Abstract:
Assessment of rotorcraft performance following an engine failure is necessary to ensure its safe operation. During the rotorcraft certification process, demonstration of compliance to power-off landing requirements is one of the most challenging flight test phases. For these types of flight activities, using a simulation approach not only provides safety, reduction of cost and effectiveness but also allows training of the flight test team beforehand. Since loss of engine power is regarded as one of the most critical failure scenarios, extensive training of the flight test team is required to improve autorotation performance, i.e., managing available energy at the rotors. This paper is focused on evaluation of autorotation characteristics of the T-625 light utility helicopter in a simulator environment. Experience gained from this work guided both design engineers and flight test team towards initial preparation of dual-engine failure emergency procedure in the rotorcraft flight manual.