Flight Experiences
The Bell 222UT medivac helicopter being removed from on top of a roof when it made an emergency landing on approach to St. Paul Downtown Airport. Chris Kruse Photo
Check that box and fly it to the ground!
S
by Chris Kruse
ometimes life comes at you in small drips. At other times, like a fire hose stream. And still at other times, it can resemble a water tower collapse. Helicopters are some very curious but capable beasts. Unlike our fixed-wing airplane Chris Kruse cousins, they need to spin their wing or airfoil to create lift. The airplane relies on forward speed to flow air over its wings, creating that magic lift. Helicopters spin themselves. To do that, there are multitudes of moving parts, all working in concert. With that the main rotor spinning above, a smaller rotor attached to the tail is needed to counteract the torque and keep the fuselage from spinning in the opposite direction. 36 AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2021 MIDWEST FLYER MAGAZINE
The pilot uses his or her feet to control the tail rotor pitch. The pilot’s left hand controls the pitch of the main rotor above, and his right hand controls the cyclic stick between his legs to steer the direction of the aircraft. To say all this is a rather “busy” endeavor, is a total understatement. The helicopter demands your complete attention at all times. When things go south, they usually do so in a big hurry. When the engine or engines fail, we can use the stored energy in those spinning rotors and a rapid decent to keep that rotor spinning adequately to do an emergency landing. That is termed “autorotation.” The only caveat is you have only that one chance to get it right. No going around for a second try. Lose that stored rotor RPM and the lift all goes away. Everything stems from the main and tail rotor spinning at the proper speed to allow controlled flight. I had been an EMS helicopter pilot for years, and before that a U.S. Army medivac pilot. All helicopter pilots can be separated into two distinct but very different clubs: those who
