air turbulence on helicopters

[chileno 777]

Found the following statement on the net:

"It is very uncommon for people to get sick on helicopters. Unlike fixed wing aircraft, where air turbulence is more of a factor, helicopters fly more smoothly through winds, slicing right through wind currents"

AeroGulf.

Is it true? I am not a rotary wing expert and have never flown in an helicopter...so any comment would be appreciate.

Thanks.

[HOVERJOCKI]

You have to be kiddin... i fly in the Grand Canyon and when the winds pick up during the Spring it's like a Bull Ride which then makes quite a few people show you what they had for breakfast and the night before.
They are no different than fixed wing... if the wind is there and turbulant you are going to feel it sooner or later.
Weirdest thing though, some people will hold it down for the entire trip until just about the last 5' from touching down and in smooth air then volcano while holding the nice little white bag in the opposite direction to their new found skill of PROJECTILE VOMIT.
Yep, you guessed it... i have been through this more than once
Hope this helped.

[Helinut]

The mption in a hele in turbuelnce is rather different from that of a small plane. The helicopter hangs from under the rotor system and swings a bit like a pendulum. The rotor system damps and absorbs the motion more than a plane too.

However, people do get sick in heles.

Motion sickness is a rather personal thing, but I always feel it is the unepceted and irregular motion when a person is not getting a good view of the horizon and the outside world that really gets them going. In general the external view from a hele is pretty good, which may help reduce the chances.

[eurocopter beans]

In my experience, a rigid rotor headed heli transmits gusts and turbulence to the pilot (like a fixed wing aircraft) more than a normal heli

[FH1100 Pilot]

Helicopters handle turbulence signicantly better than do fixed-wing. When an airplane wing going 100 knots meets a gust of wind, that gust has plenty of time to act on the wing. My helicopter rotor, on the other hand, is presenting a new wing to the gust 394 times per minute.

Are helicopters affected by turbulence? Sure. Do people get sick in helicopters? Sure. In rough air, which one would I rather be in? Helicopter, hands down. Helicopters can still fly on days when they won't even pull the airplanes out of the hangar.

[Farmer 1]

My helicopter rotor, on the other hand, is presenting a new wing to the gust 394 times per minute.

That sounds like a very slow rotor, FH. Would you enlighten us?

[FH1100 Pilot]

Farmer 1:

That sounds like a very slow rotor, FH. Would you enlighten us?

Sure.

From the Bell 206 TCDS:
Rotor Limits
Power On
394 rpm

The FH1100 RRPM is slower still...around 385 if I recall (not flying it anymore).

But actually, come to think of it, you're right. If one blade passes through the gust 394 times per minute and there are *two* blades in the system, then there's a new blade passing through the gust 788 times per minute. Oops! Ya got me.

[chileno 777]

Thanks to everyone for all the comments posted.

[RAFEmployee]

Agree with most of the above, however, blades like mine help a lot.
(EH101 "Merlin")

[Gomer Pylot]

I think the main reason helicopters handle turbulence better is wing loading. Small fixed-wing have relatively low wing loading, and the gusts affect the aircraft more than those with high wing loading, such as helicopters. Fixed-wing with higher wing loading handle gusts better than those with lower wing loading. I think the main factor isn't the speed of the wing spinning, it's the size of the wing. Very small wings, like helicopter rotors, don't provide the lift a relatively larger wing, such as on a Cessna, does. Turbulence that would be very uncomfortable to fly through in a Cessna is barely noticeable in a helicopter, and turbulence that is uncomfortable in a helicopter would be very heavy in a Cessna.

[rotorrookie]

And the often better veiw from helicopters than airplanes helps to counteract motion sickness

[ShyTorque]

My helicopter rotor, on the other hand, is presenting a new wing to the gust 394 times per minute.

That sounds like a very slow rotor, FH. Would you enlighten us?

I seem to remember the RRPM for a range auto in the Westland Whirlwind was 190 @ 80 kts - but then it did have 3 blades.

[Farmer 1]

That would make it 570 per minute, then.