HoverBug

IMMEDIATE ACTION REQUIRED: We've just been informed that HOVERBUG needs to return to St. Louis, MO ASAP for scheduled maintenance after flying over 20,000 miles.  STOP

"To travel throughout the U.S. visiting as many states as possible. Of course, if HoverBug ever had the unique opportunity to fly outside the U.S., he would be very happy. He would really like to fly around Europe and Asia.

Helicopters, like "HoverBug" are amazing machines.  Despite weighing many tons, they all have the unique ability to "hover" motionless, by an "experienced" pilot.  With hundreds of moving parts all turning, twisting and spinning; the loud whine of turbine engines producing thousands of horsepower, with engine internal temperatures over 1000° F; long rotor blades spinning with the blade tip speeds nearly supersonic – everything is in perfect balance – the essence of pure harmony.

• But what exactly is "hovering"?  Hovering is the term applied when a helicopter maintains a constant position at a selected point, usually a few feet above the ground (but not always). Helicopters can hover high in the air, given sufficient power.  For a helicopter to hover, the main rotor must supply lift equal to the total weight of the helicopter.  With the blades rotating at high velocity, an increase of blade pitch (angle of attack) would induce the necessary lift for a hover.  The forces of lift and weight reach a state of balance during a stationary hover.
             

• Hovering is actually an element of vertical flight.  Assuming a no-wind condition, the tip-path plane of the blades will remain horizontal.  If the angle of attack of the blades is increased while their velocity remains constant, additional vertical thrust is obtained.  Thus, by upsetting the vertical balance of forces, helicopters can climb or descend vertically.

• Learning to "hover motionless" requires many, many hours of flight training.  An analogy used is that learning to hover is like trying to "balance a marble on a bowling ball".  Although I never tried that, I do know that when you finally "get it"....it was magical!