Long live Rescue India Juliet

RichardTaylor

RichardTaylor

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As Bristows lost the contract, at Lee on Solent, India Juliet (BDIJ) was replaced last summer by Whiskey Bravo (although an occasional visit from India Juliet suggest she is being used at Portland???) and CHC are replacing the helicopters with Augusta Bell 139s.

Well the new helicopter shed at Lee has been in operation since the first week of January, and today a AB139 was parked up outside the new shed, before being parked up inside the new shed.

The good news, the registration is either CDIJ or BCIJ - assuming this helicopter is due to remain at Lee then Long live Rescue India Juliet /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif
 
Long live IJ - as long as it doesnt have to pick up a dozen crew members from a sinking freighter.

'Cos they wont all get inside the new IJ helo........

Mind you - the Old IJ was bloody enormous (you could have played table tennis inside it!) so maybe the law of averages has prevailed.
 
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The AB139 is a joke for heavy CG SAR work. It can only carry a handful of casualties. Bring back the Sikorsky S61N

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The size of the new hangar would suggest they have made provision for this eventuality?

Either that or it is another example on how to waste a shed load (or hangar load?) of public money.
 
Snapped during the Trafalgar thingie a few years ago.
tra07a.JPG
 
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The AB139 is a joke for heavy CG SAR work. It can only carry a handful of casualties. Bring back the Sikorsky S61N

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Absolute cr*p.

The helos have been assigned following a careful analysis of need - the two northern bases, Shetland & Stornoway, have the new large SKs because long endurance, high casualty number incidents is what they get.
On the south coast, the vast majority of calls are single person casualties over a short distance - ideal for the Augusta, which is far faster than the old S61Ns.
On a major English Channel incident, Portland & Solent bases are close enough to allow double helo working, and large aircraft cover is available from Belgium and France. Distance work further down the coast remains the job of Chivenor and Culdrose, which it always was.
For once, the MCA has made absolutely the right decision.
All they need now is someone who isn't on strike to coordinate the thing!
Simon
 
Hi Simon, Ahem - I did write "heavy CG SAR work" as you explained so well. Their 450nm all weather range is needed off the Atlantic coast where regualarly they pull entire crews off fishing and commercial vessels. Sure I appreciate light helos are more suitable for short range one casualty ops in areas like the south coast of the UK as portrayed so well by BBC's SeaSide Rescue program, but the AW139 would be extermely limited off the coast of Ireland or North Sea. The S-61N can carry between 26 and 30 pax and it's built like a tank.
 
So how would that have worked recently when Bounder lost its keel round the back of the isle of wight and turned over and 14 crew needed rescuing by helicopter?
 
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but the AW139 would be extermely limited off the coast of Ireland or North Sea.

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Which is why the two northern isles bases have got new S92s, with long range fuel tanks fitted.

And sorry, hadn't spotted the "heavy" comment earlier. Numpty moment!

As to the 14 crew Isle of Wight scenario, I would image either both helos would be tasked, or one would lift / dump on shore / lift to get the job done.

In that case it wouldn't be ideal, but would still be on scene significantly quicker than the S61.

Simon
 
Not necessarily. It's obviously weight limited.

Lower down we have.
Crew: Minimum 1 pilot
Capacity: 12-15 passengers or 6,124 lb (2778 kg) maximum useful load

So a SAR crew = 2 x pilots, 1 x winch op, 1 x winch man = 4.

Now add a whole load of SAR kit & you have a casualty load probably below 10.

However, you look at it it has a reduced capacity over the old bird. It's around the same speed and has a reduced range.
 
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As Bristows lost the contract, at Lee on Solent, India Juliet (BDIJ) was replaced last summer by Whiskey Bravo (although an occasional visit from India Juliet suggest she is being used at Portland???) and CHC are replacing the helicopters with Augusta Bell 139s.

[/ QUOTE ]IJ was replaced by WB earlier because IJ had some non-working parts which weren't essential for Portland SAR as they don't provide 24 hour cover.

IJ is still the operational aircraft out of Portland and the standby VA is also there, just waiting for some new fuel tank seals to get active again.
 
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The size of the new hangar would suggest they have made provision for this eventuality?

Either that or it is another example on how to waste a shed load (or hangar load?) of public money.

[/ QUOTE ]The hanger was probably sized like they did with the new ones at Portland to enable the largest UK based helicopter to be housed inside.
 
According to the picture in the Dorset Echo today, Friday, (sorry no link available) the new birds call sign is G-CGIJ.
 
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According to the picture in the Dorset Echo today, Friday, (sorry no link available) the new birds call sign is G-CGIJ.

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The 'old' IJ flew over my house, (East of the Solent) yesterday afternoon heading West.
 
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