Abstract
Sikorsky S-61 or better known as “Nuri” had served the Malaysian aviation sector for the past four decades. It is mainly used for transportation, combat search and rescue purposes. However, there were Nuri helicopter crashes or accident cases reported during its operation period which involved loss of its occupants. The pilot survivability rate can be improved provided that the vertical impact loading on the helicopter is reduced during the crash accident. Utilization of an energy absorbing pilot seat or cockpit structure maybe one of the approaches to minimize the impact shock exerted to the occupants. However, the shock or maximum acceleration of the cockpit/pilot seat has to be first determined before a thorough design scheme can be undertaken. In this study, a vertical crash event of the Nuri pilot seat from 500 feet altitude was simulated and the maximum acceleration rate was determined using MSC PATRAN/LS-DYNA. The pilot survivability was determined by comparing the result with human tolerance criteria data available in other published works. From the result, it was found that the maximum acceleration of the Nuri pilot seat was 584.4g at 19. 63 milliseconds, thus it can be concluded that the survivability aspect of the pilot is fatal when compared to other published works.
Highlights
The S-61 A-4 helicopter is manufactured by Sikorsky, and the first version was built in 1957
Sikorsky S-61 A-4 or known as Nuri in Royal Malaysian Arms Forces (RMAF), is a twin-engine class helicopter which is mostly utilized as a transport aircraft and had been first purchased by Malaysian Government in 1968
This study focuses on the crash impact simulation behavior of the Nuri cockpit and pilot seat structure, in order to gain a better understanding on the contributing factors that may improve the survivability of the occupants
Summary
The S-61 A-4 helicopter is manufactured by Sikorsky, and the first version was built in 1957. Sikorsky S-61 A-4 or known as Nuri in Royal Malaysian Arms Forces (RMAF), is a twin-engine class helicopter which is mostly utilized as a transport aircraft and had been first purchased by Malaysian Government in 1968. The Nuri helicopter had become one of the useful modes of transportation for the RMAF. The main usage of Nuri helicopter is for transportation and it can carry about 31 passengers and four crews. Nuri helicopter could be used for rescue operation from remote area by using hoist (by mean of winching). Nuri helicopters had served the RMAF for the few decades, it involved in several crash cases since its inception to RMAF in 1968. About 18 cases of Nuri crashes had been reported since 1969 till 2007 (Bernama, 2007). This study focuses on the crash impact simulation behavior of the Nuri cockpit and pilot seat structure, in order to gain a better understanding on the contributing factors that may improve the survivability of the occupants
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