**Flying In Wind**

[jahatton]

Hi all, was out flying today with both the heli and the airplane. The weather was great! The only thing was the wind. I rather avoid flying in wind till I get better aquainted with the heli but today was the day I made an exception.
The first flight went well except for the left thumb that went into an uncontrollable shake which made controlling the collective rather difficult. After the first flight things started falling into place and before long I was doing hammerheads and spot landings in wind from 5 to 10 mph.
I had 4 flights with the heli which brings my total to almost 80 since last Aug. Am trying to get 100 before it's 1st birthday.
Jim

[casperr22]

Good for you i guess you dont really know what you can do till you try?!!! myself though think ill keep away from the wind, well for now anyway!!!

Happy flying.......

[hawkman]

Hi there, I fly in windy conditions quite a bit...this being the Falklands...I have no choice here are my observations:

Hovering is easier....or seems to be for me
descent in the hover can be quicker....almost no 'vortex ring' to ruin things!
Disc/cyclic response is crisper
Landings can be interesting....plenty of bobbing and weaving

I also notice that flying downwind can be quite nasty....that heli will drop like a stone if you are not carefull.....rounding up into the wind is ok but the heli will suddenly climb....as collective is lowered the headspeed can decay....which is not good. I altered the thottle curve in idle up 1 to compensate....I had a faster idle rate....so I could keep a good headspeed while descending.

However....I have since scrapped that idea and have got -9 0 +9 pitch range in all idle ups.....alters the helis handling...much better and it copes well in wind too.

Rob

[jahatton]

Got a question on the Idle-up's. I set the throttle to 80% straight across the board for I-u2 and -10 to +10 I don't have a governor. Reluctant to try it for fear of something happening.
Jim

[hawkman]

think long and hard before trying it....I dont use a governor as such...just bog standard throttle settings....I have heard it said that you need to master the basic set up before using something like a governor...which could easily mask some engine tuning problems otherwise.

I use 100% 75% 45% 45% 75% 100% on my idle up 2....idle up 1 is never used at all...the pitch range is -9 0 +9 which is the same throughout the idle ups.

Get the basics right and then use the exotic gear like governors...which are great bits of kit by the way...

80% accros the board might ruin something...if in doubt....dont

Maybe someone else can answer the question?

Rob

[jahatton]

Thanks Rob, I will try your settings when the time is right.. 100 feet of buffer and a clear head.
What has kept the heli alive during this year of flying has been baby-steps. Never get worked up about trying something away from your regular routine. I have a plane that I take my frustrations out on and it always delivers and comes back safe.
Jim