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A yellow gyroplane on the ground with the rotor turning

Ground school lesson

Steep turns: load, not just bank

A steep turn looks like a bank-angle exercise. What it actually tests is whether you can hold altitude while the rotor is working harder than it does in level flight.

My Hangar

Lesson 6 of 27 · 2 steps · about 6 minutes · ends with a quiz

What you will be able to do

  • Explain why load on the rotor increases as bank angle increases.
  • Fly a steep turn holding the standard bank angle within FAA tolerances.
  • Divide attention between the turn and your surroundings through a full circle.

  1. Step 1 of 2

    What a steep turn actually tests

    In a level turn, the rotor has to produce more lift than it does flying straight, because part of that lift is now angled sideways to turn the aircraft instead of straight up to hold altitude. The steeper the bank, the more total lift is needed to hold the same altitude, which means the rotor is working under a higher load.

    The FAA standard

    • 30° bank, ±5°.
    • Roll out on the entry heading, ±10°.
    • Hold entry altitude, ±100 feet, and airspeed, ±10 knots.
    • No lower than 600 feet AGL, performed in both directions.

  2. Step 2 of 2

    Flying it

    A coordinated 30 degree steep turn The aircraft banks 30 degrees and rolls through a full 360 degree circle, returning to the entry heading and altitude. Entry heading 30° bank held constant through 360° of turn
    Roll in, hold the bank and altitude through the full circle, roll out on the same heading you started on.

    Enter with a coordinated roll into the bank, hold altitude with back-pressure as the load increases, and divide attention between the flight instruments and your orientation over the ground. Perform it in the opposite direction as well; the FAA tests both.

Check yourself

3 questions. Pick an answer to see whether it is right and why.

  1. What is the standard steep turn bank angle and tolerance?

  2. Why does the rotor work harder in a steep turn than in level flight?

  3. What is the minimum altitude for practising a steep turn?

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FAA Sport Pilot Practical Test Standards, Gyroplane, Area of Operation V (public domain). Recommended airspeed for the maneuver is your aircraft flight manual's.