Yes we were cultish about them. I was also q'd on the HU-25A Guardian (aka Falcon) fixed wing fanjet, but I was a fling-winger at heart and was always bugging my Chief to get me more time on the H3. My achilles heel was that I was very good at what I did and since I was in from 1981 - 1985, I was stationed at ATC Mobile when we took delivery of the very first Falcons, so I was one of the first to qual on it & thus had to log a bunch of hours in it.
But yeah we loved that old bucket of bolts we called the H3.
When I arrived at Mobile in '82 an H-52 "flying lifeboat" had just crashed killing all on board. As I remember it the pitch change rods on that RS were hollow and 1 had corroded inside. Just as the pilot was talking to the base the rod broke and the rotor system disintegrated. The violent whiplash when the first blade departed broke everyone's neck instantly. There was little blood in the cabin since they were already dead. Twas sad.
If you load your helicopter up to the brim (Maximum All Up Mass) for that Density Altitude, you probably can't sustain a hover, hence you can't takeoff vertically. Having wheels and a runway is good so you can accelerate to the speed at which ETL (Effective Translational Lift; Main Rotor "works more efficiently due to "clean" air streaming over it) occurs, usually 16-24 Kts, from that speed on you can pull morre collective to initiate a slow climbout. Works even in helicopters with skids :-)
I was a qualified USCG SAR aircrewman on the HH-3F Pelican and we used to have to do running landings when training new pilots where I was stationed at USCG ATC Mobile. My favorite was running water landings and takeoffs. You had to have your ass screwed on real tight for that.
@kevjay777 Just had my JAA final exams and my FAA CPL-H exam and checkride, so I try to show off as long as I remember all the details haha. Running takeoffs or landings are not that hard, it's actually good fun. Especially a running takeoff in a helicopter with skids. Feels and sounds really weird at first, but good fun after a couple of times. We don't do it in the water though. Sounds pretty cool what you've done. Was the Pelican popular with the crews?
@simpledude7 If the helicopter is too heavy to take off vertically, or the air temp is too hot, or the air is too thin due to high density altitude, it can do rolling takeoff like an airplane. The rotor disc sinificantly generates more lift in forward flight, so once adequate airspeed is achieved, the helicopter will just rise up all by itself. The Russians do this often as they like to overload their choppers.
that would make sense if the helicopter had any winglets for lift, but since it doesn't this makes no sense. Wiki says the Mi-8 has a ceiling of ~14k feet, so it's got more than enough power to get off the ground at this airport.
If you load your helicopter up to the brim (Maximum All Up Mass) for that Density Altitude, you probably can't sustain a hover, hence you can't takeoff vertically. Having wheels and a runway is good so you can accelerate to the speed at which ETL (Effective Translational Lift; Main Rotor "works more efficiently due to "clean" air streaming over it) occurs, usually 16-24 Kts, from that speed on you can pull morre collective to initiate a slow climbout.
in soviet russia, helicopters suffer from obesity!
bombardierdude15 1 month ago
thats probably the fastest youll ever go in a helicopter while grounded
texas9ish 1 month ago
God those russian birds look like dookey..Only a matter of time before it self destructs too.
motokid032 2 months ago
forward momentum increases lift over the blades therefore more payload versus straight vertical takeoff.
wildwindsca 3 months ago
I know how too paragraph, I speck , look at me, smarter than u
dav61474 3 months ago
Short Field Take Off, They are Good!!
27adidas 4 months ago
"Was the Pelican popular with the crews?"
Yes we were cultish about them. I was also q'd on the HU-25A Guardian (aka Falcon) fixed wing fanjet, but I was a fling-winger at heart and was always bugging my Chief to get me more time on the H3. My achilles heel was that I was very good at what I did and since I was in from 1981 - 1985, I was stationed at ATC Mobile when we took delivery of the very first Falcons, so I was one of the first to qual on it & thus had to log a bunch of hours in it.
kevjay777 6 months ago
But yeah we loved that old bucket of bolts we called the H3.
When I arrived at Mobile in '82 an H-52 "flying lifeboat" had just crashed killing all on board. As I remember it the pitch change rods on that RS were hollow and 1 had corroded inside. Just as the pilot was talking to the base the rod broke and the rotor system disintegrated. The violent whiplash when the first blade departed broke everyone's neck instantly. There was little blood in the cabin since they were already dead. Twas sad.
kevjay777 6 months ago
If you load your helicopter up to the brim (Maximum All Up Mass) for that Density Altitude, you probably can't sustain a hover, hence you can't takeoff vertically. Having wheels and a runway is good so you can accelerate to the speed at which ETL (Effective Translational Lift; Main Rotor "works more efficiently due to "clean" air streaming over it) occurs, usually 16-24 Kts, from that speed on you can pull morre collective to initiate a slow climbout. Works even in helicopters with skids :-)
muermel01 6 months ago
@muermel01 Move to the head of the class. :-)
I was a qualified USCG SAR aircrewman on the HH-3F Pelican and we used to have to do running landings when training new pilots where I was stationed at USCG ATC Mobile. My favorite was running water landings and takeoffs. You had to have your ass screwed on real tight for that.
kevjay777 6 months ago
@kevjay777 Just had my JAA final exams and my FAA CPL-H exam and checkride, so I try to show off as long as I remember all the details haha. Running takeoffs or landings are not that hard, it's actually good fun. Especially a running takeoff in a helicopter with skids. Feels and sounds really weird at first, but good fun after a couple of times. We don't do it in the water though. Sounds pretty cool what you've done. Was the Pelican popular with the crews?
muermel01 6 months ago
Im thinking the "pinwheel" effect
gives the helicopter some extra rotor rpms and lift at takeoff.
hedojake 7 months ago
For saving fuels also.
vaskos35cm 9 months ago
LOL. I had never seen helicopters running like that before .
simpledude7 1 year ago
@simpledude7 If the helicopter is too heavy to take off vertically, or the air temp is too hot, or the air is too thin due to high density altitude, it can do rolling takeoff like an airplane. The rotor disc sinificantly generates more lift in forward flight, so once adequate airspeed is achieved, the helicopter will just rise up all by itself. The Russians do this often as they like to overload their choppers.
KATAERO1 9 months ago
or maybe because of the thin air at that altitude, it may be difficult to takeoff without rolling.
musicmantrain 2 years ago 18
u hit the nail on the head
planedude91 2 years ago
does that heli not have enough power to dead lift or did he roll for the hell of it
uclit 2 years ago
He just roll for the fun of it. Normally most of the chopper takes off right from there.
pgsherpa1 2 years ago 5
@pgsherpa1 i think this saves fuel as well
routhoula 3 months ago
@pgsherpa1
Air is way too thin for a heavy bird to just slam a vertical....
BrodeFinePortraiture 2 months ago
@BrodeFinePortraiture
that would make sense if the helicopter had any winglets for lift, but since it doesn't this makes no sense. Wiki says the Mi-8 has a ceiling of ~14k feet, so it's got more than enough power to get off the ground at this airport.
papaskot 2 months ago
@papaskot
If you load your helicopter up to the brim (Maximum All Up Mass) for that Density Altitude, you probably can't sustain a hover, hence you can't takeoff vertically. Having wheels and a runway is good so you can accelerate to the speed at which ETL (Effective Translational Lift; Main Rotor "works more efficiently due to "clean" air streaming over it) occurs, usually 16-24 Kts, from that speed on you can pull morre collective to initiate a slow climbout.
BrodeFinePortraiture 2 months ago 2