Quote:
Originally Posted by John_W
After looking at several gyrocopter crash videos on youtube, it seems if the pilot is not constantly on top of the controls there is a good chance of stalling or going into a spin. They appear to fly like a helicopter will little chance to being able to trim the aircraft. The bad part about crashes is you have two propellers in close proximity to the pilot and if the impact doesn't kill you, the blades will. I think a glider is safer than a gyrocopter, that's just my opinion. |
The fact is that gyrocopters do not fly like a helicopter (or like a fixed wing aircraft.) That's why a licensed pilot should not just jump into a gyrocopter and fly away. For example, in a helicopter (where the lift is provided by the rotating wing) you can increase speed by tilting the aircraft farther forward. If you do this in a gyrocopter you will get to the point that the wind load on the top side of the unpowered rotating wing will produce a negative effect; the wing can slow down and you can lose lift and crash.
Anyone wanting to fly gyrocopters should receive training from a person certified to give gyrocopter flight training.