What it Takes to Perfectly Land a Helicopter During a Storm

Hello everyone and welcome back to the Fluctus channel. Air travel is the most affected mode of travel due to adverse weather conditions. But imagine if you have to land on moving, small and narrow runways or landing decks in the middle of the ocean. In today's feature, let's explore the drastic situations faced by these aircraft. And the sophisticated protocols executed in such situations. One of the most challenging tasks for the pilots of helicopters is a safe landing on the deck of a ship amidst rough seas. For this, ship helicopter integration entities work towards developing ideal systems and methods for safer landings. They also develop ship helicopter operating limits based on a combination of environmental factors and ship motion and are derived through first-of-class flight trials. These trials require an experienced test pilot to perform a number of deck landings in various wind over deck conditions, giving a subjective workload rating for each test point. Consequently, specialized operating procedures are implemented in such scenarios. When the helipad or the winching area on the ship is not stable enough, the helicopter touches down by availing hauling devices installed on the ship. This provides safety and firmness for the helicopter as well as the crew on board, who then go ahead with locking the aircraft to the deck. I am the LSE, so I guide helicopters into our flight deck and I land them and we do multiple operations with them. I think being forward deployed out here, it kind of tests your boundaries and your mental ability and your ability to adapt to change. You have to be ready and I think that's why being out here is a good thing for people. Landing any aircraft on a moving runway is challenging in any condition. A good communication path between the pilot and the vessel's bridge team conveys all the vital information, such as the required course and speed of the ship in accordance with the prevailing weather conditions. The trained personnel, often called the deck party crew, practice and perform all the safety precautions and drills, covering all eventualities. The crew from the crash and salvage division stands ready to save lives and prevent any further damage to an aircraft in the instance of a flight deck related emergency, such as a failed aircraft carrier landing. Flight deck drills are conducted to ensure immediate recovery and rescue of personnel due to a crash or to deal with any other fatality on board. Any type of aircraft emergency, let's say an aircraft is actually on fire, we'll move in with the firefighting vehicle and fight the fire and clear a rescue path. That's our main function. A firefighting truck acts as the first responder in an emergency, followed by the Tilly or the crane operator initiating the phases of clearance of the landing area using dollies. A speedy and precise response is needed to prevent the catastrophe from escalating and to allow aircraft recovery to continue on the flight deck. Pilots of commercial aircraft face a similar set of challenges. Various factors, such as bad weather conditions and dynamics of the runway surface, influence the difficulty level of a landing. In July 2007, a TAM Airlines aircraft overran runway 35L located in Sao Paulo in rainy conditions and crashed into a nearby warehouse, causing 199 fatalities in total. Airport management is vital in ensuring sufficient preventative and precautionary procedures are in place for emergencies. Accurate weather forecasts, careful planning of stand allocations to accommodate any additional aircraft onto the airfield, changes in flight schedules, workforce management, are some of the factors at play in preparing for the worst case scenarios, especially during the winter seasons. Most airports, like the Raleigh-Durham International Airport, would take proactive measures to ensure their airport remains open. We've also been closely coordinating with the National Weather Service office in Bali on forecasts so that we are ready no matter if the storm fluctuates or not. Over the weekend, we're going to have nearly 100 Airport Authority employees. That is one-third of our workforce here on site to make sure that the airport is operational throughout the winter weather event. In the winters, runways are highly prone to be contaminated by snow or ice. As a result, most airport authorities aim to clear these frozen deposits using plowing trucks equipped with special chemicals which help in fast and effective cleaning of the runway. Apart from this, the aircraft itself goes through de-icing procedures for the removal of any frozen or semi-frozen moisture from critical external surfaces and protecting them from subsequent contamination. De-icing products or fluids are used on the wings, engine blades, fuselage, and other components that cause frozen deposits to melt or to prevent the freezing of liquid on the landing surface. It takes more than a skilled pilot to land their craft, whether on land or on seagoing airbases. It takes a highly experienced and well-coordinated team to ensure the pilot can safely land. And if things were to go wrong, it does not cause any fatalities. Technologies and innovation are constantly developed to make this operation safer in any weather condition, but the human factor cannot be undermined as Mother Nature is full of surprises. That's the end of this video. I hope you enjoyed it. Make sure to subscribe to this channel so you don't miss any of our new content. See you next time!