Heli Ops

Question 1

Which aircraft are available to CAMRA to use?

Answer 1

DPS Ranger (Bell 429), MCSO’s Fox 1 (Bell 429) and Fox 2 (Bell 407), and Doug Fulton’s Mustang (Bell 407)

Question 2

What situations are helos used in?

Answer 2

Search for or attraction of a search subject
■ Evacuation of injured parties
■ Transportation or extrication of field members
■ Insertion - Heli-rappel/short haul to subject
■ Aerial survey of area for mission leadership
■ Transportation of supplies to support mission
■ Communications relay

Question 3

What are the types of insertions/extractions?

Answer 3

● One skid - one skid on land. Helo still in hover.
● Toe in - Front portion of skids on land rear of helo in hover.
● Hover - skids not in contact with ground.
● Short haul - rescuer and subject suspend underneath helicopter with 150’ rope.
● Landing aka flat-pitch landing.
-rappel

Question 4

What are some limitations of helos?

Answer 4

Visibility Minimums – VFR - Visual Flight Rules
■ Weather Conditions – wind, rain, snow, fog
■ Fuel – limited supply
■ Weight

■ Useful load does not include crew or equipment
■ Terrain

Question 5

What is Fox 1’s Useful Load with a full load of fuel?

Answer 5

1080 pounds

Question 6

Ground Effect

Answer 6

Ground Effect is the name given to the positive influence on the lifting characteristics of the horizontal surfaces of an aircraft wing when it is close to the ground.

Question 7

Define In Ground Effect

Answer 7

(IGE) The situation in which a helicopter is hovering sufficiently close to the ground to achieve added lift due to the effects of “ground cushion.”

Question 8

Define out of ground effect

Answer 8

(OGE) there are no hard surfaces for the downwash to react against. For example a helicopter hovering 150ft above the ocean surface will be in an OGE condition and will require more power to maintain a constant altitude than if it was hovering at 15ft.

Question 9

Define translational lift

Answer 9

Improved rotor efficiency resulting from directional flight in a helicopter is called translational lift. The efficiency of the hovering rotor system is greatly improved with each knot of incoming wind gained by horizontal movement of the aircraft or surface wind.

Question 10

Define Maximum Takeoff

Answer 10

A maximum performance takeoff is used to climb at a steep angle to clear barriers in the flight path. It can be used when taking off from small areas surrounded by high obstacles.

Question 11

Define Autorotation

Answer 11

Autorotation is a condition of helicopter flight during which the main rotor of a helicopter is driven only by aerodynamic forces with no power from the engine.

Question 12

Define Flat Pitch

Answer 12

neutral blade pitch.

Question 13

Define Dynamic Rollover

Answer 13

A helicopter is susceptible to a rolling tendency, called dynamic rollover, when close to the ground, especially when taking off or landing. For dynamic rollover to occur, some factor has to first cause the helicopter to roll or pivot around a skid, or landing gear wheel, until its critical rollover angle is reached. Then, beyond this point, main rotor thrust continues the roll and recovery is impossible.

Question 14

Define Dead Man’s Curve:

Answer 14

Insufficient altitude / speed to safely auto-rotate in case of engine failure

Question 15

Heli’s are _____ , not ______

Answer 15

Heli’s are tools, not toys

Question 16

What GPS unit does the Heli’s normally operate in?

Answer 16

Degree - Decimal Minutes

Question 17

Helis are generally a high risk operation. What factors will favor using a heli?

Answer 17

Factors in favor of high risk operations
■ Life threatening injury
■ Injured elderly or infant subject
■ Serious hypo/hyperthermia
■ Long exposure to multi-hazard terrain
■ Impending sunset w/ bad weather
■ Highly trained air crew / SAR personnel

Question 18

Helis are generally a high risk operation. What factors will be used against using a heli?

Answer 18

Factors against high-risk operations
■ Uninjured subject
■ Non-viable/deceased
■ Non-human cargo
■ Non-critical injuries
■ Non-critical patient declines
■ Untrained or undertrained crew

Question 19

Name some heli PPE

Answer 19

Personal PPE
■ Mission oriented
■ Non-synthetic
■ Leather boots / gloves
■ Long sleeves / pants
■ Helmet
■ Eye / ear protection
■ Know the weight of you and your gear

Question 20

How should you approach and board a Heli

Answer 20

Request permission prior and wait for signal
Wait for signal to board
Fasten seatbelt and give OK
Wait for signal to unbuckle
Always approach from downhill
Packs should be carried, not worn
Stay in pilots line of sight
If egressing uphill stay low and close to the skids

Question 21

Name some basic emergency crash procedures

Answer 21

■ Assume correct position (depends which seat you are in)
■ Stay in ship until ALL MOVING PARTS STOP, or crew advises otherwise
■ Battery switch OFF
■ Fuel Switch OFF
■ Exit to the front of aircraft
■ ELT (Emergency locator transmitte) self-activates, can be removed and taken to shelter
■ Do a head count
■ Triage, assess, treat
■ Make radio contact and give report

Question 22

How many people can be on the end of a short haul rope?

Answer 22

Two

Question 23

who is required at ingress/egress sites

Answer 23

HERT or crew chief is required at the ingress/egress site on the ground for coordination and safety of the operation

Question 24

People don’t get hurt around helicopters, they get __________

Answer 24

Killed

Question 25

Saftey is whos business?

Answer 25

Everyones