Ryan Bacher

One of the questions I get asked all the time is "What happens if the helicopter engine suddenly quits?" The answer surprises most people. Here is me doing a maneuver called an autorotation and it's one of the most important emergency procedures every helicopter pilot trains extensively to perform. Contrary to what most people think, an engine failure does not mean the helicopter simply falls out of the sky. As a helicopter descends, air flowing upward through the rotor system, keeps the blades spinning at high speed, even with the engine completely shut down. In fact, the rotor can spin so efficiently that the pilot often has to prevent it from over speeding during the descent. The pilot is essentially storing energy in those spinning blades. Then before touchdown the pilot raises the collective converting that stored rotational energy back into lift( pushing the air downward again). The rotor creates one final cushion of air, slowing the descent enough to make a controlled landing. When done correctly, the autorotation can result in landing with no damage to the aircraft and no injuries to the occupants. This is one of the most remarkable demonstrations of both helicopter engineering and pilot training and one that every helicopter pilot practices until it becomes second nature.#heli #autorotation