Yep, once again completed another two week AT without crashes, alcohol poisoning, or legal actions!

[img]http://photos.ar15.com/ImageGallery/Attachments/DownloadAttach.asp?iImageUnq=879[/img]
This is the crew briefing area while we were in the field.

[img]http://photos.ar15.com/ImageGallery/Attachments/DownloadAttach.asp?iImageUnq=957[/img]

We did some water bucket training.

[img]http://photos.ar15.com/ImageGallery/Attachments/DownloadAttach.asp?iImageUnq=1280[/img]

And some formation terrain flight

[img]http://photos.ar15.com/ImageGallery/Attachments/DownloadAttach.asp?iImageUnq=14227[/img]

Note the other Huey down below.

[img]http://photos.ar15.com/ImageGallery/Attachments/DownloadAttach.asp?iImageUnq=14229[/img]

What a guy! Note the "Lucky Fuzzy Dice".

[img]http://photos.ar15.com/ImageGallery/Attachments/DownloadAttach.asp?iImageUnq=1277[/img]

Inside the "Tin Huts" we lived in when not living in the woods.

[img]http://photos.ar15.com/ImageGallery/Attachments/DownloadAttach.asp?iImageUnq=14234[/img]

After living in the woods for a week, even this does not seem so bad!

[img]http://photos.ar15.com/ImageGallery/Attachments/DownloadAttach.asp?iImageUnq=14230[/img]

The pool I brought, and set up in the extra mess hall.

[img]http://photos.ar15.com/ImageGallery/Attachments/DownloadAttach.asp?iImageUnq=1278[/img]

We flew back into Minneapolis / St Paul in a 13 ship formation. We were the big cocks on the block that day. Looked killer.

Aviator

Great pics!  Thanks for sharing.

man.......when i was in the marine corps, i got to fly in hueys, they are badazz, i luv the sound of em. and they are faster then ppl realize, ive been in em full throttle and banking hard left/right.. cool pics too.

Got a question about the water drop.

I saw a park district copter trying to fill their bucket, and it took them several tries.

Does it flatten out when it goes in?   Seemed like each time the guy tried to climb out he's find that it hadn't really filled, then he'd try again.

Or maybe he was in too big a hurry and consequently screwed up and actually slowed himself down,  or the bucket had too slow a sink rate, or the water was too shallow, or did just didi't get low enough.

Do you need to have exactly zero ground speed, or does a little creep help fill it?

You probably don't want to try this at 15n. [;)]

The CDF pilot came & went while this guy was trying to get it right.  CDF had been dropping his previous bucket 200-300 yards away when this guy started trying.

Depends on the bucket. Ours has a frame that works like an upside down Umbrella. It will fold flat for storage, but stays open by itself when hanging. WE usually have a zero forward aispeed when the bucket is in the water, you want the load centered underneath you when you lift it out.

Aviator

This was interesting:

[url]http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/metro/20030511-9999_1mi11roton.html[/url]

This article doesn't mention it, but another one I can't find now said that a drogue chute had been attched to the load to try to stablize it.

Another article with small picture:

[url]http://www.space.com/astronotes/astronotes_may4-may17_03.html[/url]

... Cool!

A few more:

[img]http://photos.ar15.com/ImageGallery/Attachments/DownloadAttach.asp?iImageUnq=14238[/img]

Birds in an LZ, note the Aux tanks on the closer Huey.

[img]http://photos.ar15.com/ImageGallery/Attachments/DownloadAttach.asp?iImageUnq=14244[/img]

This is the outside of the tin Huts.

[img]http://photos.ar15.com/ImageGallery/Attachments/DownloadAttach.asp?iImageUnq=14245[/img]

This is a linup after coming into a LZ.

[img]http://photos.ar15.com/ImageGallery/Attachments/DownloadAttach.asp?iImageUnq=14242[/img]

Lining up for the formation flight back to MSP.

[img]http://photos.ar15.com/ImageGallery/Attachments/DownloadAttach.asp?iImageUnq=14241[/img]

a few of the aircraft in that 13 ship formation, looks a bit ragged because we were changing from trail to Vee formation.

[img]http://photos.ar15.com/ImageGallery/Attachments/DownloadAttach.asp?iImageUnq=14240[/img]

In answer of the bucket question, here is a shot of the full bucket. Maybe it makes more sense to you now?

Great pictures, Aviator.

Thanks for sharing...

cool pics....

ahh the memories....


however, I'm surprised they're still flying them UH-1's.. they were "supposedly" phasing them out in the early 80's.  I flew in these only a couple times, the rest was mainly in UH-60's and sometimes CH-47's.

My only Freefall out of a helio was out of a UH-1E @ 10k or so.  That was a blast.

Yeah, you get a load swinging, and that's bad JuJu. Damn ugly things can happen.

Aviator

Very Cool Pics Aviator!

Thanks for the new background images.

MM419

When they fly the last Black Hawk to the boneyard, that crew will need a ride back, and it will be in a Huey [;)]

Aviator

Great pics! Makes me wanna go enlist.

Very cool pics!

BTT for the afternoon crew.

Outstanding Sir!

NICE!   I love those helicopters...but JetRangers are my fav. still.

So who was

[b]P[/b]ermanent
[b]L[/b]atrine
[b]O[/b]rderly ?

No Time for Sergeants

ED

Very, very cool pics! Thanks for sharing!

I would have loved to see that formation!

I have gotten to do some eradication and photography from an AL National Guard Kiowa several times. Mucho fun for an avation geek like me. Are ya'll Kiowas for scouting or command birds or what?

Looks like ya'll had a good time. Suprised to see they issued out weapons.

Great pics Aviator. That's a nice bird you got there. I spent a little time on Hueys as a passenger but I always loved flying in them. The sound of the Huey in flight is distinctive, and I can always identify them by sound before I can see them. Same with the CH53 and CH46. Those 'tin huts' look just like my home barracks when I was stationed at Camp Geiger,(3/8 Lima Co) the head was the same way too! I can't believe they still use them after all these years.

I think someone on the IDS building was whipping you off, maybe it was the Fochea tower. It was hard to tell which was which in the photo. Next time just send them a rocket.[:D] Cool pics.

where are the speakers?
I mean come on, that 13 helicopter formation flying into a city should have been blasting ride of the valkries

sweet pics , thanks for sharing.

LOVE the
Fuzzy dice
pool

Hated the
The bathroom, I would rather dump in the woods.


Aviator

You know how to ruff it.

How the job thing going, after your return ?

Hey, I was a 67N-Flight Status, They took our Hueys in 96 and shut our unit down (1/158th avn regt).  Glad to see someone is still flying that beast, it the best bird in the air...

Have fun, damn i miss those days..

m
death from above

Nice pictures, [b]Aviator[/b]! Thanks for your service. Looks like a great unit.