THIS MONTH'S ARTICLE is about a member of the Bell family and how this helicopter (with all its quirks) makes its way into my heart every time we fly together: the Bell Long Ranger.
The Long in LongRanger has nothing to do with its range. Weird, I know. In fact, the very first versions of the Bell 206L family had a marked reduction in range over the standard 206 JetRanger.
From the beginning, Bell Helicopters ran with the Ranger name - from the Bell 47G Ranger in the 1950s to the 206 JetRanger, then on to the lengthened 206L LongRanger and ending with the ultimate rendition of the Ranger, the 4-bladed main rotor Bell 407, originally designated the PowerRanger. Yes, it sounds like a toy figure from the 1990s and is now known simply as the 407.
These helicopters all form part of the Bell 206 family for certification conformity, basically allowing newer versions to be type-certified with the Federal Aviation Administration in the USA more easily.
What's so great about the LongRanger?
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der September 2022-Ausgabe von SA Flyer Magazine.
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Diese Geschichte stammt aus der September 2022-Ausgabe von SA Flyer Magazine.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
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SACRIFICE
John continues his anecdotes about the sacrifices he has had to make in the course of his helicopter bush flying career.
KENYA - SAA PARTNERSHIP DELAY
KENYA AIRWAYS AND South African Airways announced the establishment of a highly anticipated Pan-African Airline Group three years ago.
TO PARIS FOR LUNCH
One morning I arrived back at Lanseria from a two day charter to a dreary Northern Cape iron mine. Entering the terminal, I removed my wings and epaulets, thrust them into my flight bag, and headed for the restaurant.
ASCA'S MPUMI MPOFU: READY FOR TAKE-OFF
Ms Mpumi Mpofu has occupied the hot seat as Chief Executive of ACSA, the Airports Company of South Africa for a tumultuous past four years.
HYDROGEN POWERED PLANE TESTED
WORLD’S LARGEST liquid hydrogen-powered aircraft, using a 1 MW fuel cell engine, has been tested.
CAMEROON - BLAMES BOEING
BOEING JUST CANNOT STAY out of trouble. It has become the whipping boy for endless absurd claims.
IRIS GOES TO SOMALIA
Having spent the last couple of years flying to a rota, I was thoroughly enjoying the freedom and randomness of flying charters at Sunbird Aviation.
TELEPORTATION
One of the best clients for whom I ever flew was BP, the British oil giant. I was with them in Algeria for about seven years, from the very start of their large gas projects, right in the heart of the Sahara Desert, near the small towns of In Amenas and In Salah.
FEBRUARY 2023
February has shown steady growth in the number of aircraft registered. Four fixed wing and one helicopter were added while the non-type certified (NTCA) register grew by seven.
RIGHT SEAT RULES NO. 16 FUEL SYSTEMS WHY SO COMPLICATED?
You know those aggranoying people who say, “Oh I wouldn't fly in one of those little things - you can't just pull over and fix it if something goes wrong\"? What makes this particularly irritating is that the bastards are right.