NOTE: This draft page is not in the layout as the book will appear but the content is accurate.

Introduction

The primary purpose of this book is to promote safety in rotary wing aviation by identifying and addressing the main causes of helicopter accidents. We term them 'accidents', but very few are. An accident is "a chance event; unforeseeable." Most helicopter crashes are extremely predictable. Someone - not always the pilot; sometimes the passenger, engineer or simply a bystander - took a chance, forgot something, ignored a principle or otherwise initiated the disaster.

Except for beginning student pilots and amateur enthusiasts, most readers of this book will have had some training in dealing with the hazards outlined here. Each hazard is covered in such a way that working commercial pilots can understand, take note of, and incorporate into their everyday work habits.

There may appear to be a great many perils facing helicopter pilots. But a pilot would be very unlucky to experience them all on the same day! However, it is not often that just one hazard causes an accident.. The chance of encountering a hazard is greatly increased by the presence of another. For example: overloading will make the helicopter more susceptible to overpitching, vortex ring state, and make a successful autorotation a matter of much finer judgment. Problems can snowball in a heartbeat and what was intended to be 'just another sortie' quickly becomes an impending disaster. One thing not listed per se is complacency - that is the biggest killer of all.

For those readers who are not pilots but helicopter enthusiasts, there is a wealth of information in this book. The introductory paragraphs to each chapter should give you an easily understood explanation of the hazard being discussed.

It is not possible in a book of this nature to go into great depth and detail. Many topics quite easily warrant their own book. Indeed, books have been written on many individual hazards, and readers looking for further knowledge should refer to the further reading section.

Research for this book was not overly difficult as everything that is written here has appeared somewhere else at one time or another. Many parts are taken directly from excellent articles in flight safety magazines, permission for which has been kindly given by the editors. But it occurred to me that tracking down a case study, a simple explanation, a detailed explanation and some invaluable advice from experienced pilots on any topic on any one rotary wing flight hazard is very time-consuming even for someone within the aviation arena. For other people the task would probably be impossible.

I will be satisfied if the messages contained in this book save one life. If you are a helicopter pilot you most likely have some very good friends who are also helicopter pilots. Make sure that you recommend this book to them and they may be friends for a long while yet.

I would like to firmly stress that I do not sit in judgment of anyone that has had an accident for any reason. I figured out very early on that I'm a better writer than I am a helicopter pilot, which is why I now fly a laptop. Many of the case studies in this book leave me feeling, "There but for the grace of God go I." There is no doubt that on a score of occasions I have been on the threshold of an accident born of a dozen mistakes and bad calls.

Perfection makes a good target but a lousy reality. If you disagree with something written here, or you know of information, case studies, photographs or diagrams that could enhance the material in this book, please email me the details at greg@fataltraps.com. I would be eager to incorporate any improvements in the next edition.

Greg Whyte