Radleigh Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 Doesn't look good. I've read around that only 1 on board the helicopter and two maybe involved in cars, will await an update to confirm. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/aviation/9805071/Helicopter-crashes-in-Vauxhall-central-London.html# Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyC Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 Hit a crane apparently - ouch Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GordonD Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 Two confirmed dead. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-21040410 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iain Ogilvie Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 (edited) RIP and condolences to all involved - and well done emergency services for blistering fast response. As to BBC and their appalling news coverage - if reporters don't have facts to report - then please - shut up! Iain Edited January 16, 2013 by Iain (32SIG) 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HammerUK9 Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 That's one serious prang... RIP to those involved, but very glad that so few bystanders appear to have been injured. Tim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heloman1 Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 RIP and condolences to all involved - and well done emergency services for blistering fast response. As to BBC and their appalling news coverage - if reporters don't have facts to report - then please - shut up! Iain Hi Iain, It's all over SKY too similar reporting waffle but at least the fire and police authoities have now given statements to clarify the matter. Colin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimbuna Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 Two deaths is two too many but it could have been a lot worse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heloman1 Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 Agusta 109 Power helo involved, apparently the crane drive was late for work and not on the crane! How lucky is he? Accicent investigation team on site already. Colin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil Podmore Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 It's a big helicopter to come down in a really busy commuter area, to only lose two people (one being the pilot) in such a busy area is incredibly fortunate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SimonR Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 Can only echo what those above have said, condolences to Pilots and other victims families. Apparantley the workers on the building were in a H&S meeting at the time so could have been a whole lot worse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HammerUK9 Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 Apparantley the workers on the building were in a H&S meeting at the time so could have been a whole lot worse. Oh the irony... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
depressed lemur Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 Condolences to all those caught up in this. Just heard the MP for Wandsworth complaining about how helicopter flights are on the increase over London. The reporter pointed out that the official CAA figures show almost half the flights compared to 5 years ago, to which the MP replied that you shouldn't believe them as she had been speaking with her constituants who told her that they have increased! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HammerUK9 Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 (edited) I suppose I shouldn't have expected better, but I've definitely heard the quote of the day from a BBC reporter in the air over London: "Now, this is not the same type of helicopter, but it works under the same principles." Yes children, whirly bit goes round and round on top! EDIT, another one provided by a friend after I'd given up: "The Met told the BBC they did not feel the crash was related to terrorism." Edited January 16, 2013 by HammerUK9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jazzy Jase Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 Saw the aftermath of this from the train into Waterloo this morning. I'm just thankful there weren't more people injured or killed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HammerUK9 Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 BBC - Flying over London: What are the rules for pilots? Dare I say it, I'm actually a little impressed by this article. Covers all the basic issues to as sufficient a depth as is practical, whilst not appear patronising in the process. Tim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagle Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 A story that intrigued me was that the the crane driver was late for the first time in years .And by all accounts if he was in his cab at the time then it is probaable that he would have been killed for certain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HammerUK9 Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 A story that intrigued me was that the the crane driver was late for the first time in years .And by all accounts if he was in his cab at the time then it is probaable that he would have been killed for certain. Fate works in very strange ways. Although it was also reported (again, oddly, by the BBC) that actual reason was the dense fog would have precluded safe crane operations, so the driver wouldn't have been allowed up to work anyway. Standard procedure apparently. Tim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pigsty Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 Amazing how almost anything can be turned into an anti-BBC complaint ... I was checking all sorts of news sources yesterday for updates and, trust me, they were all equally full of inane speculation dressed up as news. Many were a lot more inane. Now that the screaming "need" for minute-by-minute updates has passed, it's all a lot more measured, and some of it isn't even that inane any more. (And for a neat illustration of news values: Google News is now putting the story below the Premier League transfer window.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
593jones Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 Condolences to all those caught up in this. Just heard the MP for Wandsworth complaining about how helicopter flights are on the increase over London. The reporter pointed out that the official CAA figures show almost half the flights compared to 5 years ago, to which the MP replied that you shouldn't believe them as she had been speaking with her constituants who told her that they have increased! You just can't trust those people at CAA can you, giving out false information. Or is it just the MP talking out of her bottom? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HammerUK9 Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 Hi Sean, Don't get me wrong, I'm not criticising the BBC per se - except for their ridiculous helicopter comment! It could well be that the crane driver was late, but had he been on time wouldn't have been allowed to work in the weather, thus validating both reasons. In which case I might have got a bit ahead of myself. 593jones, TBH it could be either. I'd expect/prefer it to be the MP spouting b*ll*cks, but if, say, the CAA have fiddled with their classification system (for instance, defining a 'flight over London' as having to be over 3000 feet to count) then they could conceivably present a statistical drop without there having been one in real terms Tim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagle Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 Amazing how almost anything can be turned into an anti-BBC complaint ... I was checking all sorts of news sources yesterday for updates and, trust me, they were all equally full of inane speculation dressed up as news. Many were a lot more inane. Now that the screaming "need" for minute-by-minute updates has passed, it's all a lot more measured, and some of it isn't even that inane any more. (And for a neat illustration of news values: Google News is now putting the story below the Premier League transfer window.) I was watching sky and the drama and the supid questions and speculations were tragic. I think sky is the worst for anything of that knid of reporting.(I know I shouldnt watch sky then). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
593jones Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 593jones, TBH it could be either. I'd expect/prefer it to be the MP spouting b*ll*cks, but if, say, the CAA have fiddled with their classification system (for instance, defining a 'flight over London' as having to be over 3000 feet to count) then they could conceivably present a statistical drop without there having been one in real terms Tim Must admit I hadn't considered the CAA changing/fiddling their classification system, that's a good point. I naturally suspected the MP, because, well, MP's, you just naturally expect them to talk crap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagle Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 (edited) The problem with helicopters is that a small touch with the rotors leads to something bigger . Id like to know the position of the crane boom when it touched .If the crane boom had swung out of its normally oprating area ,ive seen this happen with cranes they move not just in the wind they swing on their axis.If it was sticking out like a dogs D*** and with the reduced vision the 2 things may be contributory to the accident. Edited January 17, 2013 by eagle Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Posted January 18, 2013 Share Posted January 18, 2013 The problem with helicopters is that a small touch with the rotors leads to something bigger . Id like to know the position of the crane boom when it touched .If the crane boom had swung out of its normally oprating area ,ive seen this happen with cranes they move not just in the wind they swing on their axis.If it was sticking out like a dogs D*** and with the reduced vision the 2 things may be contributory to the accident. Trouble is, how would the pilot know what the 'normal operating radius' of the crane boom was? NOTAMs (Notices to Airmen) would show temporary obstacles and their location with the relevant heights above mean sea level. Here's an example: Q) EGTT/QOBCE/IV/M/A/000/999/5227N00145W005 FROM: 13/01/03 07:00C) TO: 13/04/03 18:00 E) LIT MOBILE CRANE OPR 314 DEG MAG/2650M FM ARP. MAX HEIGHT 481FT AMSL.LOWERED TO 450FT AMSL IN LVP. This shows that a mobile crane, with warning light, is situated 2650m in the direction of 314 degrees from the airport reference point the NOTAM refers to; in this case it was Birmingham. I stand to be corrected, but I have never seen reference to the operating radius of the crane's boom. But as always, whenever an aircraft accident occurs, it is big news and invariably the facts are obscured by the sensationalistic reporting styles adopted by 99% of news agencies. It's really good to see that the above BM comments do not speculate and just refer to the facts or reports that are available, as bad as they are. Any number of factors could have been at play here and it is exceptionally sad that the accident and fatalities occurred at all. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phildagreek Posted January 18, 2013 Share Posted January 18, 2013 Despite all our speculation, and it is speculation, the only person who knows for sure what happened is the poor sod of a pilot. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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