I was Coast Guard at the JRCC in Halifax, the mission panning hasn't been changed, just modern equipment that gives a bigger operating envelope. I am glad the hoist sequence was filmed in its entirty. If you multiply the number of people on board times the 15 minutes it took to do 1 hoist, you can see hoisting is not a timely option when pressed for time. A shout out to Lt Col Lowery, Cdr 413 Transport Rescue, Major Colin Gillis Cdr 103 Rescue CFB Gander and to the late Capt. D. J. WILLIAMS who started all of this up here in 1960 " So that others may live* ( motto)
That was an excellent video and mission. These videos are important not only for increasing your profile but also for creating a valuable historical record for the future. Well done everyone.
I shared this with my Black Hawk crews down south in New Hampshire, Matt. Great video. Our bread and butter is mountain rescue; fascinating to see another perspective, and the challenges at sea.
Matt, just came across your channel. In my 50's, Atlantic Canada here, most of my family both sides, from my Grandfathers onwards made/ make a living on the Atlantic ocean one way or another and all these years I heard so much praise and respect for the Coast Guard / SAR. Never ever heard a bad word about the Coast guard. The stories of the heroics and down right amazing feats in abysmal conditions performed by the SAR teams both ship born and Helo crews to bring loved ones home safety while putting your own lives at risk in the worst conditions. Thank you for all that you guys do, mad Respect! Be safe!
Thanks for the kind words. A lot weather and a lot of people trying to make a living on the water out in Atlantic Canada. It often doesn't make for a good combination. (By the way, I'm Airforce, not Coast Guard)
Great Video! Excellent Explanation on Fuel/distances to Oil Rigs, refuelling, doing a hoist and making it to St.Johns. You Guys are Brave to face the North Atlantic Regularly in your casual day to day duties. Cool Fact: When the Cormorant flies approach into St.Johns, when flying over my house in Portugal Cove, Y'all about 400ft when, but if I'm laying on My bed, I can feel the whoop whoop of each rotor pass when directly above me. I can have ear buds, and Slayer on Blast, and laying there and am alerted still by the sheer feeling of the rotors shockwave without hearing a thing. Spooky sensation if you are not ready for it, or have experienced before. Cougar Chopper does same but feeling not as pronounced and deep as Cormorant.
I absolutely second this, I live in Cape Breton close to the Sydney airport when the cormorant flys over you sure know it. I’m also a volunteer firefighter and have had experiences directly with your crews (maybe yourself) it’s absolutely mind blowing to watch you and your team do your thing and JRCC is also on another level first time watching, life long subscriber!
As always, fantastic video, I know many people online prefer shorter cuts of things but especially the hoist portion being uncut, and the summed up apron meeting really bring into perspective how these operations work. This format reminds me of another channel, I can`t recall it. But they go around Korea showing factories, little tidbits of history & random yet relevant facts, kind of like `how it`s made` but just subtitles mostly and purely the ambient sound & mostly raw video recorded in situ, much like the swoosh of the Cormorant, it is far more appealing than over edited, music filled alternatives.
All that adventure... and PAY! There's no life like it! Love your videos, no music, no drawn out intro, no pointless babble, reading of the subtitles kind of gets one involved in the rescue effort... great stuff... more, more, more, please.
You and your team make the insanely difficult and complicated look easy with your skill, meticulous planning and calm assurance. Really cool to see the whole hoist segment.
Interesting story: My first mission as an Aircraft Commander(AC) was to pick up a helicopter pilot who got into some bad luck on Baffin Island. Turns out he was an ex Irish Coast Guard pilot. He face lit up when he realized it was my first mission as AC.
Thank you for posting this and for the terrific explanations throughout. It is awesome to see the curtain pulled back on SAR in Canada. It may sound trite (and probably is) but thank you for what you and your Squadron does day in and day out.
Top cover crewman here- great to see an in-depth view of your perspective and operational consideration during these ops. Keep up the great work! Would definitely love to see your rotary wing perspective of other mission types too!
As a former Canadian Army soldier I worked with the smaller griffons time to time and was jealous of their jobs. Funny thing....while in the army we trained for months/years to do a type of mission. You are doing missions daily.... day in and day out in miserable weather (I am a newfie also so I know the crap weather we gets) so I must say.....Thank you for your service brother! it no doubt makes a difference daily in many different lives of many different people.....Thank you!
Yup. Funny part is due to my lack of 'tours' I've been told more than one than once that I lack 'operational experience'. All good, I just shrug it off.
@@mattfrom103 yet you get operational experience every day. i known guys who went a 30 year career without a deployment....just training for one. You practice your professional duties every day, not just training in the hopes one day you might use it. You know peoples way of thinking sometimes
So glad you guys are there for us who work at sea, be it sailors or rig workers. It was a memorable experience I had approx. 15 years ago when some of your colleagues took part in our BST-refresher & a SAR-Tech was lowered to our raft. Greatly appreciate the work you do. Great video.👍
Thanks for sharing and loved the explanation at the start so I knew what you were planning to do. Made it easier to follow along and understand each phase of the mission. Cool to see Hibernia and wow that helicopter pad looked small! Again thanks for your service doing such an important life saving role. That’s a tough environment and part of our country to work in. Cheers and Happy New Year to you everyone at 103 Squadron.
Very interesting video. I have an old highschool friend who's a SAR Tech. Nice to see how he makes a living and helps others. Hats of to you and my old friend Danny L. Much respect.
Thank you for this explanation! Loved the calculation bit at the beginning. Makes you understand even more how much work goes in a SAR mission at sea. You've got a new subscriber. Saying hi from the Netherlands, and a Happy New Year to you, your crew members, your family, and your subscribers!❤
Wow amazing and beautiful at the same time. You get to fly top notch helicopter and one the largest and get paid and the best part is your helping your fellow man as a team, Bravo to all of the crew. BTW, I would do it for free because of the adventure and helping those in need .Cheers from Toronto.
As a SAR enthusiast, i was really impressed, how well done you guys performed :). Trully professionals. I see many SARs missions daily in Slovakia (i live close to military helicopter base) especially now in winter, due to our mountains high and low tatras, when they have daily few takeoffs, especially in bad weather conditions. Normally our standard SAR is held by "ATE" equipped with Agusta A109K2, EC 135 and Bell 429 helicopters. But in bad weather they call military Mil Mi-17 SAR helicopters due to their better performance (wind, snow etc.) and they fly from airbase above me. Just for fun, over the last 26 years, ATE has carried out a total of 30,557 interventions within the VZZS and its helicopters have flown more than 30,100 flight hours. :) keep working and as you say in north america: thank you for your service . Wish you good luck :)
Thanks for watching. Unfortunately I only recently acquired the capability to record the comms so there aren't many missions where I have audio. Any future missions I go on I will get audio though.
@@mattfrom103 As an ex Bristow trained SAR S76A++ pilot here in Trinidad with over 13,000 hours I can tell that you guys are a well oiled machine. And yes for the people watching, hearing the audio from the rear crewman to the pilots really adds to the appreciation for the crew coordination that takes place especially from the "rest" position in and out to the vessel and while over station, as well as the importance of your winch man to the overall safety of the hoist operation. Excellent video from start to end!!
@@josephdefreitas56 Thanks for the kind words. I'm envious of your location weather. If you're curious, one of my other videos called 'night boat hoist' or something similar does have all the audio.
What airspeed is the Cormorant making when taking off with a full fuel load at the point of transitioning to lifting off? How is this speed referred to (since its not Vrotation)?
Hi, I had the privilege of flying and working with a good number of ex-RCAF pilots at Bombardier-everyone a joy to work with and top notch aviators. Not helos, though, Hornets, Herks, and a former CO of 437.
You're turning into 103's version Match when he was with the Snowbirds. I love this channel, love the Cormorant, and love the work you all do. Thanks! (ex-19 Wing Met Tech)
Another successful mission and on to the next. Excellent details about the operation you were tasked to do and awesome video. Thank you once again for showing us the conditions that exist just off our coast and what's involved to bring someone back to safety. Well done !
Very interesting video, with great professionalism- thanks from the South of the UK for what you all do to help us when in need! I’d love to come along one day and meet you! 🙏🙏👍👍
Note during the hoist, there isn't a single second, when everybody isn't secured with safety lines,particularly during switchover from hoist cable to cabin lanyard. Thanks for the upload!
Matt ... the beginning whiteboard explanation was excellent! All the videos are amazing, and makes me so proud of our RCAF teams! QUESTIONS; maybe in a future video you can explain the purpose of the over-cover flight mission. Do they shadow all your sea missions? Also the medevac extracts - are they typically CTAS 1? Would be interesting to just get a brief statement of the seriousness of the patient condition when extracting, and what is possible (medical monitoring & intervention) on the transport leg to St. John's Hospital. AWESOME GUYS!!
I don't think I've ever been given a CTAS number before. A doc, or two, just make the determination that the person should be evacuated by quickest means (helicopter). Having worked at JRCC for a few years I can tell you that a lot of the medical requests do get turned down by the doctors. The docs determine that it's fine for the patient to take the time to sail in. It's almost a time based question. There is also the question of 'do you tell the pilots what the condition is'. I believe decades ago in the US they stopped telling the pilots of EMS helicopters what the condition/reason for the medevac was. They found a reduction in crashes. Last thing you ever want is to tell the pilot 'If you don't go they will die'. Here is a copy paste for what top cover does. I'll see about making a video about it because a lot of people asked. Thanks for the feed back. 1) Get to the boat first and give them a brief as to what is about to happen. Tell them to prepare their deck which could take time. 2) Find the boat for us and give us an exact position. 3) At night they will drop flares which can help create a horizon. 4) If something goes wrong (i.e. we end up in the water) they will be there to take charge of the scene and begin rescue operations. 5) If the vessel is taking on water or sinking they can drop supplies, pumps, or rafts. 6) If the medical scenario is dire and we are still hours away they can dispatch their SAR Techs via parachute to the boat to begin medical intervention. There's more than I am forgetting.
@@mattfrom103 Great explanation Matt. Thanks for taking the time. I can certainly understand not giving any medical info to the pilots. Makes sense. I didn't know that JRCC had doctors on hand doing an initial triage with the vessel calling for assistance and making the final decision to engage Gander to respond. Such an incredible coordinated operation. Given you've worked at JRCC, maybe a quick vid on that operation? No pressure. Thanks for all the info on the Top-Cover mission.
Absolutely fascinating and top notch work, both on the mission and with the video. Thanks for the written explanation in another comment on the Herc’s role, I was curious about that. 👍
Thank you for sharing! That was an awesome display of airmanship and skill from everyone involved. :) Great to see in its entirety too. I'd love to hear comms, is the FE verbally leading you with what he needs, since I assume you can't see most of what he can?
I have another video posted where you do get to hear the FE. It's a recent upload, I think it's called 'night mission boat hoist' or similar. But you are correct, the FE is verbally 'conning' me over the spot they need.
Greetings from a BC sailboat owner who greatly appreciates the work of you and your colleagues on both coasts. Two questions: (i) the relevant section (28A) in the Annual NOTMARs - "Helicopter Evacuation Procedures ..." does not specifically refer to sailboats. Nor does the similar USGC publication. Note that the auxiliary on the sailboat may be disabled. Any comments on potential differences in the preparation instructions for headings, maintaining steerage, maneuvering, etc?; and (ii) (28A Preparations 4) - "Put lights on any obstructions in the vicinity...": the usual choice is often a masthead anchor light. This can sometimes be turned into a white strobe light. Either will give a visual reference as to the mast height. Would the strobe be too bright/distracting? I understand that the instructions from the helicopter "...will take precedent". Thanks.
I don't have a lot of knowledge of experience in sailboat ops. The west coast squadron has a lot more. Sail boat ops are very challenging due to the height of the mast relative to the size of the ship and what the downwash can do to the sailboat. But yes, I would turn on all your nav lights, including the masthead. As for the rest of your questions I can't offer to many specific other than it will depend a lot on the circumstances and conditions of the day. But you can never go wrong with trying to secure as much as you can. In case of evacuation getting into immersion suits, having a PLB or EPIRB with you, and being right beside a radio. The last line of your in your comment is probably the most important; have a radio with you on 16. The helicopter will instruct you with what they want.
What is the role of your top cover aircraft? Where are they dispatched out of? This is some of the best content I’ve seen on RUclips. I love this format. Keep the videos coming.
Thanks for the kind words, it helps. This is a copy paste from one of my other comments. 1) Get to the boat first and give them a brief as to what is about to happen. Tell them to prepare their deck which could take time. 2) Find the boat for us and give us an exact position. 3) At night they will drop flares which can help create a horizon. 4) If something goes wrong (i.e. we end up in the water) they will be there to take charge of the scene and begin rescue operations. 5) If the vessel is taking on water or sinking they can drop supplies, pumps, or rafts. 6) If the medical scenario is dire and we are still hours away they can dispatch their SAR Techs via parachute to the boat to begin medical intervention. On that day they were dispatched from 413 Sqn in Greenwood, NS.
@@QBziZ Yes. They can relay radio messages as their radios are more powerful. However we don't do that too often as the Cormorant has satellite communications. But from time to time if we are low level the will relay instructions to the boat prior to our arrival.
The introduction and the talk through of the fuel considerations etc was interesting stuff. How do you take in to account winds though? I've seen videos of USCG MH60's in Alaska flying in poor weather and its taken them over an hour to do a few miles cause of headwinds. I realise Alaska is a fairly unique place in terms of weather conditions but how do you account for that in your preparation? What if the wind is stronger than you've allotted for? Do you scrub the entire thing and RTB?
The numbers I used are starting points for flight planning. From the initial plan I will then plug it into Foreflight on my iPad and see how it looks and adjust as necessary. I also use the website Windy to help me visualize what the winds are doing. Foreflight is surprisingly accurate when it comes to flight planning. If the winds are not as predicted and it doesn't look like we will have enough fuel to complete the mission we will of course do something about it. Most likely RTB or delay. Try again later. In all the planning we do there is a bit of contingency fuel, or 'fudge', built into it. The most substantial the weather the more fudge we will use. This is where experience comes into play. We can get substantial heads winds here as well. I've posted a video about doing a medevac with 110kt winds.
Great videos, thank You. Can you do a video on how the guideline is packed up. Here in Sydney Australia they use the hi-line so it’s not coiled up/packed like I see in your videos. We practice with the local air ambulance off our rescue vessel. I too also enjoyed your whiteboard sketch ups on the planning. Thanks. Cheers
It’s called crows nest(ing) and is a serious of slip knots around a coil of several wraps (full turns) something like crochetting with daisey chaining; works best with kern mantle rope (vs stranded); when tossed out of a hovering aircraft, the concentrated weight ensures a vertical drop (gravity) so there can be no possible entanglement with the spinning rotor blades above. (Learned about this from 424 4 decades ago.)
@@alee3146 great, thank You. I figured it must be a series of slip knots around the coiled up line. I’m not familiar with the line you mentioned. Cheers
loved the video, thank you for the detailed explanations. one more question: what is the point of the airplane providing top cover? it's not like you're in an active warzone
'Top Cover' is a bit of a layover from the predecessor to the Cormorant but still has uses today. Things they can do: 1) Get to the boat first and give them a brief as to what is about to happen. Tell them to prepare their deck which could take time. 2) Find the boat for us and give us an exact position. 3) At night they will drop flares which can help create a horizon. 4) If something goes wrong (i.e. we end up in the water) they will be there to take charge of the scene and begin rescue operations. 5) If the vessel is taking on water or sinking they can drop supplies, pumps, or rafts. 6) If the medical scenario is dire and we are still hours away they can dispatch their SAR Techs via parachute to the boat to begin medical intervention. It make not seem necessary in this video where everything appears to function smoothly but once you start dealing with smaller fishing boats or a more dynamic situation the points above start to make a lot more sense.
@@mattfrom103 "from the predecessor to the Cormorant" - you mean back when #4 was happening way too often? While I live my life in a way that I should never need SAR, I'm glad you now have equipment competent to do the job. (Also - this was an awesome video! I appreciate the step-by-step breakdown!)
@@athompso99 No, I understand the Labrador Helicopter was quite reliable. It was a navigation issue. This was before GPS. The Lab didn't have great navigation systems so it needed to follow the C-130 to find the ship. The C-130 had better navigation equipment.
@@mattfrom103 If the medical scenario is dire and we are still hours away they can dispatch their SAR Techs via parachute to the boat to begin medical intervention. ??? what? didnt know that dude... ty
Great video! Especially explaining the mission planning itself (Yes, I do secretly really like the idea of just pointing a camera at a whiteboard, instead of some fancy animation. There’s other channels for that😅) I do wonder what you do with the landing gear during hoisting operations. Do you guys lower it when there’s the tiniest chance of bumping the helicopter into something that isn’t water? And did I spot some fancy tablet holders under the GPS?👀 If so, that’s quite an elegant solution, compared to what’s possible in some aircraft.
Thanks for the compliments about the whiteboard, i'm not able to do fancy animation. I just shot it in my kitchen. To answer your first question for over water hoists the gear is normally up. In case of a water ditching or landing it is recommended the gear be up. For land hoists the gear is normally down. In case of an emergency landing (think engine failure) the landing gear is able to provide a lot of absorption and should minimize damage and injury. Second question. Those are actually paper approach plate holders. They were designed to hold Canadian sized paper approach plates. It's pure coincidence an iPad Mini fits perfectly.
Great video and I’ve a lot of respect for all the roles involved in that mission. I know you’ve to train for such calls anyway but if you can be honest here; just how required was all that resource-tasking for a single patient that remained conscious the whole time AND could walk to the ambulance? The helicopter could’ve been subsequently tasked for an overboard and hypothermic sailor. A fallen hiker with neck injuries. And so on. As I say, I acknowledge if you didn’t get the call, you’d be training for such anyway. But was that the case here and you’d have broken off and diverted to a higher priority case at any time during this shout?
I am not a doctor. The decision as to whether or not someone needs a medevac is left to doctors as part of the triage process. Plenty of people are able to walk into the back of an ambulance or an ER but still need immediate medical attention. In case of 2 taskings at the same time, JRCC would make the decision as to which is more important based on numerous factors.
Great insight, on the approach to the rig, my thought was “land, where ?” Is the aircraft moved into the hangar overnight, or does it have its own (ground powered) lubricant heating system onboard. Well done guys, and the coordination team, long day in anybody’s language 🥇
Yes, the aircraft will almost always spend the night in the hangar. It's much easier to do maintenance work in the hangar and it's better for it to be out of the elements. However, should it have to spend the night outside it only needs some protectives covers in place. There are not lubrican heating systems used, it's fine to start in the cold.
So neat to see that all the way through! Handy that the oil rig was out as far as it was to assist with the rescue (tasty meals included). I'm curious - the roll of the Hercules Top-Cover is what - spotting the ship? Recording conditions?
Top cover, here is a copy paste from another comment. 1) Get to the boat first and give them a brief as to what is about to happen. Tell them to prepare their deck which could take time. 2) Find the boat for us and give us an exact position. 3) At night they will drop flares which can help create a horizon. 4) If something goes wrong (i.e. we end up in the water) they will be there to take charge of the scene and begin rescue operations. 5) If the vessel is taking on water or sinking they can drop supplies, pumps, or rafts. 6) If the medical scenario is dire and we are still hours away they can dispatch their SAR Techs via parachute to the boat to begin medical intervention. There's more than I am forgetting.
That was a really good video Matt, thank you very much. I have one small request for you to consider. It's a bit awkward for lesser mortals like myself (only a fixed wing pilot) to try and watch all the action and at the same time try to read the captions. Would it be possible to trial placing the captions about 2/3rds up the screen? Thanks again :)
I can play around with that and see how it works. The other option is I start doing voice overs but I think a lot of people like watching things on mute.
Great Job Matt!. I liked also the part of the flight planning I found it quite important as the mission itself. Just a silly question: Does the CH-149 have an Auto Hover System while performing the Hoist Op? I mean, to reduce pilot work load
The Cormorant does have an auto hover. However, it is not normally useful while boat hoisting. At most we will use a radar altitude hold that will keep us exactly at the same height above the water. However, on such a large boat it doesn't work as the radar starts bouncing off the ship instead of the water. The auto hover can be transferred to the FE's and they can that maneuver the helicopter around. They have a small joystick back there. That puts a big work load on the FE and is usually only used on small tricky boats when the pilot doesn't have references. But in the video you saw it was all pilot flown, with only the basic AFCS being used. It was not a particularly difficult boat or weather conditions.
Hi Matt ... I know you're looking for some content ideas, so here's what's been going through my head after enjoying your vids so far; 1) territory - is there a similar Squad that does Baffin Island and Labrador Sea? Similar Danish Squad off the tip of Greenland that does the far North Atlantic? Or Iceland Squad? 2) Also I think you mentioned there is a Cormorant simulator? Can you show/tell us more? 3) Your career choice is fascinating, but how did you get here? Do the SAR Squads all advance through the RCAF promotion ranks? 4) Lastly, what are the ranks/roles in the SAR Squad? I believe you said you're a Senior Commanding Officer of 103. Do they all report to you while on a mission? 5) And I believe you said you will explain more about Top-Cover in the future. Their infrared video of 103 on a mission was fascinating! Oh and more on SAR training exercises like the wilderness survival, etc. Thank you sir for creating amazing Canadian RCAF Search and Rescue videos! Hope you had some relaxing family time off over the holidays. Happy New year.
Thanks for the suggestions and comments 1) The only other Squadron that is North of us is 444 Sqn in Goose Bay, NL. They fly a different machine. 2) There is a simulator. It is in the UK. I am not sure I will be granted permission to film in there but I will ask. We go about once a year. 3) I could talk about my career but I am trying not make this channel about me and more about what the Squadron I belong to does. I'll see. 4) I am not the Commanding Officer. I assure you. I am an Aircraft Commander. If I said I was a Commanding Officer it was in error. I would appreciate if you could point me to where I said that so I can fix my error. The reporting structure is, however, something I could talk about. 5) Yup, top cover. I have to talk about that. As well as how to make a guideline. THose are the top 2 questions I get.
This is a copy paste from one of my other comments. Top cover does this: 1) Get to the boat first and give them a brief as to what is about to happen. Tell them to prepare their deck which could take time. 2) Find the boat for us and give us an exact position. 3) At night they will drop flares which can help create a horizon. 4) If something goes wrong (i.e. we end up in the water) they will be there to take charge of the scene and begin rescue operations. 5) If the vessel is taking on water or sinking they can drop supplies, pumps, or rafts. 6) If the medical scenario is dire and we are still hours away they can dispatch their SAR Techs via parachute to the boat to begin medical intervention. There's probably a few other things I missed.
Awesome video all around. Curious to know.. How close were your pre-planning figures to actual? It doesn't look like the additional time required for the initial wave-off when trying to hoist the basket was an issue.
I just looked at some footage, I landed at the pad with a little over 1000kg or about 1hr15min till flame out. The hoist sequence did take less time than allotted and thus used less fuel than planned. I did leave the ship long before my 'bingo' fuel amount so that's why I landed with more than the minimum. Winds might have been better than planned for as well. One is always a little pessimistic when fuel planning.
@@mattfrom103 Awesome thanks.. I always like to look at actuals vs. planned as part of my debriefs... And I'm assuming Bingo fuel would have been to fly back to St. Johns, right? If that was the case, would a ST stay on board for the second try?
Creating a flight plan is one thing - but that was super interesting. 👍 Thanks for the little insight. If possible (and I can make a request), can you show some of these plans? Another question about communication: Did you also have radio contact with the CC-130 or is it all just star-shaped via JRCC? Stay safe!
Sorry, I don't understand, what plans are you wanting to see? Communications with JRCC is done through Satellite communications. The Cormorant has a built in sat phone. Communications with the Herc is normally just done through VHF radio.
Hopefully they'll add the CH149 in Microsoft Flight sim. They have search and rescue operations already. Would be sick if they added either the SAR CH146 or the CH149.
Great video as usual! Two questions: Is there a preferential altitude when transiting? Guessing mostly weather dependant? You mentioned building forward speed over the taxiway when at max takeoff weight due to the risk of engine loss, are you at the same takeoff weight lifting off of Hibernia?
Interesting and good questions. 1) Transiting altitude depends firstly one what rules you are following; IFR or VFR. i.e. are you flying in clouds or not. If you are VFR like we were in the video we will pick an altitude that will keep us clear of those clouds, then probably an altitude that has the best winds. But generally on a day like you saw probably between 1000 and 5000 feet. 2) You are quite correct. However that is a different style departure. We climb vertically and should we lose an engine we go straight back down onto the pad. At a certain altitude above the pad we dip the nose and accelerate. Should we lose an engine at that point we have sufficient altitude to trade for airspeed and be able to fly away. It's hard to explain all this briefly as there is a lot to it.
Thank you very much for all your explanations! Every stage was interesting, also the flight planning beforehand... great to see what such a mission implies! I have 2 questions : can you always rely on oil rigs for fuel? Do they always have fuel "on board"? Di they send an invoice to the canadian govt? Fibally : is static electricity discharging through the hoist to the ship a real problem? Do you always have to deal with that?.. Thank you very much for sharing your missions with such details and such great pictures with us!!
First question: Always rely? No. We call ahead and ask. We then find out if they will be open at that time and if they have fuel. Weather is a big consideration as well. That's part of the reason we generally don't plan on refueling at the rig on the way back. I'm not sure if they send a bill or to who. Second question: Yes, static discharge can be an issue. There is a static discharge device that can be connected. It's nothing more than a copper weight and some wire. We generally only use in dry snow conditions as experience has shown that is when we can get the most static build up. It is not a problem for the helicopter but it is a problem for the person on the hoist.
I notice at (23:00) and (28:00) there is no independent confirmation that the monkey tail is properly attached to the returning ST's. Seems like taking 5 seconds to have the FT confirm the ST is attached correctly would be a good addition to your overall safety procedures.
so, given the importance of RVing at the correct time, wouldn't it make sense to take off like 30 minutes early, and wait at the rig , so you would have extra time in case something goes unexpectedly, and , whatever delay or miscalculation happening before you get to the rig would not be an issue because you have extra time at the rig anyway, practically, repositioning the helicopter at the rig, and then starting the actual mission from there ?
Honestly, that just starts getting overly complicated, but you could plan to do that in theory. Another consideration is the rig has other helicopter traffic besides us and we can't just sit there for hours on their pad. There have been cases in the past where the did get delayed and the Cormorant hung out on the pad for a bit. We just don't plan to do it. Being really early is bad and the worst case, arriving slightly late is just less efficient
The most we can do is about 14hrs flight time and 18hrs total duty day. So I don't have the exact numbers but we probably could have flown a bit more. However, no need as there was another crew ready to take over.
Awesome video guys, well done. And to those who leave negative comments just remember you one day might need these people when you find yourself in an emergency situation and karma can be a bitch!
I was Coast Guard at the JRCC in Halifax, the mission panning hasn't been changed, just modern equipment that gives a bigger operating envelope.
I am glad the hoist sequence was filmed in its entirty. If you multiply the number of people on board times the 15 minutes it took to do 1 hoist, you can see hoisting is not a timely option when pressed for time.
A shout out to Lt Col Lowery, Cdr 413 Transport Rescue, Major Colin Gillis Cdr 103 Rescue CFB Gander and to the late Capt. D. J. WILLIAMS who started all of this up here in 1960 " So that others may live* ( motto)
That was an excellent video and mission. These videos are important not only for increasing your profile but also for creating a valuable historical record for the future. Well done everyone.
I shared this with my Black Hawk crews down south in New Hampshire, Matt. Great video. Our bread and butter is mountain rescue; fascinating to see another perspective, and the challenges at sea.
One of our other Squadrons, 442, is based on the west coast of Canada and they deal with mountains.
They deal with the Pacific Ocean as well @@mattfrom103
Matt, just came across your channel. In my 50's, Atlantic Canada here, most of my family both sides, from my Grandfathers onwards made/ make a living on the Atlantic ocean one way or another and all these years I heard so much praise and respect for the Coast Guard / SAR. Never ever heard a bad word about the Coast guard. The stories of the heroics and down right amazing feats in abysmal conditions performed by the SAR teams both ship born and Helo crews to bring loved ones home safety while putting your own lives at risk in the worst conditions. Thank you for all that you guys do, mad Respect! Be safe!
Thanks for the kind words. A lot weather and a lot of people trying to make a living on the water out in Atlantic Canada. It often doesn't make for a good combination. (By the way, I'm Airforce, not Coast Guard)
Thank you for taking the time to make this video and also for posting it. Great job SAR, Team work makes the dream work
Great Video! Excellent Explanation on Fuel/distances to Oil Rigs, refuelling, doing a hoist and making it to St.Johns.
You Guys are Brave to face the North Atlantic Regularly in your casual day to day duties.
Cool Fact: When the Cormorant flies approach into St.Johns, when flying over my house in Portugal Cove, Y'all about 400ft when, but if I'm laying on My bed, I can feel the whoop whoop of each rotor pass when directly above me. I can have ear buds, and Slayer on Blast, and laying there and am alerted still by the sheer feeling of the rotors shockwave without hearing a thing. Spooky sensation if you are not ready for it, or have experienced before. Cougar Chopper does same but feeling not as pronounced and deep as Cormorant.
Interesting. I didn't realize the Corm felt that different than Cougar's S92.
I absolutely second this, I live in Cape Breton close to the Sydney airport when the cormorant flys over you sure know it. I’m also a volunteer firefighter and have had experiences directly with your crews (maybe yourself) it’s absolutely mind blowing to watch you and your team do your thing and JRCC is also on another level first time watching, life long subscriber!
As always, fantastic video, I know many people online prefer shorter cuts of things but especially the hoist portion being uncut, and the summed up apron meeting really bring into perspective how these operations work.
This format reminds me of another channel, I can`t recall it. But they go around Korea showing factories, little tidbits of history & random yet relevant facts, kind of like `how it`s made` but just subtitles mostly and purely the ambient sound & mostly raw video recorded in situ, much like the swoosh of the Cormorant, it is far more appealing than over edited, music filled alternatives.
Thanks for the feed back!
Thanks Matt - Just a regular Canadian taking time out to watch you guys at work. Great video, we're proud of all you folks!
All that adventure... and PAY! There's no life like it! Love your videos, no music, no drawn out intro, no pointless babble, reading of the subtitles kind of gets one involved in the rescue effort... great stuff... more, more, more, please.
Mission planning masterclass paid off and lives were saved! Really appreciated the full hoist sequence too! 6:22
You and your team make the insanely difficult and complicated look easy with your skill, meticulous planning and calm assurance. Really cool to see the whole hoist segment.
Watching this from Florida. Absolutely fascinating.
Fantastic videos Sir, greetings from Ireland where our Irish Coast Guard quite often perform long range SAR out into the Atlantic.
Interesting story: My first mission as an Aircraft Commander(AC) was to pick up a helicopter pilot who got into some bad luck on Baffin Island. Turns out he was an ex Irish Coast Guard pilot. He face lit up when he realized it was my first mission as AC.
Thank you for posting this and for the terrific explanations throughout. It is awesome to see the curtain pulled back on SAR in Canada. It may sound trite (and probably is) but thank you for what you and your Squadron does day in and day out.
Top cover crewman here- great to see an in-depth view of your perspective and operational consideration during these ops. Keep up the great work!
Would definitely love to see your rotary wing perspective of other mission types too!
I'll see what I can come up with. I've got a few short ones I can make about rescuing snowmobilers.
We got the same pfp no way
@@sachitbhageria669 'pfp'?
Thank you for the work you all do. This is great content seeing all of it not just the most exciting parts.
Fascinating video, really felt like we were there with you. Thanks so much for posting this kind of content!
Perfectly orchestrated; ole man Murphy kept his distance, great stuff! Love the videos!
This is fascinating and I really appreciate the lack of voiceover so I can just listen to it, it feels like being there.
As a former Canadian Army soldier I worked with the smaller griffons time to time and was jealous of their jobs. Funny thing....while in the army we trained for months/years to do a type of mission. You are doing missions daily.... day in and day out in miserable weather (I am a newfie also so I know the crap weather we gets) so I must say.....Thank you for your service brother! it no doubt makes a difference daily in many different lives of many different people.....Thank you!
Yup. Funny part is due to my lack of 'tours' I've been told more than one than once that I lack 'operational experience'. All good, I just shrug it off.
@@mattfrom103 yet you get operational experience every day. i known guys who went a 30 year career without a deployment....just training for one. You practice your professional duties every day, not just training in the hopes one day you might use it. You know peoples way of thinking sometimes
So glad you guys are there for us who work at sea, be it sailors or rig workers. It was a memorable experience I had approx. 15 years ago when some of your colleagues took part in our BST-refresher & a SAR-Tech was lowered to our raft. Greatly appreciate the work you do. Great video.👍
Was this in Halifax?
@ Yes. Don’t recall the exact year but it was February or March and about-20°🥶
Man, the quality of how your videos are put together jumps with every upload
Thanks!
Thanks for all you guys (and gals) do , you make us proud 🍁
Thanks for sharing and loved the explanation at the start so I knew what you were planning to do. Made it easier to follow along and understand each phase of the mission. Cool to see Hibernia and wow that helicopter pad looked small! Again thanks for your service doing such an important life saving role. That’s a tough environment and part of our country to work in. Cheers and Happy New Year to you everyone at 103 Squadron.
Very interesting video. I have an old highschool friend who's a SAR Tech. Nice to see how he makes a living and helps others. Hats of to you and my old friend Danny L. Much respect.
Thank you for this explanation!
Loved the calculation bit at the beginning. Makes you understand even more how much work goes in a SAR mission at sea.
You've got a new subscriber.
Saying hi from the Netherlands, and a Happy New Year to you, your crew members, your family, and your subscribers!❤
Fantastic video Matt, I said this before and will say it again, this channel is a goldmine
Amazing work! Greatly enjoy watching these and love learning along the way.
Wow amazing and beautiful at the same time. You get to fly top notch helicopter and one the largest and get paid and the best part is your helping your fellow man as a team, Bravo to all of the crew. BTW, I would do it for free because of the adventure and helping those in need .Cheers from Toronto.
As a SAR enthusiast, i was really impressed, how well done you guys performed :). Trully professionals. I see many SARs missions daily in Slovakia (i live close to military helicopter base) especially now in winter, due to our mountains high and low tatras, when they have daily few takeoffs, especially in bad weather conditions. Normally our standard SAR is held by
"ATE" equipped with Agusta A109K2, EC 135 and Bell 429 helicopters. But in bad weather they call military Mil Mi-17 SAR helicopters due to their better performance (wind, snow etc.) and they fly from airbase above me. Just for fun, over the last 26 years, ATE has carried out a total of 30,557 interventions within the VZZS and its helicopters have flown more than 30,100 flight hours. :) keep working and as you say in north america: thank you for your service . Wish you good luck :)
Thank you for taking the time to share this. I enjoyed it very much. It was impressive.
Incredible. Thank you for the explanations and the great footage!
This is awesome. Excellent exploration
One long day ends and another begins. Great video and excellent teamwork 👏
Hello from CASARA Calgary - Nice work lads !!! And massive thanks for posting the video, it's fantastic !!
With deepest respect, you are amazing.
I'm sitting here in my apartment in Denmark (DK, Europe) watching your videos.
Thanks a lot.
👍
Thank you for the kind words. However, I am just one normal person who is part of a large and amazing team.
Amazing videos please keep them up. I really like the crew chat in some of the others. It ads the feel were there especially from the FE!!!!!
Thanks for watching. Unfortunately I only recently acquired the capability to record the comms so there aren't many missions where I have audio. Any future missions I go on I will get audio though.
@@mattfrom103 looking forward to them.
@@mattfrom103 As an ex Bristow trained SAR S76A++ pilot here in Trinidad with over 13,000 hours I can tell that you guys are a well oiled machine. And yes for the people watching, hearing the audio from the rear crewman to the pilots really adds to the appreciation for the crew coordination that takes place especially from the "rest" position in and out to the vessel and while over station, as well as the importance of your winch man to the overall safety of the hoist operation. Excellent video from start to end!!
@@josephdefreitas56 Thanks for the kind words. I'm envious of your location weather. If you're curious, one of my other videos called 'night boat hoist' or something similar does have all the audio.
What airspeed is the Cormorant making
when taking off with a full fuel load
at the point of transitioning to lifting off?
How is this speed referred to
(since its not Vrotation)?
Hi, I had the privilege of flying and working with a good number of ex-RCAF pilots at Bombardier-everyone a joy to work with and top notch aviators. Not helos, though, Hornets, Herks, and a former CO of 437.
Being an ex-seafarer I am always in awe of all rescue services . . . thanks for sharing.
You're turning into 103's version Match when he was with the Snowbirds. I love this channel, love the Cormorant, and love the work you all do. Thanks! (ex-19 Wing Met Tech)
Be safe awesome channel
Fantastic video. Thanks for taking the time to share this with us. Really enjoy learning this!
Absolutely top notch video, thanks for all the extra information and the text overs!
One of your best videos yet. Great work. 👍
Thanks a lot for this long Video! And thanks for all the explanations. What a long Day
incredible video
Excellent video and very good work from the whole team. Congratulations
So very proud of you and your whole wonderful team!! Saving lives is so very important and can be really risky.
Very well done, thanks. And thanks for being there!!
Another successful mission and on to the next. Excellent details about the operation you were tasked to do and awesome video. Thank you once again for showing us the conditions that exist just off our coast and what's involved to bring someone back to safety. Well done !
All the explanations make this video so much more interesting, thanks for sharing, could we get a tour of the Cormorant some day?
You certainly can. I was actually planning on doing a film tour very shortly.
just thank you for taking us with you.
Great mission, thanks for your service.
Excellent work Matt, BZ
awesome video thank you! and thank you for your service.
Very interesting video, with great professionalism- thanks from the South of the UK for what you all do to help us when in need! I’d love to come along one day and meet you! 🙏🙏👍👍
Note during the hoist, there isn't a single second, when everybody isn't secured with safety lines,particularly during switchover from hoist cable to cabin lanyard.
Thanks for the upload!
Really interesting seeing a bit of the flight planning included in the video. BZ to all personnel involved
Awesome teamwork and footage. Well done . Respect.
Excellent teamwork!
That was really brilliant. Thanks.
Well done gentlemen! Thank you for your service and the great video Matt. Count me as a new subscriber for more heli-content. Happy Holidays
Matt ... the beginning whiteboard explanation was excellent! All the videos are amazing, and makes me so proud of our RCAF teams! QUESTIONS; maybe in a future video you can explain the purpose of the over-cover flight mission. Do they shadow all your sea missions? Also the medevac extracts - are they typically CTAS 1? Would be interesting to just get a brief statement of the seriousness of the patient condition when extracting, and what is possible (medical monitoring & intervention) on the transport leg to St. John's Hospital. AWESOME GUYS!!
I don't think I've ever been given a CTAS number before. A doc, or two, just make the determination that the person should be evacuated by quickest means (helicopter). Having worked at JRCC for a few years I can tell you that a lot of the medical requests do get turned down by the doctors. The docs determine that it's fine for the patient to take the time to sail in. It's almost a time based question.
There is also the question of 'do you tell the pilots what the condition is'. I believe decades ago in the US they stopped telling the pilots of EMS helicopters what the condition/reason for the medevac was. They found a reduction in crashes. Last thing you ever want is to tell the pilot 'If you don't go they will die'.
Here is a copy paste for what top cover does. I'll see about making a video about it because a lot of people asked. Thanks for the feed back.
1) Get to the boat first and give them a brief as to what is about to happen. Tell them to prepare their deck which could take time.
2) Find the boat for us and give us an exact position.
3) At night they will drop flares which can help create a horizon.
4) If something goes wrong (i.e. we end up in the water) they will be there to take charge of the scene and begin rescue operations.
5) If the vessel is taking on water or sinking they can drop supplies, pumps, or rafts.
6) If the medical scenario is dire and we are still hours away they can dispatch their SAR Techs via parachute to the boat to begin medical intervention.
There's more than I am forgetting.
@@mattfrom103 Great explanation Matt. Thanks for taking the time. I can certainly understand not giving any medical info to the pilots. Makes sense. I didn't know that JRCC had doctors on hand doing an initial triage with the vessel calling for assistance and making the final decision to engage Gander to respond. Such an incredible coordinated operation. Given you've worked at JRCC, maybe a quick vid on that operation? No pressure. Thanks for all the info on the Top-Cover mission.
Absolutely fascinating and top notch work, both on the mission and with the video. Thanks for the written explanation in another comment on the Herc’s role, I was curious about that. 👍
Thank you
Love seeing what we can accomplish. Great recruiting videos also 👍🇨🇦🍻
Well done! Greetings from Sweden.
Interesting and well done! The home run at 135 kias is understandable after such a long day.
Vne is 150. 135 seems to be a speed she is happy at, some days 130.
what a beautiful piece of kit compared to the Lab’s and Voyageur. Amazing. Be well good sir.
Professionals at work
Thank you for sharing! That was an awesome display of airmanship and skill from everyone involved. :) Great to see in its entirety too.
I'd love to hear comms, is the FE verbally leading you with what he needs, since I assume you can't see most of what he can?
I have another video posted where you do get to hear the FE. It's a recent upload, I think it's called 'night mission boat hoist' or similar. But you are correct, the FE is verbally 'conning' me over the spot they need.
Greetings from a BC sailboat owner who greatly appreciates the work of you and your colleagues on both coasts. Two questions: (i) the relevant section (28A) in the Annual NOTMARs - "Helicopter Evacuation Procedures ..." does not specifically refer to sailboats. Nor does the similar USGC publication. Note that the auxiliary on the sailboat may be disabled. Any comments on potential differences in the preparation instructions for headings, maintaining steerage, maneuvering, etc?; and (ii) (28A Preparations 4) - "Put lights on any obstructions in the vicinity...": the usual choice is often a masthead anchor light. This can sometimes be turned into a white strobe light. Either will give a visual reference as to the mast height. Would the strobe be too bright/distracting? I understand that the instructions from the helicopter "...will take precedent". Thanks.
I don't have a lot of knowledge of experience in sailboat ops. The west coast squadron has a lot more. Sail boat ops are very challenging due to the height of the mast relative to the size of the ship and what the downwash can do to the sailboat.
But yes, I would turn on all your nav lights, including the masthead. As for the rest of your questions I can't offer to many specific other than it will depend a lot on the circumstances and conditions of the day. But you can never go wrong with trying to secure as much as you can. In case of evacuation getting into immersion suits, having a PLB or EPIRB with you, and being right beside a radio. The last line of your in your comment is probably the most important; have a radio with you on 16. The helicopter will instruct you with what they want.
What is the role of your top cover aircraft? Where are they dispatched out of?
This is some of the best content I’ve seen on RUclips. I love this format. Keep the videos coming.
Thanks for the kind words, it helps.
This is a copy paste from one of my other comments.
1) Get to the boat first and give them a brief as to what is about to happen. Tell them to prepare their deck which could take time.
2) Find the boat for us and give us an exact position.
3) At night they will drop flares which can help create a horizon.
4) If something goes wrong (i.e. we end up in the water) they will be there to take charge of the scene and begin rescue operations.
5) If the vessel is taking on water or sinking they can drop supplies, pumps, or rafts.
6) If the medical scenario is dire and we are still hours away they can dispatch their SAR Techs via parachute to the boat to begin medical intervention.
On that day they were dispatched from 413 Sqn in Greenwood, NS.
@@mattfrom103And radio relay?
@@QBziZ Yes. They can relay radio messages as their radios are more powerful. However we don't do that too often as the Cormorant has satellite communications. But from time to time if we are low level the will relay instructions to the boat prior to our arrival.
A nice day at the office and within normal working hours! YESSS!
The introduction and the talk through of the fuel considerations etc was interesting stuff.
How do you take in to account winds though? I've seen videos of USCG MH60's in Alaska flying in poor weather and its taken them over an hour to do a few miles cause of headwinds. I realise Alaska is a fairly unique place in terms of weather conditions but how do you account for that in your preparation? What if the wind is stronger than you've allotted for? Do you scrub the entire thing and RTB?
The numbers I used are starting points for flight planning. From the initial plan I will then plug it into Foreflight on my iPad and see how it looks and adjust as necessary. I also use the website Windy to help me visualize what the winds are doing. Foreflight is surprisingly accurate when it comes to flight planning.
If the winds are not as predicted and it doesn't look like we will have enough fuel to complete the mission we will of course do something about it. Most likely RTB or delay. Try again later. In all the planning we do there is a bit of contingency fuel, or 'fudge', built into it. The most substantial the weather the more fudge we will use. This is where experience comes into play.
We can get substantial heads winds here as well. I've posted a video about doing a medevac with 110kt winds.
Great videos, thank You. Can you do a video on how the guideline is packed up.
Here in Sydney Australia they use the hi-line so it’s not coiled up/packed like I see in your videos. We practice with the local air ambulance off our rescue vessel.
I too also enjoyed your whiteboard sketch ups on the planning. Thanks. Cheers
Yes. I plan on doing a video on the guideline in the next week or so. A surprising number of people have asked about it.
It’s called crows nest(ing) and is a serious of slip knots around a coil of several wraps (full turns) something like crochetting with daisey chaining; works best with kern mantle rope (vs stranded); when tossed out of a hovering aircraft, the concentrated weight ensures a vertical drop (gravity) so there can be no possible entanglement with the spinning rotor blades above. (Learned about this from 424 4 decades ago.)
@@alee3146 great, thank You. I figured it must be a series of slip knots around the coiled up line. I’m not familiar with the line you mentioned. Cheers
Dream job!
Great videos! Thank you for what you do.
What is the reason for "top cover" on a hoist like this? Thanks.
loved the video, thank you for the detailed explanations. one more question: what is the point of the airplane providing top cover? it's not like you're in an active warzone
'Top Cover' is a bit of a layover from the predecessor to the Cormorant but still has uses today. Things they can do:
1) Get to the boat first and give them a brief as to what is about to happen. Tell them to prepare their deck which could take time.
2) Find the boat for us and give us an exact position.
3) At night they will drop flares which can help create a horizon.
4) If something goes wrong (i.e. we end up in the water) they will be there to take charge of the scene and begin rescue operations.
5) If the vessel is taking on water or sinking they can drop supplies, pumps, or rafts.
6) If the medical scenario is dire and we are still hours away they can dispatch their SAR Techs via parachute to the boat to begin medical intervention.
It make not seem necessary in this video where everything appears to function smoothly but once you start dealing with smaller fishing boats or a more dynamic situation the points above start to make a lot more sense.
@@mattfrom103 "from the predecessor to the Cormorant" - you mean back when #4 was happening way too often? While I live my life in a way that I should never need SAR, I'm glad you now have equipment competent to do the job. (Also - this was an awesome video! I appreciate the step-by-step breakdown!)
@@athompso99 No, I understand the Labrador Helicopter was quite reliable. It was a navigation issue. This was before GPS. The Lab didn't have great navigation systems so it needed to follow the C-130 to find the ship. The C-130 had better navigation equipment.
@@mattfrom103 If the medical scenario is dire and we are still hours away they can dispatch their SAR Techs via parachute to the boat to begin medical intervention. ??? what? didnt know that dude... ty
@@reneandrasik1745 Yes. Precisely. There are a lot of nuances and details but they have that capability.
Great video! Especially explaining the mission planning itself (Yes, I do secretly really like the idea of just pointing a camera at a whiteboard, instead of some fancy animation. There’s other channels for that😅)
I do wonder what you do with the landing gear during hoisting operations. Do you guys lower it when there’s the tiniest chance of bumping the helicopter into something that isn’t water?
And did I spot some fancy tablet holders under the GPS?👀 If so, that’s quite an elegant solution, compared to what’s possible in some aircraft.
Thanks for the compliments about the whiteboard, i'm not able to do fancy animation. I just shot it in my kitchen.
To answer your first question for over water hoists the gear is normally up. In case of a water ditching or landing it is recommended the gear be up. For land hoists the gear is normally down. In case of an emergency landing (think engine failure) the landing gear is able to provide a lot of absorption and should minimize damage and injury.
Second question. Those are actually paper approach plate holders. They were designed to hold Canadian sized paper approach plates. It's pure coincidence an iPad Mini fits perfectly.
@@mattfrom103Haha, thank you for your answers.
I imagine the rig chefs feed the SAR crew guys pretty good! 😁👍
Great video and I’ve a lot of respect for all the roles involved in that mission.
I know you’ve to train for such calls anyway but if you can be honest here; just how required was all that resource-tasking for a single patient that remained conscious the whole time AND could walk to the ambulance?
The helicopter could’ve been subsequently tasked for an overboard and hypothermic sailor. A fallen hiker with neck injuries. And so on.
As I say, I acknowledge if you didn’t get the call, you’d be training for such anyway. But was that the case here and you’d have broken off and diverted to a higher priority case at any time during this shout?
I am not a doctor. The decision as to whether or not someone needs a medevac is left to doctors as part of the triage process. Plenty of people are able to walk into the back of an ambulance or an ER but still need immediate medical attention.
In case of 2 taskings at the same time, JRCC would make the decision as to which is more important based on numerous factors.
Awesome content! Could you show us the cabin and cockpit of the helicopter in a video?
I will add it to the list!
Great insight, on the approach to the rig, my thought was “land, where ?”
Is the aircraft moved into the hangar overnight, or does it have its own (ground powered) lubricant heating system onboard.
Well done guys, and the coordination team, long day in anybody’s language 🥇
Yes, the aircraft will almost always spend the night in the hangar. It's much easier to do maintenance work in the hangar and it's better for it to be out of the elements. However, should it have to spend the night outside it only needs some protectives covers in place. There are not lubrican heating systems used, it's fine to start in the cold.
So neat to see that all the way through! Handy that the oil rig was out as far as it was to assist with the rescue (tasty meals included). I'm curious - the roll of the Hercules Top-Cover is what - spotting the ship? Recording conditions?
Top cover, here is a copy paste from another comment.
1) Get to the boat first and give them a brief as to what is about to happen. Tell them to prepare their deck which could take time.
2) Find the boat for us and give us an exact position.
3) At night they will drop flares which can help create a horizon.
4) If something goes wrong (i.e. we end up in the water) they will be there to take charge of the scene and begin rescue operations.
5) If the vessel is taking on water or sinking they can drop supplies, pumps, or rafts.
6) If the medical scenario is dire and we are still hours away they can dispatch their SAR Techs via parachute to the boat to begin medical intervention.
There's more than I am forgetting.
@@mattfrom103 Wow, very cool! They pretty much utilise every/any possible aid. Thanks for the detailed answer!
That was a really good video Matt, thank you very much. I have one small request for you to consider. It's a bit awkward for lesser mortals like myself (only a fixed wing pilot) to try and watch all the action and at the same time try to read the captions. Would it be possible to trial placing the captions about 2/3rds up the screen? Thanks again :)
I can play around with that and see how it works. The other option is I start doing voice overs but I think a lot of people like watching things on mute.
Happy New Year, everyone.
Great Job Matt!. I liked also the part of the flight planning I found it quite important as the mission itself. Just a silly question: Does the CH-149 have an Auto Hover System while performing the Hoist Op? I mean, to reduce pilot work load
The Cormorant does have an auto hover. However, it is not normally useful while boat hoisting. At most we will use a radar altitude hold that will keep us exactly at the same height above the water. However, on such a large boat it doesn't work as the radar starts bouncing off the ship instead of the water.
The auto hover can be transferred to the FE's and they can that maneuver the helicopter around. They have a small joystick back there. That puts a big work load on the FE and is usually only used on small tricky boats when the pilot doesn't have references.
But in the video you saw it was all pilot flown, with only the basic AFCS being used. It was not a particularly difficult boat or weather conditions.
@@mattfrom103 Wow! Total respect for you and your crew!. Besides the unique skill set you all have, the CRM is in full display
Hi Matt ... I know you're looking for some content ideas, so here's what's been going through my head after enjoying your vids so far; 1) territory - is there a similar Squad that does Baffin Island and Labrador Sea? Similar Danish Squad off the tip of Greenland that does the far North Atlantic? Or Iceland Squad? 2) Also I think you mentioned there is a Cormorant simulator? Can you show/tell us more? 3) Your career choice is fascinating, but how did you get here? Do the SAR Squads all advance through the RCAF promotion ranks? 4) Lastly, what are the ranks/roles in the SAR Squad? I believe you said you're a Senior Commanding Officer of 103. Do they all report to you while on a mission? 5) And I believe you said you will explain more about Top-Cover in the future. Their infrared video of 103 on a mission was fascinating! Oh and more on SAR training exercises like the wilderness survival, etc. Thank you sir for creating amazing Canadian RCAF Search and Rescue videos! Hope you had some relaxing family time off over the holidays. Happy New year.
Thanks for the suggestions and comments
1) The only other Squadron that is North of us is 444 Sqn in Goose Bay, NL. They fly a different machine.
2) There is a simulator. It is in the UK. I am not sure I will be granted permission to film in there but I will ask. We go about once a year.
3) I could talk about my career but I am trying not make this channel about me and more about what the Squadron I belong to does. I'll see.
4) I am not the Commanding Officer. I assure you. I am an Aircraft Commander. If I said I was a Commanding Officer it was in error. I would appreciate if you could point me to where I said that so I can fix my error. The reporting structure is, however, something I could talk about.
5) Yup, top cover. I have to talk about that. As well as how to make a guideline. THose are the top 2 questions I get.
BZ to team…. And outstanding video.. however, i may have missed the role of the Herc…?
This is a copy paste from one of my other comments. Top cover does this:
1) Get to the boat first and give them a brief as to what is about to happen. Tell them to prepare their deck which could take time.
2) Find the boat for us and give us an exact position.
3) At night they will drop flares which can help create a horizon.
4) If something goes wrong (i.e. we end up in the water) they will be there to take charge of the scene and begin rescue operations.
5) If the vessel is taking on water or sinking they can drop supplies, pumps, or rafts.
6) If the medical scenario is dire and we are still hours away they can dispatch their SAR Techs via parachute to the boat to begin medical intervention.
There's probably a few other things I missed.
@@mattfrom103 awesome thx
Awesome video all around. Curious to know.. How close were your pre-planning figures to actual? It doesn't look like the additional time required for the initial wave-off when trying to hoist the basket was an issue.
I just looked at some footage, I landed at the pad with a little over 1000kg or about 1hr15min till flame out. The hoist sequence did take less time than allotted and thus used less fuel than planned. I did leave the ship long before my 'bingo' fuel amount so that's why I landed with more than the minimum. Winds might have been better than planned for as well. One is always a little pessimistic when fuel planning.
@@mattfrom103 Awesome thanks.. I always like to look at actuals vs. planned as part of my debriefs...
And I'm assuming Bingo fuel would have been to fly back to St. Johns, right? If that was the case, would a ST stay on board for the second try?
Nice work, it would be interesting to see your control inputs!
Stay safe!
I'll see if I can find a video of that. What I can say is there are very small control inputs.
Creating a flight plan is one thing - but that was super interesting. 👍 Thanks for the little insight.
If possible (and I can make a request), can you show some of these plans?
Another question about communication: Did you also have radio contact with the CC-130 or is it all just star-shaped via JRCC?
Stay safe!
Sorry, I don't understand, what plans are you wanting to see?
Communications with JRCC is done through Satellite communications. The Cormorant has a built in sat phone. Communications with the Herc is normally just done through VHF radio.
@@mattfrom103 Sorry - I meant whether you can show other flight preparations (flight plan)
@@2wheeled_photograph I certainly can I will try to incorporate that into future videos. Thank you for the feed back.
Hopefully they'll add the CH149 in Microsoft Flight sim. They have search and rescue operations already. Would be sick if they added either the SAR CH146 or the CH149.
Great video as usual! Two questions:
Is there a preferential altitude when transiting? Guessing mostly weather dependant?
You mentioned building forward speed over the taxiway when at max takeoff weight due to the risk of engine loss, are you at the same takeoff weight lifting off of Hibernia?
Interesting and good questions.
1) Transiting altitude depends firstly one what rules you are following; IFR or VFR. i.e. are you flying in clouds or not. If you are VFR like we were in the video we will pick an altitude that will keep us clear of those clouds, then probably an altitude that has the best winds. But generally on a day like you saw probably between 1000 and 5000 feet.
2) You are quite correct. However that is a different style departure. We climb vertically and should we lose an engine we go straight back down onto the pad. At a certain altitude above the pad we dip the nose and accelerate. Should we lose an engine at that point we have sufficient altitude to trade for airspeed and be able to fly away. It's hard to explain all this briefly as there is a lot to it.
@@mattfrom103 Both make a lot of sense! Figured that was the case for altitude. Thanks!
Thank you very much for all your explanations! Every stage was interesting, also the flight planning beforehand... great to see what such a mission implies!
I have 2 questions : can you always rely on oil rigs for fuel? Do they always have fuel "on board"? Di they send an invoice to the canadian govt?
Fibally : is static electricity discharging through the hoist to the ship a real problem? Do you always have to deal with that?..
Thank you very much for sharing your missions with such details and such great pictures with us!!
First question: Always rely? No. We call ahead and ask. We then find out if they will be open at that time and if they have fuel. Weather is a big consideration as well. That's part of the reason we generally don't plan on refueling at the rig on the way back. I'm not sure if they send a bill or to who.
Second question: Yes, static discharge can be an issue. There is a static discharge device that can be connected. It's nothing more than a copper weight and some wire. We generally only use in dry snow conditions as experience has shown that is when we can get the most static build up. It is not a problem for the helicopter but it is a problem for the person on the hoist.
Hibernia oil platform is operated by Exxon Mobil, who last time I checked, don't do anything for free. 🤣
@@mattfrom103 Thank you for your replies!
I notice at (23:00) and (28:00) there is no independent confirmation that the monkey tail is properly attached to the returning ST's. Seems like taking 5 seconds to have the FT confirm the ST is attached correctly would be a good addition to your overall safety procedures.
There is visually. The FE then taps the ST on the arm.
so, given the importance of RVing at the correct time, wouldn't it make sense to take off like 30 minutes early, and wait at the rig , so you would have extra time in case something goes unexpectedly, and , whatever delay or miscalculation happening before you get to the rig would not be an issue because you have extra time at the rig anyway, practically, repositioning the helicopter at the rig, and then starting the actual mission from there ?
Honestly, that just starts getting overly complicated, but you could plan to do that in theory. Another consideration is the rig has other helicopter traffic besides us and we can't just sit there for hours on their pad. There have been cases in the past where the did get delayed and the Cormorant hung out on the pad for a bit. We just don't plan to do it.
Being really early is bad and the worst case, arriving slightly late is just less efficient
Since this oil rig is established, they provide fuel and food for rescue helicopters 🚁?
Great management of resources..
Great video ! How many hours of flight time remained when you landed at st johns ?
The most we can do is about 14hrs flight time and 18hrs total duty day. So I don't have the exact numbers but we probably could have flown a bit more. However, no need as there was another crew ready to take over.
Awesome video guys, well done. And to those who leave negative comments just remember you one day might need these people when you find yourself in an emergency situation and karma can be a bitch!