The transmittal of forces, which are initiated by aerodynamic action on the rotor blades, to the cockpit controls is known as what?

• A. Feedback
• B. Disk Area
• C. Drag
• D. Disk Loading

Answer: (A)

Control feedback is the reaction forces generated by the rotor acting on the helicopter and transmitted back through the control system to the cockpit. When aerodynamic forces act on the rotor blades, those forces create reaction torques and structural reactions that travel through the rotor mast, drivetrain, and linkages, and you feel them in the cyclic and collective controls. This sensed force, or “feel,” tells you how the rotor is responding and helps you judge how much input is needed or how the aircraft is reacting to gusts and maneuvers. The other terms describe the rotor or its loading in a static sense or separate aerodynamic forces, not the transmission of those forces back to the controls.