Untitled - HFI Historical Archive - Helicopter Association International

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HELICOPTERS PROVE CRITICAL DURING By Bryan Blixhaven For years. helicopters h:id been an in tegral part of Alyeska Pipeline Service Co. 's oil spill contingency 1 '1:111 should a major spill ever occur at or near the Valdez. Alaska \cnllinllS of the Trans Alask
(COn/illllet/from !JlI!W Ill) McKeown pul experienced aircrafl oper:non; on the task of allocating aircraft for lhe appropriale missions. He sel up an organizational schematic based on aircnlft needs. manpower. equipment and olhcr assels and assembled a base support elcmenl 10 lake cllre of fac ilities. life suppon equipment. fuel and ramp management and other mission-suPP0l1 OIeli vilies. Specific Uses Er:l's V:tldez b;lse manager Wall Woodrow said the majority sharc of hclicopler operations in thc sound and surrounding oilcd areas have been dcdic:lted 10 movemenl of personnel ;lIld equipment. For example. Era has two Aerosp;lIiale Twin Sial'S on contract with VECO. an oil proouclion servicing company. to move its beach cleanup force from thcirshipbo.ud accommodations to the cleanup sites. Smaller helicopters such as Bell Jet Rangen; arc being uscd :IS observmioll platforms and to direct boats in skimming operations in the sound. 111C Jet Ranger coordin:I1es the OIctions of two ships with a line of booms (absorbent material used to SD:lk up the oil) strung between. L;:lrger rotary aircraft are deployed in various situ;ltions whcre large freight or personnel loads dictate the expense of Bell 212 or I;lrger cmf1. The 212 has been used extcn.sively to move up to a dozen employees al ;, lime to work or supporl sites. The 212's have also been deployed to move marine mammals. birds and other wildlife to rescue centers in Sew;lrd. Horner. Kodiak and other local ions. The 212'5 larger cargo area allows the animal handlers to ride along with specially-designed portable kennels filled with Oilers. seals. seagulls and olher creatures injured by Ihe spill. The Aerospmiale Twin Stars have filled the gap between the 212 and the Jet Ranger. With a five-passenger capacity. the Twin Star is tailor made for dropping off slll;llIer loads of people or gear. serving as a medical evacuation appamtus and ferrying relief and work crews back and forth. Other rOlary wing aircraft have been used in more specialized projects. In Fall 1989 mid-July. Era moved a lOO-foot communications tower 01110 a remote mountaintop from Ihe Vnldez airport for oil spill cleanup opemtions. Using ,I Super Puma AS332L. Era transported the 8.000 pOllnd-plus tower and equipmell1 in one piece to the top of a nearby peak Ul>illg a l,:u:-.IOIII III"dl,: Iillg ilppilr;llu. <strong>Helicopter</strong>s: A Cost Effective Alternative While the price of helicopter operations is higher than fixed wing. the cost is more than recoul>cd when considering the speed and eflicicncy offered by rotary wing aircraft. L;:\Ilding on top of a mountain 01' rescuing a sick crewman from the deck or ;m oil rig could take hours longer using tmnsportlltion other Ihan a helicO I )ter. Years :lgo. oil companies used boms to Ir;Ulsport oi I rig workers. However. llfter ;tssessing the cost and the time factor in using that method oftmnsportlltion. the industry quickly realized it would be cheaper to get the workcrs 10 and from Ihe job sitc using Ihe helicopler. Addilion;dly. when critical parts were nce(tcd. the hel icoptcrcould move those parl. quickly to tcchnicians at a moment's notice. Commercial and mililUry helicoplcn; are positioned to respond to any cmergency anywhere in the world in a m;uter of hours. In the C:lse of the Exxon V;lldez: oil spill. Era Aviation. Inc. alone went from one helicopter to 17 operat· Cleanup crew boarding ERA's Bell 212·s. ing out of Valdez in a m;lIIer of five d;IYs. To do that. Era mobilized helicopters from all over the nalion. The next task for opcrators in the are;l will be the expectcd ph;lse down program in the face of adverse weather conditions. The helicopter neel will be an inlegml part of the work. :IS Exxon. VECO ilnd other companies involved in the spill scale down Ol:ler:ltions for the willler. ECluipment. supplies ;tnd the substantial work force will have 10 he ferried to shore to wait out several monlhs ofmargirwl wealhrCOlllmon to the sound. State Requires That Contingency Plans Include <strong>Helicopter</strong>s There is no doubt that the industry's ability 10 respond immediately 10 a major emergency was again proven with the Prince William Sound oil spill. The helicopter proved agnin to be the workhorse for emergency airlift operations. Every emergency contingency plan in the Slate of Alaska requires rOlOr aircraft sllPI>ort. whether the operation is oil spill cleanup. forest fire ormedical evacuation. Gelling the goods :md the manpower on sile eXI>cdiently can mean the difference between life or dellih failure or success. and the industry ha spent yean; fine-wning its helicopter operation with that urgency in mind. ROTOR 19
Page 2 and 3: NlCDONNELL DOUGLAS
Page 4: 4 ROTOR UP FRONT Before gelling to
Page 8 and 9: 20/20 EVERYTHING TO DO WITH VISION!
Page 10 and 11: HELICOPTERS SA VE THOUSANDS OF SUDA
Page 12 and 13: HELICOPTERS PLA Y IMPORTANT ROLE IN
Page 14 and 15: · .. _Ioo ."_ r.o . .... .. 6IiW ,
Page 16 and 17: A viation Associations Help Develop
Page 20 and 21: NEW MEMBERS WELCOME ABOARD! Join us
Page 22 and 23: SMOKE by Mel Larson My phone rang c
Page 24 and 25: OPERATOR PROFILE CHRISTOPH 31 : Omn
Page 26 and 27: By Paul Powers HELP Created for Lif
Page 28 and 29: By Glenn A. Leister Igor Sikorsky's
Page 30 and 31: Air Florida Rescue: Shows National
Page 32 and 33: SAFETY REVIEW Helicopter Response t
Page 34 and 35: By Barry Deslor and Sharon Deslor J
Page 36 and 37: Ask the Administrator (ColI/illlled
Page 38 and 39: Air Florida (Co1llilllled[rom page
Page 40 and 41: "Helicopter Day" (Continued/rom pag
Page 42 and 43: The Helicopter and the Valtellina,
Page 44 and 45: A company from over here that can g
Page 46 and 47: THE COST Of INSURANCE COMEDOWN TO f
Page 48: QUALITY KNOWN EWORLD. All around th

Untitled - HFI Historical Archive - Helicopter Association International

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