Chapter 1 Classification and requirements of helicopter design (3hrs) 1.1Definition 1.2 General classification 1.

3 Basic requirements of helicopter design Chapter 2 Forces and loads acting on the helicopter (5hrs) 2.1 Helicopter structural strength 2.2 Helicopter loads 2.3 Forces acting on helicopter airframe Chapter 3 Helicopter structure and airframe (7hrs) 3.1Introduction 3.2 Helicopter fuselage 3.3 Main rotor 3.4 Tail rotor 3.5 Landing gear Chapter 4 Helicopter control system (7) 4.1Introduction 4.2 Swash plate 4.3 Cyclic pitch stick 4.4 Collective pitch stick 4.5 Artificial feel unit and trim mechanism 4.6 Control linkage elements 4.7 Common defects in control system Chapter 5 Helicopter transmission (4) 5.1 General 5.2 Structural arrangement of helicopter transmission 5.3 Transmission shafts Chapter 6 Airframe system (6) 6.1 Helicopter air system 6.2 Helicopter hydraulic system 6.3 Helicopter fuel system

GENERAL HELICOPTER & AIRFRAME THEORY-BY LIJALEM G/HIWOT-2006

Classification and requirements of helicopter design

1.1Definition
A helicopter is an aircraft which is lifted and propelled by one or more horizontal rotors, Helicopters are classified as rotary-wing aircraft to distinguish them from conventional fixed-wing aircraft. The word helicopter is derived from the Greek words helix (spiral) and pteron (wing). Helicopter, aircraft that can take off and land vertically and can also hover motionless in the air. A helicopter produces thrust by means of the blades of a main rotor as they rotate above the fuselage, or body, of the aircraft. As the blades rotate, airflow is created over them, resulting in lift, which raises the helicopter skyward. The same rotor blades can be controlled to make the helicopter travel forward, backward, or sideways. Some helicopters can achieve forward flight at speeds of over 320 km/h (200 mph). In identifying helicopters during flight it is helpful to know that when viewed from above, the rotor of a French, Russian, or Soviet designed helicopter rotates clockwise, whilst that of a helicopter built in Italy, the UK or the USA rotates counter-clockwise.

Chapter 1

1.2 General classification

Generally flying vehicles are classified in to two groups 1. Lighter-than-air machines E.g. Balloons 2. Heavier-than-air machines The heavier-than-air machines also further classified in to two different classes according to their design and working principle A. Those having a self contained form of propulsion. E.g. Aircrafts B. Those that depend on the combined forces of air and gravity. E.g. Parachute, Kite and Gliders

GENERAL HELICOPTER & AIRFRAME THEORY-BY LIJALEM G/HIWOT-2006

So depending on their structure as well as design aircrafts also classified in to two types

Aircrafts

Fixed wing aircrafts aircrafts E.g. Airplanes

Rotary wing

Rotary wing aircrafts also classified in different types by the working principle of the main rotor; 1. Main rotor as main source of lift only E.g. Auto gyros 2. Main rotor as main source of lift and thrust E.g. Helicopter

GENERAL HELICOPTER & AIRFRAME THEORY-BY LIJALEM G/HIWOT-2006

The airflow patterns created by the forward flight of an airplane an Autogiro, and a helicopter are compared here. With the Autogiro, the rotor mast is inclined to the rear and the airflow into the rotor is from the front and below. In the helicopter, the rotor is inclined forward and the flow enters from above

So depending on the design of the main rotor helicopters also further classified in to three types.

Helicopters

Coaxial types Single main rotor type

tandem types

GENERAL HELICOPTER & AIRFRAME THEORY-BY LIJALEM G/HIWOT-2006

Tandem rotor designs achieve yaw by applying opposite left and right cyclic to each rotor, effectively rolling both ends of the helicopter in opposite directions. To achieve pitch, opposite collective is applied to each rotor; decreasing the lift produced at one end, while increasing lift at the opposite end, effectively tilting the helicopter forward or back. Synchropters use a similar system to tandem rotor helicopters, But the two rotors are side by side, they use opposite pitch for yaw, and opposite collective for roll. Co-axial designs achieve yaw by applying opposite collective to each rotor. This increases drag, and therefore torque, in one rotor, while decreasing the drag in the other. Since the rotors spin in opposite directions, the torque difference causes the helicopter to rotate.

GENERAL HELICOPTER & AIRFRAME THEORY-BY LIJALEM G/HIWOT-2006

Single main rotor type Having only one main rotor over the center and above the fuselage which is kinematically connected to the main gear box. Depending on the design of the tail rotor, the single main helicopters are divided in to three types. The tail rotor of all single main rotor differs according to the working principle to counter act the torque.

Single main rotor type

Fenestron type Conventional type

Notar type

1-Fenestron type They have fan on the tail and the fun suckes a huge amount of air. The air is discharged in opposite direction so as to counter act the torque. Shortly fenestron means fan on the tail rotor.

GENERAL HELICOPTER & AIRFRAME THEORY-BY LIJALEM G/HIWOT-2006

2-Notar type Notar is an abbreviation to No Tail Rotor. Such types of helicopter does not have any tail or fun arrangement on the tail cone. The torque is counter acted by the air blown out of the tail cone. They have a lot of advantages when compared to other helicopters. They are safer, more reliable and quieter. Over 60% of total noise generated by a helicopter is due to interaction of main and tail rotor tip vortices.

GENERAL HELICOPTER & AIRFRAME THEORY-BY LIJALEM G/HIWOT-2006

helicopter

Fig. Operating principle of notar type

3-Conventional type Conventional type helicopters are the most common design which have a tail rotor to counter act the torque and also used for directional control.

The conventional types also divided in to two types according to the position of the tail rotor namely
GENERAL HELICOPTER & AIRFRAME THEORY-BY LIJALEM G/HIWOT-2006

Conventional type with single tail rotor

Push type

Pull type

Before dealing with push-pull effects, it is better to see the statement of Newton's third law which states that''To every action there is equal and opposite reaction" as the main rotor of the helicopter turns in one direction, the fuselage tends to rotate in the opposite direction. This tendency for the fuselage to rotate is called torque. Since the torque effect on the fuselage is a direct result of engine power supplied to the main rotor during autorotation, there is no torque reaction during autorotation. A rotor which produces thrust in the direction opposite to torque reaction developed by the main rotor is called tail rotor.Turning the rotor generates lift but it also
applies a reverse torque to the vehicle, which would spin the helicopter fuselage in the opposite direction to the rotor if no counter-acting force was applied.

A- Push type Push type helicopters are those having a tail rotor on the right side of the helicopter and the torque produced counteracts to the counter- clockwise rotating fuselage. Example Mi-8 helicopter.

Figure-push type rotor torque reaction

GENERAL HELICOPTER & AIRFRAME THEORY-BY LIJALEM G/HIWOT-2006

B- Pull type Push type helicopters are those having a tail rotor on the left side of the helicopter and the torque produced counteracts or pulls to the counter- clockwise rotating fuselage. Example Mi-17, Mi-24 & Mi-35 helicopters.

Figure- push type rotor torque reaction

1.3 Basic requirements of helicopter design

During the design of helicopters there are requirements to be satisfied. These requirements are divided in to two; 1- General requirements for all types of aircrafts Some of the requirements are described as follows, Optimal aerodynamic properties Sufficient strength & rigidity Minimum weight of the strength High invulnerability i.e the capacity of damaged vehicle to continue flight. Structural reliability and sufficiently longer service life (Probability of failure free operation over the present service life) Technological effectiveness Operability and repairability

Low vulnerability of the load carrying members Application of armour to protect the crew & vital accessories of the vehicle Fire fighting provision Availability of the emergency system e.t.c.
GENERAL HELICOPTER & AIRFRAME THEORY-BY LIJALEM G/HIWOT-2006

2-Special requirements depending on the specific purposes & in combat use They determine the flying vehicle performance characteristics required for most effective combat mission such as; Maximum speed Range of flight Ceiling height Combat load,crew,required equipment and armament Others can also be referred to as; Proper vertical landing & takeoff of the helicopter as well as steady hovering at the preset altitude. Safe landing with the inoperative engines in the main rotor wind milling regime. Required degree of stability & controllability under all flight conditions. Specific vibration level. To fit the above requirements, modern helicopters are fitted with autopilot & automatic flight stabilization system. CHAPTER 2 FORCES AND LOADS ACTING ON THE HELICOPTER 2.1 Helicopter structural strength The strength of the helicopter structure is the primary factor ensuring the safety of the vehicle. The helicopter structure is designed to carry load, or resist stress so the strength is the principal requirement for the helicopter structure except cowlings and fairings. Unlike the airplane, in-flight the helicopters are applied to considerable dynamic forces variable in the amount and direction. The main rotor which develops forces sufficient to keep the vehicle flying is of dynamic and variable character. Proceeding from the structural strength standards, estimated, maximum and overload weights are determined,

operational g-load, safety factor, main rotor speed and helicopter flying speed as regard to specific features of helicopter operation are set. The main estimated cases are; 1-Exit from the power on descent; In this case maximum positive g-load will occur and as a result the value of g-load will be;
GENERAL HELICOPTER & AIRFRAME THEORY-BY LIJALEM G/HIWOT-2006

n=4 for maneuverable helicopter n=3 for non-maneuverable helicopter f=1.5(safety factor) V=1.15Vmax, Nmr=1.2(Nmr) rated 2- Entry in to steep descent when g-load is negative; n=-5, f=1.5 3- Flight at maximum permissible velocity head 4- Rough all wheel landing 5- Main wheel landing 6- Lateral impact landing e.t.c. 2.2 Helicopter loads The loads acting on flying vehicles differ by application, amount and direction I-By application Static and dynamic loads distributed loads 1-Concentrated loads Example: - Landing gear legs due to the impact with the ground 2-Loads distributed with respect to length, surface and volume (mass) Example: - tail boom developed by tail rotor, reduction gear and other helicopter accessories All loads or external forces may be classified as volume (mass) and surfaces forces. The volume (mass) forces are; Example: - Gravity and inertial forces

The surface forces are the forces applied to the surface of the flying vehicle in the form of the distributed air load or concentrated external forces;

Example: - Main rotor thrust, forces existing in the attachment joints of the helicopter accessories, response of earth during touch down e.t.c. Therefore the above loads and forces may act on the helicopter and its separate components (main rotor blades, wing, fuselage, stabilizer, e.t.c.) The surface forces acting on the helicopter are determined through g-load. G-load "n" implies the relation of the resultant of surface force Fs acting on the helicopter to the helicopter weight, W.
GENERAL HELICOPTER & AIRFRAME THEORY-BY LIJALEM G/HIWOT-2006

G-load= Surface force n=Fs/W Helicopter weight

The corresponding g-load in the three wind axes X, Y and Z will be nx=Fx/W nz=Fz/W ny=Fy/W

The helicopter structural design g-load ny is of primary importance and generally it is referred as g-load n So, n=Fy/G

o o

In hovering and level flight of the helicopter Fy=G and n=1 In curvilinear flight for example after exit from glide lifting force is greater than its weight and g-load n>1. The maximum permissible g-load is called operational g-load. From the aerodynamic and strength properties of main rotor operational g-load is assumed to be 3 to 4.

The dynamic loads which are repeated periodically at greater frequency are called variable loads. The main and tail rotors are the main source of variable loads. Other source of variable loads such as the engine, transmission, main rotor pulsating air flow over the fuselage are of less important. The external loads are divided in to static and dynamic. The static loads are the loads the value and direction of which remain unchanged during the prolonged period of time. The dynamic loads such as the centrifugal force of the rotating main rotor blade, aerodynamic of the wing and tail unit of the helicopter. Generally such loads bring about bending, tension, compression, torsion and shear strains in the components of the helicopter structure. The major significant to the helicopter are aerodynamic loads which cause oscillation (vibration) of the helicpter components and leads to the existence of alternating stress then to total stress finally to the failure of helicopter structure due to the material fatigue. The main forces developed by the flapping and lag hinge dampers or by varying the weight and stiffness of the blades e.t.c.
GENERAL HELICOPTER & AIRFRAME THEORY-BY LIJALEM G/HIWOT-2006

Besides the main rotor of a helicopter may be the source of vibrations due to poor balancing and conicity of the rotor blades. The rotor blade weight unbalance will bring about the unbalanced centrifugal force. For this reason the rotor blades in service are replaced as a whole assembly or subjected to a rigid weight balancing, if otherwise. Variable loads are poorly withstood by the parts having local concentration of stresses such as holes, riveted and bolted joints, abrupt transition of shape, rough surface e.t.c. 2.3 Forces acting on helicopter airframe The main difference between a helicopter and a fixed wing aircraft is the main source of lift. During any kind of horizontal or vertical flight, there are four forces acting on the helicopter-lift, thrust, weight and drag. Lift is the force required to support the weight of the helicopter. Thrust is the force required to overcome the drag on the fuselage and other helicopter components.

During hovering flight in a no-wind condition, the tip path plane is horizontal, that is, parallel to the ground. Lift and thrust act straight up; weight and drag act straight down. The sum of the lift and thrust force must equal the sum of the weight and drag forces in order for the helicopter to hover.

GENERAL HELICOPTER & AIRFRAME THEORY-BY LIJALEM G/HIWOT-2006

During vertical flight in a no-wind condition, the lift and thrust forces both act vertically upward. Weight and drag both act vertically down ward. When lift and thrust equal weight and drag, the helicopter hovers; if lift and thrust are less than weight and drag, the helicopter descends vertically; if lift and thrust are greater than weight and drag, the helicopter rises vertically. For forward flight the tip path plane is tilted forward, thus tilting the total lift-thrust force forward from the vertical. Both forces can be resolved in to two components-lifts acting vertically upward and thrust acting horizontally in the direction of flight and there is weight the downward acting force and drag the rear ward acting or retarding force of inertia and wing resistance. In straight and level, unaccelerated forward flight, lift equals weight and thrust equals drag. If lift>weight the helicopter climbs If lift<weight the helicopter descends If thrust>drag the helicopter speeds up If thrust<drag the helicopter slows down In forward flight, air passing through the rear portion of the rotor disk has a greater downwash angle than air passing through the forward portion.

GENERAL HELICOPTER & AIRFRAME THEORY-BY LIJALEM G/HIWOT-2006

In sideward flight the tip path plane is tilted sideward (lift-thrust vector sideward). CHAPTER- 3 HELICOPTER STRUCTURE AND AIRFRAME

3.1 Introduction Most helicopter fuselage employ structural member similar to those used in fixed wing aircrafts. For example, most helicopters have such vertical/widthwise braces as bulkheads, formers, ringes and frames. They are also provided with such lengthwise braces as stringers and longerons.In addition, the joiners and skin hold the other structural members together. The basic body and tail boom sections of a typical helicopter are of conventional, all-metal, riveted structures incorporating formed aluminium alloy bulkheads, beams, channels and stiffeners, stressed skin panels may be either smooth or beaded. The fire wall and engine deck are usually stainless steel. The skin is riveted or spot welded to the structural members. Large single-rotor helicopter is all-metal and is basically composed of two major sections. The front section and the rear section. The front section consists of a cabin and passenger or cargo compartment which provides space for the crew, passengers, cargo, fuel and oil tanks, control and power plant.

GENERAL HELICOPTER & AIRFRAME THEORY-BY LIJALEM G/HIWOT-2006

In multiengine helicopters, the power plant is usually mounted in separate engine nacelles. The aft section of a typical single rotor helicopter consists of the tail cone, the fin, the tail cone housing, tail rotor pylon and the tail end fairing. The tail cone is bolted is bolted to the rear of the forward section and supports the tail rotor, tail rotor drive shafts, stabilizers, tail cone housing and tail rotor pylon. 3.2 Helicopter fuselage The helicopter fuselage is designed for accommodation of the crew, equipments, armament, fuel loads, main rotor e.t.c. the fuselage is the primary structure of the helicopter. It receives the loads from the rotors, landing gear, wing and tail unit. The general arrangement of the fuselage depends on the type, flying weight and purpose of the helicopter. To reduce the fuselage drag in flight, the axis of the main rotor shaft is tilted forward by 3 to 5 degree with respect to the helicopter vertical axis. The helicopter fuselage consists of; Nose fuselage Central fuselage tail boom with tail pylon and fairings Cargo hatch doors e.t.c. Nose fuselage Inside are cabin for instruments, crew members Central fuselage It consists of; Cargo cabin, power plant, reduction gear, cargo hatch doors, equipments e.t.c. Tail boom and tail pylon; it consists of the following Transmission components Elements of the helicopter control system Some equipments e.t.c. 3.2.1 Construction of the fuselage In construction the helicopter fuselages are subdivided in to truss type and stringer type (semi-monocoque). I. Truss type

It is rigid frame work made up of members such as beams, struts and bars to resist deformation. All the forces are absorbed by the space truss bars which sustain only the tensile and compression stress. It is exposed to the air and causes drag.
GENERAL HELICOPTER & AIRFRAME THEORY-BY LIJALEM G/HIWOT-2006

The truss is welded of steel tubes covered with a duralumin frame work to which a skin fabricated from duralumin sheet is attached by means of rivets and screw locks. Draw backs of truss fuselage are; Heavy weight Relatively insufficient torsional stiffness Low dynamic strength of the welded components II. Stringer type (Semi-monocoque) It consists of bulkheads and rings to which are fastened long stringers. The semi-monocoque has the skin reinforced by longitudinal members. It is generally reinforced by lateral and longitudinal members. Lateral members - Shape the fuselage in to a definite form - bulk heads, rings, formers, frames Longitudinal members - absorb longitudinal loads & reduce the compression stress. Example stringers The stringer fuselage fabricated as a single thick shell is sometimes called monocoque fuselage. Stringer construction is widely used in the helicopter tail booms. Big cut outs in the skin(for instance for doors, hatches, windows e.t.c.) are required and to compensate the strength, additional reinforcement elements are used such as spars, beams, reinforced stringers and reinforced frames. Such construction is used most frequently in nose and central fuselage of helicopter. The fuselage is provided with service joints to facilitate servicing of helicopters. The service joints are in the attachment points of the major frame components such as tail boom, nose, centre and tip beams.

3.3. The tail rotor

As we have already seen at Principles of Rotary Flight the tail rotor main function is to pull against torque reaction and hold the helicopter straight.

For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. This means that the torque of the engine driving the main rotor creates an opposing force in the opposite direction (torque reaction). If this force was not controlled, the helicopter would rotate underneath the rotor in the opposite direction. This controlling force is derived from the Tail Rotor. The engine drives the main rotor gearbox and the main rotor gearbox drives both the main rotor and the tail rotor (hence the tail rotor continues to turn if the engine stops).

GENERAL HELICOPTER & AIRFRAME THEORY-BY LIJALEM G/HIWOT-2006

But also, by applying more or less pitch (angle) to the tail rotor blades, it can be used to make the helicopter turn left or right, becoming a rudder. The pilot use the tail rotor pedals, on the floor, to control the pitch of the tail rotor. For straight flight, the pitch of the tail rotor is set to prevent the helicopter from turning to the right as the main rotor turns to the left. The pilot pushes the left pedal to increase the pitch of the tail rotor and turn to the left.

Pushing the right pedal decreases the pitch of the tail rotor and turns the helicopter to the right. The tail rotor in normally linked to the main rotor via a system of driveshaft and gearboxes, so both are usually connected to the same transmission, meaning that if you turn the main rotor by hand, the tail rotor will also turn. Most helicopters have between a 3:1 to 6:1 ratio. (In the first case, every time the main rotor turns one rotation, the tail rotor makes three revolutions) For example: If the main rotor is turning at 324 RPM, then the tail rotor turns at 1944 RPM at 6:1.

GENERAL HELICOPTER & AIRFRAME THEORY-BY LIJALEM G/HIWOT-2006

In most helicopters the engine turns a shaft that connects to an input quill on the transmission; the main rotor mast comes straight out of the top of the transmission and the tail rotor driveshaft connects to an output quill 90 degrees out from the mast.

3.3.1. Tail rotor construction

They are usually of a single spar construction with out sections. The metal blade consists of a duralumin spar fitting the shape of the blade leading and trailing edges of the skin and the honey comb filler. The trailing edge of the rotor blade may be made of glassfiber plastic. The hub of the tail rotor provided with the offset flapping hinges consists of; body, lugs in accordance with the number of blades, flapping hinges attachment links and feathering hinges. The tail rotor employs either hubs with offset flapping hinges or gimbal mounted hubs. There are two types of rotor blade construction; 1. Tail rotor hub provided with offset flapping hinges It consists of; Hub body with lugs in accordance with the number of blades Flapping hinges Attachment links in assembly with the trunnion of the feathering hinges
GENERAL HELICOPTER & AIRFRAME THEORY-BY LIJALEM G/HIWOT-2006

The feathering hinge with thrust-radial bearings Example tail rotor of Mi-24, 35, 17 2. Gimbal mounted tail rotor It consists of; Hub boss with transvers member Rocker arm Flapping hinge bearings Housing of feathering hinges Blade torsion bars Blade levers e.t.c. The gimbal mounted is available on Mi-8 helicopter

Fig. The hub of the two bladed gimbal-mounted tail rotors is composed of the boss with transverse member, rocker arm, flapping hinge bearings, two housings of feathering hinges, two plate torsion bars and two blade levers.

Tail bumper
It consists of shock absorber, tabular brace struts, hinged foot pad and the spring makes it possible to prevent it from sticking in to the ground up on landing. It is sometimes called tail landing gear because it prevents the tail rotor and boom from damage in case of accidental touching of the ground.

3.4 Helicopter landing gear

It is designed for parking and moving the helicopter on the ground as well as for landing and taking off. This system is provided with equipment to absorb and dissipate the energy of impact. The helicopter landing gear may be; Wheeled type Skid type Float type The most common design is the wheeled type and they are further classified in to two types according to their retraction; Retractable landing gear wheels Non-retractable landing wheels(fixed wheels) The helicopter landing gears should be equipped with shock absorbing devices to reduce the impact loads imposed on the helicopter during landing and taxing on rough ground. For such purpose they use oleo-pneumatic shock struts and wheel tyres. 3.4.1 Landing gear structural arrangement The shock struts and wheels are attached as one part of the landing system and they are divided in to different types according to their design; Cantilever legs with one or two bracing strut Truss legs Pyramid type landing gear I. Cantilever legs with one or two bracing strut

They are mostly used in the nose landing gear. Such construction allows castoring (steering) wheels to be easily installed. It consists of two retainers, one rigid with the shock strut piston and the other with the cylinder. In Mi-8 it is provided with a single nose leg. Example the nose landing gear of Mi-8, Mi-17 ----

Fig.
GENERAL HELICOPTER & AIRFRAME THEORY-BY LIJALEM G/HIWOT-2006

II. Pyramid type It has an application on the main landing gear of helicopters. The drawback of this type of leg construction is that the wheel tyres are exposed to side forces which arise due to increase of the wheel track during shock strut compression. Example the main landing gear of Mi-8 and Mi-17.

Fig. III. Truss type landing gear

It is more intricate in construction as compared to the simplest pyramid type. The weight of the landing gear exceeds the pyramid type.

Fig. Ka-25 helicopter with truss type main landing gear 3.4.2 Types of wheel attachments The wheel attachments may be by fork, semi-fork, semi-axle and lever.

Fig.
GENERAL HELICOPTER & AIRFRAME THEORY-BY LIJALEM G/HIWOT-2006

3.4.3 Helicopter wheels The main parameters of helicopter wheels are; The outer diameter Tyre width Air pressure in the tyre which determines the ground floatation Various airfield pavements possess different strength and can with stand definite specific loads. For grass airfield such a load equals 6 to 8kgf/cm2, for sand airfield it ranges from 2 to 4kgf/cm2. The wheel specific load is equal to the air pressure in the tyre.Therefore, if the tyres have an air pressure of 6 kgf/cm2, the running landing on a sand airfield may be dangerous, as the helicopter wheels may get stuck in the sand. In accordance with the

air pressure in the tyres wheels fall under the following classifications; 2 low-pressure wheel-2 to3 kgf/cm 2 medium-pressure wheels-3 to 5kgf/cm 2 high-pressure wheels-6 to 10 kgf/cm Besides, the helicopter wheels are divided in to braked and unbraked wheels. Braked wheels are installed on the main landing gear legs and the unbraked ones on the nose legs.

3.5 Helicopter main rotor

The main rotor blades are pitched, or tilted, to generate lift as they rotate. Although designers have created an impressive number of rotor systems, it is possible to narrow the field down to three basic types: articulated and rigid rotors. In this connection, it should be appreciated that the term "rotor" or "rotor system" refers to a single unit only, composed of just one hub and the blades attached to it. A helicopter may have more than one main rotor; multiple arrangements of two, three, four or even more rotors .The most important part of the system is the hub at the center. Here are concentrated all the forces generated by the movement of the blades through the air; aerodynamic, centrifugal, and inertia factors are involved that create very great loads which simultaneously pull the blades upward and outward. The hub is designed, for the most part, to accommodate and control these forces automatically, and the working of its mechanism is the very essence of the helicopter's mechanical nature. In dealing with the two basic types of rotor systems we will describe how some of these forces affect the rotor hub. The articulated rotor system is the oldest; Today it is perhaps still the most widely used type, in one form or another. The hub of the articulated rotors is rigidly fixed to the gear box shaft and each blade is attached to the hub by means of three hinges; flapping, lag and feathering hinges.

In a helicopter with an articulated rotor system, there are three kinds of movement for the rotor blade as it turns around the mast: up and down (flapping), back and forth in the horizontal plane (lead and lug), and changes in the pitch angle.

Figure articulated rotor

In this system, exclusive of the rotation of the blades about the mast, each individual blade is attached so that it can move in three different ways about the hub. One movement is common to almost all helicopters and types of rotor systems: the turning of the blades along their span-wise axis, owing to the action of the pilot's controls, in order to change the pitch angle. The other two kinds of

motion, however, are not under the pilot's immediate control. These are movements the blades make in response to the powerful natural forces acting on the rotor, for which the articulated hub provides the necessary mechanisms specifically, hinges which permit freedom of movement so the blades can "articulate," or flap up and down and move back and forth slightly in the horizontal plane. The pivot which permits the up-and-down movement is usually called the "flapping" hinge, while the fore-and-aft pivot, mounted vertically, which allows the blade to move back and forth slightly in the horizontal plane, is called the "drag" hinge.

Flapping hinges in the rotor hub help to adjust the unequal lift forces in the right and left halves of the rotors circle as the helicopter moves through the air in forward flight. The hinges permit the blades to rise and fall as they turn, thus varying the angle of attack so as to equalize the lift forces

The flapping hinge provides the blades with flapping freedom, which permits each blade to rise and fall, as it turns, so the tip rides higher or lower in its circular path. While the hinge may be located very close to the center of the rotor drive shaft, it is more frequently designed to be a short distance from this center line. This is termed an "offset" flapping hinge, and it offers the designer a number of important advantages. The flapping motion is the result of the constantly changing balance between lift, centrifugal, and inertial forces; this rising and falling of the blades is characteristic of most helicopters and has often been compared to the beating of a bird's wing. One other point should be mentioned; the flapping hinge, in company with the natural flexibility found in most blades, permits the blade to droop considerably when the helicopter is at rest and the rotor is not turning over. During flight the necessary rigidity is provided by the powerful centrifugal force which results from the rotation of the blades; this force pulls outward from the tip, stiffening the blade, and is actually the only factor which keeps it from folding up.

Drawing shows root attachment of rotor blade to an articulated hub. The flapping hinge permits each blade to rise and fall as it turns, and the vertically mounted drag hinge allows lead-lag motion The vertically mounted drag hinge as we have already noted, permits each blade to move back and forth slightly in the horizontal plane independently of the movement of the other blades. The terms "dragging," "hunting," and "lead-lag" are also used to

describe this movement, which is necessary to relieve the powerful forces that might otherwise bend and even break the blades. To prevent this back-and-forth hunting from developing into serious vibration, it is restricted by hydraulic dampers which slow down and "damp" the movement; this action is very similar to the damping effect of an ordinary hydraulic door-closer. The position that the blades actually assume while the helicopter is in flight obviously is the result of the various forces acting upon them. Normally, the blades will be lagged back slightly on the drag hinge and tilted up a few degrees on the flapping hinge; this upward tilt is termed the "coning angle" and is the result of the lifting force pulling upward on each blade while, simultaneously, centrifugal force is pulling outward. Since the centrifugal loading is so much greater, the blades only tilt upward a few degrees, and their path through the air takes the form of a shallow cone. In the semi-rigid rotor (sometimes called a "rocking hub" or "teetering" rotor), the blades are attached rigidly to the hub but the hub itself is free to tilt in any direction about the top of the mast. Although there is no lead-lag movement, the blades can still flap or, in the true sense, rock up and down in order to compensate for dissymmetry of lift when moving forward. Semi-rigid rotors have appeared on helicopters with two, three, and four blades and provide some simplification, although they cause other problems. One important advantage is the fact that there are no drag hinges, and therefore no drag dampers are required. But there are complications including the necessity for providing a type of universal joint between the drive shaft and the rotor hub. The rigid rotor, which until fairly recently was still in the experimental stage, is used in relatively few helicopters. In theory the rigid rotor is similar to an ordinary propeller; the blades are fixed to the hub without hinges and the hub in turn is fixed to the shaft. Since there are no flapping hinges, or any other provisions for movement at the hub, other systems have been developed to overcome the unequal forces on the rotor, including pre-coning and feathering of the blades. Rigid rotors are provided with the hubs either rigidly fastened to the reduction gear box shaft or articulated hubs (gimbal-mounted rotors) .The gimbal -mounted has the following short comings;

-It is subjected to greater vibration -The rotor blades experience bending moments in the point of attachments -The hub assembly has considerable dimensions. Loads acting on the rotor blades; -Distributed air loads (aerodynamic loads) -Inertia load due to gravity -Inertia load due to centrifugal forces -Inertia load due to flapping motion of the rotor blades.

Blade construction Blades are provided with a single load carrying structural component called spar. The spar receives the following forces (loads); o o o o Bending moment Longitudinal forces Lateral forces Torque

The rest of the rotor blade components such as the blade skin receive air loads only and transmit them to the blade spar. The inner cavity of the spar is sealed and filled with air at a pressure of approximately 0.5Kgf/cm2 to check for cracks in the course of operation. Air pressure drop inside the spar is the indication of cracks. There are two types of blade construction; 1. Blade with duralumin spar The spar is made of aluminium alloy and it is the most common design. Installed on the entire length of the spar nose is the deicing device. Secured inside the spar tip is the anti flutter balance. The blade is provided with an electrically operated

deicing system. Balance weighted is intended to equalize the static gravity moments of separate blade assemblies with respect to the axis of rotation. The rotor blades are attached to the hub with steel end piece. It helps to impart the centrifugal force and torque. Modern helicopters are equipped with this type of construction.

Figure2. Steel tube spar The spar is a tube fabricated from high alloy steels and having a round or oval cross section.

Figure -

Lug hinge dumpers Stop and droop stop The deflection of the rotor blades during oscillation with respect to flapping and lag hinges is restricted by permanent stops. The blade at rest will droop to such an extent that the blade tip might catch on the tail boom so additional stop or droop stop is used to limit the angle of the blade droop while the helicopter is at rest.

Besides holding the tail end of the fuselage straight against the twisting force of torque, this rear rotor provides control for steering to the right or left, as does the rudder of an airplane. This is accomplished by the pilot's foot pedals, which control the pitch angle of the tail rotor blades: by pressing on the right pedal, the pitch is decreased and the tail swings to the left. Pressing on the left pedal, of course, has the opposite effect: the pitch of the tail rotor is increased so that its thrust now overcomes the torque and tail swings the other way.

The small tail rotor of a helicopter controls the heading of the aircraft by turning the fuselage to the right or left. This is accomplished by the pilot through the movement of foot pedals linked to the tail rotor pitch control, so that by increasing or decreasing pitch he is able to swing the tail to either side. The tail rotor also serves to counteract the torque reaction of the main rotor. The term "control is yaw" is used to describe this effect of the tail rotor that is, the ability to swing the tail to the right or to the left. Unlike the rudder of an airplane, it isn't necessary for the helicopter to be in forward motion in order for the tail rotor to be effective; as long as the main rotor is turning over the tail rotor will keep spinning, owing to the mechanical drive system that links them together, and the tail control will continue to function. This feature is important in the event of an engine failure or if the engine is slowed deliberately. In this situation the helicopter descends with the main rotor free-wheeling in autorotation. The fact that the tail rotor will keep turning with the power cut off means that directional (yawing) conrol can be maintained, and the pilot will still be able to steer the aircraft as it descends. Another primary control used to fly a

helicopter is the collective pitch stick, located to the left of the pilot's seat and mounted on a pivot so the pilot can ease it up and down with his left hand. By means of this control the pilot can increase or decrease the pitch angle of all the blades in the main rotor, equally and simultaneously. For example, to make the aircraft rise, he pulls up on the collective stick this is called "pulling in pitch" and the effect is to increase the pitch angle of the blades and thus, to increase the lift. However, as the blades meet the air at a greater angle of attack, * the drag on the rotor will increase as well as the lift. Therefore, to maintain a constant rotational speed it is necessary to increase the power by speeding up the engine as the stick is raised. This brings us to yet another control, the throttle for the engine. Since the pilot already has both hands and feet occupied, the problem is solved by providing a rotating handle (similar to the twist grip found on a motorcycle) mounted directly on the collective stick. As the pilot pulls in pitch by raising the stick with his left hand he also twists the throttle slightly to speed up the engine. We can see how this control is used by following the actual motions that the pilot makes during takeoff. First, he will bring the rotor up to the correct speed by opening the twist-grip throttle. He then eases up on the collective pitch stick, increasing the bite of the main blades while simultaneously adjusting the power of the engine to maintain the rotor speed. When the lift force developed by the rotor becomes greater than the weight of the aircraft, the landing gear will begin to clear the ground. In a condition of hovering flight the lift exactly equals the weight, and the pilot can then raise or lower the helicopter by increasing or decreasing his collective pitch. The technique of using the left hand to operate both the throttle and the collective stick is one of the problems peculiar to flying a helicopter. Coordination of the throttle and the collective pitch is vital in maintaining the speed of the rotor at the all-important correct number of revolutions per minute. To make the task easier for the pilot, most of today's helicopters employ a mechanical linkage in the collective control which automatically adds throttle as the pitch is increased. However, with many helicopters the pilot still has the chore of making constant small corrections in spite of the action of this linkage.

To rise vertically, the pilot raises the collective pitch stick with his left hand. This increases the pitch angle of all rotor blades simultaneously, thus increasing the over-all lift.

The last primary flight control is the cyclic control stick. The cyclic stick is mounted vertically from the cockpit floor, between the pilot's legs, in the same position as the control stick of an airplane, which it so greatly resembles. Like the control stick of an airplane, it can be moved slightly in any direction from the vertical. With this control the pilot can move the helicopter in any direction horizontally - that is, for flying straight ahead, backing up, and for moving to either side.

These three illustrations show the effect of the pilot's cyclic control stick; the direction of -flight follows the direction in which the stick is moved. When the stick is moved to the front or rear, or to either side, the "disc of rotation" is inclined in that direction. When the cyclic stick is moved fore or aft, to either side, or in any combination of these, the whole whirling rotor system-termed the "disc of rotation" will be tilted in the same direction and the movement of the helicopter will be in this direction. This is accomplished by changing the pitch angle and thus the angle of attackof each blade in cycles, from a maximum to a minimum position, as the blade sweeps through a complete revolution. The way this works is illustrated by what happens when the rotor disc is tilted forward, to move the helicopter into forward flight. The pilot pushes his control stick forward slightly; the result is that the blade which happens to be at the rear of the disc has its pitch increased by the control linkage, while the blade which happens to be moving around at the front has its pitch decreased. Since each blade is attached to the hub by a hinge which allows it to flap up and down slightly as it turns (here we are describing a standard articulated rotor), the blade at the rear will rise upward and then, as it moves around to the front, it will ride at a lower than normal position. The over-all effect is that the rotor disc actually the path the blades take describes the shape of a shallow cone rather than a disc will be inclined forward so that its lift is no longer straight up but is now pulling slightly forward as well. In the same way, the cyclic stick can be used to incline the rotor to move the helicopter in other directions. An important function of the cyclic control system is that it allows the pilot to correct for dissymmetry of lift. This phenomenon refers to the unequal lifting forces created as the helicopter speeds up and moves forward through the air that, unless corrected, can cause the aircraft to roll

to one side. To understand this, it is helpful to visualize the position of each blade in relation to the airflow coming from the front as it sweeps through the full 360-degree circle of rotation. Each blade can be thought of as advancing when it sweeps forward against the airflow from the front, and retreating when it swings past the straight-ahead position and begins to move to the rear on the other side of the circle. Since the blades obtain lift from both the airflow induced by their rotation and from the flow from the front, it is not surprising that the advancing blade, which is meeting the flow from the front head on, will create more lift than the retreating blade. Because of this, the advancing blade will tend to flap up while the retreating blade, which is "running away" from the airflow from the front, will flap down. The effect is that the rising blade is actually decreasing its angle of attack, since the movement of the air against the blade is no longer horizontal but is now slightly downwardowing to the blade moving upward. On the other side of the rotor the situation is reversed; there the blade is actually increasing its angle of attack since it is "diving down" against the airflow. This flapping effect is quite beneficial because it results in an equalization of the angle of attack and therefore the lift force created on the right and left sides of the rotor disc, and eliminates the tendency for the helicopter to roll to one side. However, there is an undesirable result from this flapping action which can be overcome through use of the cyclic pitch control. As the advancing blade flaps upward it reaches its highest flapped position directly in front, one-quarter of a revolution from the point where the increased lift began to take effect. Conversely, the retreating blade reaches its lowest flapped position directly to the rear, over the tail of the helicopter. Therefore the tendency of the aircraft to roll, eliminated by the flapping of the blades, is now changed to a tendency for the rotor disc to pitch to the rear and thus for the helicopter to climb as it goes into forward flight. This might seem to call for still more complications in the control system, but fortunately this is not the case. To start the ship moving forward initially, the pilot had pushed his cyclic stick forward. To overcome the climbing tendency he simply pushes the stick still farther forward, responding naturally to the nose-up position, and the rotor disc remains in the desired attitude. One of the important characteristics of lift dissymmetry is that it becomes much worse as the helicopter speeds up and flies faster. Since the lift on the blades on the advancing side cannot be permitted to exceed the lift on the retreating side, this factor tends to limit the top speed at which the fastest helicopters (with conventional rotor systems) can fly; for even the largest and most powerfully-engined of helicopters, at speeds just above 200 miles per hour the lifting and propelling characteristics of the rotor are affected, and a phenomenon termed "blade stall" is encountered.* With these primary controls pedals for steering, the collective pitch stick (with the twist throttle), and the cyclic stick the pilot can move his ship in any direction, turning it around on the axis of the main rotor, moving it up, down, forward, to the rear, and sideways. Obviously, a helicopter pilot can be very busy indeed. Each hand and both feet may be at work at the same time, and the pilot's left hand will have two jobs to do simultaneously, pulling up on the pitch stick while feeding in power with the throttle. Added to this is the fact that most copters do not possess the inherent stability found in airplanes, being in this respect more comparable to an automobile than an airplane; you can't let go of the controls for more than a few seconds at a time. But these seemingly complicated motions are easily absorbed, and a natural pattern of action and reaction is quickly established by most student pilots.

Cyclic and Forward Flight

Tip Path Plane:
The tip path plane, or TPP, is the plane connecting the rotor blade tips as they rotate. While hovering, the thrust vector of a helicopter is oriented upwards, perpendicular to the tip path plane. In order for the helicopter to travel forward, this thrust vector needs to be rotated slightly in the forward direction. To rotate the thrust vector, it is in turn necessary to rotate the TPP by the same amount, as illustrated below. The hovering TPP is drawn in purple, while the forward TPP is in orange.

Tip path planes and thrust vectors for hovering and forward flight [from Gessow and Myers, 1952]

Cyclic Control:
Since tilting the rotor hub or rotor shaft is impractical, an alternative means of rotating the TPP is needed. Most modern helicopters use a system of swash plates. Seen in the following diagram, the swash plate system is composed of upper and lower swash plates.

Cyclic control and swashplates [from Gunston and Spick, 1986]

The red portion of the diagram, including the lower swashplate, remains stationary relative to the helicopter. The upper swashplate (in blue) rotates with the rotor, while remaining parallel to the lower swashplate. By utilizing what is called cyclic control, the swashplates can be angled so as to vary the pitch of the blades depending on their azimuth angle. As the swashplates are tilted in the proper direction, there is an increased lift on the aft portion of the rotor, causing the blades to flap up, which in turn causes the TPP to rotate forwards. As the TPP rotates forwards, the thrust vector does as well, imparting a forward acceleration to the helicopter. HELICOPTER CONTROL The pedals and control sticks in a helicopter cockpit allow the pilot to control the direction, speed, altitude of a helicopter. The controls move several different mechanisms on the main rotor and tail rotor to change the amount of lift and thrust generated by the rotors.
MAIN ROTOR

The main rotor blades are pitched, or tilted, to generate lift as they rotate.
SWASH PLATE

The swash plate transfers the movements of the cyclic pitch stick and the collective pitch stick to the rotor blades. Tilting the swash plate moves the control rods above it, and changes the pitch of the rotor blades as they rotate.
FLAPPING HINGE

Helicopter blades are hinged to absorb the excess lift produced by the blades during directional flight. If the hinges did not flap, more lift would be created on one side of the helicopter and the helicopter would be unstable.
CONTROL ROD

Control rod change the pitch of the rotor blades as they rotate, increasing or decreasing the amount of lift each blade produces.
CYCLIC PITCH STICK

The cyclic pitch stick tilts the swash plate under the main rotors and controls the pitch of the main rotor blades as they rotate. By varying the pitch the pilot can direct the lift produced by the blades in various directions allowing the helicopter to fly foreward, backward and sideways.
RUDDER PEDALS

The rudder pedals controls the collective pitch of the tail rotor blades. Pressing the pedals changes the amount of sideways thrust produced by the tail rotor, and turns the helicopter to the left or right during flight.
COLLECTIVE PITCH STICK

The collective pitch stick raises or lower the swash plate and changes the pitch of all the main rotor blades equally, allowing the helicopter to hover steadily in midair. Changing the collective pitch increases or decreases the helicopters' altitude. The cyclic pitch stick changes rotor pitch through a device called a swash plate. This device consists of two circular plates that surround the rotor shaft. The upper plate rotates with the shaft and the rotor blades and rests on the lower plate, which is controlled by the cyclic pitch stick. Moving the cyclic pitch stick forward, for example, tilts the lower plate, which in turn tilts the upper plate controlling the rotor blades. The swash plate lowers the pitch of the blades as they pass the right side of the helicopter, momentarily decreasing lift and causing the blades to flap downward. The swash plate at the same time increases the pitch of the blades as they pass the left side of the helicopter, increasing lift and causing the blades to flap upward. The front of the helicopter then points lower than the rear, and so the helicopter moves forward. Pushing the cyclic pitch stick in any direction will tip the rotor blades accordingly, allowing the helicopter to travel in any direction. When the stick is centered, the helicopter hovers in midair. The collective pitch stick is a lever that allows the helicopter to climb and descend vertically. It changes the pitch of all the main rotor blades equally, and performs much the same function as the pedals perform on the tail rotor. Pulling or pushing on the lever increases or decreases the thrust produced, varying the lift. Most collective pitch sticks also have a twist grip that changes the speed of the engine, in much the same way as the throttle of a motorcycle. Increasing rotor speed is another way to increase lift, but this is not normally done. The engine of a helicopter powers a transmission system that turns the shaft of the main rotor blades. The tail rotor is driven by a gearbox powered by the main rotor as it spins. Piston engines, similar to those in small fixed-wing airplanes, power most small helicopters. Large commercial helicopters, and almost all military helicopters, use turbo shaft engines. A turbo shaft engine is similar to a turbojet engine used to power a jet aircraft (see Jet Propulsion: Turbojet Engines). A turbojet engine is essentially a large cylindrical chamber open on both ends, with a rotating shaft inside. Fan blades on the rotating shaft draw in air from one end of the jet. Additional blades compress the air. Fuel is injected into the compressed air and then ignited, producing hot expanding gas that exits the other end of the jet. In a turbojet, the thrust from the exhaust gases

propels the aircraft forward. In a helicopter turbo shaft, the thrust powers a second shaft that turns the main rotor blades. Unlike jet airplanes, which use incoming air in forward flight to cool the engine, helicopters use cooling fans driven by the engine. In the event of a power failure, a helicopter can land safely by going into autorotation, or unpowered rotation of the rotor blades. The rotors will continue to turn because the helicopters descent through the air produces airflow over the blades and rotates them. When the rotor blades turn as the helicopter falls, they produce enough lift to allow the pilot to control the landing. Since the tail rotor gets power from the spinning of the main rotor, rather than directly from the engine itself, the tail rotor will continue to provide directional control. This safety feature allows the pilot to maintain a limited degree of control during an emergency landing.

Helicopters are limited in their speed but the incredible maneuverability mentioned above is what makes them so useful in so many situations. The arrows in the picture below show the directions that a helicopter can move in:

Controlling a helicopter Helicopters require a completely different method of control than an airplane does and are much harder to master, in the early days at least. A conventional helicopter has its main rotor above the fuselage which consists of 2 or more blades extending out from a central hub, called a swash plate. Each blade has an aerofoil section similar to that of an airplane wing, and as the blades rotate through the air they generate lift in exactly the same way as a wing does. There is also a separate tail rotor at the rear of the helicopter, similar to but much small than the propeller of an airplane.

To explain how the rotor blades are moved by the pilot to control the movement of the helicopter, we need to understand pitch. The word pitch is used to describe the angle of the blade in relation to the horizontal. This pitch angle determines what happens to the helicopter in flight. The pitch angle is referred to as the angle of attack when the rotors are in motion.

This pitch angle of the blades can be controlled by the pilot in 2 ways - cyclic control and collective.

CHAPTER-4 HELICOPTER CONTROL SYSTEM

4.1 Introduction Controllability implies the ability of the helicopter to change its altitude and flight regime in quick response to controls. Cyclic control The cyclic control is made by moving a control stick that rises up from the cockpit floor between the pilot's knees, and can be moved forwards/backwards and left/right. These stick movements correspond directly to the directional movement of the helicopter; moving the cyclic stick forward makes the helicopter fly forwards while bringing the stick back slows the helicopter and even makes it fly backwards. Moving the stick to the left or right makes the helicopter turn in these directions. The cyclic control works by increasing the pitch angle of a rotor blade at a given point in the rotation, while decreasing the angle when the blade has spun through 180 degrees. In doing so, the lift generated by each blade changes as the pitch angle changes. The result is a movement in direction of the helicopter in reaction to the changing pitch angle.

Above, the layout of helicopter controls in relation to the pilot's seat

Collective control The collective control is made by moving a lever that rises up from the cockpit floor to the left of the pilot's seat. This lever only moves up and down and, like the cyclic stick, corresponds directly to the desired movement of the helicopter; lifting the lever will result in the helicopter rising while lowering it will cause the helicopter to sink. The collective works by changing the pitch angle of all the rotor blades together, or 'collectively'. Because all blades are changing pitch together, there is no tendency for the helicopter to move in any other direction other than up or down. Rotational (yaw) control The tail rotor is used to control the yaw, or rotation, of the helicopter and to explain this we need to understand the word torque. Torque is the name of a force that is always generated by any spinning object - if the helicopter rotors are spinning, then the natural reaction of that torque is for the fuselage of the helicopter to start spinning in the opposite direction to the rotors. Obviously if this happens, the helicopter wouldn't be very controllable at all! So to beat the reaction of the torque, a small rotor is used at the rear of the helicopter that is connected by rods and gears to the main rotor and so turns whenever the main rotor is spinning. This tail rotor works in exactly the same way as an airplane propeller does, by generating thrust as it turns. This thrust prevents the helicopter fuselage from trying to spin against the main rotor. However, the pitch angle of the two small tail rotor blades can be changed by the pilot to control the amount of thrust produced.

Increasing the pitch angle of the tail rotor will increase the thrust, which in turn will push the helicopter in the same direction as the main rotor blades, while decreasing the pitch angle and hence the thrust will let the helicopter rotate naturally in the opposite direction to the main rotors. The pilot controls the pitch angle of the tail rotor blades by two pedals at his feet, in exactly the same way as the rudder movement is controlled in an airplane.

Throttle control The throttle control is a 'twist-grip' on the end of the collective lever and is linked directly to the movement of the lever so that engine RPM is always correct at any given collective setting. The pilot only needs to 'fine tune' the throttle settings when necessary.

It's worth noting that each separate control is easy to understand and operate; the difficulty comes in using all 4 controls together, where the co-ordination has to be perfect! A helicopter pilot once told me that flying a helicopter is a bit like balancing a stack of cups on your nose - only a lot more expensive if you drop it!

The pilot uses the TAIL ROTOR PEDALS to alter the pitch angle of the tail rotor blades in order to control the amount of tail rotor thrust. The pedals are interconnected; pushing the left pedal forward brings the right pedal back as it turns the helicopter to the left. This only leaves the THROTTLE to discuss. This is a twist grip control that forms the handle for the collective lever (which is held in the left hand). For example, when you raise the collective, the load (and drag) increases with the increase in pitch angle and the cam increases the engine power to maintain the RPM . This increase in engine power causes the nose to turn to the right (torque reaction); at the same time the nose pitches up and rolls to the right, requiring forward cyclic and left cyclic to maintain the required attitude. If you push the cyclic forward you tilt the main rotor and create more forward thrust but less vertical thrust, therefore the speed will increase but the helicopter will descend. As the speed builds up, the nose pitches up, rolls to the right and turns to the left. This requires more forward cyclic, some left cyclic and some right pedal. The RPM will increase slightly (rotor efficiency increases as the forward speed of the helicopter increases) requiring a decrease in throttle setting. This requires co-ordinated control movements to achieve a smooth flight.