TLDR; you pulled a Tom Scott. "I got an email asking if I would like to...." Also, the shenanigans in this video, like the dancing in the reflections, were top notch today.
@@sykurpudi1 I was actually about to ponder how far removed he is from Tom Scott, 6-degrees of Kevin Bacon style, but then I remembered that I don't actually have to look that up, Rob's "Scott Number" is 2. He did a collab with Alec from Tech Connections, and Alec appeared on Tom Scott's channel not too long ago. I don't think that Tom Scott is the ideal 0 for this game, though. I think it might be better suited to someone who interacts with more channels. The first that comes to mind is probably Brady Haran, because he's got a lot of RU-vid channels and has worked with a interviewed plenty of people. Rob's "Haran Number" is 3.
The rotor on top of the helicopter is both to provide lift and to cool of the pilot. I can prove it. If the rotor stops spinning, the pilot will begin sweating at once.
Strangely enough, it isn't always. It is, after all, behind you, inside a cowling, and piston engines don't stop working instantly when they're on fire. Oh, you'll find out _eventually,_ but the warning light is to let you know before then.
@@ZGryphon since you seem to know a decent amount about helicopters when you see the exhaust in the video with what looks to be oil on the exhaust is that normal?
Normally on small aircraft with an engine of this size it's either in front of you or one on each side of you so it's pretty easy to see. In this case, however, it's right behind you and next to the fuel tank.
My favorite bit of helicopter anatomy is the fastener at the top of the rotor mast that keeps the rotor blades on. It's called the Jesus nut, because, as the person who first told me about it explained, if it fails, that's the only person who can help you.
@@flemmings5534 Well, yes. A jesus nut would be safetied one way or another, but the nut in many cases is wholly keeping the main rotor head attached to the mast as the pin does not bear any load.
A great big "Thank You" to whomever reached out to Aging Wheels to offer this trip (and for Aging Wheels to rise to the challenge and "hit one out of the Park") . I think you picked the right YT poster and the right pilot for the job. I always wondered what the autorotation would be like, and i got an idea by seeing Aging Wheels' face.
3:50 Gages are in order (top row): Turn Coordinator (for making sure you don't bank too sharply), Altimeter (showing how high you are), Artificial Horizon (to show your pitch and roll position in relationship to the ground), Air speed gage (so you know how fast you're going, RPM for the engine (top blades) and Rotor (tail blades)) (bottom row): Vertical speed (So you know how fast you're going down when the engine cuts out), compass rose (so you know what direction you're facing), "Forgot the name" (for use with navigational beacons and radios to find your way around), and Manifold Pressure (because you can't have too many gages telling you that your engine has a problem). 3:55 (top row): Engine operational hours (Because you thought your car's maintenance schedule was nutty), Battery gage (because a discharging battery in flight is a bad thing), Oil pressure gage (again, you can't have enough gages to tell you that your engine crapped out in flight) (middle row): Clock (Because you shouldn't whip out your cell phone while flying), Fuel gage (because no go juice is no go), Oil temp (Seriously, not enough gages telling you the engine stopped.) (bottom row): Another fuel gage and oil temp gage. (Sorry, hard to see them because of the light shining directly on them. EDIT: 4:07 Top instrument looks like a navigational/GPS device (Not sure. Not a pilot and I don't recognize it.), Middle is the radio for talking with ATC and other aircraft, and bottom looks to be the transponder to send information back to the ATC when the aircraft is "pinged" by radar. (This is also where you dial in a "squawk code". In this case, probably 1200 because the flight is under VFR - Visual Flight Rules and not instruments.)
pilot here, this is all correct. the gauge you forgot the name of is a CDI (course deviation indicator), used for VOR navigation. the top electronic device you guessed was for navigation was a correct guess. it’s a Garmin GNS430 GPS.
Well, technically yes. But not the way you'd think. You're generating lift, of course, and this vehicle needs constant RPM for that, as well as a number of fixed-wing prop aircraft. But this engine does produce energy in the hydraulic systems it runs (yes that is -or should be- a plural) and with the actual generator it turns. Because who wants to constantly use batteries when we're already making power? Might as well turn some electrical in the process.
The Robinson R44! Brilliant little family daily flyer. The Cessna 172 of helicopters. Nimble, light a tad claustrophobic with 4 people onboard but just a delight with 2 people. Thank You Adam!
Tooleater - Agreed. He made this "worth watching" because he didn't just record a video of his ride in a helicopter. I believe he covered just about EVERYTHING that i might have asked about this helicopter and the ride. I cannot come up with any one thing that he didn't cover (that i would care about at the moment) Also, that pilot seemed to have nerves of toolsteel.
I have a friend who used to fly helicopters (A109s and Chinooks) for the army (she's gotten promoted to a point where she's too important to be allowed to do stuff like autorotation landings) and she hated the training helicopters, like the Robinsons. Our army uses the Libelle, which is basically the French version of the Sioux, because of the touchiness of the controls. Barely scraped through her training, but she could fly the A109 in the tightest of spots. She describes the Chinook as the Labrador of helicopters.
I shall never listen to 'Tiptoe Through The Tulips' again without thinking of you looking scared in a Robinson R44 helicopter. Thanks for the video, Rob, and Adam!
As an airplane buff... I love this episode. Sure, the cockpit tour was a little shy, but not unexpected. (all those fancy electronics on that lower panel you showed looks to be a radio stack, lights switches, and potentially some engine controls like the starter and fuel pump switches.) I actually didn't know about tulipping, so I learned a thing. You also mentioned more Robinson models than what I knew, and supplied a way for me to remember them! Finally, seeing a few short clips of you having control is a fantastic example that aviation is always safe. I see, in this example, a newbie that could (should they continue what they're doing uninterrupted) end up being dangerous - being kept in-check by an experienced pilot, who didn't even fully release the controls. The last detail was most definitely because of ground proximity. That's how it is, though. That's how you learn, and there's nothing wrong with it. If I'm remembering properly, general aviation pilots (at least for fixed-wings) are trained so that, regardless of what orientation you put the plane in, they can recover it, given enough altitude. So a pilot (with enough altitude) could safely turn over control to a completely inexperienced person. If there's an upset, it just takes "I've got the airplane" and some execution to settle the plane out. Can't wait for next year. Thanks for coming to my TedTalk.
So I weirdly called the helicopter part but this wasn't homebuilt part. This was better. As an aviation nerd it is cool to see the aircooled pistons still in used. They are in the old pre-Vietnam era military helicopters as well.
When I first heard of helicopters' "autorotation", I was surprised, but I eventually realized it basically works like a maple seed falling, with more control. It doesn't have range like an airplane gliding, but you also don't need a runway, so you just need to find a flat spot big enough to fit with some margins, and you do have some time to think if you're high enough.
Traveling in a helicopter is one of those things that's on my bucket list. I've done a couple of flying lessons in fixed wing aircraft (Cessna 172 and Grob trainer) and they reminded me of what it would be like to take to the skies in my Volkswagen beetle! The Lycoming O360 engine is a beautiful machine but does have a distinctive aircooled flat 4 sound!
Robert, there appeared to be a few moments when you showed fear. Rightly so, because helicopters are extremely fragile. They are one of the most maintenance intensive vehicles on the planet.
I flew in the back of one of these once, my step dad was contracted to make photos of a cargo ship leaving harbour and I had to go along to operate the video camera. For better photo/video the pilot took the rear doors off. It was awesome. :D Unfortunately since this was in the days before digital cameras I no longer have any of the footage. :(
Wow! Memories! When I was 14 years old, I learned that I could get a pilots license, where I had to wait to 16 to get a drivers license. I began flying lessons! Then the flying school had us go on a expedition. I got assigned to co-pilot a Cessna 150. We got airborne and began following a local highway (landmark) to the first destination. At some point, my door popped open, and I got to peer 2500 feet down to the traffic on the highway below us. 1) It terrified the CRAP out of me and 2) Because of a headwind, all of the traffic below us was PASSING US. We landed, I got out of the plane and never went back.
the fact that he is doing helicopter tours now both pleases and scares me. also after seeing your bike video, I went out and bought an engine kit. I cant wait to put it on!
love these things, my uncle has one he co owns with his best friend, hes taken me out many times in it his is a r44 with a lycoming flat 6, hes always told me not to fret, this chopper brand is the only brand of chopped designed to be crashed, an they are, the way there built is about as safe as a chopper can be made, love the video man stay blessed.
Years ago when I was in the Air Force I had a young 2Lt assigned to me in a non-flying position. He had just washed out of helicopter school. He was an extremely bright guy who was first in his academic class in flight training and was tied for first in his class in actually flying the helicopter, but with one glitch. He could not stop throwing up while in flight. He was fine flying the helo as long as he had a barf bag readily available. Not a good thing when you need both hands on the controls. Also, if you get a ride in a helo, ask the pilot if he was in the military. If he says he was a Marine helo pilot, be careful. You'll probably lose your lunch and last Christmas's dinner. Those guys like to fly sideways a lot and never in a straight line.
That... was... AWESOME!!! Those things are like the Honda’s of the skies... they’re made out of soda cans and don’t seem very safe, but there’s a reason they’re becoming so popular. They’re [relatively] inexpensive, reliable and compact. I would’ve thought far more than 5,000 have been made. Here in SoCal, you see far more R44’s and R66’s than Rangers, anymore. I find it amusing to read that that bird is owned by “Hella Heli’s”. 😁
