Bernie the Bunion wrote in
:

Interesting thread.

I've got a few helicopter pics showing the machines on these pop out
floats and wondered a few times what would happend if they were needed.

My curious question is how come operators don't use the old permanent
floats. You know, the ones that looked like cigar tubes, nice and
plump, etc.

I presume it would have to do with performance, speed, etc.

Would those types of floats be safer compared to the pop outs or
would still be iffy on roughish water.


They have been used, but they're unstable on land, you can't autorotate
successfully to land with them, they slow the helicopter down dramatically,
and you have to carry a hand pump around & pump for a long time when they
lose air (and they lose air regularly). Plus they mount rather low, and
the CG is higher than with popouts, so they'll roll on you even though
they're usually mounted further outboard than the regular skids. PHI has
one, for use in training, but they just aren't practical for everyday use
offshore.

--
Regards,

Stan