Cross at the helicopters

[Gloi]

I was out with a friend earlier today and we were near the motorway bridge when we saw 3 RAF helicopters flying up the route of the motorway towards us. They were very low and my friend got off her horse. At first we thought there had been a crash on the motorway and they were air ambulance trying to land. We were in the open wearing high vis gear but they flew straight over the top of us. Fortunately I have an old dobbin who wasn't too bothered and my friend kept hold of her horse but they must have seen us. The sheep in the field next to us all went in a panic and were charging round the field. We were just cursing them and getting ready to carry on our ride when they came back in the opposite direction , even lower, and flew directly above us again. I thought the RAF jets were meant to keep an eye out for people on horses. This must not apply to helicopters I'm glad we didn't have a nervous horse with us or we would have been in trouble.

 

[Herts05]

Sounds like you need to report this. If you look on the BHS website you can see how you do this

 

[Gloi]

I will

 

[Bam.]

Definitely needs reporting.
Glad there were no injuries or accidents!

 

[julie111]

Feel for you, we had a Chinook fly over us last year and it was bl**dy scary!

 

[eggs]

Crikey you were unlucky. A few years I was out hacking in all my high viz gear when I saw a police helicopter coming my way obviously searching for something. They obviously saw me and stayed away until I was safely out of their way and then continued their search.

 

[MerrySherryRider]

It's definitely one of those sticky moments when they fly so low that you can see the pilot's wrist watch. Last time it happened to me, I was schooling a very bad tempered, forward going mare. I looked in disbelief as an RAF helicopter flew directly over our heads and wondered if the diva would explode.
Fortunately, she treated it with complete distain and ignored it.

I know they usually try to avoid upsetting livestock and horses but its not always possible to if they haven't had sufficient time to avoid you.

 

[Gloi]

I've put it on the BHS incidents site and am now going to phone the MOD number I got from there.

They aren't answering it.

I'd let them off if they'd just flown over us once, but they must have seen us and we were in the same place when they flew over the second time.

 

[Gloi]

I don't know what's been going on but I went to my sister's tonight . She lives near the motorway about 10 miles south of where we'd met the helicopters. Her husband complained to me that they'd had three helicopters circling near their house and one time they were that low he thought they were about to land. I told him what had happened to me and I'm sure they were the same three.

 

[Spring Feather]

I can imagine how scary it would be if your horses aren't used to helicopters or planes. Especially on a motorway bridge! I live really close to a town which has a helipad for the hospital so my guys are all used to seeing the helicopter whizzing overhead their fields. We're also 10 miles or so from the main air force base in the country so the horses do get to see some sights and humungous planes flying overhead, often with giant things hanging down from them, once in a while.

I agree though, you should report it.

 

[Slightlyconfused]

The RAF Helicopters fly so low and bank round our barns that once I saw the pilots nose, the dials on the dash......I wonder what he thought about as my nervousness mare freaked out dragging myself and my farrier across the yard bringing/rearing and spinning. Was not impressed as she was nervous about people touching her feet.

They continually fly low over the yard, the horses are mostly used to it by now but it still worries me

 

[lhotse]

I was riding along a lane years ago on my old mare, there are high hedges and trees at this point, and I could hear a very low chinook approaching but could not see it. There was a cyclist coming towards me, and he stopped before the trees and started to look across the fields. The chinook flew over the trees about 10 yards infront of me, at about tree height!! Think it scared me more than the horse, although she did do a little dance!!

We used to get hercules coming across the common in groups of 3's so low you could see the pilot and wave, luckily my old mare spent the first 3 years of her life at the end of Bristol Airport runway so would just watch and carry on.

My new mare, who also was kept near the airport before I bought her seems quite unconcerned about things in the air, we had the electricity board helicopter appear at about 50m over the top of a very high hedge one day, directly above us!! She just carried on walking. I had hi-viz on but there was no way they could see us as they were too low over the fields and the lane is bordered by very high hedges for some distance.

Not all horses are so calm though, and certainly RAF aircraft have a code of conduct with horses and livestock I believe so certainly worth contacting them.

 

[Gloi]

We often get the police helicopters and the air ambulance flying about and that doesn't bother them much. It was just that today there were three of them nose to tail and they were just so low, really loud and it didn't help that all the sheep were going spare in the field next to us. I'm sure the farmer won't be pleased about that either when they are due to lamb fairly soon. We've met Chinooks too occasionally which are scary things but fortunately they have never been this low. I ride out a lot as a chaperone to young horses and it was very fortunate that I wasn't doing that today.
I did put it on the BHS website but although I tried to ring the MOD number a few times nobody answered.

 

[asommerville]

We've never had helicopters nearby until the past few weekends, was out on my own on Sunday on my youngster when one flew really low right over the top of us, he freaked and ran up the road but when I looked up they had started going quickly in the opposite direction, not sure if it was coincidence or they saw a bright orange horse and rider shooting up the road I never realised how loud they were until then!!

 

[BBP]

To be fair, we complain when they fly over the fields and scare our horses, a motorway route must have seemed like a fair route to take...who would expect horses on it. And to divert past you what other horses and riders might they have to go over? Not trying to dismiss how scary it is, just trying to see another point of view, I'd rather they flew low over the countryside than risked accidents in built up areas.

 

[hnmisty]

To be fair, we complain when they fly over the fields and scare our horses, a motorway route must have seemed like a fair route to take...who would expect horses on it. And to divert past you what other horses and riders might they have to go over? Not trying to dismiss how scary it is, just trying to see another point of view, I'd rather they flew low over the countryside than risked accidents in built up areas.

Yeah, agree with this. Can't think they'd expect to find horses right next to a motorway!

 

[Carrots&Mints]

I had one the other day whilst I was in the school with my youngster doing some groundwork, helicopter went over us then turned around and went back! Merlyn span around and reared up! Daft sod!

 

[merlinsquest]

Chinooks fly low over our fields all the time, the horses take no notice whether grazing, stabled or being ridden. We also get fast jets, the red arrows & everything in between. They probably didn't see you & am sure that the pilots didn't deliberately come over you a second time, what ever they were doing I am sure was important to their training & survival when they risk their lives in a war zone, they sometimes have to fly using roads, rivers, mountain ranges whatever to navigate so maybe they were practicing this? You said the horses were fine, you were fine, it was all fine so I wouldn't even think about it any more, just hope that when they are flying for real they all come home safely.

 

[happyclappy]

we regularly get helicopters from all places flying over our field extremely low. we have seen them almost scrape the barn roof. we had a chinook very low once too. luckily non of our animals react to them. not all horses are as calm as my bunch though!

 

[Bobbly]

I'm 'lucky' to live in the triangle of RAF Marham, RAF Lakenheath and RAF Mildenhall. All no more than about 12 miles as the crow flies. What planes and 'copters we don't get to see is nobody's business, The helicopters use the trees over the road to hedgehop and I think they must use my house with the manege as a landmark for flying practice as they all seem to turn over us. Latest plane is the Osprey, a verticle take off plane with wing tip propellers that rotate to a forward position after take off, they apparently have a poor safety record so I hope one doesn't come down in the paddock! Combined with the main A134 road at the top of the paddocks and the Army bombing ranges and RAF rifle ranges within very clear hearing distance my neds get to see and hear all sorts of things!! Bobs is pretty bombproof now and Bee is learning fast

 

[fatpiggy]

My old yard was right next to a motorway and the police helicopter used to come over every so often. One time I was out riding along the river bank and it came up behind me. I then went into the tunnel under a major road and when I came out the other side it was hovering pretty low, waiting for me. Luckily my horse wasn't bothered at all, but it could have been very dangerous as my choice of riding surface was either the top of a 20 foot bank, or the waters of the Mersey. A few weeks later I was poo picking in the field, dressed in bright pink shorts and a vest top and over they came again, did a couple of circles and then stayed put. They must have hovered over me for at leat 15 minutes and didn't leave until I pushed the barrow out of the field, so it was blatently obvious that it was me they were watching, not the traffic. Given the fact that it costs the tax payer thousands to even put a helicopter in the air, I can't say I was overly impressed by their waste of time and money.