Got a helo ride

Harry_S.

Gold Supporter
Joined
Oct 30, 2003
Messages
5,649
Location
Ocala, Florida
Aircraft
RAF2000
Total Flight Time
2000+ hrs.
A friend flew in Saturday for a short visit. He wanted to see my RAF and I wanted to eyeball his Hughes 269A.

We both reciprocated with nice comments of the other's machines.:D

I must say, he has one fine helo. It's a 1967 Hughes 269A and per the logs it has been around the circuit. It spent 6 or 7 years at Rucker and various flight schools other commercial operations. I forget what year it was restored but it looks great and flew great.

Visibility out that bubble is better than my RAF...but it costs a lot more $$ too.

Just two pics here. One of me buckling in and another at taxi.


Cheers :)
 

Attachments

  • triptogreystone10-14-2006021.jpg
    triptogreystone10-14-2006021.jpg
    57.6 KB · Views: 0
  • DSC00210.JPG
    DSC00210.JPG
    26.7 KB · Views: 0
Last edited:
I got a ride in one of these at an airshow. neat machines!
 
Theres one of those at my airport. I got a couple of chances to fly it. It was very different to master the controls than I`m used to with the gyro. I hovered in one spot for 10 mins , then down the runway, & talked the guy into letting me fly the pattern. By the time I flew the pattern & landed the thing when I got out of it I could hardly walk. I was all knotted up! Very intense!:twitch:
 
Looks good. Did you give him a ride in your RAF?



Nope...sorry to say I couldn't. It seems he was disappointed as well.

He caught me by surprise when he e-mailed me Sat. morning and said he and his wife were going to take a ride...either North or South from their airport and if I was available they would head my way; being as we had never met face to face...he wanted to put a face to the name...well, me too.

Any way, the reason I couldn't take him for a ride was that the wheels were off my machine and I was working on the brakes...AGAIN.:der:

It's been more than 35 yrs. since I controlled a helo so, I didn't do well at all. Air work was okay, but hovering and landing was ****. I guess I would need 8-10 hrs. of dual to solo again...if then?!


Cheers :)
 
What is the cabin vibraion level in those compared to your RAF Harry?



Well Gary; I will try to describe the ride, per your request.

The ride itself was rock solid compared to the RAF...my reasoning being, the machine is being held aloft and being moved by a powered rotor vs the pusher prop.

The sound comparison is no contest as my machine has no doors and his had tightly closed doors.

With his three blade rotor, the cabin hop was barely perceptible. A rotorcraft pilot would know what I mean. A "hop" is there but...

What impressed me the most was, looking down at ground reference, it didn't *feel* like we were moving too fast but when I scanned the ASI it showed 65 knots and we were flying crosswind at the time?!

All in all...I think the helo is a better ride but...there's no contest in the cost involved. He has obtained a single blade that will replace a timed out blade in another 100 hrs...cost, 8,000 dollars. His annual insp. costs 3500 dollars. I didn't ask him what his insurance costs.

So...I like my RAF for recreational flying.:lalala:


Cheers :)
 
Top