Intro Flight

[FlyGirl86]

I went on my intro flight today and could not stop grinning for an entire hour after the flight. I had an awesome instructor. He said i did really well but I dont know. He let me attempt a hover and that thing was all over the place. The auto rotation wasnt as scary as i thought. i was more worried about hitting cows on the training field than the rapid descent. I have a hard time with the cyclic though and i accidentally let go of it because i thought he said "my control" and he didnt. i had a death grip on it, which i guess is pretty normal from what i hear. I hope it gets easier...but i am soo excited. Just wanted to share my experience because it was amazing. I got to log my first hour into my log book and i cant wait to log more..

[amenra]

Congrats and welcome to a whole new world. It only gets better from here.

[jehh]

Sounds like you had fun...

 

Don't worry, it takes most people 5 hours to learn to hover, it is a motor skill (like riding a unicycle), and only practice helps.

 

The deathgrip is very common, and in time you'll learn that 2 fingers are all that is required to fly the helicopter. Personally I use my thumb and my middle finger, leaving my other 3 fingers off the cyclic completely, but use whatever works for you.

 

Another common thing is to raise your right arm off your leg, thus resulting in overcontrolling. If you can keep your right arm on your leg and only use hand or wrist movements, it tends to smooth things out.

 

Keep us up to date on your training, always fun to hear a new pilot's stories, flight training is so much fun!!!

[FUSE]

That's sweet! It does sound like you had fun. Your gonna love flying. Yep, the death grip is normal at first. You have to learn how to relax and lighten up. Like jehh said, the two finger approach with your arm resting on your leg seems to work best for alot of folks. Enjoy and congrats!

[RebellionRoots]

He let me attempt a hover and that thing was all over the place.

 

and i accidentally let go of it because i thought he said "my control" and he didnt. i had a death grip on it, which i guess is pretty normal from what i hear. I

 

The first demo I went on my instructor let me attempt a hover as well... DID NOT DO SO HOT! But hopefully I will get the hang of it. He took control a couple of times without saying "my control" and I thought the bird was fighting.

 

I had an awesome instructor. He said i did really well but I dont know.

 

I was told I did really well as well. But I felt like I was flying off the handle a LOT (even for a first attempt) Iam pretty hard on myself but I wondered if he was just blowing smoke or he meant it.

 

Would a CFI say you did pretty well just to make you feel good? I am just wondering if it was like one of those things when you see a friend from high school and you say "hey you look good." and they say "Yea you to! we should get together sometime" only you both know it's prolly not gonna happen.

[PA Pilot]

I have a hard time with the cyclic though and i accidentally let go of it because i thought he said "my control" and he didnt.

Sounds like you had a great time. As for letting go of the cyclic, I'd suggest you use the protocol I learned from the retired Huey pilot who got me my PP-RH.

 

It basically is a tell me three times transfer of the controls:

 

CFI: I have the controls

Me: You have the controls

CFI: I have the controls. (Now I release them, and not before)

 

or

 

Me: You have the controls

CFI: I have the controls

Me: You have the controls (Now I release them, and not before)

 

So all transfers require a positive response. The protocol is a little extra work, but it cuts down on misunderstandings.

 

Enjoy uour instruction!

[justfly]

...As for letting go of the cyclic, I'd suggest you use the protocol I learned from the retired Huey pilot who got me my PP-RH.

It basically is a tell me three times transfer of the controls:

 

CFI: I have the controls

Me: You have the controls

CFI: I have the controls. (Now I release them, and not before)

 

or

 

Me: You have the controls

CFI: I have the controls

Me: You have the controls (Now I release them, and not before)

 

So all transfers require a positive response...

Yup, that's straight out of the FAA's Aviation Instructor’s Handbook, Positive Exchange of Flight Controls, and should be an expected standard.

[FlyGirl86]

thanks so much for all the tips on everything. i am so excited. Now they are telling me there might not be an available seat in the september class and i am bummed. Keep your fingers crossed my financial aid goes through quickly and i get shoved ot the top of the list because i want to be a pilot asap. lol.

[me shakes fist]

There are always other schools if you don't get into the one you are looking at now!

 

I'm a student pilot myself (13 hours so far) so it's interesting reading about other people in the same position that are so excited about it. I've been getting my time slowly but I'm about to dump a bunch of money into it and buy like 20 hours up front so I can just go as often as I can. Hopefully my cars will be sold by the time I run out of that and then that will get me through my private and on the way to commercial.

 

Good luck! It will be a long time before you can get that smile off your face - probably on a day when you can't fly!

[Witch]

The hover thing might go a bit more smooth if you don't think about it. I started singing "Trigger Happy" by Wierd "Al" Yankovic. That has to tell ya something about my personality. While I was singing, my IP started getting a worried look on his face, and my hover improved about 79.835%. After that, I was looking around, talking about cats, watching the birds fly off in the rotorwash... I was having a more comfortable time just from singing a stupid song.

 

Hey, that gives me an idea. Maybe while doing an auto, I'll sing "The Saga Begins" ...Maybe Vader someday later, now he's just a small fry...

 

 

Later.

[brushfire21]

Witch, your too damn funny! I am going to go look up that Wierd Al tune your talking about, I may need it here soon hahaha!

[FlyGirl86]

The hover thing might go a bit more smooth if you don't think about it. I started singing "Trigger Happy" by Wierd "Al" Yankovic. That has to tell ya something about my personality. While I was singing, my IP started getting a worried look on his face, and my hover improved about 79.835%. After that, I was looking around, talking about cats, watching the birds fly off in the rotorwash... I was having a more comfortable time just from singing a stupid song.

 

Hey, that gives me an idea. Maybe while doing an auto, I'll sing "The Saga Begins" ...Maybe Vader someday later, now he's just a small fry...

Later.

 

haha..thanks for the tip. I am trying to decide right now what song will work into my hover. Love the weird al idea though and i might have to steal it from ya

 

There are always other schools if you don't get into the one you are looking at now!

 

I'm a student pilot myself (13 hours so far) so it's interesting reading about other people in the same position that are so excited about it. I've been getting my time slowly but I'm about to dump a bunch of money into it and buy like 20 hours up front so I can just go as often as I can. Hopefully my cars will be sold by the time I run out of that and then that will get me through my private and on the way to commercial.

 

Good luck! It will be a long time before you can get that smile off your face - probably on a day when you can't fly!

 

what school are you going to? dont they have financial aid or anything? or is my school unique in that factor?

[me shakes fist]

Witch, I know what you mean with the singing and hovering better! Not that I tried the singing part (I probably would have been pushed out of the heli if I did!), but I find the less I concentrate on trying to hover, the more control I have over it.

 

Flygirl, it sounds like you are going to a bigger academy type school or a full out college. I go to Long Island Helicopter which consists of just a few guys and one Robbie so they don't provide any sort of financial aid, although I could get money through a company like Pilot Finace. I'd like to avoid being in debt for as long as I can and with the plans I have now I'll be able to until sometime after I get my private.

[FlyGirl86]

Witch, I know what you mean with the singing and hovering better! Not that I tried the singing part (I probably would have been pushed out of the heli if I did!), but I find the less I concentrate on trying to hover, the more control I have over it.

 

Flygirl, it sounds like you are going to a bigger academy type school or a full out college. I go to Long Island Helicopter which consists of just a few guys and one Robbie so they don't provide any sort of financial aid, although I could get money through a company like Pilot Finace. I'd like to avoid being in debt for as long as I can and with the plans I have now I'll be able to until sometime after I get my private.

haha...i know about that being in debt part. i am gonna be paying for a looooong time. but its worth it i think and i really have no other options. Good luck with everythign and thanks for the comments

[HowlingSeagull]

I used to count in my head 1,2,3,4....1,2,3,4 while trying to hover and it worked for me.

I would happily go into twice as much debt to fly all the time,you only get 1 shot at living so you might as well enjoy!

best of luck!

[jehh]

haha...i know about that being in debt part. i am gonna be paying for a looooong time. but its worth it i think and i really have no other options. Good luck with everythign and thanks for the comments

 

What school are you going to be training at?

[justfly]

The hover thing might go a bit more smooth if you don't think about it...

Hey Witch - I agree with you that learning to fly a helicopter is often a struggle to not "over think" it. Trying to intellectually analyze, interpret, and correct a maneuver often leads to over-correcting and over-controlling, making smooth flying nearly impossible. To that extent, distractions can be an effective tool at times, however...

 

While I was singing, my IP started getting a worried look on his face...

One of the questions/answers on the Fundamentals of Instruction exam (one of the exams your instructor took) is:

Q: Which would most likely be an indication that a student is reacting

abnormally

to stress?

 

A: Inappropriate laughter or

singing

.

The background is from the FAA's Aviation Instructor's Handbook, Human Behavior, The Flight Instructor as a Practical Psychologist, which says in part:

"

ABNORMAL REACTIONS TO STRESS

 

Reactions to stress may produce abnormal responses in some people… The following student reactions are indicative of abnormal reactions to stress…

 

• Inappropriate reactions, such as extreme overcooperation, painstaking self-control, inappropriate laughter or

singing

, and very rapid changes in emotions.

 

…These responses may be the normal products of a complex learning situation, but they also

can be indicative of psychological abnormalities

…"

You may have your flight instructor wondering if you're "that guy"... If he enquires you could always start singing lyrics from Bruce Cockburn, "The trouble with normal is it only gets worse..."

 

[500E]

Boy when I srarted ,talking was a problem, let alone singing

[Witch]

Hey JF, who's Bruce Cockburn?

 

The lyrics to the song are;

 

I got an AK-47, now you know it makes me feel alright,

 

I got an Uzi by my pillow, helps me sleep a little better at night,

 

There's no feeling any greater than to shoot first and ask questions later,

 

Now I'm trigger happy, trigger happy every day.

 

That's when he looked over at me and had that look of worriment. He then figured out what was going on and started a litle laugh. Believe me, he knows I wasn't carrying an AK-47. I had nowhere to put it.

 

I have a tendancy to crack stupid jokes a bit, especially at work. There, I'm totally obnoxious. Flying, I'm more mellow, At home, my spousal unit hits me in the head with a frying pan. I am abnormal, but not quite psychotic...but I'm working on it.

 

Later.

[FlyGirl86]

What school are you going to be training at?

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