Why Do You Fly From the Right Hand Seat?

[Nealcon]

EC120, certified for both left or right! 300 and 500's are left-hand seat, makes slingloading easier i was told...

[Hueymeister]

The UH-1D is a very different beast to fly from the left....there's only half the instrument panel, and you sit 6 inches lower in the hover.

[Bomber ARIS]

Lu,

I thought that the Bell 47 was certified to be flown from the left seat.

As the first properly certified helicopter, I was led to believe that this was just a case of following what happened in the fixed wing world and allocating the captain the left seat. Only after some time did common sense prevail and the majority of subsequent helicopters defaulted us drivers to the right.

I await my re-education

[Lu Zuckerman]

Which seat is right?

To: Bomber ARIS

I thought that the Bell 47 was certified to be flown from the left seat.

This may well be true. However, the USCG flew their HTL-1s from the right hand seat.

[chopperpilot47]

There is no requirement to fly from any particular seat in the Bell 47. PIC tends to fly in the left seat because the starter is that side but other than that the controls are the same. The instructor sits on the right but there is no legal requirement to do so, in fact we often swap over depending on what we happen to be doing at the time.

Regards,

Chopperpilot47

[boffo]

So, then. Do we yet have a consensus on the following:
If a helicopter is specified by the makers to be only flown solo from the right seat (e.g. R22) - for whatever reason, is there anything to prevent a pilot from legally taking the left seat when he/she flies with a passenger?
If so, would there be anything to stop an instructor flying left seat with a passenger - e.g. when a flight cannot be a training flight because it doesn't start/end at a licensed aerodrome?

[Jucky]

Right hand seat?

Why do helicopter pilots generally sit in the right seat when fixed wing pilots sit in the left?

[helicopter-redeye]

Because fixed wing pilots do not have tail rotors

[XT244]

"generally sit in the right seat"

Jucky, you are sure?

[zeeoo]

Maybe the place you must seat in depends in the rotor spin direction..to counter the rolling torque due to adv blade.. ?

[Warren Buffett]

RHS versus LHS pilot seating

Easier to reach over with left hand to center console to change transponder codes, radio frequencies, change CD's, etc whilst RH is flying cyclic?

FW easier to fly so pilot sits on LHS, traditional to auto's (except in UK, NZ, Australia).

[Aesir]

From ancient times vessels were steered from the right hand side, for some reason the fixed wing people have got it all wrong.

WHY THE RIGHT SIDE OF A BOAT IS CALLED THE STARBOARD SIDE

Viking ships were steered with an oar-like rudder called a styri, attached to the right-hand side of the ship near the stern. The Vikings called this side of the ship stjornbordi. Today the right-hand side of any boat is known as the starboard side.

Actually "Stjornbordi" means in Icelandic "the side you steer from". For those that do not know, the Icelandic language is stiill very much the same language that was spoken by Norsemen (Nordic people! Not to be confused with Norwegians) around and before year 1000.

[PPRUNE FAN#1]

XT244, please ride with an instructor (soon!) and have him demonstrate a proper 3' hover. It's about waist-height on an average man and should be used whenever ground obstructions do not prevent it (e.g. airports, etc). That's such a proud old square-gear 47, I'd hate to see it turn into a curved-gear model the hard way.

[Genghis the Engineer]

I seem to recall reading once that the first few pilots to fly 2-seat rotary aircraft were all experienced FW pilots used to sitting on the left - so they did. They then checked out the next generation, but hadn't really got the hang of flying helicopters yet so stayed in the left seat where they were happy.

So, the second (and rather larger) generation of helicopter pilots were taught to fly in the right hand seat, and the habit stuck.

This could of-course be complete urban myth - I've no idea, I wasn't there.

G

[GLSNightPilot]

There must be a dozen or so threads on this subject in the archives. It comes up every few months. The 'search' link is at the top of the page.

[Heliport]

Link to a merged thread
here

[Hughes500]

Only time I sit in the left hand seat is when i have actually to fly a 300 or 500 normally - sit in the right and let student fly. Then again when loadlifting in 500 easier to stick your head out and see from left seat than it would be a right seat machine. Then again I regularly fly an SA341 so I am in the right seat - but then I have to use a different power pedal !

[Curtis E Carr]

The EC120 is certified to be flown from either seat by day but the right seat by night.

[chopperpilot47]

This has been dealt with lots of times. I spoke to the Bell representative the last time this came up and he said there is no reason why one should fly from one side or the other apart from where they choose to site the starter and useful switches. There is no aerodynamic reason, the c of g has nothing to do with it and the direction the rotor turns makes no difference. In other words the manufacturer decides where they want the pilot to sit and puts the starter and switches that side.

Instructors sit the other side to the student who sits in the P1 position. The student starts the machine but after that it makes no practical difference where anyone sits.

Regards,

Chopperpilot47

[Martin1234]

When conducting sling-load and sitting on the "right" side, depending of the clockwise/anti-clockwise MR, will give you a better view while hovering and looking down.