🚁 DECK 11 — HOVER TECHNIQUE FLASHCARDS

Question 1

What controls altitude in a hover?

Answer 1

Collective.

Question 2

What controls position in a hover?

Answer 2

Cyclic.

Question 3

What controls heading in a hover?

Answer 3

Pedals.

Question 4

Why is hovering so difficult for airplane pilots?

Answer 4

Helicopter requires continuous micro-corrections in all 3 axes.

Question 5

What is the correct mental model of hovering?

Answer 5

Balancing on a frictionless ball using fingertip pressure.

Question 6

What is the biggest beginner error in hover?

Answer 6

Overcontrolling the cyclic.

Question 7

What is the key to good hover control?

Answer 7

Micro inputs—pressure, not movement.

Question 8

What should your feet be doing in hover?

Answer 8

Constant active adjustments, never fixed.

Question 9

Why does left pedal increase in hover?

Answer 9

Collective increases torque → requires more anti-torque.

Question 10

What happens if collective increases without pedal?

Answer 10

Uncommanded yaw.

Question 11

What happens if cyclic is overused?

Answer 11

Oscillations that get progressively worse.

Question 12

What causes hover drift?

Answer 12

Disk tilted slightly in that direction.

Question 13

How to fix hover drift?

Answer 13

Small, brief cyclic input, then neutral.

Question 14

What is ground reference in hover?

Answer 14

A point directly ahead to judge drift.

Question 15

What is hover scan?

Answer 15

Nose reference → side reference → instruments → repeat.

Question 16

Why avoid looking straight down?

Answer 16

Eliminates peripheral cues → induces drift.

Question 17

Why do you need forward cyclic when lifting to a hover?

Answer 17

Translating tendency + tail rotor thrust pushes aircraft sideways/back.

Question 18

What is translating tendency?

Answer 18

Tail rotor thrust pushing helicopter to the right.

Question 19

How do manufacturers counter translating tendency?

Answer 19

Mast tilt, cyclic trim, or vertical fin.

Question 20

What should you expect during the last 1 foot of hover descent?

Answer 20

Increased cushion and tendency to balloon.

Question 21

How to avoid ballooning on landing?

Answer 21

Lower collective slowly and steadily.

Question 22

What causes “wallowing” in hover?

Answer 22

Low rotor RPM or excessive cyclic.

Question 23

What indicates too-low rotor RPM in hover?

Answer 23

Sluggish response and settling sensation.

Question 24

What is pedal creep?

Answer 24

Helicopter slowly rotates despite neutral pedals—requires minor input.

Question 25

What is the most stable hover height?

Answer 25

3–5 feet AGL.

Question 26

Why is hover above 10 ft less stable?

Answer 26

Loss of ground cushion + wind sensitivity.

Question 27

What makes hover tailwind dangerous?

Answer 27

Reduced tail rotor authority → LTE risk.

Question 28

How to stabilize hover in gusts?

Answer 28

Anticipate and counter with small cyclic inputs.

Question 29

Why is hovering over uneven surfaces tricky?

Answer 29

Visual cues distort perceived level.

Question 30

What do you do if you lose reference in hover?

Answer 30

Transition to forward flight immediately.

Question 31

What is the biggest aerodynamic hazard in hover?

Answer 31

LTE when yaw authority runs out.

Question 32

What is the second biggest hazard?

Answer 32

VRS if descending vertically with power.

Question 33

Why avoid backward hover?

Answer 33

Tail rotor strike risk.

Question 34

How do you hover-taxi?

Answer 34

Small cyclic movements with coordinated pedals, 1–5 ft AGL.

Question 35

How do you stop hover-taxi drift?

Answer 35

Level the disk and reduce ground track.

Question 36

What happens when hovering in rain or fog?

Answer 36

Reference loss → pilot-induced oscillations.

Question 37

What’s the cure for hover oscillations?

Answer 37

Freeze inputs for 1 second → reset → micro inputs only.

Question 38

How do you practice stable hover?

Answer 38

Fix eyes ahead, relax wrist, fly with fingertips.

Question 39

What feeling tells you you’re finally hovering correctly?

Answer 39

You’re “behind the controls” less and making tiny anticipatory inputs.