(07-06-2019 02:28 PM)MUther Wrote:  

(07-06-2019 08:04 AM)Hilltopper2K Wrote:  

(07-05-2019 08:28 PM)MUther Wrote:  

(07-05-2019 12:33 PM)Hilltopper2K Wrote:  Helicopters are much more dangerous than airplanes. Terrible if one of his kids was also on board.

Don't know about that. Auto-rotation down under no power and a small landing footprint give them a huge advantage over airplanes aside from non-engine mechanical failure. Plus generally more aviation knowledge and training required by pilot to fly helis.

My mother was friends with a doctor in Bowling Green that liked to fly helicopters as a hobby and died in one. Anecdotal I know. But it seems like you hear all the time about a helicopter crashing. Sight-seeing helicopters, military helicopters, the news helicopter in Seattle, etc. I can't remember the last time I head about a fixed wing military craft crashing. And you would think that there would be a lot more flight hours for fixed wing craft than helicopters. I could be wrong but I think helicopters are more dangerous. As the article below points out it is difficult to compare because they are used in different conditions for different reasons:

https://www.slackdavis.com/blog/are-heli...airplanes/

Yeah, that's what I was gonna say. The places which helicopters can go puts them at some risk for sure. The FAA require a fixed-wing license before gaining a helicopter license, not sure about the military. But at the flying 747 level commercial I'm sure they've had more training.

My dad's a fixed wing pilot and knows a lot of other pilots. Many of them have had crashes. You just don't hear about them because they aren't over urban areas. It's usually short on landing or something of that nature.

Wasn't trying to be argumentative, just pointing out that each has benefits and risks and most of the time the safety is on the pilot, not what they're flying in.

The FAA does not require a helicopter pilot to get a fixed wing certificate, nor does the military. I'd venture to say most helicopter pilots do not have fixed wing certificates.

I've flown both, professionally a fixed-wing pilot. Both are dangerous in their own way. Helicopters have a lot more moving parts and points of failure in my opinion, but fixed-wing forward speed leaves a lot of room for pilots to get behind the plane and run into things, especially under IFR. But as someone who's had an engine failure, I'd much rather be in the fixed wing than the helo.

Condolences to the family, the other passengers, crew. This was a true tragedy.