HELICOPTER AIRFRAME

Paper 1 – Category ‘A’ Airframe 2010

Answer all Questions

1. Helicopters with hydraulic boost to controls often use a gradient unit to:
a. Artificially add “feel” to the controls
b. Give indication of smoothness of rate of climb
c. Assist in forward running take off

2. A blade angle of attack is:

a. The angle between the blade chord line and the horizontal centre line
b. The angle between the plane of rotation and the chord line
c. The angle between the chord line and the resultant airflow

3. The centre of pressure of a main rotor blade is said to be:

a. A point at the blade root where centrifugal force is at its greatest
b. A point on the chord line where aerodynamic forces act
c. A point on the chord line about which the blade pivots

4. The tail rotor compensates for torque, during autorotation the engine rpm is reduced, the
tail rotor:
a. rpm is reduced by the same amount giving equilibrium
b. free wheel unit allows the tail rotor to rotate at normal rpm
c. must be adjusted to compensate for drop in torque

5. Rotor blades naturally move faster at the tip than the root, blade twist is introduced to:
a. Give even lift by increasing angle of attack at the root
b. Ensure the outer blade sections give more lift
c. Ensure even lift by decreasing angle of attack at the root

6. The term “Phase Lag” means:

a. The advancing and dragging period as a blade rotates
b. Action occurring 90 degrees from the applied force in the same direction of
rotation
c. The time delay between moving a control and the movement taking place

7. A clutch assembly is necessary between the engine and transmission on helicopters with:
a. Reciprocating engines
b. Gas Turbine Engines
c. Reciprocating and some Gas Turbine Engines

8. Some helicopters have belt driven transmission, the clutch used on this type is the:
a. Shoe and Drum
b. Belt tensioner
c. Hydromechanical

Page 1 of 9
9. Transmission lubrication is normally carried out by:
a. Engine oil
b. Engine oil, filtered and boosted
c. Independent lubrication systems

10. Gears with helical teeth are often used in gearboxes, this will provide:
a. Quieter running at high torque
b. More positive engagement
c. More efficient gear lubrication

11. The transmission drive shaft to the tail rotor is usually made from:
a. Hollow Steel
b. Light Alloy
c. Tungum

12. A lord mount is a type of:

a. Bonded rubber mounting
b. Flexible steel mounting
c. Safety cable mounting

13. A nodal beam mounting is used on transmissions with:

a. Fully articulated heads
b. Rigid rotor heads
c. Semi rigid rotor heads

14. The tail rotor drive provides an increase in torque, rpm is increased approximately:
a. Six times main rotor speed
b. Twice main rotor speed
c. Four times main rotor speed

15. A freewheel unit will allow:

a. The driving component to underspeed the driven component
b. The driven component to under speed the driving component
c. The driving component to overspeed the driven component

16. A Splined Coupling is one which transmits drive and allows:

a. Flexing and radial movement
b. Changes in direction and radial movement
c. Flexing and axial movement

17. A viscous damped bearing is one which:

a. Absorbs vibration and is self aligning
b. Prevents tail rotor flutter
c. Ensures gearbox stability

Page 2 of 9
18. The conformal gear provides:
a. The main engine output reduction
b. Better cooling abilities
c. A wider contact area

19. “Run Out” of a transmission shaft is a term used to express:

a. Eccentric rotation about its axis
b. Overspeeding
c. Elongation due to overstressing

20. In gearbox lubrication a “Boundary” situation exists when:

a. Inner and Outer oil layers are equal
b. When a film of oil exists between surfaces
c. The oil film cannot be maintained

21. Which component assists in a quick oil warm up in a gearbox system:

a. A thermostatic valve
b. A check valve
c. An oil cooler matrix

22. Metal particles in a gearbox oil system can give visual warning by a:
a. Filter protruding indicator
b. Oil sample system
c. Illuminated warning in Cockpit

23. Tracking on a helicopter means:

a. That all blades travel in the same tip path plane
b. That blades are subject to leading edge checks with a straight edge
c. That the rotor keeps fuel helicopter in a straight path in forward flight

24. The purpose of a clutch in a transmission system is to:

a. Unload the engine during starting
b. Give immediate freedom for auto rotation
c. Prevent overrun

25. Transmission lubrication is normally carried out by:

a. Engine oil
b. Engine oil, filtered and boosted
c. Independent lubrication systems

26. Movement of the collective stick will:

a. alter the pitch of the advancing blades more than the retreating blades
b. alter the pitch on all blades equally
c. tilt the swashplate forward

Page 3 of 9
27. The reason for fitting a tail rotor on a helicopter is:
a. to counteract torque
b. to prevent sideways drift
c. to ensure thrust is in the same direction as the couple produced by engine torque

28. The pitch on a puller tail rotor in forward flight with the pedals central is:
a. in neutral
b. in positive pitch
c. in negative pitch

29. A Thomas coupling consist of:

a. rubber blocks between vanes
b. flexible steel shims
c. a yoke and trunnion

30. The coning angle of the rotor blades is the angle between:
a. the normal axis and the rotor blade
b. the rotor blades and the tip path plane
c. the horizontal and the rotor blade

31. The forces which the blades coning angle are:

a. Lift: weight: thrust
b. Lift: centrifugal force: thrust
c. Lift: centrifugal force: weight

32. The RPM of the rotor blades are kept constant, within small limits to:
a. Prevent blades ‘folding up’ during flight
b. Prevent blades overspeeding
c. Reduce torque loading

33. The angle between the chord line of the blade and a plane at right angles to the rotor shaft
is known as the:
a. Angle of attack
b. Pitch angle
c. Coning angle

34. A helicopter is hovering and the pilot applies right pedals assuming the main rotor rotates
anti-clockwise viewed from above, the helicopter will:
a. Descend unless the pilot applies more collective pitch
b. Ascend, unless the pilot decreases rotor RPM
c. Descent unless the pilot inches the throttle open

35. When the rotor blade is flapping up, the angle of attack is
a. Greater than the pitch angle
b. Is less than the pitch angle
c. The same as the pitch angle

Page 4 of 9
36. As a helicopter accelerates in forward flight above approximately 15 knots, it will be
necessary to:
a. Reduce power because rotor profile drag is reduced
b. Increase power because the rotor RPM is increasing
c. Reduce power because of additional lift in transitional flight

37. A helicopter tail rotor is fitted to:

a. Permit directional control
b. Counteract rotor torque and provide rapid turn facilities
c. Counteract engine torque and provide normal directional control

38. Phase lag is due to the blades

a. Speed
b. Weight
c. Inertia

39. The airflow over part of the main rotor will be in the reverse direction:
a. In the vortex ring state
b. In ground cushion effect
c. At high forward speeds

40. Which direction is the air flowing through the main rotor during autorotation?
a. Upwards
b. Downwards
c. Parallel to the rotor blade chord line

41. The coriolis effect on the helicopters means

a. The blade which flaps down will accelerate
b. The blade which flaps up will accelerate
c. The axis of rotation is not perpendicular to the plane of rotation

42. Excessive cyclic stick shake felt on a power operated control system could be caused by:
a. Low accumulator nitrogen pressure
b. System regulator cut out pressure set too high
c. Air in the hydraulic actuator

43. Accelerometers are used during tracking of the main rotors

a. To give visual indication of any climbing blade
b. To measure vibration and its magnitude affecting the aircraft to give
c. An indication of any blade cross over

44. What adjustments would have to be made to a blade which tends to climb with an
increase in airspeed?
a. Adjust the pitch change link on the affected blade
b. Raise the tab on the affected blade
c. Lower the tab on the affected blade

Page 5 of 9
45. A mixer box is used in helicopter control systems to ensure that
a. Left and right movements of the anti-torque pedals are moved to change the pitch by
the required amount
b. To prevent the collective input affecting the cyclic input as they move together
c. Twist grip throttles and cyclic can be moved independently

46. Helicopter transmissions are designed to reduce engine rpm to the main rotor, this is to:
a. Keep rotor tip speeds subsonic
b. Reduce the amount of engine power absorbed
c. Limit the forward speed of the helicopter

47. Transmission drive shafts are fitted with flexible couplings to:
a. Allow freewheeling in autorotation
b. Absorb torsional loads and flexible
c. To supply break points on long shafts

48. Some helicopters have stabilizer bars, they are:

a. Connected through linkage to the rotating swashplate and rotor blades
b. Connected to the swashplate and pilots controls
c. Fixed to the pitch change mechanism only

49. What is the purpose of the swashplate fitted to the main rotor mast of a helicopter?
a. To prevent cyclic selections to be input to the rotor blades as they rotate
b. To prevent collective selections to the rotor blades from interfering with cyclic
selections already made
c. To permit cyclic and collective inputs to be made to the rotor blades individually
or simultaneously whilst the blades rotate

50. Elastomeric bearing used in helicopter rotor heads are constructed from:
a. Steel with white metal liners
b. A sandwich of rubber and steel washers bonded together
c. Roller bearings lubricated by oil from reservoirs on top of the head

51. B.I.M indicators are fitted to some aircraft:

a. To give an indication of cracks in the rotor blade spar
b. To give an indication of contamination of the transmission oil system
c. To give warning of a crack in the rotor head trunnion

52. What is the purpose of counter weights fitted to some rotor heads?
a. To assist the blade CTM which tends to increase the pitch angle
b. To counter the blade CTM which tends to increase the pitch angle
c. To counter the blade CTM which tends to decrease the pitch angle

Page 6 of 9
53. What could be the likely result of a defective rotor head damper?
a. It could cause a lateral vibration to be felt in the aircraft
b. It could affect the tracking of the blade
c. It could cause a vertical vibration to be felt in the aircraft

54. In the event of an in-flight engine failure on an aircraft with hydraulically powered
controls, flying control operation would:
a. Revert to manual control
b. Be unaffected since the hydraulic pump is geared to the transmission
c. Be operated by an electrically driven pump

55. One purpose of the freewheeling unit required between the engine and the helicopter
transmission is to:
a. automatically disengage the rotor from the engine in case of an engine failure
b. disconnect the rotor from the engine to relieve the starter load
c. permit practice of autorotation landings

56. What is the purpose of flapping restrainers fitted to helicopters?

a. To restrict the flapping of a blade at low rotor RPM
b. To restrict the flapping of a blade in flight
c. To control the speed of a blade as it flaps during flight

57. Are droops stops in or out during flight?

a. In forward flight-in
b. In
c. Out

58. What defects could possibly cause a helicopter to go into ground resonance?
a. Out of balance rotor and incorrectly filled oleos
b. Hovering too close to the ground
c. Tail rotor out of balance

59. Rotor brakes are used on most helicopters:

a. To stop the rotor to prevent sailing in gusty conditions
b. To stop the engine and rotor after shut down
c. To bring the blade to feather

60. An intermediate gearbox is fitted into a transmission to:

a. Break a long transmission shaft
b. To change the drive angle
c. To reduce load on the main rotor gearbox

61. On some installations, a coupling gearbox is used, its function is to:

a. Couple two engines to a single output
b. Couple the engine to the main rotor gearbox
c. Allow two engines to run on a single freewheel unit

Page 7 of 9
62. Engine speed to the main rotor is reduced through:
a. A double hyperelliptical reduction gear
b. A simple spur type reduction gear
c. A sun and planet reduction gear

63. Why are force gradients used in helicopter control systems?

a. To relieve the pilot of the stick forces created by moving his cyclic controls
b. To provide a fond of artificial feel to power operated controls which is
proportional to the amount of control movement
c. To provide the necessary force to move the controls against high air loading

64. If during a ground tracking check, one blade of an articulated head was seen to fly low,
what adjustments would you make?
a. Raise the low blade by adjusting the pitch change link
b. Lower the high blades by adjusting the pitch change links
c. Raise the low blade and lower the high blades until they all fly in the same tip path
plane

65. Bell cranks are frequently used in aircraft control systems

a. To reduce the length of control rods used
b. To change the direction of control movement
c. To convert rotary control movement to linear control movement

66. What type of gear is most likely to be fitted in a tail rotor gear box?
a. Helical, to provide a thrust load for pitch change operation
b. Worm gear in order to alter the input/output speed ratio
c. Spiral bevel gears for smooth quiet operation

67. If the input gear to a tail rotor gear box had 31 teeth on it and the output gear has 21 teeth
on it, what would the tail rotor speed be relative to the input drive speed?
a. Faster than the input drive speed
b. Slower than the input drive speed
c. The same as the input drive speed

68. The vertical flight of a helicopter is controlled by:

a. Collective pitch changes
b. Cyclic pitch changes
c. Increasing or decreasing the RPM of the main rotor

69. A helicopter in forward flight, cruise configuration, changes direction by:

a. Varying the pitch of the main rotor blades
b. Changing rotor RPM
c. Tilting the main rotor disk in the desired direction

Page 8 of 9
70. If a single-rotor helicopter is in forward horizontal flight, the angle of attack of the
advancing blade is:
a. more than the retreating blade
b. equal to the retreating blade
c. less than the retreating blade

71. Movement about the longitudinal axis (roll) in a helicopter is effected by movement of
the:
a. collective pitch control
b. cyclic pitch control
c. tail rotor pitch control

72. Movement about the lateral axis (pitch) in a helicopter is effected by movement of the:
a. collective pitch control
b. cyclic pitch control
c. tail rotor pitch control

73. In rotorcraft external-loading, the ideal location of the cargo release is where the line of
action passes:
a. aft of the centre of gravity at all times
b. forward of the centre of gravity at all times
c. through the centre of gravity at all times

74. In a hovering helicopter equipped with a tail rotor, directional control is maintained by:
a. changing the tail rotor RPM
b. tilting the main rotor disk in the desired direction
c. varying the pitch of the tail rotor blades

75. The purpose in checking main rotor blade tracking is to determine the:
a. Relative position of the blades during rotation
b. Flight path of the blades during rotation
c. Extent of an out of balance condition during rotation

Page 9 of 9