Mikey crashed

[Bill Bridges]

They bought 923SM..... I’m angry and heartbroken.

Anne,

I feel your pain. When I went to the lift platoon I flew the same aircraft almost everyday with the same crew chief. We worked on it and had it where the blades tracked well, so it had a good ride up to and past the red line. I'd invested a case of beer with the guys in the engine shop so if had lots of power.

I was down one day and another A/C flew it. Things didn't turn out as planned in an LZ in Laos, so they ended up blowing it in place. The replacement I got was a brand new "H" model with less than 20 hours on it. Just before I left it was given to the ARVN.

Grace and Peace,

[Doug Ritter]

Sorry, Anne. That is an awful feeling, almost like losing a member of the family.

[Anne Umphrey]

Ray, I hope that he never gets into an aircraft again, in reply to Ray Tackett's comment. Certainly not as anything other than a private pilot.

[Russell Holton]

Sorry to hear that. It really sucks.

[Patty Haley]

Sorry Anne

[Ray Tackett]

709 ride, anyone? (If that's what it's called)

It is called a 709 ride. However, in the case of a commercial pilot making such a blunder, a successful 709 ride would likely be irrelevant. His employability as a pilot is badly damaged.

[Dave Siciliano]

I was a partner in an A-55 Baron for about a year. When I bought the P-Baron, I agreed to sell it and my partners wanted to sell too. The fella that purchased that landed gear up in less that 5 hours of flight time. It was sold for salvage. We just couldn't believe it.

[Stephanie Belser]

WTF

Further, the ropes used to tie down the helicopter’s main rotor blades were found wrapped around the rotor head swashplate and pitch control rods.

709 ride, anyone? (If that's what it's called)

[Stephanie Belser]

I am so sorry to hear that, Anne. The thing I tell myself about my airplane sitting in a hangar at KFAM is at least nobody's going to crash it.

[John O'Shaughnessy [FCM]]

Very sorry to hear that, Anne!

[Ray Tackett]

Very sorry to hear Anne. We had a accident like that in RVN where a GP strap a backseater had on his lap came loose and wrapped around the rotor mast. Seems like things that have happened years ago keep happening.

Somewhere around An Khe, a UH-1D was spinning up, apparently to take a piece of brass somewhere. The brass' jeep pulled up with a low-frequency whip antenna extended. Dunno if it was Brass on an obsequious driver, but the jeep tried to pull up alongside the door, under the spinning main rotor. The antenna became a long razor blade whipping around for a revolutioin or so, then flew off. Nobody hurt, but the next dangerous item whipping around was the now-delaminated leading edge foil of the main rotor. Fortunately, nobody hurt, but a Hook had to come get the Huey off to a repair depot.

Dunno if it was CLM for the brass, or Article 15 for the driver, or nothing at all. Good thing the ship did not have door guns. The pilot and crew were NOT happy.

[Bill Bridges]

I had a CWO in my recon platoon try to start an OH-58 with the main rotor still tied down. One of the other pilots saw what was happening and reach in the door an shut it down. It was a CLM.

[Dave Siciliano]

Very sorry to hear Anne. We had a accident like that in RVN where a GP strap a backseater had on his lap came loose and wrapped around the rotor mast. Seems like things that have happened years ago keep happening.

[A. Niemyer]

Oh dear me. Anne, I’m so sorry to read that sad news.

Andy

[Tina Gonsalves]

Oh no. Sorry to hear that, Anne. As for Boatpix? They always scare the crap out of me when they circle taking photos of our boat while we're in Fishers Island Sound. Afraid they're going to hit the mast!