and window frames to which a clear acrylic panel can be loosely affi xed on the left or right. Unlike real-life conditions, the water in the well-lighted pool facility
is warm and the bottom barely four feet below the surface. But despite being in a hotel pool with no helicopter in sight, you’ll learn the pro- cedures you’ll need to know in a real ditching. In all scenarios, one key piece of advice is to take in as many deep
breaths as you can just before you become submerged. In our anxiety and panic, we might tighten up and forget that we’re going to need all the breath we can hold, so get it while the getting is good. During the in-pool training, you’ll be dunked, fl ipped, get water
in your sinuses, and sometimes all three during one exercise. You’ll practice using an EBD. Sometimes you’ll do all of the above while wearing opaque goggles to mimic an egress in the dark of night or in deep waters. Part of the training is simply experiencing, understanding,
and enduring these conditions so you’ll be less rattled when you experience them during an actual ditching. Stay calm, the instructors advise. Being agitated can lead to doing the wrong things, or the right things in the wrong order. T e more time and energy you waste, the less oxygen you have to make your escape. Over and over you go, literally and fi guratively, from both poolside and in the chair. In each exercise, an instructor
monitors your actions, which, at times, means your intentional inaction.
Above: A student assumes a crash position prior to being inverted in the
pool, where his performance in extricating himself from the chair will be evaluated by the instructor, seen from behind.
Opposite, top: Serious training doesn’t have to be devoid of fun, as evidenced here by a student who, after being
inverted, surfaces once the instructor is satisfi ed with his performance.
Opposite, bottom: Survival Systems USA convened class in the indoor
pool at the Hilton Hotel adjacent to the Anaheim Convention Center.
You see, immediately post-impact the best advice generally is to, believe it or not, allow any tumbling of the aircraft and rushing of water to settle down before releasing your harness and making your escape. Releasing too soon exposes you to more disorienting tumbling and rushing. Despite the discomfort, degree of concentration, critiques, and serious
discussions, there’s a lot of smiling and chatting during the training, though I do discern a tinge of nervousness, and rightly so—the students are practicing to save their lives. Plus, they’re aware of perhaps oversharing with their fellow students (think clearing those sinuses after surfacing). T e instructors wrap up the class with a question-and-answer session
to ensure that participants retained the lessons and to clarify any details and decisions covered in the course. In the interest of safety, what with breathing compressed air and the other discomforts of the training, the students aren’t released until they’ve been monitored for any symp- toms of injury or illness. Once back home, they’ll receive in the mail a certifi cate of completion or, if needed, a detailed letter of compliance. All in all, a valuable, if not entirely pleasant, way to spend the day.
64 ROTOR 2020 Q2
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