Helicopters have special mechanisms so that they can maneuver in different directions during flight. Also, they often don’t need a dedicated landing pad like airplanes do because they have better maneuverability.
If you are wondering how the helicopters, which we see often used for missions such as search and rescue or war, fly, let’s talk about the designs of these vehicles.
The fuselage of the helicopter is the lifeblood of this aircraft:
The hulls of these aircraft are made using materials with different chemical components. The primary task of the fuselage is to keep the fuel of the helicopter under control and to ensure the safety of the fuel should any unforeseen situation occur during the flight. In other words, it is possible to say that the body is asked to prevent the fuel from wasting in any case.
The engine part is another important part that plays a role during flight. Some helicopters can use a single or dual engine:
Some may have a single-piston (a cylinder to transmit engine power) engine, similar to what happens in cars. However, in general, most of these vehicles have jet engines. Jet engines, on the other hand, spray the gases quickly and therefore, they cause the vehicle to move with the opposite thrust force they create.
These engines are there for both powerful operation and simple handling of the vehicle in any crucial moment of flight, such as in combat operations.
In other words, we can say that it is preferred to provide practicality during flight:
Another part that makes a helicopter a helicopter is the main rotor and tail rotor. Whatever you call the rotor, we can say that it is the gear section of the machines that help the propellers of this vehicle to be pushed right-left, back-forward. When you see these vehicles in movies or in real life, if you say, “Oh, how does it spin in the air?”, this is because the rotors.
In addition, a single rotor is not enough for these vehicles to oscillate in the air. This is due to Newton’s third law, which states that when a force tries to move an object, an equal and opposite force opposes it:
Now let’s explain it more clearly: Let’s say the rotor turned to any side while the helicopter was in the air. The helicopter then starts to move in the opposite direction, not in the direction the rotor rotates. In this case, if the helicopter is tried to be rotated, it will not be possible to control it. For this reason, these vehicles need to have another main rotor rotating counterclockwise to adjust the rotational force. We can say that this mechanism exists to provide balance in the vehicle.
In other words, while one side goes forward, the other side can go back, thus providing control. Of course, the propeller at the tip of the tail, which we call the tail rotor, which plays an important role in the movement system, also helps to establish this balance. We can say that this design style is frequently used especially in military helicopters.
We come to the most important question: How do these design wonders helicopters move in the air?
The important role in the movement of the helicopter, of course, belongs to the pilots. Apart from that, these vehicles have a lever called the collective, which is similar to the accelerator pedal and gear, as in cars. In addition, the cyclic bar and other pedals are the tools required to move the vehicle.
Using these, the pilot can make the vehicle perform various maneuvers. Basically, when you ask how the movements of these vehicles are, we can talk about the two main movements, namely hovering and right-left/forward-backward steering movements. When the main engine starts to move, the wings produce the lift that makes the vehicle rise.
If the force generated is greater than the weight of the helicopter, the vehicle rises. When equal, the vehicle hangs in the air, so it does not move:
Then, as the wings and propellers of the helicopter rotate around themselves, they make an angle called pitch with the air. This occurs because the lift force increases as the air passing over the wing accelerates. In order to have the maximum lifting force, the sections we mentioned must make right angles to each other. This is because the main rotor is attached to a hinge that softens it as the propellers spin. So the oncoming air automatically causes a right angle for this reason. In fact, these stages are like preparatory stages for forward-backward movement.
These vehicles have a sloping plate at the top. This section moves the rotor blades at a steeper angle as the pilot uses the flight controls (the gear-like levers we illustrated above). For example, the pilot can use the collective (vertical, up-and-down controller – located right next to the pilot) to make the swashplates move down as well.
Where the collective is, there is an accelerator pedal wired to the engine. Using this, the pilot can increase or decrease the engine speed (the number of revolutions of the crankshaft in the vehicle engine per minute) and activate the rotor:
Rotors are sections that have the ability to lift a part of the helicopter more to provide steering. This allows the helicopter to move forward and backward. For example, when the rotors tilt the vehicle to the right, we can say that the left section rises more. In other words, when you direct them in one direction, you remove the other direction, not that direction.
Then, using a second lever (think of it like PlayStation joysticks) called a loop stick, the pilot gives the vehicle its direction. Ultimately, the swash plate transmits the maneuvers made by the pilot to the rotors, and then makes the most appropriate forward or reverse motion for the moment, allowing the vehicle to fly.
- Sources: Science ABC, Wonderopolis
- Image Sources: Ardu Pilot
