When power is lost to the main-rotor system, the very first thing a pilot must do is apply aft, or back, cyclic. This is the lesson legendary rotorcraft flight instructor Pete Gillies shares in his “Cyclic Back” lecture, given industrywide–and via a 13-min. video presentation in this webinar. His advice comes from years of examining helicopter accidents around the world. In his research, Gillies noticed that many helicopter accidents had something in common: though the helicopter was destroyed, the rotor blades sustained almost no damage. This disparity could only have happened if the blades weren’t turning or were barely turning upon impact, a sign of rotor stall. Sadly, these accidents could have been avoided by a simple, smooth control input—back cyclic. Stay tuned after the Gillies presentation for a panel discussion with three industry-leading experts, moderated by Chuck Street, VAI Western US regional representative. Panelists include Randy Rowles, president of Helicopter Institute and a former VAI chair who is also an FAA designated pilot examiner (DPE); Tim Tucker, an FAA DPE for the vertical aviation industry since 1984 and, from 1982 to 2024, chief flight instructor at Robinson Helicopter Co.; and Chris Hill, VAI senior director of safety, who joined VAI in 2018 after 32 years of rotary-wing and operational aviation safety experience in the US Army, US Coast Guard, and offshore oil-and-gas support.
