Copter

Senator Charles Schumer promise to try and save the Presidential Helicopter Program. Last week, the Lockheed Martin Owego stop work on the Presidential Helicopter program.

The order affects Phase 1 and Phase 2. Schumer’s proposing to include Phase 1 in the House and Senate budgets.

“We haven’t gotten any commitments, but we are getting an understanding that cutting it completely makes no sense from a fiscal point of view,” said Schumer.

5 helicopters in Phase 1 are already built. Schumer says safer helicopters are needed because the President’s current one is 30 years old.

The family of a flight nurse killed with two other people when a medical helicopter crashed last summer near Indianapolis. The helicopter’s main rotor blade either contacted unmarked power lines or “spontaneously separated without contact,” causing the deadly crash.

Attorneys hired by National Bank of Indianapolis filed the lawsuit in Marion Superior Court last week on behalf of Pearson’s two children, Gabrielle, 8, and Garrett, 10.

“These helicopter crashes have real human life consequences,” said Gary Robb, a Kansas City, Mo., attorney representing the plaintiffs. “I’m going to make sure these children do not have any kind of financial hardship over the death of their mother.”

The bodies of all five victims of a Dec. 11 helicopter crash off Sabine Pass have been recovered.
The helicopter was bound for a Gulf of Mexico oil platform.

Jefferson County Justice of the Peace identified three victims, whose bodies were recovered the day of the accident, as: the pilot, 43-year-old Joseph Laugelle Jr. of Quincy, Mass.; 23-year-old James Cody Smalts of Huntsville; and 51-year-old John Larry Conn of Katy.

The body of 26-year-old Jacob Matt of Jennings, La., was discovered Dec. 15 by volunteers patrolling a beach at the McFaddin National Wildlife Refuge.

The wife of one of the workers killed in a Sunday helicopter crash is suing the company that operated the aircraft.

The Sikorsky S-76C, carrying a pilot, co-pilot and seven workers bound for a Shell Oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico, crashed about 2:10 p.m. Sunday in a marshy area of western Terrebonne Parish near Bayou Penchant, authorities said.

Boudreaux, who lived with his mother in Ama, was one of five men working for New Iberia-based Dynamic Industries who were headed to the platform aboard the helicopter. Three of his co-workers, Ezequiel Cantu, 35, Andrew Moricio, 30, both of Morgan City and Randy Tarpley, 53, of Jonesville, died in the crash.

Two other passengers killed, Jorey Rivero, 35, of Bridge City and Charles W. Nelson, 24, of Pensacola, Fla., worked for MMR Offshore Services, headquartered in Baton Rouge, officials said.

Pilot Thomas Ballenger, 63, of Eufaula, Ala., and co-pilot Vyral Martin, 46, of Hurst, Texas, were also killed.

In a sky-high drama construction workers on Saturday installed the underpinnings for the spire atop Donald Trump’s Chicago skyscraper, which ranks as America’s second-tallest building after Sears Tower.

Sikorsky S-61 helicopter dangled three-legged steel sections of the spire over the tower’s roof. Ironworkers aligned the sections, then bolted them into place, despite the blasts of cold air from the winds and the helicopter’s clattering blades.

As the spectacle unfolded more than 1,300 feet above the sidewalk, with the chopper levitating near such landmarks as the Wrigley Building, pedestrians on Michigan Avenue stopped in their tracks and recorded the sight with a variety of devices–cell phone cameras, camcorders and conventional cameras.

After the helicopter lowered the fifth section of the spire into place, an iron worker clad in a red jacket climbed to the top of the section and disengaged the cable to which the steel piece had been attached. Seen through binoculars, he resembled a fly. “That’s the lead dog pulling the sled,” said one onlooker on the construction team.

The Kansas City Missouri Police Department will be getting a special delivery from the U.S. Army at about 7 p.m. Tuesday.

The Army will deliver a surplus helicopter to the Helicopter Unit at 4601 Eastern. The Special Operations helicopter from Fort Campbell, will beef KCPD’s helicopter fleet up to four choppers. The 1972 helicopter has a better engine than those currently in KCPD’s fleet and is valued at about $200,000. The Army is giving it to the police department at no cost. A similar new helicopter without police equipment would cost about $1.5 million, said Captain Pat Grove, commander of the Patrol Support Unit. [Read the rest of this entry...]

A helicopter of the air force crashed in Phu Kradung national park in Loei province of Thailand on Saturday morning, injuring two people on board. The copter was carrying equipments for a telecommunication station of the national park.

According to deputy air force spokesman, the plan crashed when it was landing at the station.

A thorough investigation would be done to see whether heavy rain and wind at the time were the cause of the crash.

Helicopter development is hampered by the fact that for so long it has been a zero sum game, with designers only able to improve forward speed at the expense of hovering ability and low speed control, and vice versa. This, combined with other inherent design restrictions, has kept the top cruise speed for conventional helicopters at roughly 150—170 knots. Looking to overcome these limitations, Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. is working on a coaxial design aimed at realizing a cruising speed of 250 knots. First announced in 2005 and having recently achieved a major ground-testing milestone, the X2 is a scalable technology demonstrator that can hover, land vertically, manoeuvre at low speeds, and transition seamlessly from hovering to forward flight. In the words of Sikorsky’s president, Jeffrey Pino, it could prove to be a real ‘game changer’ for the industry.
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Havoc Heli is the world’s smallest, most advanced radio-controlled helicopter � capable of incredible maneuverability. Laser Battle Helis are armed with infrared beam weapons, so you can duel in a kind of exciting real-world 3D “video game” � complete with authentic battle sounds and action! Laser Battle comes complete with two Havoc Helis (each with distinctive markings) and two wireless controllers/chargers (with radio channel selector). You have two-toggle, four-way directional control of dual-rotary blades and a tail rotor � fly up, down, left, right, forward, back or hover with amazing precision. You’ll need it to survive! Havoc Helis are rated “Easy To Fly,” which means with a little practice, anyone can pilot these like a pro.

Air Hogs has reached a new limit with the amazing Havoc Heli Laser Battling Set! Now you can battle helicopters with your friends and shoot them down from the sky. Simply fly into position, fire from your controller and BAM! your opponent goes into a wild tailspin! The Havoc Heli Battling set comes complete with 2 helicopters, 2 controllers, authentic battling sounds, 2 long life rechargeable LIPO batteries and real infrared targeting.

If you enjoy the fun of radio-controlled helicopters, but don’t always want to leave the comfort of your couch to go outside and play, check out copter models from Amazon. Measuring a mere six inches long and weighing only a half pound, these small but mighty choppers are made for indoor dueling – so you don’t have to quit flying just because of bad weather or a dark sky. A crash-resistant foam fuselage means you can perfect your piloting skills using the dual-toggle, single-throttle wireless controller. The twin drive props in back and dual rotors on top provide exceptional stability and precise six-way directional control — up, down, left, right, forward, and back. Sled-style landing gear means set-downs should be gentle, too.