Hello from WA state, dreaming of kit helicopters and mountain flying.

DanO

Newbie
Joined
Feb 1, 2012
Messages
14
Location
Mount Vernon
Hello,
Thought I would drop a line here, I have been dreaming of kit helicopters and mountain flying. Looking at all the possible kits. I do notice it is less expensive to buy a pre built used helicopter, but need a outside yearly
inspection. I wonder if that works out to be the cheapest option? I imagine a turbo is pretty much needed in the mountains. I would like to be able to use it to look for lost people in the mountains if I can volunteer for this in the future. Not have flown any yet so a long ways before I can do anything. Anyway, looking for any tips and anyone with a kit helicopter in North West Wa that would be willing to give me any pointers.

Thanks

Dan
 
DanO

Welcome to the rotary wing forum. I don't know much about helicopters, but I did take a lesson at Skagit regional airport. They fly Robinson 22's for trainers. Good luck with your new adventure.

Russ
 
My first step is to get a bunch of books to read on the subject of flying and helicopters and so on, I ordered one and will order more. Then I plan to get a fairly good home based flight simulator system to practice on. Then go from there. I thought about the flight school in skagit airport, most likely the first realistic step. Of course at this point I like looking at machine options for fun online.

Dan
 
I wonder if that works out to be the cheapest option? Dan

DanO,

I don't think Helicopter pilots are allowed to use the word "cheapest". LOL I don't think there is anything about flying a Helicoppter that is cheap at all. From the cost of the machine, to maintenance costs, to training costs to the per hour flying cost, everything about a Helicopter costs more. So if you are serious about staying frugal with your flyhing costs, you honestly ought to be looking at some other form of flying. Flying in general is an expensive sport and it is pretty hard to do on a tight budget, but it can be done if you are willing to make some compromises and settle for less than what you may have had your eye on to start with. However, flying Helicopters is definately the hardest type of aircraft you could have possibly picked to try to fly on a budget. So before you get too far down that road, make sure you do some serious homework and have very realistic ideas of what it will cost to accomplish what you are trying to get to. And as long as you have the funds available, go for it.

Many of us that have decided to fly Gyroplanes have gone that direction (at least partially) because it can be a much more economical path to Rotary Winged flight. It still costs a lot of money but there is a pretty wide range of costs involved in getting started and it can be done for a whole lot less than getting into a Helicopter. Best of luck with your dreams! I too think of using my Gyroplane to help with Search and Rescue work (in the Rocky Mountains) only time will tell how realistic that goal is to acheive. But if it weren't for dreamers trying to accomplish something that hadn't ever been done before, nothing new would ever happen. So good luck!!!
 
Hello,

Not from Vancouver, so not the right DanO.
Yes, I understand flight is very expensive, so only dreaming now, but still plan to do the study of some books and do a home base flight simulator. I have thought about having a small plane of some sort, a sort of stol plane. I have not looked into gyro copters as a option yet. Time will tell, anything is possible. Thanks all.

Dan
 
I don't think Helicopter pilots are allowed to use the word "cheapest". LOL I don't think there is anything about flying a Helicoppter that is cheap at all.

Well, I don't spend much on tires for my skid-gear Bell 47 . . .
 
Well, I don't spend much on tires for my skid-gear Bell 47 . . .

So true, but... if you looked at the cost of other parts it might be a different story. :) I certainly have nothing against Helicopters, I just know they are out of my league financially.

I did get a half hour of instruction in an Enstrom last summer and I was amazed at how simillar it felt (in cruise) to flying in a Sparrow Hawk. Of course it was a lot more involved to fly it and to be honest with you I really like the simplicity of flying a Gyro. I know I have been told that flying a Helicopter becomes second nature and is not that hard once you know what your doing, but I don't see Helicopter pilots that cruise along for minutes at a time with their hands folded in their laps and I know Larry Neal tells me he does that all the time while cruising in his Butterfly Gyro. That just seems a lot less stressful and more relaxing to know you could take your hands off the controls to take a picture if you wanted to. And being able to fly for less than $30 an hour means I can afford to go flying more often. I like that.
 
Some people go through their life the least expensive way, by never doing anything but working, then wake up someday finding out how expensive their life ended up being by not having any cool memories. Just my way of saying to anyone, get out there and make whatever passion you have happen! Stan
 
Dan- Flying gyroplanes or helicopters for fun is an awesome experience. However, flying either over hostile tree covered mountain terrain looking for survivors just sounds like the beginning of another made for tv movie of a wrecked rotorcraft in the mountains. One should minimize the exposure time to having your only landing are as hostile terrain. I fly over my small 15 acre patch of woods knowing I can at least land in a field on the perimeter. Mountain terrain would scare me bigtime! Stan
 
I got in the mail today my "Rotorcraft Flying Handbook"

Will be reading it over tonight. I really like the Helicycle
I like the high altitude ability and price, but would prefer a two seater if given a choice. It is amazing how much more
expensive the second seat can be. As I am just getting into this
I am really surprised at the limited weight capacity the helicopters have.

Dan
 
Well hello there! I am new to the forum though have been with this sort of hobby for quite a while now.

Personally, I started with small remote controlled gliders that proved to be really interesting, for me at least.

Though I practically grew up with a family that is very much into this as well. My brother was actually a flight engineer where we practically got all things going.
 
Thanks for the confirmation. I would rather build from scratch
a new rig, but the used ones look attractive to me as well.

Dan
 
Top