Finally! Some hero did the inevitable and mounted a GoPro on the main rotor hub of a helicopter, and not just any helicopter but a Russian-built Mi-8 Hip. It gives an incredibly intimate but dizzying view of of the hodgepodge of bolts, plates and actuators that keep a helicopter thumping away through the air.
The Mi-8 has a five-blade fully articulated main rotor with hydraulic lead-lag dampers. You can see these dampers at work minimizing the retreating blade’s “dip.”
Just a little background on how a helicopter flies and how a main rotor works for those who want to understand what they are seeing in action here:
Try not to get dizzy.
Contact the author at Tyler@jalopnik.com.
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