ONE TOUGH HELICOPTER

[FLYBOYJ]

I'm trying to imagine the noise of being inside when those bullets and shrapnel were hitting...

Imagine hearing a loud pop and then a soft thud that shutters the airframe of the aircraft. Its not fun at all.

GOD! I just about Sh#t myself on a flight when we got an amber chip light, I coun't Imagine getting shot at, especially in a helicopter!

 

[DerAdlerIstGelandet]

Its funny back here in Germany we get a chip light (especially on in our main mod) we flip out and land immediatly. In Iraq we get a chip light, we continue to the nearest FOB even if it is a 45 min flight. Its funny how you prioritise things in combat.

 

[FLYBOYJ]

That's funny! The pilot I was with wanted to land in the middle of this busy street in the middle of Denver. I told him if he did that I was going to run off the helicopter, hide in the insuring crowd an allow him to talk to the media and FAA! 8) He was a new guy who came from the civilian ranks and never even saw a chip light on any helicopter he flew!

We were only 5 minutes out so I convinced him to keep going. We landed without incident - engine change with 1.5 hours on it! Boy I'm glad I got another job!

 

[DerAdlerIstGelandet]

Yeah we dont get them very much, if we do it is normally a gear box and normally is nothing but usual wear on the gear box. If we do and we are close eneogh to an airfield we go there but otherwise we land immediatly especially if it is the main mod.

 

[FLYBOYJ]

Last year I had 3 bad engines from the factory. 2 made metal in under 5 hours, the third had a bad torque transmitter pick-up that was internal, had to rip apart half the engine to get at it. Worked my butt off but the overtime was good!

Now I sit in a office and watch sailplanes fly and people jump out of airplanes all day!

 

[DerAdlerIstGelandet]

I dont know how many engines we went through the last year. We injested so many birds. Most of them did nothing to the engines and all we had to do was flush them out but man it seemed like every week we were replacing them. We had one engine litterally explode while going over wires coming into Baquba. The engine was not hit by ground fire or anything it just exploded. And then the countless ones that just flamed out.

 

[Nonskimmer]

That ain't good.

 

[DerAdlerIstGelandet]

The desert environment is not very good on engines and moving parts.

 

[Nonskimmer]

True enough.

 

[DerAdlerIstGelandet]

But they held up pretty well, I am pround of them.

 

[FLYBOYJ]

Did you see many factory reps. while in country?

 

[lesofprimus]

Imagine hearing a loud pop and then a soft thud that shutters the airframe of the aircraft. Its not fun at all.

I've heard the same sounds, and its one of the worst sounds u can ever hear......... Trust us....

 

[DerAdlerIstGelandet]

You are correct Les.

As for the factory reps Flyboy we had one on our FOB at all times and the General Electric rep was about a 30 min flight away.

 

[FLYBOYJ]

You are correct Les.

As for the factory reps Flyboy we had one on our FOB at all times and the General Electric rep was about a 30 min flight away.

Boy, that must be a hell of a job!

 

[Gnomey]

Wow! How does that still fly!

 

[DerAdlerIstGelandet]

How does what still fly?