Post by tennisbum on Mar 21, 2009 13:46:21 GMT -6
The first Apache crash was during the flight test program before the YAH-64 went into production.
The list of crew fatalities in this forum mentions the date and casualty names for the crash. It occurred 22 November 1980 over the ocean off Encinitas, California. Fatalities included John E. Ludwig, James W. Grouix and William Freeman.
The flight had originated from the former Hughes Helicopters flight test facility at Palomar Airport, Carlsbad, California. Bill Freeman was a photographer in the chase plane, a T-28 that was photographing the Apache in flight. Tapes recorded during the flight revealed the pilot of the chase plane did not acknowledge a radio transmission from the Apache pilot about a turn he was going to make.
Many of the pilots and maintenance personnel working on the Apache flight test program had flown or maintained helicopters and /or fixed-wing aircraft during the Vietnam War, including test pilot Jim Grouix. The senior types in the flight test program included veterans of the Korean War and World War II.
Bob Ferry was the Chief Test Pilot for Hughes Helicopters at the time of that 1980 Apache crash. He had flown during World War II and the Korean War, retired from the Air Force as a Colonel, and gone to work for Hughes Helicopters.
[glow=red,2,300]Bob Ferry was the first pilot to fly the Apache helicopter and he still holds the record for the longest helicopter flight.[/glow]
Bob won the Sikorsky International Trophy for his non-stop 1966 flight from Los Angeles to Daytona Beach, Florida, a distance of 1739 miles. Bob had 10,800 hours in 125 different types of aircraft.
Several newspapers ran lengthy obituaries after Bob passed away in February 2009.
www.nctimes.com/articles/2009/01/23/obituaries/z018b303899e3ce2588257547007ed5b9.txt
www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/02/11/AR2009021104275_2.html
www3.signonsandiego.com/stories/2009/feb/02/1m2ferry22928-robert-g-ferry-air-force-veteran-was/?uniontrib
Jim Vittitoe, a manager at the Hughes Carlsbad flight test facility, was a Marine pilot and a test pilot during his military and civilian career. He flew Corsairs in the Pacific during World War II and several aircraft during the Korean War. He trained as a helicopter pilot in 1952.
[glow=red,2,300]When Jim Vittitoe retired from the Marines in 1961, he had more time in a helicopter than any other Marine pilot. While working for Hughes Helicopters, he flew the first flight of the Army's OH6A on February 26, 1963.[/glow]
Jim passed away in 1994 but his memoir is preserved at the Korean War Educator web site. It's an interesting read, including his experiences while flying during two wars and a post-war career as a test pilot.
www.koreanwar-educator.org/memoirs/vittitoe_james/index.htm
The list of crew fatalities in this forum mentions the date and casualty names for the crash. It occurred 22 November 1980 over the ocean off Encinitas, California. Fatalities included John E. Ludwig, James W. Grouix and William Freeman.
The flight had originated from the former Hughes Helicopters flight test facility at Palomar Airport, Carlsbad, California. Bill Freeman was a photographer in the chase plane, a T-28 that was photographing the Apache in flight. Tapes recorded during the flight revealed the pilot of the chase plane did not acknowledge a radio transmission from the Apache pilot about a turn he was going to make.
Many of the pilots and maintenance personnel working on the Apache flight test program had flown or maintained helicopters and /or fixed-wing aircraft during the Vietnam War, including test pilot Jim Grouix. The senior types in the flight test program included veterans of the Korean War and World War II.
Bob Ferry was the Chief Test Pilot for Hughes Helicopters at the time of that 1980 Apache crash. He had flown during World War II and the Korean War, retired from the Air Force as a Colonel, and gone to work for Hughes Helicopters.
[glow=red,2,300]Bob Ferry was the first pilot to fly the Apache helicopter and he still holds the record for the longest helicopter flight.[/glow]
Bob won the Sikorsky International Trophy for his non-stop 1966 flight from Los Angeles to Daytona Beach, Florida, a distance of 1739 miles. Bob had 10,800 hours in 125 different types of aircraft.
Several newspapers ran lengthy obituaries after Bob passed away in February 2009.
www.nctimes.com/articles/2009/01/23/obituaries/z018b303899e3ce2588257547007ed5b9.txt
www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/02/11/AR2009021104275_2.html
www3.signonsandiego.com/stories/2009/feb/02/1m2ferry22928-robert-g-ferry-air-force-veteran-was/?uniontrib
Jim Vittitoe, a manager at the Hughes Carlsbad flight test facility, was a Marine pilot and a test pilot during his military and civilian career. He flew Corsairs in the Pacific during World War II and several aircraft during the Korean War. He trained as a helicopter pilot in 1952.
[glow=red,2,300]When Jim Vittitoe retired from the Marines in 1961, he had more time in a helicopter than any other Marine pilot. While working for Hughes Helicopters, he flew the first flight of the Army's OH6A on February 26, 1963.[/glow]
Jim passed away in 1994 but his memoir is preserved at the Korean War Educator web site. It's an interesting read, including his experiences while flying during two wars and a post-war career as a test pilot.
www.koreanwar-educator.org/memoirs/vittitoe_james/index.htm