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First flight in a Gyrocopter: RAF 2000

HUD Pilot

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Catching a ride in a gyrocopter! A short while ago I went to fly-in breakfast and saw an RAF2000 gyrocopter (gyroplane, autogyro). Through the magic of Facebook, I posted a pic and mentioned I would love to get a ride in "one of these" some day. Someone saw the posting and got me in touch with the owner.
I flew out to Wetaskiwin to meet Chris and was in for a real treat! Take-offs are AWESOME!
We cover operations and technique for flying a gyrocopter. Chris hopes this video will get others interested in gyros. Oh, and in case some of you are thinking I shrank, Chris is 6'6" tall ... the camera makes me shrink... ya that's it... the camera's fault. lol.

Thanks again Chris... you da man!!

20 Comments

@scbane 1 month ago

The vibration and stick shake can be almost completely eliminated by fine-tuning the balancing of the rotor and prop. Prop and rotor create turbulence for each other that needs specific shims and such to damp out.

@ApocalypseOfJohn 5 years ago

The RAF not good for tall guys, the Cavalon, now that is a machine to fall in love with.

@boballoon 6 years ago (edited)

I got to fly in an RAF 2000 two years ago. Great flight, real fun machine and so different from any other flying I've done

@CurtisDrew1 5 years ago (edited)

I saw how cramped he was in the RAF and I thought, man those things are tiny. Not getting one of those. But, at 6' 6" it explains a lot. Not sure I could deal with that much vibration.... I have a contact just North of me with a Cavalon who has agreed to take me up soon. Been a big fan of Gyros since Egor Benson flew his over our house when I was a kid living in North Carolina. Around 1964 IIRC. One would be perfect for us because I have a 3500 ft grass runway right behind our house. This Covid ever goes away I"m going to get serious about getting one.
I fly fixed wing a lot!!!

@flyingadventuresab 6 years ago

Cool little machine. Very educational.

@intervera 6 years ago

Loved this! What a unique experience and great video work too. Thanks for sharing!

@jpridie 6 years ago

Great movie should get people interested in Gyroplanes in Canada we don’t have enough pilots here.

@rjmorstad852 5 years ago

I sure enjoyed the RAF 2000 flight! Always wanted to fly a gyro! Thank you for your posting this!

@rw7051 5 years ago

A helicopter blade is driven by an engine and pushes the air downward. A gyrocopter blade has the air going upward through the circling rotor without power to it, like a pinwheel. Both machines get their lift from the turning blades. If the engine quits in a gyroplane, the blade is already turning freely from air moving upward through it. When a helicopter engine quits, the pilot pushes the collective down, and the air now can move upward through the blade disc like a gyroplane, called autorotation.

@chriswf 11 months ago

Just saw one of these in East Texas at a tire shop. Came to this video to see it fly.
That hose/wire that goes to the top and spins the propellers is... Nuts. Its sketchy at best. It looks like an automobile engine starter with a piston/solenoid that pushes a gear out to make contact with the propeller gear/flywheel.
Like, what happens if that smaller gear drops back down - away from the larger gear? You just fall out of the sky, right?

I can't imagine a scarier ride but it was cool to see it fly in your video :D

@Kim.Liv92 5 years ago

It looks like there is a lot of vibration.

@53notneb 2 years ago

I love it but it looks like it wall shake all the bolts out.

@csyvenky 6 years ago

I couldn't even tell for certain when you actually landed, that must have been a greaser! Still can't believe how busy those small aerodromes are, last time I was PIC places like Wetaskiwin were eerily quiet.