Four Guys and an R44

Sunday, May 03, 2009 - Dan Megna, Vertical Online

In an attempt to break the U.S. cross-country-and-back speed record, Johan Nurmi headed east from San Diego on a mild spring morning with a privately registered R44 and a team of new pilots.

A team of four pilots rewrote the record books in April with a coast-to-coast-and-back helicopter flight that shattered the previous mark by just over 10 hours.

The World Record Helicopter Team, based at French Valley Airport in Southern California, launched their attempt from Brown Field Municipal Airport in San Diego. Their goal was to fly to Georgia's Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport and back to Brown Field in less than the existing record time (for the team's class of helicopter) of 70 hours and 19 seconds.

Group leader Johan Nurmi assembled his team of pilots from students who had completed helicopter flight training at his flight school: the USA Academy of Aviation in Murrieta, Calif. Roy Sciortino, Tyler Kim and Bill Laggner accepted Nurmi's challenge to make the attempt on the previous record - set by Nurmi himself in 2008, along with three other pilots, in a Robinson R44 Raven I.

Sciortino provided his personally owned R44 Raven II for this attempt. The helicopter was not modified in any way, had only 420 hours since new and had received a fresh annual inspection. Said Sciortino, "What comes out of the Robinson factory is good enough to do the job."

A handheld Garmin GPSMap 696 was purchased to aid in navigation and weather assessment. And, a sponsor, Night Optics USA, donated a set of night vision goggles, which were used by a non-flying pilot for observation. The team had no onboard tracking, instead choosing to make regular updates via cell phone to an Internet site set up to allow visitors to follow their progress.

With weather apparently in their favor, the team chose the morning of April 20 for their departure. Meeting at Brown Field, each pilot traveled light, with only a toothbrush, fresh underwear and minimal snacks, water and energy drinks. After final preparations and a thorough preflight, the team was airborne by 6:10 a.m.

Originally, the flight plan called for a landing every 2.5 hours for about 30 minutes to refuel and change pilots. They had eight fuel stops identified, the first being Casa Grande, Ariz. Early in the trip, however, they realized the plan needed to be modified significantly.

On the first leg, strong headwinds, soaring temperatures in the Arizona desert and increased fuel consumption forced the team to land earlier than planed. Said Nurmi, "We had to put away the flight plan we had made and start a new one with much shorter legs."

Unexpected dangerous weather and dark of night forced course alterations as well. Thunderstorms with strong, unpredictable winds forced the team to divert from their original course. And, late one night, the team chose to pursue an indirect route to follow a well-illuminated freeway and avoid flying over large expanses of dark, featureless terrain in the Southeast.

On the very last leg of the flight, coming home, the team had to contend with fatigue and 30-knot winds as they climbed over the mountains just 70 miles from Brown Field. But, they also knew the late afternoon weather at Brown was forecast to close in with coastal fog and mist, so they had to press on.

Celebrating a successful return to Brown Field. Tony Zeljeznjak Photo.

At 6:08 p.m. on April 22, the team landed their R44 at Brown Field, unofficially breaking the record with a time of 59 hours and 58 minutes. Family and friends greeted the weary team with hugs, high-fives, and, of course, champagne. As the corks popped and celebrations got underway, the coastal fog rolled in over the airfield. Said Nurmi, "If we would have come an hour later, we would not have been able to land and our record would have been in jeopardy.

While the team's effort was a record-setting success, it was not without its challenges. A minor hydraulic leak cost them time, but was finally remedied. Then, a late night fuel stop cost them an extra hour when the fuel was not immediately available. The team also made an unexpected landing in Abilene, Texas, to grab a few minutes much-needed sleep, but was airborne again in just over an hour.

For three of the pilots, this was the first such effort they had been a part of; but Nurmi is a veteran of several records and record-breaking attempts. Currently, he holds four U.S. national helicopter speed records and two world helicopter speed records. Nurmi said he hopes to soon make a similar coast-to-coast record attempt, but with a turbine helicopter. When asked what his ultimate goal is, Nurmi said he dreams of one day assembling the hardware and sponsorship to make an attempt on the around-the-world speed record.

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