Hovering Flight

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For standardization purposes, this discussion assumes a stationary hover in a no-wind condition. During hov-ering flight, a helicopter maintains a constant position over a selected point, usually a few feet above the ground. For a helicopter to hover, the lift and thrust produced by the rotor system act straight up and must equal the weight and drag, which act straight down. While hovering, you can change the amount of main rotor thrust to maintain the desired hovering altitude. This is done by changing the angle of attack of the main rotor blades and by varying power, as needed. In this case, thrust acts in the same vertical direction as lift. [Figure 3-1]

Figure 3-1. To maintain a hover at a constant altitude, enough lift and thrust must be generated to equal the weight of the helicopter and the drag produced by the rotor blades.

The weight that must be supported is the total weight of the helicopter and its occupants. If the amount of thrust is greater than the actual weight, the helicopter gains altitude; if thrust is less than weight, the helicopter loses altitude.

The drag of a hovering helicopter is mainly induced drag incurred while the blades are producing lift. There is, however, some profile drag on the blades as they rotate through the air. Throughout the rest of this discussion, the term “drag” includes both induced and profile drag.

An important consequence of producing thrust is torque. As stated before, for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. Therefore, as the engine turns the main rotor system in a counterclockwise direction, the helicopter fuselage turns clockwise. The amount of torque is directly related to the amount of engine power being used to turn the main rotor system. Remember, as power changes, torque changes.

To counteract this torque-induced turning tendency, an antitorque rotor or tail rotor is incorporated into most helicopter designs. You can vary the amount of thrust produced by the tail rotor in relation to the amount of torque produced by the engine. As the engine supplies more power, the tail rotor must produce more thrust. This is done through the use of antitorque pedals.