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Hamilton Based Midland Health/Trust Bank's Recently Delivered Bell 222EMS Helicopter. (Richard Kuluz)
Rotor Torque
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Robinson Wind Restrictions Lifted
The US Federal Aviation Administration has decided that wind and turbulence restrictions imposed on Robinson R22 and R44 helicopters should be lifted except when the aircraft are flown by inexperienced pilots. Investigations into the helicopters have found that both perform well in those conditions and that the majority of accidents which have occurred can be directly attributed to pilot error, and most of those relate to inexperience and overconfidence. As a result, the limitations only apply to pilots with less than 200 hours total time and less than 50 hours on type. All pilots are still required to complete awareness training education and Robinson would like to see higher standards implemented for US flight instructors. According to the company, these standards are lower in the US than in other countries. In other Robinson news the company has recently delivered an R22 to Zimbabwe’s Department of National Parks and Wildlife. The aircraft was purchased by USAID and donated to the national parks department for use in poacher control, game counting and to assist in other conservation missions.
Chinooks Return
The first two of four upgraded Boeing CH-47D Chinooks for the Army were redelivered to Australia in late May. Chinooks A15-102 (ex A15-002) and A15-103 (ex A15-003) were delivered by sea to Brisbane, where members of 5 Aviation Regiment’s C Squadron assembled them for flight on Fisherman Island Wharf, after which they were ferried to their new Townsville base. An official handover ceremony was scheduled for June 30. The D model ‘Chooks’ are due to become fully operational in 1996, and will principally be used for positioning of fuel and supplies and lifting oversize equipment. The third and fourth Chinooks A15-104 (ex A15-004) and A15-105 (ex A15-005) are due for delivery in July. Compared with the C model, the D features uprated engines, new transmissions, new avionics and composite blade rotors, while the airframes were rebuilt. The RAAF originally took delivery of 12 CH-47C Chinooks in March 1974. However a 1989 economy measure saw the surviving 11 Chinooks placed into storage, and their operator, No 12 Squadron, was disbanded. However, when the Army discovered that its Black Hawks could not fully take over the Chinooks roles, a no-cost exchange deal was proposed where the 11 CH-47Cs were traded in, with four to six being upgraded to D standard and returned to Australia. In the end, seven CH-47Cs were sold to the US Army for $40m, while four have been rebuilt to D standard for Australia. The seven other ex RAAF Chinooks are pencilled in for service with the Hawaii National Guard.
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