# Chopper spanned 3 provinces in 2 weeks



## ErorZ (26 Feb 2004)

http://www.canada.com/national/nationalpost/news/story.html?id=c1d066e4-542a-47e9-ad29-c5b9e3631ad3 


Chopper spanned 3 provinces in 2 weeks
Where mechanics are the heroes

Chris Wattie 
National Post 


Thursday, February 26, 2004

Nearly two weeks after a Canadian Forces Sea King began what was to be a five-day trip across the country, a series of mechanical, electrical and weather problems has left it stranded in the Prairies.

Sea King 436 was in Regina yesterday, less than halfway through its flight from Victoria to Halifax, after being repeatedly grounded by faulty hydraulics, short-circuited instruments and a broken heater.

The 40-year-old helicopter began its trip on Feb. 13 and was expected at CFB Shearwater, N.S., by Feb. 18. Instead, it has been plagued by breakdowns that have kept it in the hangars three days for every day it was able to fly.

Captain Jason Proulx, a spokesman for 17 Wing in Shearwater, said the helicopter ran into problems just one day after it left its West Coast base and arrived in Calgary. "They developed a hydraulic problem," he said yesterday. "They fixed that, then they found an electrical problem."

The Sea King was grounded for another five days while the crew of three mechanics which always accompanies the aircraft on long trips worked on repairs.

On Feb. 20, the helicopter was able to leave on the next leg of its voyage and attained Saskatoon.

Although the Sea King landed safely, the next morning the crew discovered new technical difficulties -- two of its instruments were broken and needed to be fixed.

"And it turned out the heater was malfunctioning as well," Capt. Proulx said.

After two more days in a rented civilian hangar, the helicopter was ready to fly again and made the hop to Regina on Monday. There, it was grounded by bad weather until today, and Capt. Proulx said the Sea King‘s pilots hoped to make it as far as Ontario by the end of the day.

"These types of snags are not unusual -- they‘re par for the course," he said. "It‘s an old aircraft and we‘re flying it across the country."

He said the aircraft technicians worked long hours to get the Sea King back in the air. "The aircrew fly that aircraft based on the trust they have in the maintainers," he said.

The Sea Kings have been described by their pilots as "10,000 nuts and bolts flying in loose formation." They have been a constant source of embarrassment for the government and a symbol for those who say the Liberal government has neglected the Canadian Forces over the past decade.

Under Jean Chretien, who cancelled a Tory contract to replace the helicopters soon after his election in 1993, the Sea King replacement program was stalled for more than a decade.

Paul Martin, the Prime Minister, announced that replacing the 1960s-era Sea Kings would be a priority for his government and quickly approved a $3- billion contract to buy a new fleet of 28 of the ship-borne helicopters.

Jeremy Sales, a spokesman for the Department of National Defence, said the two companies competing for the contract are to submit their proposals to the department by April 30.

He said a decision will be made "by this summer" on whether the Cormorant or Sikorsky helicopter will replace the Sea Kings. "They‘re moving as quickly as they can to complete the process."

The first of the new helicopters is not expected until 2008. The full fleet is to be phased in by 2010. By then, some of the Sea Kings now in service will be almost 50 years old.

For purposes of comparison, a passenger bus could travel from Victoria to Halifax in four days and four hours.

© National Post 2004


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## sgt_mandal (26 Feb 2004)

Watch out! we‘re being bombed by a SeaKing!! 

Wait, nevermind, it was just a tire.


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## AirCon (1 Mar 2004)

hmmmm...Greyhound, eh?

Well, problem solved!!!!  Oh wait a minute!  Will a Greyhound fit in the hanger on HMCS Toronto???   

A


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