Whoops....

[AD SUPT Hopeful]

Didn't even know this was possible:

http://grab.orsm.net/priceless/helirefuel.mpg

 

[Typhoon1244]

Ouch! That sucks!

 

[peter185]

Helicopter guys, does this happen often? It seems like there should be something that prevents that from happening.

 

[Publishers]

yes

Yes it happens but usually it is the tail rotor that gets hit.

 

[Snakum]

You wouldn't think that the rotor could tilt that far forward, but I remember doing air assault missions in the UH60 back in the day and we were always cautioned about following a specific pattern going in and out of the bird. They told us that guys had been decapitated when walking directly in front.

It became doubley scarey when we saw the aftermath of a pilot who had walked into the tail rotor while staging in Bad Tolz.

Bad stuff ...

Minh

(Then there were the two guys who were following tank trails in Grafenwoer way too low in an OH58D ... and they planted the skids right into the windshield of an oncoming Hemmit. No one was killed but occupants of both vehicles needed fresh underwear )

 

[mudkow60]

I talked to my '53 buddie, and he said that the guy just over corrected way too much. And as per the tail rotor hitting the fuel probe???

 

[rainman_02]

A friend of mine knew of a C-130 crew chief that was so wrapped up in what he was doing that he walked through the running blades of an engine.

On the other side, he was so amazed at what he had just done and survived that he turned around and tried to walk back through. He was killed.

 

[Mud Eagle]

My father, way back in the day, was a flight engineer on B-29s. He had a similar experience...walking near the fuselage from in front the wing while the engines were running.

Yes, total loss of SA, but he regained his SA when he was struck ever-so-slightly on top of the cranium by the edge of one blade.

It cut a big gash in his headset and his hat he was wearing under it, and flung both off his skull. When he felt the prop strike, he fell right to the ramp, knowing immediately what had happened.

His only wound was a cut in his scalp worthy of stitches and a couple day DNIF, but that's about it.

Talk about a "I'm never gonna do that again" moment! He shows off the scar as a "I'm lucky but stupid" trophy.

 

[rjl2001]

wow, that's pretty ugly. i've heard of the refueling hose getting sliced but never the helo's own probe. show's how much the blades can droop though, i wouldn't have thought that was possible.

 

[AA717driver]

The CFO of a local corporation bounced out of the company's S-76 and bounded around the front of the helo to get to his limo. The disc was tilted full forward to allow more room on the sides...

The pilots had front row seats... TC

 

[T-topflyer]

Very possible for the rotor arc to dip to such extremes. With the H-60 it can dip as low as 4 feet from the deck in certain situations.
Which is why the aircrew are so serious about exiting the arc at the 3 and 9 o'clock positions.

 

[FL000]

Whatever nickname that particular craft has, it should be changed to "Lorena."

 

[AxisVDP]

Very possible for the rotor arc to dip to such extremes. With the H-60 it can dip as low as 4 feet from the deck in certain situations.
Which is why the aircrew are so serious about exiting the arc at the 3 and 9 o'clock positions.

hahahaha