Helicopter checkride

I, for one, would really like to hear those screams. Not because I wish any harm upon Chuck or Carl from the FAA, but out of a purely scientific interest if screaming like a little girl is actually possible for grown ups. Because the screams of little girls can be bone-chilling, eardrum-crushing and permanent-hearing-loss-causing indeed!

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8 comments on “Helicopter checkride
  1. Top Bunk says:

    Is this a no-notice checkride?

  2. JP Kalishek says:

    every instance I have heard of the procedure is usually a crash.
    I have seen one video of a “really, really hard” landing where the ‘copter was upright, but wasn’t going to be flying again anytime soon, if ever. But everyone limped away.

  3. KenH says:

    Well, Chuckles, you just failed this checkride

  4. This Guy says:

    I believe the proper procedure would be to attempt an auto-rotation all the way to the crash site.

  5. reynard61 says:

    That would be…problematic. The reason for tail-rotors on “penny-farthing” (conventional) helos is to counteract the torque of the main blade. (Newton’s Second Law, “Equal and opposite reaction” and all that scientific rot…) If only the engine fails but the tail-rotor can still turn, then the torque should be counteracted *just* enough that, if you don’t have too far down to go, you should be able to maintain full control. (However; the further you *do* have to go down, the less efficiently the tail-rotor will work because of simple friction and the helo will start to turn in the direction opposite that which the main rotor blades are spinning.)

    If the tail-rotor stops while in flight for any reason (or simply flies off — it *has* happened!) then there’s *NOTHING* to counteract the torque of the main rotor and the fuselage (and anything inside it) will start to turn the opposite direction of the main rotor blades — *VERY* quickly! This is why it’s usually better to have an engine failure in flight than a tail-rotor failure in *any* operating regime.

  6. Speedsix says:

    Working with young handicapped people up to the age of 20 years, I can testify that even after puberty vocal change a male youth can reach unbelievable high pitched voice levels – if sufficiently furious or hysteric. It´s a matter of how much tension you can put on your vocal cords. And, yes: Screaming little girls are something to hear, but not too often if you care for your hearing, please.
    On the other hand, I for once had to work with a girl of about 9 years which got so hysterical she produced noises that from close by were about as aggressive and loud as a Harrier on vertical take-off with full thrust applied! 😀
    About landings after tail rotor failure: http://www.copters.com/pilot/trfail_cruise.html

  7. markm says:

    reynard61: Torque is what the engine applies to the rotor. With the engine off, there is no rotor torque. I think the problem with a tail rotor failure is that it is close to instantaneous; by the time the pilot can react, the chopper is already spinning, and recovery from that without a tail rotor is going to be difficult.

  8. mike says:

    You guys are all somewhat correct on this.
    It actually depends on the helicopter model as well. An AStar, for example “should” keep flying in this case as long as you have and maintain more than 40kts. You would fly to where you can safely perform an autorotation and then roll the throttle off when you know you have the spot made. But this particular helicopter has a very large and very aerodynamic tail fin. In most helicopters and in a hover your only option would be to roll the throttle off to get rid of the torque. When in a hover this will be way more exciting, of course and you hope you won’t get to spinning too fast. A Huey, for example, with a little wind, will almost completely stop the rotation when you roll the throttle off. In a Crane (no tail fin to speak of, and also in an S-92 I just learned) it’s pretty much game over should you lose your t/r in a hover….
    As you can see this is a subject we can discuss for a while, haha!
    Any more questions?
    I’ll try to answer them. Might have retained a thing or two after 20 years in helicopters.

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