Down in the Dark Dunker

Bryn Elliott

Fleetwood Survival Centre demonstrates escape techniques which may save your life

Oldham based EDM Ltd and the Fleetwood Offshore Survival Centre hosted an open day, opened by Joan Humble, MP for Blackpool North and Fleetwood, to show their latest Helicopter Underwater Egress Trainer (HUET) to which Helicopter Life was invited.

The HUET has been specifically designed, certified and manufactured by EDM Ltd, in order to train students on the methods of underwater escape when faced with water-ditching from a rotary or fixed wing aircraft. The trainer is designed to carry between two and ten personnel and the doors and windows can be interchanged to represent a wide range of aircraft.Ê The seats are clamp fixed to the cabin floor, which allows them to be repositioned or removed to suit the training scenario.Ê The addition of wing stubs on either side of the HUET also allows for exit over wing egress training - an opportunity already recently taken up by crew of the Nimrod Maritime Reconnaissance Aircraft. The unit is made using the most rigorous raw materials and manufacturing and design standards, is operated from a controllers console and has the capability to inverted 180¡.

The recently completed HUET is housed within Fleetwood Offshore Survival Centre's state of the art...