Helicopters have special propulsion engines that enable the helicopter to fly forward. This engine is usually arranged around the main shaft of the large rotor, or on both sides of the aircraft. Taking the Apache as an example, there are two huge cube-like things on both sides of the fuselage, and there are two round holes in front and back, which are the engines responsible for forward movement. The large rotor is only responsible for lifting and landing.
Helicopter:
As one of the most distinctive creations of aviation technology in the 20th century, helicopters have greatly expanded the application scope of aircraft. Helicopters are typical dual-use products for both military and civilian use and can be widely used in transportation, patrol, tourism, ambulance and other fields.
The maximum speed of the helicopter can reach more than 300km/h, the dive limit speed is nearly 400km/h, the practical ceiling can reach 6000 meters (the world record is 12450m), and the general range can reach about 600~800km. The transfer range with internal and external auxiliary fuel tanks can reach more than 2,000km.
Helicopters have different takeoff weights according to different needs. The largest heavy-duty helicopter currently in use in the world is the Russian Mi-26 (maximum take-off weight of 56t, payload of 20t). Currently, mechanically driven single-rotor helicopters and dual-rotor helicopters are in practical application, among which single-rotor helicopters have the largest number.
Advantages:
The outstanding features of helicopters are that they can maneuver at low altitude (a few meters above the ground), low speed (starting from hovering) and the direction of the nose remains unchanged, especially It can take off and land vertically in small areas. Because of these characteristics, it has broad uses and development prospects.
In military applications, it has been widely used in ground attack, aircraft landing, weapons transportation, logistics support, battlefield rescue, reconnaissance and patrol, command and control, communications, anti-submarine mine clearance, electronic countermeasures, etc.
In civilian applications, it is used in short-distance transportation, medical rescue, disaster relief and lifesaving, emergency rescue, hoisting equipment, geological exploration, forest protection and fire extinguishing, aerial photography, etc. The transportation of personnel and materials between offshore oil wells and bases is an important aspect of civilian use.
Disadvantages and improvements
Compared with fixed-wing aircraft, current helicopters have higher vibration and noise, greater maintenance and overhaul workload, higher cost of use, lower speed, and longer range. short. The future development direction of helicopters is to improve in these aspects.
The combat goal of short-range vertical take-off and landing aircraft is not conventional combat aircraft. Its combat goal is to control ultra-low altitude air superiority and attack low-speed targets in the air. It is responsible for accompanying our helicopter group and mainly carries out anti-helicopter and anti-aircraft operations. There is no substitute for short-range vertical take-off and landing fixed-wing aircraft for man-machine combat and close tactical support to the ground.
The Osprey helicopter can be regarded as a variant or development of the short-range vertical take-off and landing fixed-wing aircraft, but it has yet to mature and cannot replace helicopters and fixed-wing short-range vertical take-off and landing aircraft.
With the development of aviation technology in the future, when the current turboprop engine can be replaced by a turbofan jet engine, it can fully replace the current helicopters and helicopters using turboshaft and turboprop engines.
This brings us back to the fixed-wing vertical take-off and landing aircraft. This kind of aircraft is coveted by mankind. There is huge demand for both military and civilian use, especially for our country's mountainous terrain.
Since the tilt-rotor aircraft can fly levelly as a lifting body just like a fixed-wing aircraft, without the S-97, the "Jueying" has a pair of huge rotors above its head to increase resistance. Its speed and endurance The distance is far greater than that of a helicopter - the "Blue Whale" is expected to have a cruising speed of 538 kilometers per hour in the future and a range of more than 3,100 kilometers. The future payload capacity of the "Blue Whale" can reach 20 tons, which is equivalent to the early Y-8 transport aircraft. With such powerful performance, it can be used for both military and civilian purposes.
The 'Jueying' is smaller, cheaper, more maneuverable and suitable for assault transportation, anti-submarine search and rescue and reconnaissance; while the 'Blue Whale' is large, stable, can fly fast and far, and is suitable for transportation. "These two new models, which are full of science fiction, are expected to become the leaders of my country's future high-speed vertical take-off and landing aircraft.