3 ms·

pitching the nose down certainly does one thing: it pushes air backwards, meaning the helicopter starts moving forwards. the air moving across the body of the

pitching the nose down certainly does one thing: it pushes air backwards, meaning the helicopter starts moving forwards. the air moving across the body of the helicopter, rather than down it, is what starts the wind vane effect. if the pilot tipped the helicopter to the right after leaving the ground, and then continuously held the control stick in the direction of the movement of the helicopter, the body of the helicopter would begin to face the direction of travel unless the pilot actively countered that turn via the tail rotor.

ghoward 5y ago
> if the pilot tipped the helicopter to the right after leaving the ground, and then continuously held the control stick in the direction of the movement of the helicopter, the body of the helicopter would begin to face the direction of travel unless the pilot actively countered that turn via the tail rotor. Yes, which is why it would work to just push the stick forward, even if the helicopter was spinning.