimum line of 100 feet (some

say 130) just to see the load through

a hole in the floor between the door

and the seat. However, even then

you only really see it when lifting, or

on delivery, which is why you need a

mirror as well (I once had to do a

job with a 75' line on a TwinStar,

and had to deliberately swing the

load so I could see it, at least once in

a while! In this case, long tag lines

helped the ground crew to catch it).

Some machines won’t allow you to

look out with shoulder straps on, or

when wearing a helmet, so try it all

out on the ground first. Note where

your hook attachment is and see if

you can make control movements

with reference to its position.

Naturally, there is some skill

attached to longlining, but it isn’t too

hard to learn, although you will have

帅哥

to watch for vortex ring when

delivering the load, as you have

minimum speed with power on and

a high rate of descent if the load is

pulling you in. Anticipation is the

key, but you can only learn this after

some experience, wherein lies the

Catch-22 of needing experience but

not being able to get it. Fire chasing

offers the best free training, as you

are often out on your own, and

nobody is using a stopwatch.

Although it's not the complete

answer (for example, I can drop way

more water in a given time with a

short line), many pilots prefer

longlining, if only because problems

with the load occur further away

from the aircraft, and therefore

produce less hassle with the controls

and tail rotor (and downwash

doesn't artificially increase the load’s

weight or throw up dust). You’re

also that bit further away from

mechanical turbulence, although

almost always out of ground effect

and right in the avoid curve, which

may cause a legal problem. One big

plus is that, if your engine fails, the

ground crew have more of a chance

to get out of the way. Another is that

the delivery point doesn't necessarily

have to take the helicopter as well

(of course, the real reason why pilots

like slinging in the first place is that

there are no passengers!).

190 Operational Flying

However, with a crowning fire (that

is, with only a small area in the

smoke at the head that you can get

your helicopter into), longlining can

be dangerous, because all you will

see is a bucket flying around – you

certainly won't see the line, and the

pilot won't see you, being in the

smoke. As a result, some authorities

have banned its use, at least in

concert with short-lining.

There are three variations on the

longlining theme:

· Operational longlining, which can

be done by just about any

competent pilot and is fairly

undemanding, provided there is

a reasonable margin of power

available, subject to a couple of

caveats which are mentioned

below - it's when you are

operating to the limits of the

load and the machine that the

real expertise comes into play,

but even this is nothing more

than good downwash

management and smoothness

on the controls coupled with

anticipation. There is little

accuracy or speed involved with

operational longlining, and it

can be regarded as just an

extension to normal slinging—

it's commonly used in fire

support, where you dump a

water bucket's contents into a

relay tank, or pick up the hoses

and equipment after the

excitement's over.

· Production longlining is the fast and

efficient movement of materials

from one place to another,

typically used in seismic work,

where you try and drop 30-40