ROT List

vertrefadmin · August 24, 2007

Way back when, one of the pilots who flew Jet Rangers handed me a Rule of Thumb List for the 206. I thought it would be a good idea to create an updated version for all the other models too.

I'll start a simple one and you can all add your own:

MDH 500:

- Never trust the low fuel light

- Never fly with less than 100 lbs indicated unless you stick (measure) the fuel tank and fuel is right where you are

- The heater controls can get stuck, be careful when pulling on cabin or anti ice. Your hand may smash into the compass with the cabin heat handle and a frayed cable.

- Collective Friction works pretty darn good especially when you don't want it to.

- It is easy to fall out of when you are slinging and your seatbelt is not completely buckled.

Astar:

- Skid springs can get caught on pads

- Fuel slosh is minimized if you keep it steady during the entire approach

- It is a bad helicopter for bad weather especially in misty rain. Open the bad weather window and use it.

- If you keep the helicopter moving forward while landing you will grease it on almost everytime.

Bell 206 Series:

- If trying to go vertical, pull it to max torque, wait for the power of the cosmos to come into the rotor system then it will start to slowly climb. Do not move anything and wait until it clears the tallest obstacle by 20 feet then slowly move it forward (it will descend so make sure there is nothing in front of you). If it isn't able to clear the obstacle by 20 feet then, descend back to the landing spot vertically and kick the manager out.

- You may be able to land in it but you may not be able to take off.

- Make all pedal movements slow. Stabbing the pedals will cause torque spikes and loss of rpm which can cause you to turn to the right, descend, and get into a tough situation. Sometimes it is better to let the nose of a 206 go to the right while taking off rather then try to correct the right skid with left pedal and lose the power of the cosmos mentioned above.

There are other ones like the percent of torque equal to so much horse power but I can't remember that right now. Anyone else?

500E · August 26, 2007

To late with anti ice tip. but know where you are coming from with fuel lamp.

What about loose shirt cuff catching boor handle?,

Gomer Pylot · August 27, 2007

AStar: it's a good thing you said 'almost'. Nobody alive can grease one on every time, at least a D model with low skid gear.

206: Never get in a hurry, for anything. Finesse works, and you have to finesse one for just about everything. As for LTE, IME you need to keep the nose straight all the time, and it may take some planning. I've hovered a 206 in 15-20 knot winds, and repeatedly picked it up and put it back down with my feet flat on the floor, no pedal necessary, as long as the nose was in the wind. It's a great weathervane, but that means if you have a crosswind, you're going to have to use lots of pedal. If you can't put the nose into the wind, keep the wind to your left. That way, you use right pedal to keep the nose straight. If the wind is off the right, you may very well end up with too little power, too little left pedal available, and then you're screwed. Never let a right rotation build up.

vertrefadmin · August 27, 2007

AStar: it's a good thing you said 'almost'. Nobody alive can grease one on every time, at least a D model with low skid gear.

I agree with the almost. It's sort of like being almost pregnant. "I almost greased it in." I prang 'em in all the time. Glad they put that anti-smooth landing device on the skids.

Some more I forgot to add:

R-22: Never take your hand off the collective. It takes half a blink for the rpm to go to zero after an engine failure during climb.

Enstrom 280C: preflight the tail rotor control cables really well. They can get stuck in the holes that guide it into the tail boom. Don't know if the design is still the same but a friend had a stuck pedal because of it.