[simpits-tech] OT: EX Copter Crash

[Brian Sikkema]

>the trade off is that it has a lot more options on where it can land!

True, but those options only exist when the helicopter has power. Should the 
power to the rotor blades ever go bye-bye (to use the technical term), 
you're pretty much limited to one option: down. (Yeah yeah, I'm aware of 
autorotation, it still doesn't get you very far). With an airplane, power go 
bye-bye, you can take a look around and pick your best option within a 
pretty large circle. I know that once I started flying, I was amazed at just 
how much land (around me, anyway) is just fields. And having been in a 
situation once where I had to start looking pretty closely at those fields, 
trying to figure out which would be best to make an unschedualed landing, I 
can definitely say I was glad to be in a fixed-wing ;)

This reminds me of a story my dad likes to tell about a radio conversation 
he heard in Vietnam between the pilot and copilot of an overladen and 
battle-damaged Huey:
Pilot: "She'll fly! She'll fly! She'll fly!"
Copilot: "No she won't..."
Huey: "Thud."

Not really topical, just reminded me of it is all:)

Brian

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