Back in August I got to do what was supposed to be a long loop hike in the mountains up on the Idaho-Montana panhandle. Ended up cutting the hike short because of worsening weather, but got to see something that you probably won’t ever see in a helicopter, but will help your pinnacle and confined landings. The zone of demarcation is the transition layer between the smooth (laminar) flow over the terrain, and the underlying turbulent layer. Stay above the ZoD and your ride will be smoother and power requirements lower. Get under it and you will be dealing with turbulence and down drafts. Just watch the video, and if anybody’s up for it, I’d like to hear some opinions on how you might be able to best do an approach to this saddle.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3D4j8ipeRag
Excellent video! The audio is a big quiet, though…both volumes turned up and I had to cram my head to my laptop to hear.
Otherwise, nice documentation of what winds do even when relatively calm.
Not an approach I’d care to make, especially in an R22.
Thanks Sandy…fixed the audio.