This is when it all started. My wife had bought me a helicopter experience flight for my birthday. 30 minutes ! I am writing this a little over 12 months from when I took it, so this will be a short entry.
All I can remember about this first experience is the briefing beforehand, and key bits of the flight. The briefing was very thorough and I remember coming away with one KEY bit of knowledge. The cyclic (the stick between your legs) requires VERY little movement to fly a helicopter.
And the one bit of information I remember from the flight was how jerky I was for the first 5 minutes. I was overcontrolling, making for an uncomfortable ride. But, then I calmed down and flew it much more calmly. Mostly straight and level, and some turns. Scott Dixon was the brave instructor !
So, that takes us upto Lesson 1.
That’s the Newcastle Police Helicopter in the background