Author: Randy Mains
Whenever I am doing book signings the most common statement I hear is, “You know I’ve always wanted to write a book.” I look up from the book I’m signing at the person who said it, usually a pilot, and I say, “Well why don’t you then?”
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My Two Cents Worth
When I speak to new pilots in the industry at HeliSuccess in Las Vegas, I stress the importance of maintaining one’s integrity and recount the most impactful decision I ever made. Following my moral compass, would mean losing my job and potentially destroy a dream I’d had for 10 years—flying a helicopter in Southern California.
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Categories:
My Two Cents Worth
Hello Sir, we met a few years ago in Las Vegas when you spoke at Helisuccess and I have been a follower of your teachings ever since. One aspect of your most recent post regarding scud running with the R-44 video raised a nagging question for me. As a very conservative pilot who has spent most of my time in the wire environment I have discovered that the error chain starts way before the pilot enters the cockpit. It appears that many chief pilots or managers publicly preach safety, but when it comes down to the brass tacks, they often chastise their pilots who have the maturity to just say "no". They often bend or do not follow their own SMS and SOP manuals and tell their pilots – “You should have at least given it a try.”
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Categories:
My Two Cents Worth
Randy, your article struck a nerve in me because of an incident that nearly caused me to lose my life recently in an OH 58 flying from Orlando to Sarasota. Looking back, my actions were selfish and dangerous and could have deprived my 5-year-old of her daddy and my wife the tragic loss of her husband.
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My Two Cents Worth
In the Jan/Feb 2016 issue of Rotorcraft Pro magazine in my ‘My Two Cents’ Worth’ column entitled “Not So New CRM” I talk about the easy to use and understand Risk Resource Management decision-making tool that the pilots at Southwest Airlines use when making decisions. You can access that article at the following link. It begins on page 8.
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My Two Cents Worth
About a year ago a pilot attending one of my 5-day CRM Instructor courses asked me, “Have you seen this?” He played a YouTube clip that made my blood turn to ice. Michael Farikh, a highly respected Russian pilot who accomplished many great things for civilian helicopter aviation in his country, posted it. One article published just after his death called Farikh “The godfather of Russian helicopter aviation.”
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My Two Cents Worth
“Sacred trust,” is what your passenger exhibits when they get into your helicopter to go on a flight. By their very actions they are telling you, “I am placing my life in your hands.”
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My Two Cents Worth
“But all twins are not alike”, I said to the air medical flight doctor who is very keen to make it mandatory that all air medical programs in America operate twin-engine helicopters. He replied, “I wasn’t aware of that.”
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My Two Cents Worth
I received a message from a person responding to comments I’d made on my professional Face Book page that deals with crew resource management topics, about the UH-60M Black Hawk helicopter crash that occurred back in March 10, 2015 off the coast of Florida. The crew, who was extremely experienced, had lost spatial orientation when doing an overwater exercise in sea fog killing the crew of 4 and the 7 soldiers on board. The aircraft was from the Louisiana National Guard. The person who wrote to me concluded, “The LA guard is the best aviation unit in the world.”
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My Two Cents Worth
On December 22, 2016 a State District Court judge in Austin upheld a ruling, giving the State of Texas the right to regulate fees paid to air ambulances for transporting patients covered by Workers' Compensation Insurance. On the surface it doesn’t look like that ruling affects the American HAA (Helicopter Air Ambulance) industry, but it could prove to change the fabric of the industry. The ruling has the potential to create a negative ripple effect in our industry, if successfully argued and used as a precedent in other State class-action lawsuits currently filed against for-profit HAA providers.
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Categories:
My Two Cents Worth