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This Friday, February 1, 2008 at 11:30 AM the Governor will be announcing the funding of the 3 new helicopters. You all are invited and President Sterling has been asked to speak. We hope to see you there!
Jim
James W. Brown
Director, Public Information and Media Services
Maryland Institute for Emergency Medical Services Systems (MIEMSS)
653 West Pratt Street
Baltimore, MD 21201
(P) 410-706-3994
(F) 410-706-3485
10 comments:
What a waste of tax dollars...don't we already have enough helicopters for our demand? When schools are falling apart and our taxes keep going up, there has to be a limit.
I am not bashing the State Police in my comments. My objection is to our idiot governor and how he spends our money.
Do not fret, the more than a lot of millions of dollars these babies will cost is, maybe, hopefully coming from slot revenue.
yeh! you know you and I and the rest of us are so fricking stupid we just keep putting up with this crap.
Did the press release bother to say why they need 3 new multi million dollar, French built, helicopters. And who in the hell is President Sterling, did something happen to G.W.Bush that we did not hear about.
"what a waste of tax dollars"
How the F&*# can you say that? They provide a FREE serivce to the citizens of the state with free aeromedical transport, if you were the one in the back as a patient, I am pretty sure you would not be bitching. I speak from experience cause i have had the misfortune of flying from salisbury to shock trauma in that helicopter where i underwent extensive surgery from a car accident. The 30 minute flight saved my life. So to you thinking its a waste, GO "F" YOURSELF...Rock on MSP, get the best helicopters money can buy, so some of the greatful people of the state who can be aided from your services are well taken care of.
TJM
Sceptics have to realize that helos
are not like cars. If it has a leak or a mechanical problem, it sits on the ground until it is fixed. Also, scheduled maint. can take a few weeks and the lack of a replacement could leave a more remote area w/o coverage.
From what I've heard, MSP has 4 extra helos at theit maint. facility to replace broken aircraft.
The state wastes lots of money but this isn't an example.
Just to clarify.. This will not be adding 3 new helicopters. Its the begining of phase in/phase out process. The helicopter's in use are no longer in production by American Eurocopter and the parts are starting to become hard find.
Anon 11:33 PM
I guess in your world we should run a throw away MSP Airforce. I do not disagree with your passionate position on the value of the aeromedical worth of the MSP Aviation Div.
However, these planes are fixable and like all complex mechanical systems they break down. If they in fact have 4 additional airframes,as another, blogger commented to provide backup then what is the purpose of the new airframes. Are they expanding the fleet, or replacing frames with mechanical problems. When you start to buy airframes this costly there should be a paper plan as what your are replacing and why or what additional services you are going to render.
Oh! by the way the Air Force is still flying airframes that are over 50 years old, especially the B-52 and KC-135.
And in response to your comment about a FREE service you must not pay state taxes.
Those B-52 and KC-135 airframes are not actually that old only the design. No aircraft can handle that many cycles of take offs and landings not to mention the ones with pressurized cabins that puts additional stress on them. I understand from a source that flies regularly for the MSP that the parts are getting harder to find and it boils down to the cost effectiveness of maintaining an ailing fleet or replacing with newer aircraft with less operational costs and better fuel efficiency. I have flown a few times myself and I damn sure would want them to have the best equipment out there. If you would like to learn more about how the MSP takes great care of their aircraft go to their website.
www.mspaviation.org
Respectfully,
Norbie
I'm the 6:17 anon poster.
My understanding of the MSP maint. plan is mostly a guess but I am somewhat familliar with FAA requirements. Normally aircraft are scheduled for annual maint. as well as hourly maint.
It could take a week or a month depending on what needs to be fixed/replaced. Because passengers (patients) are transported there is a requirement for more frequent check ups.
The frequency of maint can vary depending on how mush the helo is flown. IE: if oil, hydraulic fluid, etc needs to be changed evey 100 hrs of flight, two busy weeks flying from Ocean City could dictate that a spare is needed more often than normal.
Remember, You can't pull off the side of the road and call AAA if your aircraft stops running. The only guarantee is that you will make it all theway to the scene of the crash. The spare idea makes sense to me.
Anon 11:20AM
You were right about the age of the B-52 the last one a B-52 H model was deliverd to the Airforce in Oct of 1962,some 35yrs ago. The H model still flys in todays environment and the AF does not plan to retire it until 2040.
I cannot believe that and airframe as expensive as the one MSP flys should be thrown away because of mechanical needs. There are many models of airplanes that have not been in production for many many years, but somebody keeps them flying.
Money has been going to this cause through the state's helicopter replacement fund with the money being generated through traffic citation fines,And also through the fees associated with registering a vehicle in MD.
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