that there are quite a few other functions.
First is the transport of personnel for crew
changes and the second is field support. Oil
field workers who man the platforms often
work schedules of seven days on and seven
days off. The larger helicopters that can
carry 10-plus passengers do much of the
crew changes and fly routes directly from
the home base, to as far out as 200-plus
miles offshore. They drop off 10 passengers
and pick up 10 more to return home. They
use a lot of fuel. Field support is done using
the smaller helicopters. A field could be a
100-square-mile area where a customer
may have as many as 10 to 35 platforms.
The smaller aircraft is constantly on the
move within this field and could be refueling five or more times a day. Many of the
days refueling operations are “hot” refuels,
or rapid refueling (RR), due to the limited
number of refueling points in the Gulf and
that only one helicopter at a time can take
on fuel. This means that others awaiting
their turn will have to circle the platform
until the deck is clear.
Fuel quality and quantity are critical. There are numerous quality control
inspections done daily, monthly and yearly
on these fuel systems. Quantity is checked
daily and the level is reported to the helicopter company via phone or radio.
Each helicopter company provides its
own fuel and decides where it wants to
establish refueling locations offshore. It
does depend on what oil companies they
have contracts with when determining
these locations. Fuel consumption from
the location must be monitored carefully
to assure availability. It is a constant exercise
to operate the offshore helicopters with
minimum legal fuel so payload can be
maximized. It is critical that fuel be available when the fuel stop is flight planned.
Fish Spotting
Small single-engine airplanes are used
to find schooling fish, usually just off the
beach. As many as five of the airplanes are
stacked up directing the boats to those fish,
and their attention is mostly on the fish,
not the airspace. Care must be used when
nearing these operations.
Crowded Airspace
On a daily basis, there are at least 500
helicopters operating offshore in an area
from Mobile, Ala. to Port Mansfield, Texas.
This arc contains some 88 helicopter bases.
A good guess is that the majority operate
from the shore to about 100 miles out.
Most operate below the 3,000-foot segmented circle of even/odd altitudes established by FAA guidelines. Destinations
are shared by almost all of the helicopters,
regardless of the helicopter operator who
has a contract with a particular customer.
With the exception of the towered airports on the beach, and a few company-controlled locations, the use of the VHF
radio, and published procedures, is the best
defense against midair collision.
Passengers
There is no comparison of passenger management in helicopter operations versus
airline operations. Passengers in the helicopter world have no seat assignments or
boarding passes. The life vest goes on the
body, not under the seat. Passengers open
and close their own doors and talk to the
pilot. A passenger sits in the copilot’s seat
and helps the pilot look for airborne traffic.
Passengers load and unload their baggage
and tools. If qualified, a passenger might
even refuel the helicopter.
Sometimes these do-it-yourself things
go awry. An incident some years ago
occurred when an experienced passenger
was sitting in the copilot seat and he lodged
his foot between the cyclic stub and the
vertical seat wall. The helicopter crashed
into the sea, but not before the passenger
apologized to the pilot. The pilot survived
but the passenger did not.
Tools have been thrown into spinning
rotors, baggage doors have been left open
or unlocked, passengers on the heli-deck
have been hit by moving helicopters, and
some have walked into tail rotors. In spite
of being told repeatedly, there are some
that insist on undoing their seat belts even
before the skids are down on the deck.
How do you manage your passengers
when you have to fly a very complicated
and attention-demanding aircraft? Do
the briefings and hand out briefing cards.
Some of the oil companies have videos of
how to conduct yourself around the helicopter, as do the helicopter operators.
Safety and Training
Every large helicopter operator in the Gulf
has a safety and training department that
meets or exceeds FAR Part 135 requirements. What is unique here in the Gulf
of Mexico, is an organization called the
Helicopter Safety Advisory Conference
Five Year Gulf of Mexico Offshore Helicopter Accident Data
Number of Accidents Number of Accidents Aircraft Damages
Aircraft Category Injuries Severity Classification
Year
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
Yr. Avg.
#
Accidents
10
8
6
7
#
Fatal
4
2
1
2
1
2.0
Eng
Related Pax
2
16
2
16
14
04
04
1.0 8. 8
Crew Injured Fatal
6
7
3
5
Aviation Accident
Rates
Minor Substantial Total Loss Acc 100k Hrs Fatal Acc 100k Hrs Fatal 1 M Occupants Acc 100k Flt Stages
15
7
2.77 1.11 3.99 0.79
5 4 2.05 0.51 1.21 0.61
2 4 1.48 0.25 0.48 0.48
3 2 1.70 0.49 1.02 0.54
5 1 0.49 0.24 1.14 0.16
6.0 3. 6 1.70 0.52 1.57 0.52
Chart courtesy of HSAC.
0
0
1
0
1
0.4
3
4
1
5
