Both of these spectacular shots were named “photo of the week” by the editor of Vertical Magazine. The only information or credits available is the caption here below each photo.
If you know the location or the name of the fire or the pilot, please use the “Contact Us” link at the top of the page — thanks!
Vertical Magazine has an outstanding “Photo of the Week” archives [HERE].
Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories Helicopters3 Comments on Ten Erickson Air Cranes in one place, we’re toldThe first time this has happened
This month for the first time nine or ten Erickson S-64 Air Crane helicopters were in one place at the same time, according to @EricksonInc. Photographer Dimitris Klagos took advantage of the opportunity and shot this photo in Greece near the end of the country’s wildfire season.
Have you ever seen such a sight? This rare lineup is the first time ten Erickson S-64 Air Crane® helicopters have been photographed all together! #EricksonInc #AerialFirefighting (photographer: Dimitris Klagos) pic.twitter.com/Ht3pDROW7p
— Erickson Incorporated (@EricksonInc) October 27, 2021
In the video below we learn the names of the helicopters, (right to left): Olga, Mariah, Elsie, Incredible Hulk, Delilah, Jerry, Georgia Peach, Gypsy Lady, and Marty. Christine was at the very beginning but didn’t make it into the video, except perhaps for the tips of her rotor blades. She was also missed in the photo.
This rare lineup is the first time ten Erickson S-64 Air Crane® helicopters have been together!
Erickson has joined forces with the Hellenic Fire Department and Civil Protection Agency to bring #Greece additional aerial firefighting support for this season! 🎥 Pilot Steve pic.twitter.com/y7zE57XcXi— SoCal Air Operations (@SocalAirOps) October 28, 2021
During the upcoming 2021/2022 bushfire season in Australia the plans include only one Erickson S-64 Air Crane instead of the six they have had in recent years. The huge helicopters have usually been transported from Greece to Australia by cargo ships, but last year at least one arrived by Antonov 124-100. One of the six went on contract November 1, 2020, while the other five began on various dates in December.
Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories Helicopters1 Comment on Behind the scenes with crew chief of an Air-Crane12:14 p.m. EDT Oct. 9, 2021
Join Erickson Crew Chief, Bryan Dudas as he takes us behind the scenes of an aerial construction project in Pennsylvania with an Erickson S-64 Air-Crane, N159AC. The video was posted October 7, 2021.
It may be capable of fighting fires at night or resupplying troops
The large helicopter that may be Erickson’s most well known Air-Crane, the one named Elvis, is being gutted down to the studs, so to speak. The company plans to rebuild N179AC as an S-64F+ that could operate without a pilot in the cockpit or autonomously.
The project, first announced at the Anaheim HAI convention in January, 2020, started as a way to work toward a new “pilot optional nighttime firefighting solution”, integrating Sikorsky’s MATRIX™ Technology into a digitally enabled fire management system never-before used in night firefighting. Erickson said it would enhance cockpit awareness and flight crew safety during day and night operations.
Sikorsky’s description of MATRIX:
Systems intelligence that will give operators the confidence to fly their large rotorcraft safely, reliably and affordably as autonomous or optionally piloted aircraft.
Air Cranes, which are sometimes referred to as helitankers, can carry up to 2,650 gallons of water.
According to a report in Vertical, the scope of the concept has broadened recently to include autonomous delivery of cargo for the military, not at the front lines, but in the rear. It could, for example, transport weapons and vehicles from an offshore ship past a closed or destroyed port to a point where they are needed by troops.
The reconstruction of Elvis will include converting it to a fly-by-wire system. When complete it will also have the other features that Erickson is building into their new line of S-64F+ helicopters, composite main rotor blades, an enhanced cockpit and flight control system, an improved water cannon, and what the company calls a modern engine enhancing range and fuel efficiency.
Erickson expects to begin ground tests of the reborn Elvis in 2022 with a first flight by the end of 2023.
Two K-MAX helicopters were converted for the military by Lockheed Martin Corporation and Kaman Aerospace Corporation into an unmanned aircraft system (UAS) capable of autonomous or remote controlled cargo delivery. Its mission: battlefield cargo resupply for the U.S. military. The two ships flew more than 1,000 missions in Afghanistan and hauled more than 3 million pounds of cargo that would have otherwise been transported by trucks which are vulnerable to roadside bomb attacks. One goal was to save lives by reducing Marines’ exposure to improvised explosive devices on cargo convoys.
The helicopters were sent to Afghanistan in November, 2011 for an initial, limited deployment, but were extended several times.
In 2015 a pilot-optional K-MAX demonstrated dropping water and transporting cargo near Boise, Idaho.
Tim Crippin sent us these photos:
I captured some pictures of N237AC at the Medford Airport on June 16th doing some ground tests. This S-64 is destined for the Italian Forest Service sometime this year. After doing their ground tests they returned to Erickson’s Willow Springs facility in Central Point, Oregon.
Thanks Tim!
Air Cranes have finished their assignment in Australia
Two S-64 Air Crane helicopters have completed their assignments in Australia and are loaded on a ship. They will soon be en route to Greece to help firefighters suppress wildfires.
