Scotland Helicopter Crash

[TheSnitch]

onyx39 said:

I'm wondering if he had a mechanical failure, tried to bring it inn for an emergency landing, mistook. Flat roof for a car park? If this is the case, he would have had to make a split second decision. If he wanted to ditch it, surely he would have put it in the river?

I wondered about that, or whether they tried to make it to the park which is literally only yards away. However, from eyewitness reports, it doesn't sound as if it was a particularly controlled descent

[Zad]

Sadly, they don't seem to be rushing to release any injured. That usually implies fatalities.

[samvia]

Thanks for the updates, thoughts with your colleagues and the pilot.

[TheSnitch]

samvia said:

Thanks for the updates, thoughts with your colleagues and the pilot.

Seconded. What an awful thing.

[GC8]

What could prevent the pilot from auto gyrating? Could this be a product of the Eurocopters dual engines allowing far lower flight? Theoretically theyre safer but possibly they can fly too low to allow the pilot to auto gyrate in case of a failure.

[samvia]

Haven't been in the Clutha in years, think the last time was a stupidly drunken effort at their open mic night with borrowed bongos...

I have work in a few hours but still glued to the telly - as Charlie Brooker said of previous disasters, the news channels' "experts" with their "speculation" is no more than guessers guessing.

[GC8]

Theyre now saying that the pilot did indeed auto gyrate and that it wasnt a particularly heavy landing, with batteries and fuel both off.

[davepoth]

GC8 said:

What could prevent the pilot from auto gyrating? Could this be a product of the Eurocopters dual engines allowing far lower flight? Theoretically theyre safer but possibly they can fly too low to allow the pilot to auto gyrate in case of a failure.

My guess (and it is just a guess) is a gearbox failure. That's been an issue for the larger Super Puma which is currently made by Eurocopter too. If the gearbox fails the tail rotor may lose torque suddenly rather than at the same rate as the main rotor, or vice versa. That causes the helicopter to spin out of control, and unless you had a lot of altitude there's little chance of recovering such a spin.

[s3fella]

Condolences to all casualties and loved ones.

[onyx39]

Press conference coming up

[cold thursday]

More Pictures Here.

http://www.pprune.org/rotorheads/528850-police-hel...

[davepoth]

cold thursday said:

More Pictures Here.

http://www.pprune.org/rotorheads/528850-police-hel...

And they make a very good point - the rotor tip that's visible doesn't appear to be damaged. That suggests that it can't have been turning at any great speed surely?

[GC8]

The police statement is very much an excercise in treading water, with no real information being confirmed.

[onyx39]

Press conference did not really tell us anything we did not know. People still trapped and communicating the rescuers.

[s3fella]

And the official press conference from the deputy chief constable rose Fitzpatrick has just several casualties but too early comment further.

[uk66fastback]

Jesus. Bad for everyone ... thoughts go out to all concerned. Fancy being in that pub with a gig going on and that thing coming in - doesn't bear thinking about ...

:sad:

[onyx39]

BBC newscaster trying to get his on the scene reporter to confirm that the Police have used the word "casualty" as he thinks that implies they are dead . Idiot!

[poo at Paul's]

Sympathies and condolences to those affected by this.

[IanV12]

Very sad to be waking up to this news this morning. Condolences to the families of those, as seems likely, who have died. Nothing more that can be said really.

[normalbloke]

davepoth said:

My guess (and it is just a guess) is a gearbox failure. That's been an issue for the larger Super Puma which is currently made by Eurocopter too. If the gearbox fails the tail rotor may lose torque suddenly rather than at the same rate as the main rotor, or vice versa. That causes the helicopter to spin out of control, and unless you had a lot of altitude there's little chance of recovering such a spin.

That's quite technically, absolutely incorrect.