How Does a Helicopter Fly?

Have you ever wondered how a helicopter can rise straight into the sky, hover in one place, and fly in almost any direction?

Unlike an airplane, a helicopter uses huge spinning rotor blades to create lift. But getting one safely into the air takes an amazing combination of engines, gears, spinning blades, aerodynamic forces, and carefully coordinated controls.

How Does a Helicopter Fly? takes curious young readers inside a helicopter to discover the fascinating engineering that makes this incredible aircraft possible.

Kids will discover how the engine sends power through gears and shafts to turn the rotors, how the main rotor blades act like spinning wings, and how moving air creates the lift needed to overcome gravity.

Then step into the cockpit to discover how pilots use the collective, cyclic, and pedals to control the helicopter. See why the tail rotor is important, how a helicopter hovers, how it moves forward and turns, and how the pilot brings it gently back to the ground.

With colorful illustrations, fascinating cutaways, and easy-to-understand explanations, How Does a Helicopter Fly? transforms the science of helicopter flight into an exciting adventure for young readers.

Perfect for curious kids who love helicopters, aircraft, machines, engineering, aviation, and discovering how things work!

Part of the How the World Works series-educational books that reveal the amazing people, machines, and systems behind the world we see every day.