On the smaller turbines I worked on, the speed of rotation was controlled by feathering the blades as you’d expect. Braking was also achieved the same way, with

On the smaller turbines I worked on, the speed of rotation was controlled by feathering the blades as you’d expect. Braking was also achieved the same way, with the friction brake acting as a “handbrake” once the blades were slow enough. One thing that some people don’t consider is that the direction the turbine faces is also controllable and therefore used for braking. A lot of people think the turbine is blown by the wind to face the correct direction, but there is a separate wind direction sensor and a motor to turn the turbine. The friction brake could be applied at speed, but that was for emergencies.