Helicopter Underwater Evacuation Training

[Haggis@wk]

Here's the photos from my training in Houston yesterday.

http://www.pbase.com/jimhogue


Folk, I've jumped out of an airplane when my main chute malfunctioned and I had to deploy my reserve. I've had people try to kill me for the color of my uniform. I've heard that vicious "whiz" of a bullet pass so close that you wonder what would have happen if you'd turn your head a second earlier. I had a dud motar round land 30 feet away. I've heard ricochets where you close your eyes and pray it goes the other way.

I only say that so I can put the following into perspective. I've never been so scared in my life as when I hung upside down, underwater, with closed eyes, trying to open a window, unsnap my seat belt and get out of the window and go in the right direction.

Any of you guys in the navy who go underwater or had similar training are the bravest or stupidest people I've ever met!!!!

Piq, you married a damn good man but I have to think that anyone who voluntarily goes through what he did really lacks imagination; I spent hours trying to go to sleep last night while I replay those scenes (we did it five times, I did it six because I screwed up one) over and over for hours...........[screaming meemies icon]

[dai bread]

Television news people & camera crew do that training too, at least in this country, where the prospect of crashing into water is high. (Referring to our island geography, not to the state of our helicopters). I never did it, but my supervisor did as he was going on a junket around the country a couple of elections ago. He didn't like it either.

[Haggis@wk]

(Ed. " I had a dud mortar round land 30 feet away."??????)

Okay, okay, okay....Honesty (Ed. "..and sobriety??") forces me to amend that statement. I'll freely admit that the distance the round landed from me varies based on the sex and age of the audience and the "enthusiasm" (Ed. "sobriety??") in the story telling.

The round landed no further than 60....90....120 feet (MAX!) away, I swear.

(Ed. "...and the fact you were playing a video game in front of the hootch with Gary and you came in second in a two man race to get to the bottom of the trench isn't worth mentioning?")

Trivial, besides, there was only sandbagged walls 4...6...8 feet (MAX!) high around us. There was only sky above, that 120MM....80MM...60MM (MIN!) round could have landed on us!!!

Heh. "Video game." You cleaned that up well.

(Ed. Sniff. "The actual game and content of the screen at the time had nothing to do with the story. Besides, Chun Li couldn’t kick that high so we were at a disadvantage if you ask me.")

You realize that people will have to Google Chun Li to get that reference and that dates us both???????

(Ed. I prefer to think of it as “worldly” rather than “dates”)

The MRHYN just looked over my shoulder and said "substitute 'old' for 'worldly' and I thought it was a 120MM rocket round the first time you told me???"

The memory goes second....can't remember what was first......

[Mahlersfifth]

I followed the link, Haggis, and stopped to look at an attractive couple at a Texas Ball. Is that you and Mrs. Haggis? Mrs. Haggis is beautiful. But you. You like a normal person and I know Repubilcans are not normal people. The tux is disguising the proof, I reckon.

[Haggis@wk]

I followed the link, Haggis, and stopped to look at an attractive couple at a Texas Ball. Is that you and Mrs. Haggis? Mrs. Haggis is beautiful. But you. You like a normal person and I know Repubilcans are not normal people. The tux is disguising the proof, I reckon.

Yep, that's "Mrs. Haggis" or the Mean Red Headed Yankee Nurse (MRHYN) as I refer to her usually here. Yeah, I certainly married up.

The "tux" is officially called a military "Mess Dress," which is the military version of a tux. If you looked at the photos you can see LCPL Tim in the USMC mess dress. That is probably the most impressive mess dress in the U.S. Military, comparable to the fancy dress uniforms of the British military.

[Shapley]

If you looked at the photos you can see LCPL Tim in the USMC mess dress. That is probably the most impressive mess dress in the U.S. Military, comparable to the fancy dress uniforms of the British military.

Yeah, the Marines always have had style....

[Mahlersfifth]

Yep, that's "Mrs. Haggis" or the Mean Red Headed Yankee Nurse (MRHYN) as I refer to her usually here. Yeah, I certainly married up. The "tux" is officially called a military "Mess Dress," which is the military version of a tux. If you looked at the photos you can see LCPL Tim in the USMC mess dress. That is probably the most impressive mess dress in the U.S. Military, comparable to the fancy dress uniforms of the British military.

Mighty pretty

[piqaboo]

Ulp!

Was that you who exited out the opening of the simulator, instead of the window?
The human raft is interesting. Never saw that before. Seems a good idea.
Mrs Edith. That's funny.

I often wonder how OT handled the knowing.

[Haggis@wk]

Ulp!

Was that you who exited out the opening of the simulator, instead of the window?
The human raft is interesting. Never saw that before. Seems a good idea.
Mrs Edith. That's funny.

I often wonder how OT handled the knowing.

No, I was taking the pictures having already "graduated" (shudder) If they came out of the opening instead of the window they had to repeat it...I did.

The raft was very interesting and very stable. the guy lying in the middle was a "casualty" and we pulled him there. All of the USAF training concentrated on pilots ejecting over water so mass exercises like these weren't taught.

[piqaboo]

The raft keeps people together, helps with rescue (visibility, centralization), survival (state of mind, warmth),
and cares for the injured.
What have I missed?

So, you sit in that beast and suddenly you are covered with water? How good were you at stopping breathing before you got a nose or lungful of water?

[Haggis@wk]

The raft keeps people together, helps with rescue (visibility, centralization), survival (state of mind, warmth),
and cares for the injured.
What have I missed?

So, you sit in that beast and suddenly you are covered with water? How good were you at stopping breathing before you got a nose or lungful of water?

You pretty much covered it. We were in a pool so waves weren't an issue. the raft require some effort to maintain so someone weakened would be problem, I guess. Quite frankly I haven't spent much time thinking about it because if the situation gets to that point I'll be pretty well screwed anyway

[OperaTenor]

As a nuc, I never attended sub school, so I never had formal escape training. We joked that they didn't send nucs because we as nucs knew it was all a placebo.

Think about it: They teach that escapes are possible from depths as great as 500ft. At the time, the vast majority of the waters we operated in was ten times or greater in depth. Who were they trying to kid?

Congratulations on completing that one, Haggis.

(Okay, so part of me thinks it might kind of cool to do that....)

[Haggis@wk]

(Okay, so part of me thinks it might kind of cool to do that....)

So did I, until the first time it flipped upside down. If I'd been 10 years younger it probably wouldn't have bothered me as much.

[OperaTenor]

(Okay, so part of me thinks it might kind of cool to do that....)

So did I, until the first time it flipped upside down. If I'd been 10 years younger it probably wouldn't have bothered me as much.

Since I pretty much have that age thing on you, I should be fine.....

[barfle]

If I'd been 10 years younger it probably wouldn't have bothered me as much.

How long has it been since you were thirty?

Honestly, I wouldn't even bother attempting such a task at my age. I refer to it as "maturity" these days, although others might use different terms.

[jamiebk]

Personally, I will keep pushing the limits until I break something...then I might quit. I constantly have to thumb my nose at my age...

[dai bread]

Exactly. It annoys me when the news media refer to people in their 60s and 70s as "elderly".

They did it recently in connection with a fraudster. Then they published her picture. She's elderly all right! Some of us age better than others. Those who age well are increasing in numbers.

[Haggis@wk]

How long has it been since you were thirty?

In July, 30 years....

[barfle]

:rofl:
Personally, I will keep pushing the limits until I break something...then I might quit. I constantly have to thumb my nose at my age...

Not that I'm not still pushing my own limits. But in my 61 years, I've found what some of them are. The problem is that they keep getting closer.