Fl 375: Fill & Download for Free

$850. Greenville, S.C. to Jacksonville, FL. ($375 there, $375 deadhead return fee, $100 tip). A naval officer whose ship was leaving port and he HAD to be there in eight hours.

I drive out of Greenville, SC. One evening I got an Uber ping that took me to a Navy recruiting office downtown. It was after hours and I knocked on the door to make sure I had the right address. A naval officer in full Lt. Commanders uniform answered the door and invited me in. His name was Jeff. Jeff gave me a cup of coffee and proceeded to explain that he needed to get to the Naval Station Mayport in Jacksonville, FL. His ship was leaving port in the morning and if he wasn’t on it he was in BIG trouble. He was the XO (second in command after the Captain of the ship) of a guided-missile cruiser and had to absolutely be on that ship by 8 am the next morning. No planes, trains or buses could get him there on time and he asked if I would take him. Being a Navy veteran myself I fully understood the seriousness of the situation and knew something like this could impact this officer’s career. I explained to him I would be glad to help him out, but that I was not authorized to pick up fares in Jacksonville FL and would have to return empty. He offered to pay double the Uber fare to cover the return. With that being said, it was on like Donkey Kong.I told Jeff that it was about a 400-mile trip and would take about 6 hours. I also told him I had been driving for 11 hours already and was pretty tired. I thought it prudent to get some sleep before leaving. If we left by midnight it would give us a couple of hours to spare (for a 6 am arrival) in case of a flat tire or some other problem. So I lay down on the couch in his office and slept for about 4 hours. At a quarter to twelve, he was gently shaking me and we jumped up and headed for the car. Another of my rideshare vehicles is a BMW 328i with a 3.0 liter in-line 6. I put it in the wind.Jeff got comfortable in the back seat. He removed his uniform and neatly folded it over the passenger seat. In his boxer shorts and t-shirt, he lay down to sleep. I turned on the tunes and set the car on cruise at 70 mph. Stopping only for gas and a couple of five-hour double strength energy shots it was a long drive. At 630am we pulled up to the gate at the Naval Station. The MA at the gate took his sweet time coming out and when he saw I didn’t have a gate pass sticker on my car he said I would have to come back during visitor's hours. Sitting there in his boxers, Jeff about blew him out of the water and told him he was XO of a ship that was leaving port in an hour and if he missed it he would make a lifetime goal of ruining that MA’s career. The MA quickly waved us through.At 7 am we pulled up at the berth where Jeff’s ship was sitting ready to get underway. He quickly dressed and I ended the Uber ride. The fare was $375. True to his word Jeff opened his wallet and peeled off $375 and then threw another $100 on top as a tip. So, in essence, I got a $475 tip since Uber wasn’t going to see a dime of that money. I got his duffle bag out of the trunk and carried it to the bottom of the gangway leading up to the ship. The men on the quarterdeck watched their XO with veiled interest. Jeff set down his duffle bag and gave me a BIG hug and said, “I love you man, thanks. You saved my life” At that moment, it was all worthwhile. Jeff turned, went up the stairs to the ship, saluted the flag at the stern of the vessel and then saluted the OOD (Officer of the Deck), requested permission to come aboard and disappeared into the bowels of the ship. I realized at that moment that I didn’t even know Jeff’s last name. I returned to my car and had an uneventful ride home. $850 for roughly 13 hours. I’ll take it.An upvote is a sign of appreciation (a digital pat on the back - a silent thumbs up) that someone took the time and effort to brighten your day! A share makes sure someone else sees it to brighten their day. 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This was the HH-43F Huskie that had fire-fighting and rescue mission roles with the U.S. Air Force in the 1950s and early 1960s. With the twin rotors, it could lift much more than a single rotor bird, but its airspeed is not high (less than 125 mph or 200 kmph).This is the K-Max, also designed and produced by Kaman Aerospace (also a UAV). This twin-rotor helicopter can lift its own weight in slung payload (6,000 lbs), so it has been popular for logging, fire-fighting, etc. It was designed mainly as a medium-lift helicopter, and the narrow fuselage with angled side windows provide better visibility on both sides. The pilot can conveniently look to both sides of the aircraft during a delicate lift maneuver. Note the bubble side windows to further improve the view below.http://www.kaman.com/aerosystems/solutions/air-vehicles-mro/k-maxAddendum 1:CH-46D SeaknightThe elevation difference between the two rotor hubs helps to provide more clearance between the long drooping blades.The CH-47 Chinook is a larger version of the CH-46, also with offset rotor mounts.The Germans designed and built the first intermeshing rotor system during WWII.Flettner Fl 282 Kolibri ("Hummingbird"), first production intermeshing rotor helicopter in the world.Navy version of the Fl 282 KolibriThe second prototype Kellett XR-8 helicopter with twin intermeshing rotors, undergoing evaluation by the United States Army Air Forces. First flight was on Aug. 7, 1944Mr. Flettner came to the U.S. to work on helicopters after WWII in 1946, and eventually joined Kaman Aerospace. The intermeshing rotor helicopters at Kaman were the design innovations that he brought from Germany.ADDENDUM 2:So, the answer to the question is their forward speed is more limited than other rotor configurations, which limited their popularity. If they added an electric motor “pusher” in the aft, then I think the higher speed will enable them to become more popular again. In fact, if they used electric motors for all three rotors, then it will be much quieter than an already very quiet helicopter with much less vibration.Here’s an all-electric example for a sport-copter: Using a commercial AC-induction motor that can operate continuously at 200 kW (250 hp) and can burst up to 300 kW (375 hp) for a minute, and only weighs 40 kg (88 lbs). So, three of them stacked together would be 750 hp for initial takeoff and cruise with 500 hp; the other 250 hp to be used as a pusher.Using a small gas-turbine engine as a hybrid-electric genset and a small bank of Li-ion batteries as a buffer and reserve. This may not be a utility helicopter but could be a fun bird to fly just for passengers at a respectable speed and safety.UPDATE:Here is NASA’s new concept for Urban Air Mobility (UAM) or air taxi using intermeshing rotors. It’s not for speed, but for efficient lift and lower noise.Visualization of NASA’s Air Taxi with Side-by-Side Rotors, for Urban Air Mobility