Rotor Torque

The present contractor is Helicopter Resources Pty Ltd, a division bf VoweU Air Services (Helicopters) Pty Ltd who have two pilots on station for flights which occasionally extend to twenty miles offshore. Helicopter Resources have held the contract since 1979 and in that time have completed over 5,000 incident-free Pilot transfers.

Revision of Lame Ratings

Following a variety of complaints from the industry in general, the CM is reviewing the groupings for helicopter licence ratings introduced earlier this year. The main complaint seems to have been that the new Group 2 gave young, relatively inexperienced licence holders coverage on some of the helicopters that were formerly in the old Group 2(d) without them having gained sufficient type experience while older highly experienced licene holders in the Group 2(d) were barred from oral endorsements 1n the new Group 20 unless they already held a rating in this group. All of the helicopters in the new Group 20 were formerly Group 2(d). Another question that is still to be answered by the CM 1s how the helicopters in the new Group 20 were selected.

AHA Administration Changes

There have been a number of changes in the administration of Aerospatiale Helicopters Australia. Mr Christan Cosse has been appointed General Manager and will arrive in Sydney in September having previously been with the Aerospatiale Helicopter Division in Indonesia. Mr Trevor Stone has been appointed manager Finance and Administration. Mr Jean Claude Roboulet has returned to France and Mr Dave Ladcrook is now responsible for general Technical Product Support. Mr Alain Jean has joined the staff in the Product Support Area with an emphasis on Logistics and Spare Parts and Mr Bill Robertson has been appointed to the role of Military Liaison.

Ch-47D Chinook Qualified for In-Flight Refuelling

Boeing Helicopters has qualified the first CH-47D inflight refuelling system for the US Army.

The first production model CH-47D having inflight refuelling capability was delivered to the Army during July. The new refuelling system will greatly increase the Army’s ability to use the Chinook for a variety of specialist long-range missions.

Boeing test pilot, Bob Gradle described the operation as being as simple as routine formation flying. “We’d get into position behind the HC-130 tanker, which was flying at about 110 knots, or around 20 knots above its stall speed and we’d stay in that formation for whatever time was required to fill the tanks, which is typically about six minutes to take on 1,000 gallons of fuel. ” The first tests were conducted in July 1985 and consisted of nine sorties totalling 9. 8 flight hours. During these tests Gradle discovered that the Chinook’s rotor downwash forced the drogue downward and kept it safely clear of the rotor disc. Based on that observation, a second programme was introduced in December 1986 using a CH-47D equipped with a fixed composite-shell refuelling probe that allowed drogue engagement while under the Chinook’s forward rotor disc.

During the qualification program, Boeing and various military pilots evaluated the shorter fixed probe using both the HC-130’s left and right refuelling drogues. These flights included successful day and night engagements in a variety of smooth and turbulent air conditions. Night sorties were also flown both with and without the pilots’ use of night-vision goggles.

The US Army’s CH-47D is a modernised version of the famed Boeing Chinook medium lift helicopter. Boeing Helicopters is presently under contract to bring 328 CH-47s up to D model standards, with 240 of these helicopters covered by a multi year procurement (MYP) contract.

It is forseen that the RAAF CH-47C fleet will probably be upgraded to D specifications later in the nineties as the type requires major airframe work. The RAAF acquired 12 Chinooks with the type entering service in 1974.