Having a low inertia rotor system is no problem in powered flight as long as the governor / throttle is managed properly, however, it makes the R22 harder to fly in autorotation where management of the rotor RPM is crucial for a safe outcome.
Loss of rotor RPM is a major safety risk in helicopter flight and the cause of many accidents. The primary of these is its low inertia rotor head. However, the R22 was never designed by Frank Robinson as a basic trainer and has a number of flight characteristics that can take a while to master. The R22 is the most popular training helicopter in use in UK schools because of its low cost per flight hour, typically around £330. With these factors in mind, let’s look at the helicopters typically available to ab-initio (first time) student pilots and their typical cost per hour. There’s little point wanting to fly the Cabri if you live 3 hours drive from the nearest training school with one.
Perhaps a bigger consideration is which models of helicopter are available at the training school(s) that are within travelling distance of your home. For example, if you weigh 17st (108Kg) or more you’re unlikely to be able to fly the R22 as you’ll need a racing snake for an instructor and would be over the max seat weight should you put on a bit more weight.Ĭonversely, if you’re young, slim & talented and training to become a commercial pilot with an aim to fly large helicopters in the oil industry, then you should learn on the cheapest machine you can find (probably the Robinson R22) as it will have little bearing on your future career. Once again, like the “ How Much Will It Cost?” question, the answer is not straightforward as there are so many factors that are personal to an individual student pilot.
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