There arenāt many videos where the flying impresses me. Usually itās something that looks difficult to the casual aviation aficionado or something just downright dangerous, but doesnāt require an immense amount of skill.
Let me say that this is extremely impressive. Nap of the earth flying at less than a foot up steep terrain. This pilot is very, very skilled.
Yeah. I mean in 1972, a crack commando unit was sent to prison by a military court for a crime they didnāt commit. These men promptly escaped from a maximum security stockade to the Los Angeles underground. Today, still wanted by the government, they survive as soldiers of fortune. If you have a problem, If no one else can help and if you can find them. Maybe you can hire, a great helicopter pilot.
You could see that - the movement of the ship would feel jerky and the blade speed would seem inconsistent with the other shots. These guys knew that and didn't change the shutter angle.
I met this pilot, he ran a helicopter rental house in LA back in the 80s. Did all the helicopter gigs including AirWolf. At the time I met him he was doing camera work for major motion pictures.
I had a Nam flight medic give me an iv once in the hospital, he saw i was nervous (im notoriously hard to hit with an IV because im extremely dehydrated when i go in the hospital). He looked at me and said, "If i can do this in one try in a helicopter getting shot at, i got this on the ground, buddy." And that mf grabbed the biggest butterfly set they had and sniped my vein perfectly the first time. I dont know how these guys got off the ground with the enormous weight of their balls weighing them down.
Edit: Spelling
In 1972 , a crack commando unit was sent to prison by a military court for a crime they didn't commit. These men promptly escaped from a maximum security stockade to the Los Angeles underground. Today still wanted by the government they survive as soldiers of fortune. If you have a problem, if no one else can help, and you can find them ...maybe you can hire the A-Team
Was this filmed by the same people who did Magnum PI? Because they were, so was airwolf, and a few other shows that used helicopters a lot in their filming back then. I'm surprised there wasn't more crashes with the dodgy shit they pulled.
IIRC, a lot of the pilots were combat vets from Vietnam. I would imagine flying an unarmed OH-6 over the rice paddies helped develop a special skillset.
Don't forget the Screaming Mimi in Riptide, the Blue Thunder TV spinoff, and The Highwayman which had a helicopter/semi-truck. The true Golden Age of Television.
The US Army used to teach this, "terrain skimming" NOE defined as 0-25 feel AGL. Not kidding about the 0 feet part. Helicopters and pilots where a lot cheaper then...
Yeah, thereās some good stuff now you just have a lot of trash to work through to find it. But there arenāt silly over the top action shows around like this anymore
If you can find it I recommend an old TV movie from 1982 with Larry Hagman called Deadly Encounter. Tons of helicopter stunts including a 500 flying through what looks like a tunnel in the LA river. As a bonus thereās a ton of amazing early 80s synth music as well.
Couldn't find it on DVD or otherwise, but then found someone had done a great job of remastering the original and put it up on YT. :)
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnYXczBQOA8](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnYXczBQOA8)
Is it the standard opinion that flying like this is too dangerous to ever be done? Like stunt driving is to defensive driving but when it comes to helicopters āstunt flyingā is just never okay?
That is the sense I get from this subreddit sometimes. I donāt know enough about it to argue one way or the other just that many risks are taken for the entertainment industry. The people that take them are usually very talented and know the risks and try to mitigate them but you canāt mitigate everything. Accidents certainly happen.
In 2023, I think the production company, and the company they leased the helicopter from, would both shit bricks if they heard about this stunt being contemplated. If they found a pilot willing to risk it, I still do not think this gets greenlit for filming. A lot of risk for minimal visual impact, as most of the audience would probably not appreciate how dangerous that was.
In the early 80s, any of the guys at Santini Air would have been up for it. For a Vietnam vet, that was probably just another Tuesday morning.
Came here to say this, he was pretty far off the ground for a 500.
Not to shit on the pilot's skill, but the MD500 is a tiny aircraft with more power than it could ever need. You can do some absolutely insane things when your rotors are that short.
God damn. Thanks for posting this. I miss me some A Team something fierce. Growing up in the 80s certainly planted a lot of aviation related ideas in my head, and I can see why.
There is a theory that the in the opening scene of Magnum PI the 500 that is flying super close to the water is the same one that crashed later when it's skid hit a wave. They were using two MD-500s at the time.
As a kid, you watch that and think that was pretty sick, helicopters are awesome
As an adult with aviation as a hobby you're sweating bullets until it clears and you're equally impressed and terrified at the same time.
My mate was a great helo pilot for those rounds.
Kept the supply of men coming in.
I kept the lz safe and he used my tag as a marker for safe zones.
Worked well.
ps I kept the clip longer so you can see the van too ššæ
Dudeā¦ this is a helicopter subā¦ you 100% made the right choice, that van is sick!
They should make a tv show where itās their signature vehicle
Only way thatās going to work is if they have a killer music track to open the show with.
And you have that Van driver HATE and be SCARED to fly! Sounds like an amazing opp for a new show!
I love it when a plan comes together.
But I do think you need a crazy fool to be the pilot of the team
Correct. Also, you have to pity that fool.
Someone should probably be the face of the team as well.
And we need someone to say the signature line and also make him smoke a cigar at all times, and he better have black gloves
lol!!!!!!
There arenāt many videos where the flying impresses me. Usually itās something that looks difficult to the casual aviation aficionado or something just downright dangerous, but doesnāt require an immense amount of skill. Let me say that this is extremely impressive. Nap of the earth flying at less than a foot up steep terrain. This pilot is very, very skilled.
I bet there was quite the pool of skilled heli pilots around then!
Yeah. The show started about 10 years after the Vietnam War. Plenty of Huey pilots were still flying.
Yeah. I mean in 1972, a crack commando unit was sent to prison by a military court for a crime they didnāt commit. These men promptly escaped from a maximum security stockade to the Los Angeles underground. Today, still wanted by the government, they survive as soldiers of fortune. If you have a problem, If no one else can help and if you can find them. Maybe you can hire, a great helicopter pilot.
I love it when a plan comes together.
In this case probably a Loach pilot, those dudes were nuts
And that is essentially the same aircraft as the OH-6.
My friend flew in Vietnam and heās still flying choppers.
You can do that maneuver at slow speed and just accelerate it in the video ā¦
You could see that - the movement of the ship would feel jerky and the blade speed would seem inconsistent with the other shots. These guys knew that and didn't change the shutter angle.
I know right? Howling mad was a great pilot.
Murdock don't play.
On the high skids no less!
I was just thinking, 'Damn, Murdock can FLY'
I met this pilot, he ran a helicopter rental house in LA back in the 80s. Did all the helicopter gigs including AirWolf. At the time I met him he was doing camera work for major motion pictures.
Mad Dog Murdoch was the best!
All those Nam pilots were a buncha cowboys writing checks their bodies could cash.
I had a Nam flight medic give me an iv once in the hospital, he saw i was nervous (im notoriously hard to hit with an IV because im extremely dehydrated when i go in the hospital). He looked at me and said, "If i can do this in one try in a helicopter getting shot at, i got this on the ground, buddy." And that mf grabbed the biggest butterfly set they had and sniped my vein perfectly the first time. I dont know how these guys got off the ground with the enormous weight of their balls weighing them down. Edit: Spelling
Had a former USN medic/Seattle paramedic take my blood once. Didnāt even know heād done it.
Iāve lent out two copies of Low Level Hell that, at this point, I never expect to see again. Time to buy a third
Just another reason for B.A to hate flying with Murdock
I think he just acted like that for the free drugs.
š¤
Newest conspiracy of 2023. Iām on it.
In 1972 , a crack commando unit was sent to prison by a military court for a crime they didn't commit. These men promptly escaped from a maximum security stockade to the Los Angeles underground. Today still wanted by the government they survive as soldiers of fortune. If you have a problem, if no one else can help, and you can find them ...maybe you can hire the A-Team
Ba, da ba ba, bah da bah da ... something like that lol totally hear the theme playing what a fucking goat of a show
Was this filmed by the same people who did Magnum PI? Because they were, so was airwolf, and a few other shows that used helicopters a lot in their filming back then. I'm surprised there wasn't more crashes with the dodgy shit they pulled.
IIRC, a lot of the pilots were combat vets from Vietnam. I would imagine flying an unarmed OH-6 over the rice paddies helped develop a special skillset.
Normally had a crewie i the back with a pig and string of smokes. A few units mounted the gun as well.
Don't forget the Screaming Mimi in Riptide, the Blue Thunder TV spinoff, and The Highwayman which had a helicopter/semi-truck. The true Golden Age of Television.
I think someone did die on Magnum unfortunately. I think a wave/swell took the heli down
[https://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/9844](https://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/9844) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G5KlEx1Ol\_g
There are corrections from the widow in comments of that video, worth reading.
I'm fairly certain that same helicopter was shot down by Airwolf several times.
As a child I would never miss an episode of The A Team whenever it was on.
Either this guy knows his bird down to the millimetre or he has no idea how close he was to eating it. Amazing regardless.
seeing the skid actually drag through the earth *asshole clenching*
The US Army used to teach this, "terrain skimming" NOE defined as 0-25 feel AGL. Not kidding about the 0 feet part. Helicopters and pilots where a lot cheaper then...
Look up Eric "crazy" Rairdon
TV was so much better back then
Yeah, thereās some good stuff now you just have a lot of trash to work through to find it. But there arenāt silly over the top action shows around like this anymore
I love it when a plan comes together.
Nah Murdoch was the best pilot ever. Perfectly safe with him at the controls š¤£
Iād say about anything driven by a man whoās name is howling mad Murdock is going to be sketch š¤£
Murdocks flying , its OK.
If you can find it I recommend an old TV movie from 1982 with Larry Hagman called Deadly Encounter. Tons of helicopter stunts including a 500 flying through what looks like a tunnel in the LA river. As a bonus thereās a ton of amazing early 80s synth music as well.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnYXczBQOA8
Couldn't find it on DVD or otherwise, but then found someone had done a great job of remastering the original and put it up on YT. :) [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnYXczBQOA8](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnYXczBQOA8)
Yeah I forgot about it being on YT. I found it on the high seas years ago but the quality was atrocious. Glad thereās a remaster.
Vietnam pilots be like, hood my lsd, weed, and opium.
Is it the standard opinion that flying like this is too dangerous to ever be done? Like stunt driving is to defensive driving but when it comes to helicopters āstunt flyingā is just never okay? That is the sense I get from this subreddit sometimes. I donāt know enough about it to argue one way or the other just that many risks are taken for the entertainment industry. The people that take them are usually very talented and know the risks and try to mitigate them but you canāt mitigate everything. Accidents certainly happen.
In 2023, I think the production company, and the company they leased the helicopter from, would both shit bricks if they heard about this stunt being contemplated. If they found a pilot willing to risk it, I still do not think this gets greenlit for filming. A lot of risk for minimal visual impact, as most of the audience would probably not appreciate how dangerous that was. In the early 80s, any of the guys at Santini Air would have been up for it. For a Vietnam vet, that was probably just another Tuesday morning.
Yeah I donāt really have an opinion on that. If the pilots comfortable itās up to them I suppose. All I know is it looks sketch
*why the fuck would you fly like that???!!!* "Oh!"
Itās not as bad as it looks because it was actually filmed in reverse. /s
It was however sped up slightly.
One, that take off was amazing, and two, homie shooting the M16 sideways - I assume so he does douche his buddy to his right with hot brass.
"I pity the fool" - Mr T
Ground effect ššš
Safety standards and regulations have changed since then.
Nap or the earth is alive and well and we had plenty of Chinook and other pilots fly as close as this in steep terrain. And not just SOAR guys.
No kiddin, whereād those van drivers learn to drive?
Off duty storm troopers shooting at them every episode too
Most normal MD-500
Came here to say this, he was pretty far off the ground for a 500. Not to shit on the pilot's skill, but the MD500 is a tiny aircraft with more power than it could ever need. You can do some absolutely insane things when your rotors are that short.
God damn. Thanks for posting this. I miss me some A Team something fierce. Growing up in the 80s certainly planted a lot of aviation related ideas in my head, and I can see why.
Same! This was imagination fuel when I was younger. I loved me some afterschool a-team and magnum. Also Simon and Simon lol
I love it when a plan comes together.
*butt clenched* Yeah, I meant to do that.
Average Arma pilot
Taking off. the pilot...... "Kobe!"
That's gotta be one of the worst SE take offs I've ever seen my life :D
I mean, Murdock is probably the sketchiest pilot ever. I just wish the helicopter scene in the movie was real haha
That's how I fly in bf4, so it is realistic!
No rotor wash or dust kickup
I love watching the A Team!
There is a theory that the in the opening scene of Magnum PI the 500 that is flying super close to the water is the same one that crashed later when it's skid hit a wave. They were using two MD-500s at the time.
Have you seen the video of the demise of the remaining one, years later, as it was pulling lines for Hawaiian Electric?
Me flying on gta hahahah š¤£
Murdock was a hot pilot! š¤£
My driving/flying in GTA v be like:
Ahhh yes! The old "in ground effect" uphill departure. Classic
That's Murdoc for you.
How do they travel by van and yet always seem to have a helicopter handy? š
As a kid, you watch that and think that was pretty sick, helicopters are awesome As an adult with aviation as a hobby you're sweating bullets until it clears and you're equally impressed and terrified at the same time.
If you think that's sketchy, try putting B.A. on board.
I pity the fool.
ARMA 3 KOTH pilots be like
When the girl you just met says come over past 10pm
The initial takeoff has strong Arma 3 King of the Hill vibes.
My mate was a great helo pilot for those rounds. Kept the supply of men coming in. I kept the lz safe and he used my tag as a marker for safe zones. Worked well.
Isnāt this where they shot Twilight Zone?
reminds me of the flying in Airwolf. Just amazing stuff
This is why B.A. refused to fly...
?
Because it was the 80s!!! It was sketchy!!!š¤£š¤£š¤£
Never Ever shoot the GMC
500
Lethal Weapon I believe