Anyone flown a helicopter?
- Thread starter Pate
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My dad has a helpicopter PPL.
He basically sold a house and spent all the money learning to fly. They say it can taken around 50hours before your ready, but 90% of people will require many more.
My dad took around 180hours before passing, and theres a lot of theory to be done about understanding weather conditions etc.
At £240ish a lession, It's very costly.
He basically sold a house and spent all the money learning to fly. They say it can taken around 50hours before your ready, but 90% of people will require many more.
My dad took around 180hours before passing, and theres a lot of theory to be done about understanding weather conditions etc.
At £240ish a lession, It's very costly.
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Soldato
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Not flown one but been on a training day with a Seaking. I was winched up into one and hovered/flew around for a bit.
The skill it must take to keep the thing hovering on the spot! If it wasn't for the noise (and seeing the ground 50 foot below) you'd think it was still on the ground!
Being winched up was fun. They tell you not to directly grab the winch line when they lower it to you or you get a massive static shock :O
The skill it must take to keep the thing hovering on the spot! If it wasn't for the noise (and seeing the ground 50 foot below) you'd think it was still on the ground!
Being winched up was fun. They tell you not to directly grab the winch line when they lower it to you or you get a massive static shock :O
I had a trial lesson in an R22 for my 18th birthday at Cranfield Airport in Bedfordshire.
Looks like the prices have shot up since then though, it was around £90 for an hour 13 years ago. Now £295! Guess that's fuel prices increasing
Looks like the prices have shot up since then though, it was around £90 for an hour 13 years ago. Now £295! Guess that's fuel prices increasing
My girlfriend has a PPL to fly fixed wing. It was expensive to get, expensive to get further ratings (she's going to get an IMC soon which will be quite costly) and quite expensive to just go out and fly! I'm sure that a rotary wing will be similarly expensive.
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Yep so they say but it would be even harder if you were getting shot at!
Yeah definitely. I'd love to be able to fly and have the kudos of being an RAF pilot, but I don't envy the fact that he'll probably be in a war zone within the next couple of years...
Soldato
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When I was young, (10 or something... likely inspired by watching air wolf reruns...) I really wanted to learn to fly a helicopter. But, I've a feeling that it's not easy, which seems to be backed up here!
Caporegime
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Well the onboard computer shouldn't have a problem keeping you level and stationary if you're not mid air!
Everyone thats piloted choppers will tell you they're hard as that's what they want people to think. Nobody likes to admit that a skill they spent hours and hours training for is in fact not that hard.
Reality is that it requires repetition learning and once you've mastered that, it becomes second nature like driving. And yes they have stabilising systems to stop you spazzing out, auto hover etc.
I've flown a helicopter over a short distance in a trial lesson, - a Schweizer 300C.
To say the cyclic (joystick) in a helicopter is incredibly sensitive is something of an understatement. To fly a helicopter requires feel, and a sense of balancing the aircraft at all times, one hand on the stick, the other on the collective which resembles a car hand brake but basically controls wether you go up or down, and the rudder 'torque' pedals which control the tail rotor - ie the aircraft swinging left or right.
I found the tiniest movement of the cyclic stick had alarmingly big effect, as my instructor said you almost see no movement at all on the stick - literally millimetres - it is that sensitive - almost by feel and thought rather than hand movement.
In myopinion a much more complicated machine to fly than an aeroplane, and much more fun
Hardly any suprise that Harrier pilots undergo helicopter training first
To say the cyclic (joystick) in a helicopter is incredibly sensitive is something of an understatement. To fly a helicopter requires feel, and a sense of balancing the aircraft at all times, one hand on the stick, the other on the collective which resembles a car hand brake but basically controls wether you go up or down, and the rudder 'torque' pedals which control the tail rotor - ie the aircraft swinging left or right.
I found the tiniest movement of the cyclic stick had alarmingly big effect, as my instructor said you almost see no movement at all on the stick - literally millimetres - it is that sensitive - almost by feel and thought rather than hand movement.
In myopinion a much more complicated machine to fly than an aeroplane, and much more fun
Hardly any suprise that Harrier pilots undergo helicopter training first