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  • Chapter 2: Aerodynamics of Flight › Hovering Flight › Translating Tendency (Drift)

    Translating Tendency (Drift) During hovering flight, a single main rotor helicopter tends to move in the direction of tail rotor thrust. This lateral (or sideward) movement is called translating tendency. [Figure 2-27] To counteract this tendency, one or more ... following features may be used. All examples are for a counterclockwise rotating main rotor disk. Figure 2-27. A tail rotor is designed to produce thrust in a direction opposite torque. The thrust produced by the tail rotor is sufficient…

  • Chapter 1: Introduction to the Helicopter › Rotor System › Tandem Rotor

    Tandem Rotor Tandem rotor (sometimes referred to as dual rotor) helicopters have two large horizontal rotor assemblies, instead of one main assembly and a smaller tail rotor. [Figure 1-6] Single rotor helicopters need a tail rotor to neutralize ... twisting momentum produced by the single large rotor. Tandem rotor helicopters, however, use counter-rotating rotors, each canceling out the other’s torque. Counter-rotating rotor blades will not collide with and destroy each other if they flex into…

  • Chapter 10. Helicopter Operations › Section 1. Helicopter IFR Operations › 10-1-2. Helicopter Instrument Approaches

    final and missed approach segment speeds must be limited to no more than 70 KIAS unless otherwise charted. Military RNAV Copter IAPs are limited to no more than 90 KIAS throughout the procedure. Use the published minima; no reductions allowed ... NOTE-Obstruction clearance surfaces are based on the aircraft speed identified on the approach chart and have been designed on RNAV approaches for 70 knots unless otherwise indicated. If the helicopter is flown at higher speeds, it may fly outside…

  • Chapter 11: Helicopter Emergencies and Hazards › System Malfunctions › Loss of Tail Rotor Effectiveness (LTE)

    catastrophic. LTE is an aerodynamic condition and is the result of a control margin deficiency in the tail rotor. It can affect all single-rotor helicopters that utilize a tail rotor. The design of main and tail rotor blades ... will not nullify the phenomenon entirely. Translational lift is obtained by any amount of clean air through the main rotor disk. Chapter 2, Aerodynamics of Flight, discusses translational lift with respect to the main rotor blade, explaining that the more…

  • Chapter 2: Aerodynamics of Flight › Turning Flight

    Figure 2-45. Forces acting on the helicopter during turning flight. Autorotation is the state of flight where the main rotor disk of a helicopter is being turned by the action of air moving up through the rotor rather than ... engine power driving the rotor. In normal, powered flight, air is drawn into the main rotor disk from above and exhausted downward, but during autorotation, air moves up into the rotor disk from below as the helicopter descends. Autorotation…

  • Chapter 9: Basic Flight Maneuvers › The Four Fundamentals › Guidelines

    Good practices to follow during maneuvering flight include: 1. Move the cyclic only as fast as trim, torque, and rotor speed can be maintained. When entering a maneuver and the trim, rotor, or torque reacts quicker than anticipated, pilot limitations ... have been exceeded. If continued, an aircraft limitation will be exceeded. Perform the maneuver with less intensity until all aspects of the machine can be controlled. The pilot must be aware of the sensitivity of the flight controls…