How to Hover a Helicopter

Want to know how to hover a helicopter? This episode is your ultimate hovering guide, covering what each control does and how, the complex aerodynamics involved in hovering, the FAA ACS hover standards, practice drills, and practical tips and tricks for both students and instructors.

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Overview

Hovering a helicopter is one of the most iconic and most difficult skills a new helicopter pilot must learn. In Episode 002 of the Helicopter Training Podcast, we break down this challenging maneuver in a way that’s clear, approachable, and packed with insight for both students and instructors.

We start with a quick recap of Episode 1 and share some exciting updates, including giving instruction in the Bell 206, the Robinson Instructor Course hosted at our flight school, the new the USHST Peer Pilot Program and my involvement with national helicopter safety initiatives like VAST and the Rotorcraft Collective.

From there, we dive into the main topic: hovering. This episode covers everything from control inputs and aerodynamic principles to FAA checkride standards and real-world training strategies. You’ll learn how the cyclic, collective, and pedals work together (and against each other) in the hover. We also explain the aerodynamic challenges involved, like torque reaction, translating tendency, and induced flow, with diagrams and video examples to help you visualize these concepts clearly.

We highlight the FAA’s standards for hovering in both the Private and Commercial ACS and discuss effective training exercises, like control isolation, hover turns, and box drills. Whether you’re in your first few hours of helicopter flight or already teaching others, these techniques can help sharpen understanding and improve skill progression.

We also include tips for learning and teaching hovering, from managing frustration to recognizing the aerodynamic cause-effect chains behind each control input. Instructors will find ideas for progressing students safely and effectively through the hover learning curve.

If you’re struggling with the hover (or getting ready to teach it) this episode is for you. And if you’re just listening to the audio only, remember you can view the full visual version on YouTube or any podcast platform that supports video.

Thanks for tuning in to Episode 002! Subscribe on your favorite podcast platform, follow us on YouTube, and share with fellow pilots. Your feedback is always welcome, visit HelicopterTrainingPodcast.com/Contact to send a message or submit a voice recording. And stay tuned for Episode 003, where we’ll explore autorotations, one of the most critical skills in helicopter flying.

Chapters

• 00:00 Start
• 00:59 FAA flight school finder
• 01:50 New Robinson Instructor Course
• 02:38 VERTICON 2025
• 03:20 VAST
• 03:40 Rotorcraft Collective
• 04:08 Peer Pilot Program
• 05:15 Thanks to Supporters
• 05:40 Overview
• 07:25 Rotor System Directions
• 07:53 FA 223 Story
• 08:45 Pedals
• 12:19 Collective
• 12:54 Correlator & Governor
• 14:31 Cyclic
• 15:35 Hover Aerodynamics
• 16:12 Rotary Wing Show
• 16:50 Induced flow
• 17:23 OGE & IGE hover
• 20:20 Torque Reaction
• 22:30 Translating Tendency or Drift
• 23:45 Combination of Effects
• 24:46 Translational Lift & Thrust
• 25:49 Vertical and Horizontal Stabilizers
• 27:05 Pendulum Effect
• 28:10 Wind Effects
• 28:52 Other Aerodynamic Effects
• 29:39 FAA ACS Hover Standards
• 31:54 Hover Drills Introduction
• 34:20 Control Isolation
• 34:54 Positive Exchange of Controls
• 35:04 Pedal Drills
• 38:07 Clear Tail Before Turns
• 40:14 Collective Drills
• 41:35 Pedals and Collective Drills
• 42:12 Cyclic Drills
• 44:30 All 3 Controls
• 45:56 More Advanced Hover Drills
• 48:38 Governor Failure Hover Training
• 49:04 Summary & Tips
• 53:07 Bill’s Feedback
• 55:27 Austin’s Feedback
• 59:38 Thanks to the Pilots
• 59:59 Last Minute Updates
• 1:00:32 Next Episode – Autorotations
• 1:00:56 Outro

Show Links

Here are all the links referenced in this episode:

• Helicopter Online Ground School (H.O.G.S.) 10% Discount use “HTV10” at Checkout
• FAA Part 141 Flight School Locator
• Robinson Instructor Course
• Tony Robinson on BlackAdder
• Tony Robinson on Time Team
• VAST
• Rotorcraft Collective
• Peer Pilot Program
• US Helicopter Safety Team (USHST)
• Fred North Interview
• HTV Flight Controls
• HTV Swashplate
• NASA Video 1
• NASA Video 2
• Helicopter Flying Handbook
• Helicopter Vortices
• Rotary Wing Show Podcast
• Aviation News Talk Podcast
• Wingtip Vortices
• Helicopter Lake Crash Video
• Simulated Birdstrike
• Pilots Fly Helicopters T-shirts
• Windsock Footage
• R22 Hover Crash
• R44 Tail Stinger Strike
• R44 Hits Hanger Door
• Student-Built Hover Trainer – Email Lucas@SagePlumbing.net
• Book a Discovery Flight
• Recommended Books
• Essential Pilot Supplies

Check these out for more information and resources to help you along your journey.

Feedback

We’d love to hear from you! Whether you’re just starting out or well into your journey, send us your questions, feedback, or thoughts. You can reach out to the show through the contact form or even record an audio message—we might feature your input in a future episode!