More lazy blogging…some thoughts about being home after 2 months of living in a 21-foot travel trailer.
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An Eclectic Mind
Web site and blog for Maria Langer, writer, video producer, jewelry artist, boat captain, and helicopter pilot. Blogging since 2004.
Welcome home! Can’t wait to hear about the next adventure in Paige!
Thanks! But first there’s the big adventure: flying from Seattle to Page by helicopter with my husband and another pilot…
Hi Maria,
Glad you got back safe…just a question.
Have you considered getting a trailer for the chopper and saving the air time?
Chopper Bob
Bob,
Yes, I’ve thought about it — and decided against it. The idea of rolling down the highway with a $300K+ investment behind me scares the bejesus out of me. All it takes is one accident to lose it all. In addition, the trailer solution would require the purchase of a suitable trailer (est. $30-50K) and the removal and reinstallation of the main rotor blades at each end of the trip (at least another $1K). When you add it all up, it’s cheaper and easier to just fly it.
Next year, I hope to get paying passengers for the flight up to Washington. If they cover my ferry cost, they’ll get a 3-day vacation they’ll never forget.
Maria
Boy, talking about being out of it!!
In the 70’s, I had a personal chopper, a Bell 47-G3B. The trailer only cost me 2 grand, nothing fancy. Would land on it, tie it down, have a A&E guy pull the blades, put them in a custom made box on the trailer and off I would go.
Cost (then) was 200 bucks each end. Saved a lot of wear and tear on the rig.
Had the whole thing insured (don’t remember the cost, but couldn’t have been to bad), and didn’t worry about it.
This was in California where some of the worst drivers exist.
The main thing about the trailer is that it needs to have a special attachment to be able to support the tail boom. Also, the R44’s skids are nearly 7 feet apart, so I’d want a trailer about 10 feet wide for safe landing. It also has to be about 30 feet long, which is the distance from the front of the bubble to the end of the stinger. The blades could be removed by my local mechanic here, but would have to be reinstalled by a Robinson mechanic at the destination, since he’d have to do a track and balance after installing them. And, of course, I’d need a safe place to store the blades in transit — they’re not made of wood like your old Bell 47 blades probably were!
Yeah, doesn’t sound practical with a 10 foot wide trailer. To wide for the roads.
Tail support, no problem tho.
Yes, has Spruce blades, but I understand now you can upgrade to Kevlar ones.
Oh, well, just a thought.
Keep up the grat posts.
Chopper Bob