June 2009 Issue 11
Hawkes Bay, White Island, Whitianga Fesitval of Speed, 2 Week Theory Courses...oh and a summer of flying fun!!
Once again its been a great summer with the last few months being especially busy with three english guys all coming out here to fly and some locals keen to push on and finish their licenses. We also started the 2 week PPL theory courses which have proved a success with 90% exam pass rates on the first three courses run this year.
The trip to Hawkes Bay and White Island with seven helicopters also proved a great success, as was the inaugural Whitianga Festival of Speed in early April... a must next year for enthusiasts of everything fast, furious and fun!!
Congratulations....
First solo
- Dan Janes
- Sandor Borsos
- Steve Jennings
- Ian Hair (R44)
- James Rayner
- Blair Monk
- Narelle Byrne
- Kevin Brown
PPL
- Dan Janes
- Peter Mews
- Dave Morg
an - Steve Jennings
- Ashton Wessels
- Lance Taylor
CPL
- Andrew Cronbach
- Nick Kershaw
C Cat Instructor
Hawkes Bay and White Island with 7 helicopters - March 09
Simply put...what a GREAT weekend!!! Although we had to delay for a day due to a passing weather bomb, we more than made up for it when we departed early Saturday morning. With 7 helicopters and some awesome people inside, we set off in not the most perfect of weather, down the west coast to land on the rugby grounds for Waitomo Caves. After a great tour through the Ruakuri cave and a much needed coffee, we set off into the deepening gloom towards Taupo.
After some creative navigating through the lowering mist and a quick refuel at Taupo, we set off through the majestic Mohaka Gorge for the brilliant sunshine of the Hawkes Bay to a very welcoming lodge and a late lunch at Clearview Estate and the odd glass or three of rose!
After a little cat nap for some, we made our way to Craggy Range and although we had a ball, the food was disappointing to say the least. Sunday was a free day but we all gelled back together, a little bleary-eyed at the Hastings farmers market for a lite breakfast before a look around the Art Deco weekend that was well under way in nearby Napier. If luggage space was not a premium, it would have been great to bring the bowler hat and lace and cha cha down the main drag!!
Sunday night was a little more subdued due to the early start planned for the following day, but The Old Church restaurant came up trumps with some superb food and equally great wine to match. There were a few confessions and hail mary's in the confession box on the way out, but luckily the last taxi was waiting otherwise a few souls may have been there all night!!
Departing with absolutely perfect weather we headed out of Hawkes Bay for the Eastern Cape, and after a quick refuel at Gisbourne we were soon rounding the lighthouse and descending on the unexpecting locals at our lunch stop.
It wasn't long though before Dougy was firing up his JR and leading the pack once again into a head wind for Whakatane, a briefing and the highlight of the trip...a mass landing on the White Island Volcanoe.
Did you know?
- Part 12 of the CAA rules relate to “Incidents and Accidents”
- The NZ helicopter register is growing by over 8% per annum
- 1” less of MAP equates to 1 average person, dirty blades or landing 1000ft higher
- Newton first discovered the three laws of motion in 1665, but they were not fully understood until 1680 when he published "Principia"
- Amelia Earhart was the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic in 1932. Whilst attempting the around the world record, she and her co-pilot disappeared into the Pacific ocean in 1937
- Robinson Helicopter Company has recently delivered it’s 8000th aircraft and will produce over 850 in the forthcoming year.
Up Coming Events
15th-21st July 09, Paris Air Show, Le Bourget, Paris , France
The 100th anniversary of this major European air show will feature four trade days and three public days. More info at www.paris-air-show.com
27th-31st July, Aviation Industry Association conference
The annual conference will be held at Marlborough Convention Centre, Blenheim including the inaugural NZ Helicopter Association conference. More info. www.aia.org.nz
Autorotations— controlling RPM
Autorotation training can make the difference between walking away from an emergency…. or not.
They require currency and remembering the basics, but to be good at them, you also need to practice different flight profiles with your instructor.
Once you have gained the basics, and are ‘comfortable’ doing them, you then need to expand your envelope and start to appreciate the differing effects of speed, height and wind to truly master this potentially life saving procedure.
The “secret” of a good auto is the entry.
It is amazing what a smooth entry can do for you. When you enter the auto , make sure you hold the cyclic aft, with level attitude, looking out towards the horizon. The slightest nose down will destroy the “good feeling” of entering a perfect auto. You should have a feeling of sailing when you lower the collective correctly. Smoothly lower the collective, don’t “dump it”, keep level and in balance with right pedal.
If the aircraft is allowed to nose over, do a recovery and practice until you are able to do a perfect entry. If you nose the helicopter up, you will end up with rpm too high and airspeed too slow. Try again!
To practice the glide, climb to 2000ft and enter autorotation and allow your instructor to show you how to control rpm with firstly the cyclic and then the collective.
Finally, practice using both the collective and cyclic together. Slow down the airspeed and watch the gauge as rpm increases, then increase airspeed and note the falling rpm. Practice 360 degree turns, watching the rpm gauge to see how the rpm increases in the turn and decreases after the turn is made. This is all vital practice to ensure you have an intrinsic understanding of how rpm reacts to the changing conditions.
The third stage in an autorotation is the flare. At 40ft and 65 knots airspeed, with the rpm in the lower green arc, start the flare by looking out at the horizon, keeping the heading straight. The flare must be done nice and gentle during practice. If you flare too hard or abrupt, the rotor disc will make you climb rather than getting you closer to the ground which is the whole purpose of the flare.
Start out slow and progressively increase the flair until the aircraft has descended to about 5ft, then level the ship and perform a running landing on any firm, smooth terrain, or do a hovering auto on any rough terrain.
With an experienced instructor, under ideal conditions and to practice to reach optimum proficiency, practice to a full stop hovering autorotation Develop the flare enough to wash off all forward speed and rate of descent, level to about 5ft and finish off with a hovering engine off landing.
Make sure you are looking out at the horizon to keep the aircraft straight. If not you might roll the aircraft if you perform full touch down landings.
In both recoveries during the flare, make sure you do not overspeed the rpm. If you move the cyclic aft too fast you will end up with too high an rpm and the only way to decrease it is with by raising the collective.
The last portion of the autorotation is the power recovery. After you have leveled the ship at 5ft, start to raise the collective smoothly, apply left stick and left pedal to keep straight and bring the rpm back to the top of the green arc. If the warning horn and light come on, don’t panic, but increase the throttle to help raise the rpm and lower the collective.
Autorotations are part of the normal flight envelope and if practiced on a regular basis, will ensure you have the upper edge if you are unfortunate to have an emergency for real.
Different aircraft have different entry attitudes, glide speeds and flare characteristics. Make sure you read the pilot’s operating manual for every helicopter type you fly, attend the safety course’s and ensure you keep current on this important man oeuvre with a professional instructor. Happy landings.
CFI’s BIT - REMEMBER!
Remember in a turn...
You either need more power,
Or you need to slow down,
To maintain a given radius of turn.