STRAPPED INTO A SINKING HELICOPTER (with U.S. Marines) - Smarter Every Day 201

Destin was assigned a mandatory training scenario as a U.S. government civil servant to get certified for a helicopter mission off the coast of Hawaii.

• Airplanes stay upright in water because long wings act as pontoons • Helicopters flip over because heavy engines on top cause them to capsize and sink • The training teaches survival techniques for this scenario

This is critical training for U.S. Marines and offshore oil rig workers that saves lives.

Corey Catlett, an experienced helicopter pilot trainer from the Gulf of Mexico oil rigs, teaches this class of young U.S. Marines and Destin.

Training starts by showing a fatal helicopter crash and explaining the environment people experience inside a sinking helicopter.

• The rodeo grip: anchoring yourself to the seat • Exhaling all the way to the surface to prevent lung expansion (Boyle's law) • Using science and knowledge to escape safely

Students take an exam to demonstrate understanding of the material before proceeding to practical training.

Some marines express nervousness while others joke about their fate; notably, at least one marine cannot swim.

• Grab the seat using the rodeo grip • Find the exit and unbuckle the seatbelt • Pull yourself out of the simulator

Instructors progressively add obstacles: a hatch to break free from, and then a full regulator for breathing during exit.

Destin discovers that even with scuba certification, breathing from a regulator while upside down underwater is difficult when water floods the sinuses.

The hardest part is overcoming the mental fear of inhaling water while simultaneously clearing the regulator to take a breath.

The training device contains every escape hatch common on Marine Corps aircraft and is extremely intimidating.

• Most people panic during the first run • Trainees lose their bearings and reference points • Safety divers must abandon cameras to rescue struggling students • Only one person successfully exits on the first attempt

Students release seatbelts first then struggle with equipment, like a loose sock tumbling in a dryer, and lose spatial awareness.

Instructors must monitor everything happening in the chaotic environment, identify trouble, help quickly, and prevent injury or death.

• Sinking objects appear to float • Bubbles travel in unexpected directions • Feet float up over your body • Reference frames rotate completely

While blind and disoriented, trainees must perform a mental coordinate transformation, experience sensory vertigo, and manage water-filled sinuses.

Remaining in the seat provides known orientation; leaving it causes the body to right itself, making everything upside down and exits appear to hang from the ceiling.

With poor underwater visibility, knowing the seat location helps orient toward exits; seats are positioned with backs to walls where exits are located.

The second dunk emphasizes staying calm and learning to take time to think, rather than panicking.

Instructors provide air bottles to give trainees time to exit, but water-filled sinuses still prevent initial breathing.

A marine signals for help by placing hands on his head when unable to get his first breath; instructors recognize this and pull him out immediately.

Instructors teach trainees to pinch their nose while in the seatbelt, take a deep breath, and use the epiglottis to prevent water from entering lungs.

By the third run, trainees understand the process better and execute more efficiently while maintaining reference points and thinking clearly.

When situations turn chaotic and go bad quickly, the key to survival is staying anchored to truth and known reference points rather than panicking.

• Stay anchored to things you know to keep aligned with truth • Keep your reference frame stable • Start thinking toward the safe exit from the situation • Do not freak out in chaos

By making one decision after another and thinking slowly through chaos, you move closer to safety and eventually see the light again.

Destin felt the training was exciting and learned valuable lessons both for helicopter operations and life in general.

The marines successfully complete the training, with one acknowledging the need for swimming lessons as a humorous note.

The video demonstrates how maintaining composure, staying anchored to known truths, and thinking methodically through chaos leads to survival.

Destin signs off with his catchphrase 'You're getting Smarter Every Day' after completing the challenging training scenario.