Library Reference Number: 138
Helicopter Operations - Intro
The general public are frequently alarmed by media coverage of scenes of tragedy and disasters portrayed in television and newspaper reports. Those life-threatening hazards invariably occur unexpectedly in a variety of settings including remote accident areas, fire, flood, danger at sea and mountain rescue, and before the arrival of Helicopters, the loss of life would have been considerably greater than it is at the present time.
While momentarily applauding the courageous efforts of rescuers, who abandon their own personal safety to carry out their life-saving duties, this particular branch of aviation rarely receives the recognition it deserves. It is hoped that this section of the book will give readers a closer insight into the extremely demanding tasks encountered by helicopter crews. Sqn/Ldr Bill Campbell, AFC, has contributed some of his personal experiences, but before doing so, he introduces this section by way of the following piece by an unknown author. . . . Ed.
Helicopter Aircrew Are Different
The thing is, helicopters are different from planes. An airplane, by its nature, wants to fly, and if not interfered with too strongly by unusual events, or by deliberately incompetent aircrew, it will fly. A helicopter does not want to fly!
It is maintained in the air by a variety of forces and controls working in opposition to each other, and if there is any disturbance in this delicate balance, the helicopter stops flying, immediately and disastrously. There is no such thing as a gliding helicopter!
This is why being helicopter aircrew is so different from being airplane aircrew, and why, in general, airplane aircrew are open, clear-eyed, buoyant extroverts, while helicopter aircrew are brooding, introspective anticipators of trouble.
They know if something bad has not happened, it is about to!