RWS 108 – Sharing an Apache Cockpit with a Burning Flare with Clive Richardson

Rotary Wing Show - Interviews from the Helicopter Industry

Now a helicopter instructor in the UAE, Clive Richardson flew Apaches in the British Army and was part of the Blue Eagles helicopter display team.

As aircrew we spend a huge amount of time training for different circumstances and emergencies. Dealing with a burning flare in your cockpit fired from a wingman’s aircraft is not one of these circumstances!!

Add in the complications of being a few thousand feet in the air, over hostile controlled land and in a sealed Apache cockpit with your own personal weapon ammunition at risk of cooking off and you have a fun time ahead of you.

This is the situation Clive Richardson found himself in. Perhaps strangely enough his prior HUET experiences in the pool dunker kicked in to some degree.

Meanwhile in the front seat of the Apache, unable to see what is going on in the back other than a lot of smoke in the mirror and no comms (Clive’s intercom lead had become unplugged) and just after a large ‘bang’ , Clive’s co-pilot was trying to work out what the hell was happening.

10 Years ago today, marks the anniversary when I learned why you should always fly with your visor down.
Having a 2000 degree magnesium spectral flare smash into your face at the speed of a low velocity round, while over Helmand Province with no landing options will usually focus you mind.
After hitting my visor with such force I smashed my head off the opposite window the flare melted my chest rig before causing a fire in my navigation bag containing 150 rounds of ammunition. The fire persisted and filled the cockpit with black acrid smoke. I held my breath and was able to shake the still burning flare out of my nav bag to the floor. After burning my trousers and melting my boots it eventually burnt out. So glad the Apache was not equipped with a cockpit fire extinguisher…..but at least I had a visor! If you fly with a visor, use it! – Original LinkedIn Post

Entry point of the flare through the lefthand windscreen with burn marks.

View from the inside of the Apache cockpit.

“You will note in the photo how only the lower part of my face was affected by the fire due to the visor and the hole in the bottom of my nav bag where the flare exited.” – Clive

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Links from this week’s episode:
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Clive flying the Apache for the Blue Eagles display team – YouTube

A slow motion look at the flares firing from an Apache. You can see the forward firing spread.

Clive in the cockpit. In this photo you can see the bulky visor housing on the front of the helmet. Crews would remove this so that they could attach the ‘modified’ NVG mount with single tube.

Clive’s desk at work. Left is the remains of the flare weight found in the nav bag. Right is a flare housing that would have been loaded into an Apache before missions.

(Left) Clive Richardson (Middle) One of the ground support crew (Right) Phil – front seat pilot/gunner

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