A family outting in a helicopter...
 

This looks like fun!

-S

http://embed.break.com/MjQ0NjY2

Bloody hell. :o

Fools. That's what happens when you leave the tail teathered to the ground and try to take off.:roll: Atleast, that's what it looks like. The ropes come with little flags that say "remove before flight."

Looks to me like the rotor clipped something. I can't see any teather.

Amusing side note: I have a red t-shirt that says "REMOVE BEFORE FLIGHT."

EDIT: Yep, they show some damage to the hangar roof at 01:37. I suspect that's what the rotors clipped.

It's looks like two of the blades snapped off when you pause it.

Insane clip... The guy who was filming it had so much luck he didn't get killed!:huh:

Holy hell. :o:o

The damage to the hanger roof is caused by flying rotor blades 'after' they seperated from the helo (laws of physics). That guy filming is damn lucky he didn't get killed!

Anyway, what you have here is pretty much a clear case of structural failure at the point of the rotor boom. Scary since this could have happened at 2000 feet and no one would have survived, let alone possibly killing someone on the ground too.

-S

I must disagree. If you are talking about the tail boom, it seems to remain attached until the helo rocks to the left, pitches up, loses altitude, and lands on it breaking it off.

I've just noticed as well that the name of this video is "Helicopter Whacks Hanger on Takeoff"

But the helo wasn't even near the hangar. Look at the way it broke up. Something pulled on the tail boom, it seemed to break off, and peices flew at the cameraman, who had to look behind him to see the hangar.

I revise my last comments. I got the helo in a frame which clearly shows the rotorblades departing the aircraft. It's at timemark: 1:05. The rotors seemed to break right off, flinging the aircraft backwards. Someone tell me how to take a screenshot and where to find it, and I'll show you.

i think what is said above is partially correct. The rotor blades seperated first before the boom went. But still, he was no where near the hanger, so this is a case then of rotor failure - which can happen to any helo.

-S

My knowledge of physics is vague (read: non-existant) but I imagine the backwards fling you note is Newton's law of reciprocal actions. The rotor(s) smacking against the edge of the hangar caused the helo to violently bank away from it.

The helo starts out kind of far (I would estimate ~30 feet) but it banks towards the hangar right after liftoff.

OMG holly **** thats some crazy "flying"

From what I can see - it doesn't bank anywhere. It lifted straight up.

-S