quote:
Originally posted by jsmith59:
You can make life so much easier on yourself if you search before you ask questions that have been asked half a billion times before.
Echoing that... there's a ton of information in this forum to answer each of those questions. Start reading through it and you'll get a great overview of the whole process.
I will reply to your question regarding study materials though. I've looked over the Arco study test a bit and I was pretty clueless on the roto knowledge. I ordered several books off of Amazon a few weeks ago, which are:
Rotorcraft Flying Handbook (FAA Handbook) - the best of the four books, imo. All the basics, and it's an FAA publication. Great overview of basic helicopter principles, great illustrations (color).
Principles of Helicopter Flight - Goes into the physics behind helicopter flight. Concepts, theories, formulas, you name it. I loved physics in high school, and have been pursuing a Bible degree the past couple years, so it's really refreshing to dig back in.
Learning to Fly Helicopters - This book is written conversationally, and again covers the basics, like the FAA book. I prefer the FAA book, but I'll get some use out of this one because it is kind of enjoyable to read and doesn't require quite so much brainpower.
Rotory Wing Flight (by the U.S. Army) - An actual Army publication. I haven't done much with it yet, but it seems to cover a lot of concepts and physics as well.
The FAA publication is only $11.53 on Amazon, and it's a great resource. I fly fixed wing (just Cessnas) and hadn't ever looked into the workings of helicopters until the last several weeks, and that book alone has taught me a great deal. The order that I listed them in are the order in which I would recommend them.
