Airtest – Robinson R.22

The R 22 is also making a number of fixed-wing pilots think again about a first purchase, if they’re after a 150/Skipper/ Tomahawk type, in terms of ease of operation.

True, the first thing one arrives at when considering the Robinson is the tender range- about 240 stat!,j,fe miles with no reserve.

A second consideration is a two-place and practically-no baggage limitation.

Despite these two questions, the R 22 is just about perfect for the market it’s being aimed at flying training, general business and domestic station work in Australia; these, and the mount for a pilot who just loves to fly locally, to plop down hither and thither for the fun of it.

Although it’s billed as an ultra-light, the Robinson R 22 is no toy. It embodies many of the latest thoughts in rotary wing technology; indeed, many aficionados label the streamlined little machine probably the most important new helicopter in years.

Its true market bracket is a personal machine. But there’s much more to it than that. Rival manufacturers have bent over far enough to admit that Frank Robinson’s brainchild is potentially the greatest catalyst that has ever affected the helicopter industry.

The R 22 story began when Frank Robinson left Hughes Helicopter to start his own company . . .

He took with him a wealth of front-line experience gained during work for Cessna, Hughes, Bell and Kaman. With Gus LeFiell, Frank Robinson formed the Robinson Helicopter Company, Inc.

A more recent addition to the partnership has been Dr F. A. Foresta, who provided a “friendly ghost” capital injection during certification phases- a program that spanned two and a half years.

Robinson got through certification with only one prototype and about $1 million US- a low figure when one considers the new hardline FAR Part 27 regulations.

From the outset, Robinson went to work on a design that concentrated on simplicity and ruggedness.

He was up against a tradition that rotary wing types are more often than not subject to high-precision moving parts- and there are many of them as opposed to fixed-wing types; high loadings and other considerations, all of which added up to a “tender” reputation.

What came off the drawing boards was a clean and simple design replete with new ideas . . . And the main assets shone out like a veritable beacon; relative cheapness in purchase, and low maintenance.

Power for the new beastie was the almost inevitable Lycoming 0-320, derated from its original 150 horsepower to 124 hp. Derating provided two main things; power in hand for emergencies and an enhanced altitude performance (the motor goes right on giving out 124 horses at 5,000 feet).

Having installed a reliable and well-proven source of energy and set it horizontally low down in the airframe, Robinson thought about making helicopter flying easier for the driver.

He designed a unique cyclic control, which pops up between the seats and branches out into a horizontal beam with a vertical grip at each end. It takes literally minutes for a helicopter pilot used to other systems to convert to the Robinson cyclic, and first-timers get used to it right from the word go.

Then came the critical bit, designing the rotor head. Frank Robinson went for a teetering hinge system and introduced modifications which resulted in a patent being taken out for a unique tri-hinge rotor head.

What came out was a two-blade rotor with simple and light swashplate and blade controls, plus coning hinges to take the strain out of blade-bending loads. This latter arrangement logically allowed for a light blade.

Pilot bonuses as far as this system is concerned include 11ght control forces and the absence of significant stick-shake through the cyclic.

Even at this stage, Frank Robinson was aware that he was breaking new and exciting ground, opening up a genuinely pioneering era in the market designed to be covered by the R 22.

It was bringing a still-untried method of flying closer to the masses of fixed-wing pilots who always thought the rotary-wing flight was beyond their financial reach.

Another patent was taken out on Robinson’s teeter hinge restrain, designed to keep the main rotor level during starting and stopping, doing away with the often-seen seesaw motion typical of many two-bladers.

Considering the tenderness of many helicopters’ moving parts and their exposure to friction in both rotating and oscillating planes, Robinson came up with more surprises.

He used Teflon-lined bearings for the oscillating parts and sealed ball bearings for the rotating parts. This cut out many, if not all, grease fittings. Just for kicks, he also reduced the number of bearings by skilful and thoughtful design.

The tail rotor drive shaft, for example, boasts a single and lightly loaded sealed ball-bearing.

The main rotor system does away with the need for lag hinges and dampers, and special (and patented) maintenance-free flex couplings are used in both main and tail rotor drives.

Frank even thought up the idea of using a special heavy trucking oil for lubricating the transmission, replacing conventional light motor oil. The heavier oil tends to cling to the gears and gives good lube right from start-up.

The main rotor blades came in for a mod which currently includes a one-tenth thickness of stainless steel leading edge. According to test data, this should result in an erosion life nearly ten times that of aluminium blades.

Just about everything came in for a microscopic examination; noise levels were dampened to the ultimate degree by incorporating low tail-rotor tip speed (599 feet/sec at 100 per cent – main rotor tip speed levels out at 672 fps at 100 per cent), efficient engine muffler and acoustic foam lining to the two-place cabin.

A direct-drive squirrel-cage blower provides cooling and doubles as a flywheel.

Transmission and tail rotor drive shaft are powered through a neat group of V-belts, which engage automatically using a small gearhead motor which takes about 60 seconds after start-up to tighten the belts.

The entire airframe-life concept is built around an infinite-life capability, with non-infinite parts having an average 2,000-hour replacement interval – although this has yet to be proved in operating environments.

There seems little doubt that as the marque progresses, Robinson will look searchingly and positively at the only significant weak point in his design- low fuel capacity and an endurance of a whisker over two hours.

To round off the development story, Frank Robinson has encased his brilliant concept within an aerodynamically clean fuselage, hung simple and robust skids on it and topped the whole thing off with a US price (at last AADR report) of $39,900 about $41,000 US with most options fitted.

There’s an obvious global attraction for a machine like the R-22. Most pilots have something of the Walter Mitty about them, and secretly long for a machine of their own one fine day.

With fixed-wing airports obviously getting progressively crowded as the years pass, the machine of the future can only logically be a rotary wing type.

During AADR’s evaluation it was obvious at every rotor-beat that there are tangible advantages in owning or being able to operate a helicopter- provided that Transport Australia one day relaxes a number of over-engineered regulations regarding single-engine city flights, heliports and the use of lower uncontrolled airspace.

Using an ultra-light chopper as a personal hack- and giving pilots the benefit of having the brains and skill not to deliberately fly into dangerous situations- is a definite possibility before the end of the decade.

Most Robinson owners could get their steed into your average garage . . .

The Australian company of Heliflite Pty Ltd, headquartered at Castle Hill, has been quick to see Robinson’s potential. Managing Director Lyndsay Edmonds first saw the little marvel in the US four years ago during a business trip.

Lyndsay, who first used a helicopter (a Hughes 300) in 1976 to help him get around his flourishing building organisation and outlying sites, had already been bitten by the sheer practicality of rotary wing flights. In his own words, he was carried away by the potential.

He eventually invested in another Hughes – a 500 – and employed ex-RAN helicopter pilot instructor John Wilkie. John has had extensive offshore operation experience in the UK and European theatres of exploration.

Edmonds bought a second Hughes 300 and began helicopter charter and flying training, with John as CFI – or Senior Pilot, to give the title a naval tang. ”

At the time of AADR’s visit to Castle Hill, Heliflite was operating a brace of Hughes 300Cs, two Robinson R 22s, the JetRangers and a fixed-wing Cessna 310.

Flying training for the rotary wing section is conducted from Camden, staffed by two instructors, and takes in all phases and ratings to and including Commercial.

Training rates at the time of our test were around the $120 per flight hour mark – a bit high, but a good start which, if the price remains static for a full year, will appear cheaper when the COL advances.

With the current price of twin-engine IFR training in something like a Duchess, one can get a deal at the $90/hr mark, which in turn shows up the relatively high rotary wing training figure.

About 35 hours to PPL level is anticipated, with 80 hours for a Comm ticket, according to Lyndsay.

Be this as it may, there is already a demand for the little whizzer. Four have already been spoken for (a North-West WA owner’s pilot was undergoing conversion to a Robinson R 22 when we called – a mustering pilot who had flown fixed-wing types most of his life), and Edmonds anticipates 20 in Australia by the end of the year.

The asking price for the option-filled model we evaluated VH-CBN – was around the $65,000 Aust mark; this could fluctuate with the rise and fall of the $US.

Standard equipment includes full duals; synchronised throttle on the collective (and it’s a really well-synchronised collective-throttle marriage, as we found during our test); dual rotor-engine tacho (another simplified design with mirror needles rather than the double-needle overlapping array); chip lights for main and tail gearboxes; the usual flight instruments and warning devices.

Avionics by Collins, King or Narco come as optional gear. So does a rate of climb indicator, clock and night lighting.

Normal purchasing drill at the time of our visit requires a $1,200 deposit, to reserve a preferred customer delivery position on the R 22 production line at Torrance, Los Angeles.

An additional deposit equalling 20 per cent of the base price follows not less than 90 days before the scheduled delivery date, says Lyndsay Edmonds.

Incidentally, Robinson’s production line churned out R 22s at two a month in the early days. Now, with global attention beginning to sharpen after a good look at the tiny machine, production is gearing up to two a day.

And, from all AADR’s intelligence, the production line’s output will be hard pressed to cope with orders in future years, as general and traditional scepticism is replaced by bald-headed enthusiasm; and people begin to realise that this wonder-whizzer isn’t just a gimmick or a kid’s toy glued together like a meccano set, but a high-precision long-life machine.

The only blocker for Australian buyers could be the nonrelaxation of airship-days regulations by the relevant Government authority, making it impossible to use rotary wing types to their fullest advantage.

Wheeling out your R 22 for pre-flight and lift-off presents no sweat. We practised on a machine in Heliflite’s $200,000 aircraft facility off Windsor Road, and it proved to be a case of just flopping down two wheels on the skids and pushing effortlessly.

On the nearby helipad – which, according to Lyndsay Is limited to a miserable few lift-offs and alightings daily, to date – the evaluation Robinson, Charlie Bravo November, awaited our evaluation.

This helicopter bore the Torrance factory serial 0065. The start drill is conventional; hold the throttle to IDLE, check oil pressure after firing up, and monitor oil pressure. The engine idle is booked at 60 per cent; check the alternator ON, engage the clutch, check the clutch light OFF and warm the motor at 70 per cent rpm.

Even at this stage, it was apparent that the little Robbo 22 Is a quiet machine, with a marked lack of vibration factor.

Cyclic friction OFF, and up collective to the hover, first flicking ON the accelerator pump and checking fuel cock. It’s all rather like your little Cessna 150 if Wichita will forgive the correlation.

The motion and drills, for a fixed-wing pilot, are remarkably easy after a few minutes of serious Manual study. A concentrated browse through a recommended Manual would help most fixed-wing jockeys- a volume similar to the US Department of Transportation Flight Standards Service handbook AC (Advisory Circular) 61-138.

We were not bugged by the dreaded three Hs for helicopter operation – Hot, High and Humid – on the day of AADR’s evaluation, so the check was made in the fairest possible light.

Picking up the little ship to hover for checking power, we found there was still some in hand, thanks to the derated Lycoming. Flat-rated to about 5,000ft to 124 hp, power restriction is limited by the pilot who has to limit manifold pressure to a certain value.

Revs per minute limitation is 2,650 as opposed to a rated value of 2,700 rpm. There’s a handy power chart sitting on the cyclic crossbar defining power settings at set heights.

The test helicopter, marketing at around $65,000 which included a host of options including a floor-operated intercom button (both bodies wear headsets in the chopper under normal conditions, making a quiet cabin even more silent), picked up translational lift very quickly on demand.

Climb rate from forward motion was pegged at more than 900 fpm; the rate of climb at sea level, said the Manual, is 1,200 fpm, but we weren’t in a hurry or ISA conditions.

Pedal turns – no trouble at all, and we found that the Robinson flew like most thoroughbreds and well-made aircraft better by itself, even in the hover.

There was no real need to twitch the cyclic-mounted throttle so good was the interconnect (as mentioned earlier), apart from the time when large throttle inputs were needed at the bottom of a simulated autorotation. At that time, inputs were translated crisply.

Never-exceed speed (Vne) is listed as 102 kts IAS up to 3,000ft; above 3,000, green arc takes in 50-102 kts IAS with 102 being redline.

The evaluation aircraft was cossetted along at 80 knots on the clock at 2,000ft over the Castle Hill area, with +19C showing on the OAT (outside air temperature) gauge. That gave us about 85 knots TAS, with plenty of power in hand (we were showing 23/2500).

Autorotations are best performed with between 55-60 knots of forward speed, setting up a healthy sink rate. We didn’t do a full autorotation and ironed out the sink with coarse collective and power. A slight transition burble preceded autorotation as the airflow changed course and flirted about the upper airframe.

Our evaluation flight was brief but enough to convince AADR that this Robinson R 22 is an understated type. Its potential, once the fuel system has been enlarged to widen its range, is literally unlimited on the Australian scene.

Manual figures indicate that one has 19. 8 gallons/US total fuel, with 19. 2 usable. The engine can take 80/87 or 100, according to the book.

Precise placement in our evaluation proved to be a breeze, with full control at every stage. Yaw was minimal, and all controls Performed best with very small amounts of input.

We didn’t try an engine failure, but the drill is:

The first indications are usually a noise level change and possibly left yaw.

The low rpm warning horn sounds off when revs fall below 90 per cent.

Above 500ft, the drill is to lower the collective in the normal way and enter autorotation glide with about 60 knots on the clock. Adjust the collective to keep the rotor rpm in or near the green (97-104 per cent); when about 40ft above the deck, begin a cyclic flare to reduce forward speed.

At an estimated eight feet above the ground, cyclic should be used forward to level the aircraft, and at three/four feet begin increasing collective to cushion the landing.

Book figures on other phases include a take-off and climb out speed of 55 knots; best roe of 53 indicated; best range at 83 indicated; landing approaches conducted at 55 IAS and autorotation at 65 knots.

At all times during our brief introduction to the little Robinson, we found the panel easy to scan and laid out in logical manner…

The console includes engine/rotor tacho; manifold pressure; tail and main rotor chip warning lights; manifold temp; carby air temp; clutch actuator switch, and airspeed indicator.

Circuit-breakers lie outboard of the lefthand seat.

One could continue banging the R 22’s drum ad infinitum. It’s an exciting, precise little ship, worthy of use by everyone who wants a training machine, a docile yet purposeful little business machine, a personal wonder-whizzer that doubles as a general fun hack able to get into and out of most tennis courts . . .

It’s pretty, too.

Heliflite’s Robinsons are crated from Torrance to Castle Hill and expertly re-assembled in the Heliflite facility.

AADR is convinced that Lyndsay Edmonds has the foresight and the conviction to back up his beliefs with a product. We feel he’s only Just beaten the growing market demand for this type of machine, which needs no long runway, no prepared or level ground, and which has the ability to go just about anywhere within its hitherto limited radius.