Ehud's Helicopter Passenger Briefing 101

Revised 2010-04-30

Quick Summary

Safety is paramount. Please do not unbuckle seatbelt or open door until I say so in those words.
Your enjoyment is the next goal. Talk to me. I'm human. I speak English. Tell me the SECOND you feel unwell.
The aircraft is safe and fun. There have been 2 engine failures in Robinson helicopters in the last 10 years. EVEN IF we have one, we'll just find a spot to set down, keep the rotor spun up, and have a great landing. That's called an "Autorotation."
The tail-rotor likes to eat loose objects. Don't have any loose objects :)
Always feel free to ask questions. It's better to ask and know than stay silent and not.
We do not expect an engine failure, but we fly at 500 feet above ground level (AGL) for two reasons. First, so that IF we have such an event we have plenty of time to react. Second, at 500AGL we avoid most antennas or towers. For that reason we don't "hover" in a spot above something... but rather orbit around it. If you want to hover over something let me know ahead of time and I'll do so at 1000ft above that point.

The Goal

The goal is for all of us to have a good time, enjoy the flight, not get sick, and see interesting things. When this is not happening you need to speak up -- I'd rather have a short happy flight than a long miserable one. Helicopters are MY hobby but not yours. That means if YOU are not having a good time we need to get you safely to the ground... and I will fly later :) Okay? If you are not comfortable either flying OR saying "I'm not having fun" you need to rethink if you want to try and fly. Being a passenger on a luxury airliner is one thing (you have to do it) but in a private helicopter you have a choice :) Exercise it :)

The R-22 vs the R-44

The R-22 is the two-seater and if you're under 190lbs I can fly you in that. The R-44 is the four-seater, and I can fly you in that up to 340lbs. However, in that case I also have to bring along an instructor since that makes it a "training" flight, not a rental flight.

In the R-22 I'll be in the right-hand seat and you'll be in the left-hand seat. When you want to see something I'll orbit it so you can see it best. In the R-44 the instructor and I will be in the front and you'll have a wonderful side view out of either the left or right side -- your choice.

The simple facts

First, let's make sure that two things are very clear.

You are the passenger.
The goal of the flight is for YOU to have FUN.

If you are not having fun then it is a great idea to tell the pilot (me) and let's call an end to it. I'm not into torturing my passengers, and you're not into being tortured. If you are we can discuss that on the ground.

What to wear

Closed-toe shoes. That's not because there's any harm. It's the rules :)
Comfortable clothing. If it's hot, shorts and a T-shirt. If it's cold, a sweatshirt. You'll want to take it off and stow under the seat before flight though, as the plexiglass bubble cabin gets comfortable quickly. So far this theory has tested well to 44F (7C).

What to bring

Sunglasses. In a car we have a roof and tinting to keep direct sunlight out of our eyes. In the helicopter we have neither because we do want unobstructed vision. Finally there won't be a horizon or mountains to protect your eyes from direct sunlight.
In the summer: Water if you want to drink. Personally I recommend freezing a bottle of water the night before (take some water out as the ice will expand and burst the bottle otherwise.)
Camera.
Cap if you want to keep your eyes shaded so you can enjoy the view!

What to expect

We will go out to the helicopter. Be excited -- you're out where the TSA has heart attacks about civillians on the ramp :) Your job at this point is to relax...
I will do the preflight check. Your job at this point is to enjoy the scenery, breathe in the cool air, and relax.
After preflight it could be a time for stress but it's not. Instead it's a time to relax, and sit down in your assigned seat, and buckle yourself in with the 1970s seatbelt buckle... and... you guessed it... relax!

The Intercom

You'll have a headset (that's two ear-pieces and a microphone). What we say (and air-to-ground) will be heard in the ears. What you say (in the microphone) will be heard by all of us. Adjust for comfort and relax :)

With one exception (below) do not ever interrupt other people talking, even if it's Air-traffic-control. Just pretend someone hit the "PAUSE" button on our conversation. Resume after the interruption.

What this means is if ANYONE ELSE is talking then STOP IMMEDIATELY and wait... and when there's no talking... wait another second or two to make sure I don't want to respond to something someone said... and then resume :)

The startup and stuff

I will give you a preflight briefing. If you're sitting in the back in a 4-passenger R-44 really the gist of it is that you should tell me if you're getting sick or uncomfortable. Don't be a hero. I'd rather land a short flight and not clean the helicopter than do a long flight and clean it up...
If you're in the two-seater R-22 I will add a few more details such as "don't touch the controls" and "don't use the fire extinguisher!" :) If you aren't sure what to do it's because there's nothing you need to do :) I will take care of things! Please DO NOTHING!!!!
You will put on the headset... and we will make sure that communication works, and then will start up the engine and the main-rotor. Please relax... just don't exit the aircraft until I say to do so :)
When flying, if you see another aircraft or a bird about to hit us... please tell me. Here's that exception to interrupting: If we're about to have an incursion PLEASE interrupt and say "bird at 11 O'clock" or "plane at 9 O'clock" or whatever it is. 12 O'clock is where 12 is on the dial (right in front of us), 6 O'clock is behind us, etc.
RELAX and ENJOY yourself. You're getting a rare treat and the best way to enjoy it is to look outside, and savor the view. If you are height-sensitive (I'm afraid of heights!) then look horizontaly, not close by or straight down.

The startup tests

I explain these as I do them but thought I'd pre-explain in case you care :)

Magneto test. The magnetos are devices which make the spark plugs spark. Magnetos are cool because they create spark in the spark plugs from the moving engine so they do NOT need the alternator or battery to work. We only need one, as it fires plugs in all the cylinders. That's why we have two. In the test, what we do is switch from having both fire, to first just the right magneto, and watch for no more than 7% RPM decline in 2 seconds... then back. Then we switch to just the left magneto and watch for the same. This tells us that we could safely fly if we lost either magneto.
Carb Heat test. If the difference between the temperature and the dewpoint is fairly close (11C) and there is visible moisture (clouds) then we want to make sure that the carburator venturi doesn't ice up. This can happen even at 80F... because the air speeding up into the venturi makes it get really cold. We allow exhaust-heated air in, instead of ambient air, and prevent this problem. That's carb-heat. The test is switching to it and seeing the carb inlet temp go up.
Sprague Clutch test. This is where we see if we can roll off throttle but have the main-rotor RPM stay up. The two normally display the same RPM but we want to ensure an engine failure won't cause the rotor to stop. The "sprague clutch" is a one-way clutch, so that the engine can spin the rotor... but the rotor can spin freely by itself. It's also called a "free-wheeling clutch". The gist of it is that this is what allows us to do the "auto-rotation".
Low rotor-RPM warning system. We have a warning horn and light that should come on when the main-rotor RPM starts to decay. We want to make sure that happens. We'll raise throttle above 80%, let the computer ("governor") take it to the green band, and then raise a bit of collective and roll off throttle to get the horn.

Special Requests

In simple words PLEASE TALK TO ME!!! Tell me what you want. If you're happy say so. If you're not, say so. If I ask you why, please tell me so I can correct it!!!

We also may have specific goals for this one flight, but diverting here or there won't hurt anything or anyone. This means if you want us to go two miles north and overfly your house JUST ASK!!! Nobody will be hurt. Worst case we'll either not be able to do it, or Air Traffic Control won't let us. BEST case we WILL do it :) So ask!

Danger! Rotors Spinning!

Once you are seated then please buckle your seat belt.
DO NOT UNBUCKLE IT until I tell you.
DO NOT GET OUT OF YOUR SEAT until I tell you.
MAKE SURE all your objects (cameras, sunglasses) are not going to jump out the window and hit our tail-rotor making it a much more miserable day.

What if there is a problem?

If there is a problem it will be taken care of.

The worst case -- which is not bad at all -- is an autorotation. That does not mean spinning :) It just means having the air rotate the rotor as we make our descent to a touchdown. It's not dangerous, and we practice it more often than regular landings! Do not be afraid nor freaked out nor worried. Your job is to relax, enjoy the scenery, take pictures, and above all else... relax :)

Where to go?

two minute video

Once you've parked, make your way to the cushy sofa lounge in the Executive Terminal. Here's a one-minute video showing exactly how to get there.

That's all folks!

Helicopter Passenger Orientation by Ehud Gavron is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 United States License.