Photo Phriday 127 - Helicopters
#8100060
03/15/24 08:26 AM
03/15/24 08:26 AM
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Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 2,724 Idaho, Lemhi County
Gulo
OP
"On The Other Hand"
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OP
"On The Other Hand"
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 2,724
Idaho, Lemhi County
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Through the years, I've used many makes and models of helicopters for all kinds of work. I've certainly found that some choppers are better-suited for some kinds of work than others. More important than the helicopter, though, is the pilot. He or she must understand the work to be done, and be experienced in that work. For instance, a good fire pilot in a Long Ranger probably won't do very good as a darting pilot and ship for a wolf collaring operation. This is an A-Star, a French helicopter I used extensively in SE Alaska just to transfer people to mountain/glacier sites. Worked well for that purpose. This is a "Long Ranger", a Bell helicopter. Good "Creature Comfort", but the two-bladed main rotor is not very manueverable and takes nearly an acre to land it. Not my favorite. This is a Robinson R-22. It has a piston engine which is quieter than a jet-engine, and is very useful for some applications. Don't bring anything more than a small sack lunch, though. I used it extensively for doing golden eagle/dall sheep work in the Alaska Range, and to dart muskoxen and bison at low elevations. Here is the Robinson R-44. Again, a piston engine, not a turbo. Very good for some uses. I used it extensively for raptor nest surveys in low-elevation area of interior Alaska. My ultimate favorite, especially for darting wolves and bears. The Hughes 500, "D"-model. 5-blades, very maneuverable, and with 5-bladed main prop, able to land in tight spots. I've also spent time in Fairchild-Hiller 1100's and Bell-47's. Not my favorites for wildlife work, although they do have their place.
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Re: Photo Phriday 127 - Helicopters
[Re: Gulo]
#8100062
03/15/24 08:29 AM
03/15/24 08:29 AM
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Joined: Sep 2008
Posts: 7,412 NC
bowhunter27295
trapper
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trapper
Joined: Sep 2008
Posts: 7,412
NC
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Where did you learn to fly helicopters?
How many lies will people believe before they realize their own idiocy?
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Re: Photo Phriday 127 - Helicopters
[Re: bowhunter27295]
#8100078
03/15/24 08:48 AM
03/15/24 08:48 AM
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Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 2,724 Idaho, Lemhi County
Gulo
OP
"On The Other Hand"
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OP
"On The Other Hand"
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 2,724
Idaho, Lemhi County
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Where did you learn to fly helicopters? I am not a helicopter pilot, just a fixed-wing driver. In the choppers, I'm just a lowly passenger.
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Re: Photo Phriday 127 - Helicopters
[Re: Gulo]
#8100533
03/15/24 08:54 PM
03/15/24 08:54 PM
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Joined: Jul 2012
Posts: 3,633 N. Carolina
Scout1
trapper
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trapper
Joined: Jul 2012
Posts: 3,633
N. Carolina
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Used to ride in choppers while in the army. I really dislike flying for if my feet are not in in contact with the ground I do not feel safe. Rode in huey’s, blackhawks, and chinook’s. Chinook’s will rock you to sleep. Blackhawks are very maneuverable, especially NAPing the earth. Hueys just seem to putt along but can move as needed. Like Sharon stated, huey’s have the most recognizable sound.
------------------------------------- DJT & MTG in 2024!
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Re: Photo Phriday 127 - Helicopters
[Re: Gulo]
#8100679
03/16/24 04:01 AM
03/16/24 04:01 AM
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Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 4,811 M.T.V. Alaska
yukonjeff
trapper
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trapper
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 4,811
M.T.V. Alaska
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We flew up into the Healy Lake mountains to fight a fire once, from Big Delta in a Huey. It was awesome flying over the barley fields with the doors open. It felt like it was going to shake apart. They dropped us off on a mountain.
We ate MRE's for a week, and then the same choppers flew us in fresh grub, we unloaded it, and when they were leaving I was watching the pilot rev up and pull up on the collective and one side lifted up but not the other, so he let it down and tried pulling up again, same thing was stuck, I looked down and noticed one skid was hooked under a tree root. I pointed it out to the pilot, and he was able to maneuver out and up. Then he did one of those blast off kind of departures you had to see to believe. Up and out of sight in an instant. Amazing. They brought us back down off the mountain after about ten days we mopped up, and we got rained out.
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