Recommended books/ect.

[ACE1987]

Hi,

 

Im new to the forums, but like many other who have come before me, I am interested in pursuing the dream of flying helo's. Always been intrigued by them, and worked around helo's for the last few years in the Marine Corps, and I really got the fever during a deployment with some Army Medevac pilots, took some rides, and got to overview the H-60s, and that was all she wrote for me after that. Pretty soon, Ill be EAS'ing from the Marine Corps, and I have been researching schools and such to use my GI Bill benefits with.

 

Still looking into at all currently, but my main question is this.

 

Ill be punching out for another deployment, spanning a good amount of time, so Im trying to gather up any type of books or materials that would be a smart read for someone who plans to be going to school for this. Basically anything that you all have read over the years or during your schooling, that you think might help someone to read up on ahead of time.

 

I understand no amount of books can probably put me ahead of the curve for flight school, but I would still like to store away the information.

 

Thanks for any help anyone can dish out on this, I attempted a search, and for some reason it blanked out on me everytime, so hopefully Im not asking a question thats brought up daily, haha.

 

-Allen

[ACE1987]

Search is working for me now, found the information I was looking for.

 

Thanks anyways,

 

-Allen

[Airhead]

Hey Allen, getting a head start in your reading now will give you a huge advantage when it comes time for school. Learning the bulk of the stuff before you start school will make some of your ground school more like a refresher. You will get better test scores with less effort and free up your study time for the flying part of the training. This should put you ahead of the curve, or give the impression that you are one of the guys that really wants to be there, which may help with an employment decision down the road.

 

From my limited experience, very few people prepare themselves before they show up and they expect the school to do it all for them. This is not the case. It takes self motivation to learn this stuff and passing the written test and a check ride is a serious challenge. Most flight instructors are low time pilots building time. They are still learning. They did not get into the industry to be instructors so, by virtue, some might not always be natural born teachers. Being good teaching the cockpit portion does not always convert to teaching ground and vice versa.

 

I recommend the FAA Helicopter Flying Handbook

 

FAA Pilots Guide to Aeronautical Knowledge (Has a lot of fixed wing info too)

 

These two will get you most of the info for your private cert. You could also check out the FAR (federal air regulations and airmen information manual). Mainly parts 91 and 830. Be warned, this book sucks, and can be hard to decipher, but is crucial to a pilot.

 

The next level would be instrument, which is a whole new world of flying compared to the private cert. Depending on your time and resources .. you could prepare for that by reading the FAA Instrument Flying Handbook, downloading some approach procedures for an airport, and messing around with MS flight sim by flying around in the fog while performing the procedures.

 

If you digest any of these books, try taking an exam at webexams.com. If you pass one of them before you even start school then you will be golden. These tests are identical to the FAA written.

The books are free in .pdf form, just google them if you haven't run into them already. You can also buy them in analog. If you were to read one thing I would say the first one I mentioned would be your best bet.

 

Good luck on deployment and finding a school.

[ACE1987]

Thanks a lot Airhead. I already picked up the FAA books you mentioned from their website. I went ahead and purchased "Principles of Helicopter Flight" and "Helicopter Pilots Handbook" so hopefully this will all do the trick for me.

 

Excellent idea on those tests.

[ridethisbike]

I recommend the FAA Helicopter Flying Handbook

 

Just..... Make sure you back that up with other books. It's missing things...

[ACE1987]

Which books?

[ridethisbike]

Rotorcraft Flying Handbook (RFH) mainly. The Helicopter Flying Handbook is pretty new. Everyone on this forum either used the RFH or some other books I'm unaware of. I learned pretty much everything out of the RFH. I know they say "not for use with helicopters" or whatever on the PDF cover now, but 95% of it still applies.

 

Oh! Most likely you're going to be training in the R22 or R44. You could also start studying the POH (Pilot's Operating Handbook). If you weight less than 200lbs I'd go with the 22 manual. Chapter 3 (emergency procedures) would be a good place to start. Memorize all of the different procedures.

 

http://www.robinsonheli.com/r22_poh.html

 

and

 

http://www.robinsonheli.com/r44_poh.html

 

 

Good luck. You WILL have questions. Don't be afraid to ask... or search youtube. TONS of videos of this stuff on youtube. Don't let it all overwhelm you either. Just focus on one (helicopter) book at a time. If something doesn't make sense to you, check in one of the other books to see if it explains it in a way that you understand.