Apache crash

[flipper35]

Looks like a slight misjudgment pulling out. Also, why didn't he just slam the collective down once he was on the ground?

http://www.military.com/video/military-aircraft-operations/crash-landings/insane-apache-crash-in-afghanistan/1518984816001/

Edit - can't seem to embed this video.

[GH85Carrera]

I bet that was his last flight as a pilot.

[Seahawk]

"The Laws of Aerodynamics are unforgiving and the ground is hard.'' Michael Collins.

But for the grace of God, a few turns of the rotor and about five feet go I.

[Rikao4]

fast & low is fun..
but you gotta remember were too low is..
he was showing off..
glad everybody is okay..

Rika

[flipper35]

I bet there was a run on clean underwear considering where he first hit the ground compared to the bystanders. I was suprised all survived since the second hit looked pretty nasty.

[Rikao4]

didn't see a fire..
they stayed buckled..
folks got to them quickly..

we lost a H-60 to a 'brownout'..
bird beat itself to death..
took a while...
the only guy hurt..
was the one thrown clear..

Rika

[TheMentat]

I cant believe how lucky those guys down-range were!

[Rikao4]

you want lucky..
C-130 doing low level drops..
one pilot was standing behind the guys in the cockpit...
loadmasters in the back..
one is NOT tethered...
just before 'fireball' occurs..
those 2 go flying....
I picked them out of the bushes..
couple of fractures and some scratches..
on the way back we had possible engine failure..
they are laying in front of me as I get into the crash position..
turned out to be a buckle slapping againts the Helo..
they refused to get back in..
took a ride in the Ambu. instead..

Rika

[slakjaw]

What's a collector ?

[BReif61]

Originally Posted by slakjaw

What's a collector ?

A collective is a helicopter control. I'll let one of the pilots fill in the details.

[Flieger]

I'm not a pilot but the collective refers to the collective pitch lever, which the pilot operates in a manner much like a handbrake in a Porsche but I think it is on the left side. Anyway, the collective changes the pitch of all the blades at the same time. In a hover, if you want to go higher, you pull up on the collective. Lower, you let the collective down a bit.

[stomachmonkey]

I've spent a lot of time in barren snow covered places.

Bright sunshine like that and lack of vertical reference makes it real easy to lose depth perception.

Glad no one was hurt.

[afterburn 549]

TALK about Pilot ERROR !
His The Blades were all funneled up at the end of his Victory roll.
Collective is the dodad that adds and subtracts pitch to the Main rotor blades.....
He was probably at high altitude to start.....all dwn hill from there

[Tervuren]

Originally Posted by slakjaw

What's a collector ?

Others have already chimed in, but it controls the angle of the helicopter blades, full down, would invert the force, holding the helicopter to the ground.

Go watch some videos of stunt RC helicopters being flown, they fly full throttle at all times, and control what they are doing with the collective, they can fly upside down by reversing pitch.

There is a lot of rotational mass in the rotor, and engine assembly, you can't make quick adjustments with the throttle to control the helicopter, so instead, you control the angle of the blade.

[flatbutt]

holy crap! is that the helo equivalent of a flat spin?

[A930Rocket]

Somebody ran out of air space and talent....

[Joeaksa]

Scuttlebutt I heard is that density altitude and the pilot miss-judging how the helo was going to act at a high altitude were major factors in this accident.

At least they made it out. We can build new helo's...

[asphaltgambler]

Was he tryin to stall it as he flew over the building and pulled up and then do a roll over?? As the video started the first thing I thought of was all snow and cold, most likely thin air - this is not going to go well. Even I know that

[afterburn 549]

I am sure it was a High altitude area...Or was loaded way too hvy
....when he went past and pulled up he should have shot up......that did not happen.....just got soggy

[asphaltgambler]

When it 'got soggy' as he was pulling up - that should have been what the police call a 'clue' to the pilot- I mean from that video on the ground the helo's pulling up did look lazy to me....... I thought at that moment when it was rolling over it was going to crash into the building .......

Discussing this isn't there a true story where in WWII some guys were flying back in a B-29 (I believe) after a raid in northern Europe and did similar hot-doging? On the way back to their base the pilot saw a large lake and decided it would be 'fun' to do a strafing run down to @10ft altitude above the lake water..........................until he mis-judged the attack angle and the air quality and hit the water.

The story goes they all survived as the aircraft floated intact for a few moments after coming to a stop and the crew was able to exit. Of course the pilot and crew made up some story about being 'attacked' and they had to zoom down to avoid the enemy. The plane sank to the bottom.

Years later some B-29 enthusists had tracked this thing down hopeing to recover it but the lake was impossibly deep and in a mountainous area