Helicopter landing on Longships Lighthouse...

[Milek]

I visited Land's End at tuesday, 4th Feb 2014. It was stormy weather with very strong wind.
That is what I seen:







The helicopter stay on helipad only about 90 secs.
I must admit that it was unbelievable.

[Spitfire]

We see that a lot down here - I only live 20 miles from Lands End

That's a Trinity House supply/maintenance helicopter .. the lighthouses are no longer manned but a maintenance crew has to go on regularly to service the light and it's equipment. That'll be a drop off or pick up ...

As of January 2011 the contract for Trinity House maintenance helicopters went to Police Aviation Services Ltd http://www.specialist-aviation.com/

[Aceyone]

Blimey,rather them than me

[Spitfire]

You should see how they get off the heli pad into the lamp gallery below - there's a clam shell trap door and the pilot has to be careful he doesn't land on it or they can't open it

This is Longships ...


Would you fancy that in a howling gale and rotors thrashing above your head - they do it 'live rotor' as they cant afford to shut down

You can see the chaps getting on or off in front of the chopper in Milek's 3rd shot

[Mayfly]

Good capture Milek rather them than me

[Spitfire]

Not Longships but Bishops Rock (The other side of the Isles of Scilly )



They say it's not difficult landing on a stationary lighthouse - but try it on a heaving light ship

Not a lightship - but you get the idea

[Aceyone]

Strewth,that looked scary as Hell !

[Spitfire]

Strewth,that looked scary as Hell !

It's not as bad as it looks ... years ago I was lucky enough to get 90 minutes in the Seaking simulator at RNAS Culdrose and after a while the instructor chappy took me 'out to sea' and we came upon HMS Argus the Naval Supply vessel ...

It was rocking and pitching like a bronco but he showed me that you come alongside it - moving forward at the same speed - then you slide sideways till you are over it ... and you hover over it - still moving forward at the ships speed - its rising and falling beneath you - you are hovering just above the height of the top of its upward pitch ...then the magic bit ... he tells you to switch your eyes from the sea horizon to the ships superstructure in front of you ... and you wait a few seconds ... suddenly the ship has stopped pitching and is nearly still ... then the instructor says .. 'look at your hands' ...

What had happened was my brain had switched to the 'moving' horizon' and without knowing it I was controlling the helicopter in time with the pitch and roll so that eventually I was perfectly in tune with it and the ship was 'still' .... I was actually rising and falling in exactly the same rhythm.... then you just cut the throttle and land on ....

After that landing on a still oil rig was a piece of cake

It's an amazing experience - although I was sweating buckets at the end

[Aceyone]

Piece of cake-------------------------------------------- not !