Hookpilot
Posts: 19
Joined: 8/25/2005
From: Honolulu,
HI, USA
Status: offline
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Rod:
Yes, the Hook is a great machine to fly. There is something intoxicating about grabbing the thrust lever and pulling in power as you lift a 20,000 pound load. The blades cone, the engines begin a strange high pitch whine as the compressor section spools up, and the helicopter starts to shuffle, shiver and shake. I imagine it was a lot like the engineers who ran big steam locomotives. You know when you are working a Chinook hard. She talks back. I flew in an Army Chinook flight demonstration team for many years and we amazed even ourselves with what we could do in them. One maneuver was a max performance vertical climb with full rudder input. We could peg the IVSI indicator at 3000 FPM - straight up. We knew we had a good spin going when the oil in the aft transmission got slammed to one side of the transmission case causing a LOW OIL PRESS caution light to come on for a few seconds. After the first practice fights, our flight engineers learned to strap in for the demo. We'd go zero Gee and do other whacky stuff they probably wouldn't allow these days. Like they say "Mastering the prohibited maneuvers in the operator's manual is the best insurance you can have."
We also played around with seeing what the Chinook could do 0 to 60. Mind you that we are talking about a machine with 2, 3750 hp engines and an operating weight of just over 30,000 pounds, empty. So, with our flight engineer seated in the jump seat, stopwatch in hand, we found out! the chief said "go" and 7 seconds later we were passing 100 Kts! That's quick for a big machine like the Hook. It was pretty exciting to do - pull in thrust to the torque limit, jam the cyclic forward and hold on. Essentially what we were doing was convert 20,000 pounds of useful load carrying into 10 tons of thrust to propel us forward, almost instantly.
What other twin engine helicopter can take on a 3 ton load, crank one engine, pick up to a stable hover and fly off with it... We use to pull engines on our pilots during checkrides just after takeoff from a pinacle with an 8000 pound concrete block on the cargo hook. The Chinook was able to not only gain altitude, it would accelerate too. This was done in a mountainous environment, 4000 feet up. Engine failures are a yawner in the Hook, unless you were really heavy, say 42,000 pounds or more, or there was an associated engine fire. then you had to put down the Playboy and tend to business.
Keep your rotor in the green and the shiney side up.
Mike
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All Forums >> RC Helicopters >> Scale RC Helicopters >> Has anyone tried a Chinook? 
Has anyone tried a Chinook? - 
I was also a bit confused about the "twisting motion" and how the mixing apparently works the fore and aft discs seemed backwards. I'm guessing you called the dash the licorice stick or the CCDA?? I am starting to draw out 