MD500 Startup and Tuna Boat Flight 

Sounds like a skill that everyone needs. You never know when you might find yourself on a boat, needing to fly an MD500 😂

its actually a C model Hughes 500, prob from the '70s. no doubt this is a high-hour bird.

DO YOU LOVE HAVING YOUR SPEECH CONTROLLED AS WELL?

Can't argue with that. I'm not sure I'll be able to top this job

Yeah, it's the perfect sized operation for freedom and gainful employment! If he was with a massive outfit - like a cruise ship or something international, they'd make him wear a stuffy uniform. Just chilling on the boat between flights...man I'd catch up on all my shows, gaming, and things I'm studying. Stargazing at night must be insane! The milkyway must be SO clear!

Oh yeah I loved flying barefoot

Been flying skydivers barefoot since 1998. Only way to fly.

It's pretty nice being able to, I'm gonna be a bit sad when I have to start wearing shoes or boots again lol

It’s almost feels like respect to the machine that will keep you alive. Love the vids brother

My mother would approve

its actually optimal. I fly with the thinnest sole shoes possible because the pedal feel is direct. If I was allowed to I would go barefoot or thongs lol

@@sgtsucc5348 I would hope you'd know to stay away from thongs because the back floppy part can interfere with foot controls!!

Thank you for the kind words! I'm trying to figure out what to do next. Might grab one from one of my training flights in the S58 or some cross country footage in the Huey or S300 I got to fly.

@@sinfulldoubt All three for the win👍

@@kiwidiesel I'm thinking I might do a music montage with footage from some of the cool things I've seen along the way on those flights and at my current job

@@sinfulldoubt Cool idea, Just one thing tho, please dont put music over top of ANY engine Starts or shutdowns, Inflight is fine cause they all noisy then. and especially not over radial piston power please, lol Its the simple things for me. p.s Why was your engine running so hot just after departure from the boat? And was it TOT that was peaking?

@@kiwidiesel oh yeah I think it's a crime to put music over the engine starts. Over in-flight turbine engine noise isn't so bad though. But yeah my tot was peaking out. The compressor seal was going out so wasn't super happy. We replaced the engine a few days after I took this footage.

One of the coolest job titles 🤣

Glad you enjoyed it

That sounds like a pretty cool show to sit back and watch

Oh yeah that ship had to have been the nicest out there

@Concerned Individual yeah RP- is the Philippines

It’s indeed registered in the Philippines. It’s a Hughes 369HM, which is also a MD 500.

Lol no shoes allowed in my heli 😂 I should have the landing part of the video ready to go tomorrow

The best way to fly

Lol well glad you enjoyed it! I do the same thing when I watch videos like the fire tankers absolutely screaming down into a canyon for their drop

Funny how quickly things can change. I didn't see a single Bell out there but I did see a few R44s

Bell 47,s are most likely in museums by now or simply junked. Slow and thirsty compared to the R 44.@@sinfulldoubt

That only happens once we're about to fill the boat and need one last catch

Yeah that was our communication 🤣 I didn't speak Japanese or Taiwanese. So it was mostly gestures

I've got plenty more on the way in the future

Thanks! And no problem

No problem, glad you enjoyed it. I like sharing my adventures when I can. especially when I'm working obscure jobs like this lol

Works pretty well. I almost lost them in the ocean once though 🤣

Will do

It certainly is

Yeah it locks the pedals in place so that the wind doesn't slam them around

Ahhh, I see - thanks! @@sinfulldoubt

I do miss it a lot

Oh yeah, it was a pretty sweet gig for sure

Oh yeah, it was probably the nicest ship out there

😂 you're not wrong

Yes it is registered in the Philippines

It's funny because this job technically counts as wildlife survey and capture for insurance purposes

Thanks!

Thank you!

Glad you enjoyed it

@@sinfulldoubt It's just a great video clip with perfect explanations! :) I know it looks like a vacation, although constant travel also comes with a lot of burden. - With an authority background and an own PPL-A flight license, I just wanted to mention "as co-pilot" that a fire extinguisher in the cockpit can be quite useful. Even if there is enough water around you. But I've heard about quite a few cable fires. Just imagine, no radio, no cell phone, (no CB?)... at least annoying ... Are there exemptions from requirements in international waters? ;)

🤣 yeah the sun is no joke out here

Oh yeah, it's my favorite sound out there. Followed closely by turbo noises and straight cut gears in a sequential transmission 😏

@@sinfulldoubt I don't know if I'd want to live with a straight cut transmission car but I definitely want to drive one at least. I'm looking forward to when I finally get to fly turbine airplanes. I've got quite a few years before that happens though.

@@FiveTwoSevenTHR yeah I wouldn't want to have straight cut gears on a daily driver. But on a race car it's great sound. Keep it though! It'll all be worth it soon enough. It's definitely a frustrating and uphill battle getting hours as a low time pilot.

The ignitor sounds like a BBQ grill lighting up ......the turbine spooling up to the high pitch wine give me goose bumps!

@@fudogwhisperer3590 gotta love that noise!

Oh yeah, the best graphics ever 🤣

Lol thanks. Took a second to get the timing right. Couldn't use that first clip though because the GoPro lense fogged up for like 15 minutes as soon as it hit the heat

Those are solar powered GPS buoys

Those are solar powered GPS buoys that we can drop to keep track of a raft or something that we see out there

Oh yeah I miss flying barefoot lol. That thing is a solar powered GPS buoy that we drop on rafts we find

curious as well

I had 199 hours when I got hired on at this job. Lol at Pacific Spotters or maybe tropic Helicopters if you don't have any luck with Pacific Spotters

We do at the end of the day

Usually it's GPS coordinates that my spotter will put into the GPS for me. But sometimes it's headings and distances. They can see us on radar though and that's kinda how they'll vector us if they want. The thing at his feet is a GPS beacon

@@sinfulldoubt does he drop it into a school of fish, and then the boat follows it?

I noticed they were tied off but you make all valid points

Yeah the covers were tied off. That is a valid point, but I've never had any issues with them flying around back there at least. I definitely learned early on when I got my commercial, not to let anyone rush me to get airborne. That's how mistakes happen

Somewhere in the South Pacific. Likely near Papua New Guinea

There's a good chance that a helicopter helped.

It's better than wasting literal tons of fuel for the ship to wander in circles

Looks like it's my dual tachometer for the engine and rotor speed. I only flew the heli and helped the mechanic with the heli when needed. Typically I just used the ship itself when I got close. Tried to be around the height of the crows nest and I was coming around the back side and then a bit above deck height when I was coming in to the deck

Oh yeah there's quite a few companies fishing out there

🤣I think you're the first person to say anything about that. Yeah I had to splice some videos together because I messed up the footage

They always taught us not to hover over the deck. Just get away from the obstacles back by your tail rotor

@@sinfulldoubt I guess that's one of the wonders of flying naval, thx for the answer dude, I'm starting learning for the license was cool to get some knowledge. I also guess the md500 is about the best helo, odds wise with it's little list of components, for an immediate pick up to pan out well

@@Cutstalk oh yeah that's one of the good things about the 500. There's really no systems to check 🤣 as long as the engine is running, you're good to go

I'm gonna miss flying barefoot lol

Yeah it was lol. Guess they figured I really didn't need it out in the middle of the ocean. They have two large fire extinguishers on the deck for me though. No other duties except flying and I'm on salary so it was easy. It's a 12 month contract

@@sinfulldoubtso you do spent all 12 months on the ship?

Lol that gave me a good chuckle, thanks. Yeah we usually put the right door on once I shutdown. Keeps the salt spray and what not from getting in. Then my door comes on at the end of the day or if it's going to rain. That coil of rope is to help keep the heli in place on the deck. That metal deck gets slippery when it gets wet, so the rope provides some grip

Thank you! My contract is for one year but I'm going to extend an extra six months. Usually we're only on the ship for about 4-6 weeks before we come back for a break to offload the fish.

@@sinfulldoubt Thanks, no problem. I was working on cargo ships, max 8months but after this time people started to speak with mikrowaves cookers :)to long at sea. I wsnted to do my helicopter course on Bristov accademy in US but I gave chosen medical school...but I want to fly as a doctor on hems..Maybe in futer I will make paper for helikopters. Good luck, good money and no storms

Thanks! I only took home about 400 hours so not nearly as much as most others

@@sinfulldoubt Thank you very much for the answer! What would you reckon is the average most tuna pilots take home hour wise?

It is a pretty sweet gig. I'm going to miss it

@@sinfulldoubt I'll take over for you man, I've got like 50 hours on my hotas. *feeling pretty confident*

@@FartInYourFace234 alright you got this! I'll let the boss know 😂

It really depends on the helicopter. This one I flew from the left side. A majority I fly from the right though

@@sinfulldoubt oh okay

Lol he pulled a Houdini on us 🤣

Glad you enjoyed the video. I've only ever used a GPU to start a handful of times. I've never had an issue with battery starts causing an over current. We just make sure that the avionics are off before we start cranking. Haven't had any issues with chip lights for the transmission though

@@sinfulldoubt Guess it's because american version use better engine then. South korean use old version of ellsion turbo and was manufactured by Korean air and boeing. I really miss the buzzing sound that md 500 makes when performing autorotation. Hope you can record it one day. thank you for you kind reply

Yes. See bird? Don't hit bird. Very simple. I should know, I watched a video about helicopters on youtube one time.

😭

@@TFT-bp8zk he's trolling 😭

@@TFT-bp8zk ---The Cobra is my next favorite. Same helo really, just a different fuselage.

Honestly I'm really not sure. I prefer right seat usually. My only real guess is so that you can have better visibility of the boat when landing on a tight ship

Probably Just a ghost of a fish Capitan or Pilot that died out there

Oh yeah, the 500 is pretty much everyone's main reason for coming out here. It wouldn't be worth it if we ended up in a 44