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Impressive!

 

Here's what happens when things go badly -- Mount Hood 2002. The article mentions the wind shifting suddenly to the rear. Sounds like the kind of wind sheer that downs fixed wing aircraft. Question for you rotary wing pilots: Does the sudden tailwind destroy lift the same way it does for fixed wing? The way it rolled, pitched and fell looks like an aerodynamic stall. Seems he would have been on the edge of a stall anyway at that altitude?

 

Article:  https://www.airspacemag.com/military-aviation/calamity-hogback-180952139/

 

 

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Yes a tailwind will reduce lift.  It looked like he just didn’t have enough power to compensate due to density/altitude.  You get more lift when in ground effect from the air cushioning you so to speak as it reflects off the ground, or when you hit ETL, effective translational lift which is when you gain enough forward airspeed.  Downwind turns when close to max are bad.  They have high altitude training in Colorado west of Denver that most go through since many theatres they operate in put the aircraft at or near max and they have to pick what to carry.

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29 minutes ago, JD Lud said:

Yes a tailwind will reduce lift.  It looked like he just didn’t have enough power to compensate due to density/altitude.  You get more lift when in ground effect from the air cushioning you so to speak as it reflects off the ground, or when you hit ETL, effective translational lift which is when you gain enough forward airspeed.  Downwind turns when close to max are bad.  They have high altitude training in Colorado west of Denver that most go through since many theatres they operate in put the aircraft at or near max and they have to pick what to carry.

I had the unusual (for me) experience of watching a Chinook pass below me while I was climbing Mt Lincoln in Colorado. I was already at 12 or 13,000 ft and I'm guessing he was 2,000 ft below me. I don't know what the service ceiling is of a Chinook, but it sounded like he was at full throttle.

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