This is the first in a 3-part series where I join Max Trescott on The Rotary Wing Show Podcast to discuss some of the dangerous student errors in helicopter training and how instructors can prevent mistakes from becoming accidents.
Listen & Subscribe: YouTube | Apple Podcasts | CastBox | Pandora | RSS | Spotify | iHeartRadio
Overview
We start with a quick recap of Episode 1 (How to Become a Helicopter Pilot) and Episode 2 (How to Hover Helicopter) and share some updates, including new hire training and building simulator scenarios at the flight school and working on new videos for the Rotorcraft Collective.
We also hear feedback from Bek in Australia on her attitude starting into helicopter training and thank supporters of the show including a PayPal contribution from Gregory in Houston Texas. Thank you also to all the YouTube Members and Patreon supporters – learn more on how you can support this volunteer project.
I also talk about my recent FAA Safety Team presentation at the Robinson Fly-In at Jerry Trimble Helicopters in McMinnville Oregon. That safety presentation is the genesis for the main content of this episode – Dangerous Student Errors in helicopter flight training.
In part 1 of my discussion with Max, we cover general instructor considerations:
- Guarding and blocking techniques for each control
- “Ghosting” maneuvers
- When to take the controls
- How to respond when a student freezes up
Maneuver-specific guidance includes:
- Pick up and set down
- Slopes
- Hover training
- Normal and steep approaches
- Running landings
- Shutdowns
For this video version, I’ve added graphics and short clips to make the discussion clearer for visual learners. I also reference recent training accidents to highlight why these techniques are so important.
Chapters
- 00:00 Start
- 00:32 Episode 2 – How to Hover a Helicopter
- 00:53 Episode 3 – How to Become a Helicopter Pilot
- 01:23 Catch-up – New hire training
- 02:05 Rotorcraft Collective
- 02:30 Robinson Fly-In @ JTH in McMinnville, OR
- 03:09 Feedback from Bek
- 05:56 Supporting the show
- 06:29 Part 1 of Dangerous Student Errors with Max Trescott
- 08:08 Introduction discussion with Max
- 14:40 General guidance on guarding controls
- 17:17 Guarding pedals
- 19:20 Guarding collective
- 19:56 Guarding throttle
- 22:45 Guarding cyclic
- 25:30 Ghosting the maneuver
- 29:04 Student freezing up
- 31:35 Pickup and set down student errors
- 34:35 Pickup training accident
- 36:45 Overspeeds during pickup
- 40:38 Slope training errors
- 44:26 Hovering training errors
- 57:45 Running landing training errors
- 1:05:30 Aborted running landing
- 1:09:33 Shutdown training errors
- 1:00:32 Next Episode – Autorotations
- 1:12:42 Wrap up with Max & Next Episode
- 1:17:11 Send your Feedback & Outro
Show Links
Here are all the links referenced in this episode:
- Rotorcraft Collective – https://bit.ly/ushst025
- Rotary Wing Show Podcast – https://tinyurl.com/RWS-EP119
- Aviation News Talk Podcast – https://aviationnewstalk.com
- NTSB News Talk – https://tinyurl.com/NTSB-News-Talk
- UAV News Talk – https://tinyurl.com/UAV-news-talk
- Max’s Garmin Books – https://g1000book.com
- FAA Safety Team – https://www.faasafety.gov
- Jerry Trimble Helicopters – https://www.jerrytrimblehelicopters.com
- Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum – https://www.evergreenmuseum.org
- Wings & Waves Water Park – https://www.wingsandwaveswaterpark.com
- Robinson Safety Notices – https://tinyurl.com/RHC-SNs
- R44 Tail Stinger Strike – https://youtu.be/wyZ2ixFWKmQ
- R44 Rollover During Hover Training – https://tinyurl.com/NTSB-WPR22LA220
- R22 LTE on Normal Approach – https://tinyurl.com/NTSB-GAA17CA376
- R22 Running Landing Rollover – https://tinyurl.com/NTSB-ERA14CA102
- Book a Discovery Flight – https://tinyurl.com/HTV-Disco
- Recommended Books – https://tinyurl.com/HTV-Books
- Essential Pilot Supplies – https://tinyurl.com/HTV-Supplies
- Helicopter Online Ground School (H.O.G.S.) 10% Discount use “HTV10” at Checkout – http://tinyurl.com/HOGSDiscount
Feedback
We’d love to hear from you! Whether you’re just starting out or well into your journey, send us your questions, feedback, or thoughts. You can reach out through the contact form or even record an audio message—we might feature your input in a future episode!