Without trying to get into an argument, getting the oil infrastructure up and running is important not only to the whole country, but vital to the whole South Louisiana economy. It’s a dual mission along with the rescue work, and I for one believe it needs to be done.
The Coast Guard are equipped to make helicopter rescues; few private choppers are.
Plus there’s a huge amount of oil leaking from not only all the cars and tanks and heaven knows what else in New Orleans, but I saw a report at www.nola.com that there’s two inches of oil floating on the water in parts of St. Bernard Parish due to leaks in the Meraux refinery. So stopping leaks like that is vital to not only the health and safety of people, but of the whole South Louisiana ecology.
There’s more involved here than just saving people by plucking them off roofs.
Point taken. There’s more of a visceral reaction to the refugees on buses and thousands of dead bodies out there (according to the latest) but you’re right.
Oh, trust me, Kythereia, I totally understand how you feel. But there are zillions of oil company choppers all over South Louisiana, and frankly, having a bunch of civilian choppers getting in the way of the military folks right now might actually slow down rescue efforts. Much of the current rescue work is taking place by boat, too.
Getting infrastructure back up and running is obviously secondary to saving lives, but if doing it can help save lives indirectly, it’s hard to argue with it.
CG Dolphins are all orange with white and black trim. Originally, they were white. The Jayhawk (CG calls the H-60 a Jayhawk, not Seahawk. Although Seahawk is a much cooler name) is mostly white with orange and black trim. Those two airframes replaced the H52 and 3F Pelican. In addition there are the armed MH-68 Stingrays , which are marked much like a Jayhawk. As those are based out of Jacksonville, they may be in the area assisting, however I don’t know of their hoisting capabilities.
I doubt the CG would be contracting out other helos. HLS or FEMA maybe. Given the magnitude of the situation, that wouldn’t surprise me.
The CG is currently in the process of acquiring the EADS CASA CN 235-300M as an eventual replacement of the HC-130. I think this aircraft has some roots in Europe, though I’m not 100% sure. In addition, I belive I heard recently that the replacement for Marine One will be an international effort as well.
The Shorts Skyvan (as the C-23 Sherpa), the Alenia G222 (as the C-27 Spartan), the BAe Hawk (as the navalized T-45 Goshawk although I think this is manufactured in the US).
No major aircraft are foreign-sourced, and foreign designs are limited to minor use (the first two A/C above were acquired mainly for transporting parts and supplies around bases in Europe). The US has a major NIH (Not Invented Here) bias on military equipment, although, to be fair, this is probably a reasonable way of making sure that you aren’t cut off from your sources in case of war, which was very much a concern during the Cold War.
I heard a very short TV report that said that it was a civilian helicopter searching for stranded pets. The helicoptor landed and one of the tires sank in mud, tipping it over enough for the rotors to hit the ground. No one was injured.
CASA is the major Spanish aviation company. One of their models competed vs. the British Hawk for the Navy jet trainer bid.
The new Marine One will be a Lockheed-customized Agusta-Westland EH101, designated the VH-71 for the USD military.
The USCG itself for a long time has used a French Dassault Falcon business jet, made by a US susbsidiary of Dassault and outfitted by Grumman, as a recon aircraft (HU-25).
The Stingrays are a derivative of the Italian Agusta A109.
The Army (who are not major operators of large FW assets but they do have some) is selecting the new aircraft for what’s called the “Aerial Common Sensor” (a battlefield C3 system) and for a while they had picked the Brazilian Embraer Regional Jet (RJ145), to be outfitted by Lockheed, but now are reconsidering the specs.
