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The Potential of Flight Simulation to Support Pilot Training for Mountain Helicopter Emergency Medical Services
Neale A Watson1, Nicholas Fernandez1, Ieuan Owen1
1School of Engineering, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom.
Objective:
To demonstrate how piloted flight simulation can be used to replicate rescue helicopter missions in mountainous terrain. To meet this objective, a piloted flight simulation environment has been created in which a helicopter pilot can "fly" over a mountain terrain and through realistic turbulent air flow.
Methods:
A solid model, 550 metres across, of a mountainous island has been created and which contains topographic features such as a bowl, pinnacle, ridge, canyon, and cliff. The air flow over this terrain has been computed for a 20-knot wind and integrated with a helicopter flight model representative of a UH-60 Black Hawk. Using a full-motion flight simulator, two test pilots explored the island and conducted a stable hover flight test up the face of the cliff.
Results:
The simulation demonstrates great promise and was judged by the test pilots to be an impressive first attempt at developing a search and rescue "training landscape." The flight test results revealed how the pilots found it difficult to maintain a stable hover when exposed to the turbulent shear layer at the top of the cliff, consistent with their real-world experience.
Conclusion:
The exploratory study was considered to be successful, meriting further research and development to increase the range of wind conditions and to explore the other topographic features in the terrain.
