A nice piece of flying by an aerial firefighting pilot to autorotate with a jammed longline to a successful landing in an alfalfa field near Cache Creek, British Columbia on Aug 14. The aircraft suffered some kind of mechanical failure and the pilot couldn’t jettison the bucket so he or she made the best of it with a last second flare. There have been no reports of injuries and the helicopter doesn’t appear to be damaged. Anyone who knows more about this incident can fill us all in about it in the comments below. Thanks to Karl Weber for posting the remarkable video.
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When I see video like this or that CFI who threaded a needle to get her Cherokee safely onto an interstate, it makes me proud to be a pilot. Some great flying!
Excellent autorotation and energy for a smooth flare. Congratulations!
Cudos to the Pilot! It did look scary especially at the end…
Smoooth on the outside.
Working the controls like a butter churn on the inside.
I agree on the masterful job of getting both craft and cargo on the ground safely, but I don’t understand why an auto was necessary. Was it not possible to set down the load, then back away from it, keeping the line in sight and reasonably taut? I have a chopper, but zero sling-load experience (and frankly, don’t want any). I don’t think I’d be comfortable choosing to set my load down behind me in an auto. I’m not going to criticize a successful outcome, but that wouldn’t have been my first choice.
Any sling-loaders willing to explain?
Or is it as simple as: this wasn’t a winch issue but an engine out?
I thought the auto-rotation was due to engine failure.
The prose is not clear whether the “some kind of mechanical failure” was related to why “the pilot couldn’t jettison the bucket” or the powerplant. Indeed, if the pilot had two problems (one with the engine) then an auto was the best option.
Sorry. I thought it was clear. A failure prompted the emergency landing and the jammed hook was a complicating factor was how I interpreted the very brief social media post and what I meant to convey. Still hoping someone who knows more will chime in.
I have the same confusion.