Articles for category Safety
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Aug
17
2020
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Posted by Admin
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USHST August 2020 Monthly Safety Report
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Tags:
Helicopter Accidents
Helicopter Safety
USHST Safety Report
Categories:
Safety
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Nov
18
2019
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Posted by Admin
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In the world of rotorcraft emergencies, not all situations are equal. There’s a huge difference between a generator failure, engine fire or anti-torque system failure. I think if you were to poll pilots, just the mention of certain crises will make the hair stand up on the back of every pilot’s neck, and they pray that it never will happen to them. For me, there are two such crises: a tail-rotor gearbox failure, and any situation that would cause me to hit the ground hard enough to rupture a fuel tank and spark a post-crash fire.
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Categories:
Safety
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Oct
15
2019
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Posted by Admin
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I was so lucky, when I first began flying helicopter EMS in 1999 when my first director of ops told me that he would rather me turn down a flight and go back to sleep, than push weather limits. However, the go/no-go decision was still my sole decision to make. At the time, I probably did not appreciate my director’s sentiment as much as I should have.
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Categories:
Safety
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Jun
03
2019
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Posted by Admin
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As a child, the value of the risk we would incur doing an activity was often measured by the spectators involved. Jumping a bicycle over a ditch brought a certain amount of fear, however the broken arm received as a result of such an attempt was looked upon as a badge of honor. Even as children, we justified risk through our belief that we could do what others could not or would not do.
Today we assess flight risk through Flight Risk Assessment Tools (FRAT) and other various risk-based systems to aid our decision-making to determine whether the risk incurred during a flight is acceptable or not. In many cases, the risk assessment scoring mechanism will reflect a color-coded or numeric based indicator of the risk involved.
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Categories:
Safety
Training
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Jan
28
2019
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Posted by Admin
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The use of night vision imaging systems (NVIS) by civil helicopter operators is increasing significantly all over the world. North America has a leading role in terms of NVIS adoption. “In the United States, for example, very nearly all helicopter air ambulance (HAA) operators use night visions goggles (NVG) logging tens of thousands of NVIS flight hours each year,” says Kim Harris, director of business development at ASU. “However, NVIS HAA operations are becoming much more common also in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia,” he says.
REB Technologies Senior Vice President of Operations and Systems Jeff Stubbs also believes Eastern Europe, Asia, South America, and Africa are poised for big growth in civil NVG operations. “These regions are geographically very similar to the U.S. and Canada, in that the cities and towns are separated by a large expanse of countryside. We have also had significant success in Africa with the anti-poaching sector, with an instant drop off from poaching once NVIS aircraft are introduced. Although not a huge sector, it serves a vital need for the environment,” he says.
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Categories:
Safety
Training
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Dec
31
2018
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Posted by Admin
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The United States Helicopter Safety Team (www.USHST.org), a cooperative effort between industry and government, continues to promote safety and reduce civil helicopter accidents and fatalities nationwide. The team was formed in 2013 as a regional partner within the International Helicopter Safety Team (www.IHST.org) and has become a worldwide leader in improving safe helicopter operations.
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Categories:
Safety
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Nov
26
2018
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Posted by Admin
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Crew Resource Management (CRM) gives us the tools to make safe, prudent decisions; it’s something I wish I’d had while flying a JetRanger on a seismic survey contract in Papua New Guinea. Knowing what could hurt me would have prevented my nearly being eaten by a huge crocodile.
Mike Keith, a pilot with me on contract, and I (stupidly) agreed to go crocodile hunting at midnight with two line cutters Russ and Tom Dooley. I should have known to say no; a week earlier; Russ had thrown a 16-foot python in the back seat of my aircraft in a burlap sack.
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Categories:
Safety
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Nov
11
2018
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Posted by Admin
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I was a full-time municipal firefighter 20 years ago, while at the same time flying helicopters on my days off. In 1999, I was offered a job as a pilot flying helicopter air ambulance (HAA.) It seemed a perfect fit as I not only had experience treating patients in the streets and setting up HAA landing zones, but I was a local pilot with significant experience.
In in the life of an HAA call, there are two major decision points that are singular moments that can change the arc of history. The first moment is when the pilot must decide whether or not to launch. When everything’s normal, (i.e., weather, crew, and maintenance) the decision’s easy; you launch. The second moment happens when en route and some part of the flight begins to degrade. The pilot finds himself at a crossroad: keep going or turn around and head back to base?
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Categories:
Safety
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Oct
02
2018
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Posted by Admin
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Question for helicopter pilots: Why not fly higher?
Every few years, I use this platform to push for change. One of my pet peeves and favorite topics to kick around involves the altitudes at which we fly our helicopters.
The fiction writer, Tamara Cohen, once wrote: “People don't change. The world carries on spinning inexorably around but people don't spin with it. They dig their heels into the shifting sand and cling on for dear life.”
I feel like we as an industry are sometimes incapable of changing our behavior. We continue to do the same things over and over that cause us problems. This really applies to helicopter altitudes. I travel monthly to South Florida to fly an AW109E as a contract helicopter pilot. I stay at the home of a family member. Almost daily, helicopters fly over the house at 500 feet or below. The culprits range from light single-engine training helicopters to medium-twin engine IFR helicopters. Because I am a helicopter pilot, many of the neighbors ask me, “Do they have to fly over us that low?” My answer is always a resounding NO!
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Categories:
Safety
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Oct
01
2018
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Posted by Admin
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Our U.S. helicopter community just went through the worst short-term surge in fatal accidents we’ve experienced within the past six years. With four fatal accidents within a 10-day span, the U.S. Helicopter Safety Team feels that there is a benefit to informing our broader community of this information. We also feel that it is appropriate timing for some straightforward reminders that can contribute to safe flying.
We would appreciate your help in communicating this important message to our community. We invite you to tailor it accordingly as you think would be most effective.
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Categories:
Safety