Hoo, these things are tough.You know those things they put on remote-controlled copters - like four long legs with practice golf balls on the ends to increase stability?Anybody know of one of those (except .. ah, full-scale) for FS?Or possibly a way to mod the .air file?Thanks,Andrew

Practice, Practice, Practice! LOLIt takes some people allot of time to figure it out. Loads of helpful hints and techniques over at Hovercontrol.com, plus plenty of helpful people. Once you get the technique down and the proper joystick settings, it really isn't that hard!!I fly for a VA that is 90% rotory wing and my VA is about 60%, nothing like'em! I fly them about 80% of the time, the rest GA.The default is a good one to learn on.Regards, Michaelhttp://mysite.verizon.net/res052cd/mybannercva1.jpgCalVirAir International VAwww.calvirair.comCougar Mountain Helicopters & Aviationwww.cgrmtnhelos.com

I saw the initial post and the first thing that came to my mind was exactly what you posted... Practice Practice Practice! One thing that i have found to help hone your skills is finding a heli with "docile" controls. Something large as opposed to the smaller nimble helis. Ill have a look through my collection and see if i can find something that will help.RgdsAidihttp://www.avsim.com/vfr_center/avsim_sig.jpg

Try the bell206bDF.zip d/l in the aircraft section/MSFS2002, at the bottom of the page.http://www.digital-flight.com/Kurt M

Andrew,Something else that might help you is understanding the flight dynamics of rotary wing aircraft. Here are a couple of small reference booklets that you should find at your local airport that has a flying school and a pilot's shop:Source:US Department of TransportationFAAFlight Standards National Field OfficeExaminations Standards BranchPO Box 25082Oklahoma CityOklahoma 73125Document Title:'Basic Helicopter Handbook' (booklet) ASA-AC61-13B (possibly reprinted)Price about $10:00orSource:Aviation Supplies & Academics Inc7005 132nd Place SERenton. WA 98059-3153Document Title:'Rotary Wing Flight' (booklet) ref PNR ASA-RW-4Price about $20There is also an RC model simulator (free software) that might help..but not sure of the web site?Happy FlyingTerry

Welcome to helo flying Andrew. I know exactly how you feel. I've been flying the helos exclusively now for quite some time and STILL can't hover. I'm sure it's just me. :-shy As the others have said -- practice, practice and practice. Small, gentle, controlled movements of your stick. A stick is better than a yoke for flying the helicopters. Rudder pedals are good too, but lots of people fly with the twist grip on their joysticks. I highly recommend a visit to hovercontrol. They have some great forums over there and lots of tutorials to help you out as well as online training. Just read up on what you need and line up an instructor.Good luck and happy hovering-Lindy :-rotor

At http://members.shaw.ca/hoversafe/Hoversafe.htm you'll find a set of self-teaching lessons you might find useful.Calhover long and prosper

Hi guys...huh.. thought I responded yesterday but I must have just hit "preview" - anyway - thanks for all the info. Actually the lessons at Hovercontrol are what made me post - even if I get the copter down gently, as soon as I touch the ground (even almost level, based on the video) the helicopter takes a nap like I landed sideways on a treadmill or something.I don't have this problem with the Aircrane...Andrew

Yup, Andrew..... that's just exactly the problem I was having while I was learning to land helos too. Frustrating, isn't it? :-rollHoverControl's lessons are excellent (as are HoverSafe's). Two pieces of info that I read finally gave me a handle on improving my landings: 1. the torque at which the helo lifts off is pretty much the torque you should be near when touching down; and 2. don't keep the nose of the helo too high when ready for touchdown.Keeping these two points in mind allowed me to improve my landings to the point where I could finally activate crash detection/reset in the sim. And trust me when I say up until then, I was crash landing 99 percent of the time! :-erksThe Aircrane is pretty stable on landing, but I sure wouldn't use it as a trainer while learning to control the helos.Good luck. -Lindy :-rotor:-wave

Has there been any talk of improved helo dynamics in FS2004?