VAI Webinar next week: Pete Gillies – ‘Cyclic Back’ Will Save Your Life Fatal accidents can be prevented with the aft cyclic maneuver. By Jen Boyer Pete Gillies noticed a recurring theme while researching global helicopter accidents. The former Western Helicopters chief pilot and Master CFI discovered that although the aircraft may have been destroyed, in several accidents the rotor blades appeared virtually unharmed. This could mean only one thing, he realized: the blades were still or were barely turning when the aircraft hit the ground. Gillies’s finding indicated that the rotor rpm had dropped out of the green upon power loss to the rotors, causing rotor stall from which the pilot was unable to recover. Sadly, this situation could have been prevented with a single smooth action: aft, or back, cyclic. Last August, Gillies gave a valuable lecture to helicopter professionals at the San Bernardino County (California) Sheriff’s Department highlighting how the very first thing a pilot should do when power is lost to the rotors is pull the cyclic back. Forget airspeed, where you’re going to land, or figuring out what happened, he emphasized. The most important step is to pull back the cyclic to help reverse the flow of air through the rotor disk and ensure that the rotor rpm stays in the green. Join us Wednesday, Apr. 23, for a VAI Webinar in which VAI Western US Regional Representative Chuck Street will present a 13-minute video of Gillies’s talk, followed by a discussion with three industry experts to expand on the topic: retired Robinson Helicopter Co. CFI Tim Tucker, Helicopter Institute President and former VAI Chairman Randy Rowles, and VAI Senior Director of Safety Chris Hill. Our presenters: • Randy Rowles, President, Helicopter Institute • Tim Tucker, former CFI at Robinson Helicopter Co. • Chuck Street, Western US Regional Representative, VAI • Chris Hill, Senior Director of Safety, VAI. In this webinar, you’ll learn: • The aerodynamics involved when power is lost to the rotors • How back cyclic affects the rotor system • What leads to rotor stall • When the helicopter is happiest • And more. Register today for this free, one-hour webinar, Wednesday, Apr. 23, at 4 pm eastern (UTC-4), to learn how a simple, smooth helicopter control input could save your life. Jen Boyer is a journalist and marketing communicator specializing in aviation. She holds commercial, instrument, flight instructor, and instrument instructor ratings in helicopters and a private rating in airplanes.
