What is a helicopter BUZZ flight
If you're a person who loves the joys of rollercoasters or experience gut wrenching rides, then that feeling would be felt taking a helicopter buzz ride.
Helicopter BUZZ flight is a term thrown around in the helicopter ride circles to describe a ride that is a little more thrilling. It will involve the pilot pulling moves in quick secession as to create the feeling of a buzz in the stomach. Often the term is misleading as it could only be a pleasure flight, and nothing else.
Its not for everyone but it is designed for those you want to experience a helicopter ride that offers more exciting.
Helicopter buzz flights should in theory be fast, quick manoeuvring with high or low attitude flying near to the tree top's.
Buzz flights in a helicopter are not what they are often promoted as; meaning it won't be a buzz flight you will feel, but just a normal calm, helicopter pleasure flight.
When relying on a helicopter operator to provide that helicopter BUZZ experience, it can mean many things, so you need to ask in advanced.
Bring along the family as its suited to all ages; though children must be able to take a thrilling ride, well the elderly need to remain balanced.
Thrilling helicopter ride
The purpose of a helicopter buzz flight as oppose to a helicopter pleasure flight available throughout the UK, is in the manoeuvring action.
You will soaring the sky up to 1000 feet high with time spent making it as noticeable as possible.
When taking a helicopter flight for pleasure or photography for example, the pilot will make sure the chopper is steady as possible.
Not so with a helicopter buzz flight as there's little calmness as focus in on making the experience as thrilling as possible, well also memorable.
Meaning the buzz theme flight tend to be designed to make the helicopter ride scary if you will, or at least make your stomach turn.
Its not a dangerous flight as safety proceedings remain the same at a high standard.
Only time and space is allowed - often in remote rural areas - to fly the helicopter high up or lower to the ground in a thrilling way.
Often BUZZ goes unnoticed
Unfortunately, if this is what you wish to get out of your helicopter buzz flight then depending on where you're flying, it might be something not as advertised.
That means the pilot is not instructed to fly in a aerobatic way in terms of what a helicopter is capable of, but instead it may feel like a normal pleasure flight.
You see helicopter operators or in the case of helicopter experience day services; have branded this sort of flight buzz, but it does has different meanings.
It could mean what you would expect it to be as in a flight that gives you the buzz in the stomach, much as a ride on a rollercoaster would.
Or at least what a family or kid friendly rollercoater ride is capable of.
Buzz could also mean just that, giving you the buzz of flying in a helicopter for the first time, with the idea of walking away satisfied.
If you were in the USA, a helicopter buzz flight could mean buzzing a house up close.
Drastic pilot manoeuvring
So what is a buzz flight and how is it possible? Well its the manoeuvring of the helicopter that creates that stomach turning feeling.
Known as a buzz in helicopter terms, it happens when the pilot turns left or right as quick, dramatic fashion as possible so it would be felt by all passengers.
One other way this feeling of a buzz can be achieved is pulling up the stick - or cyclic - back or forward as to allow the helicopter to change attitude in a short time.
If either manoeuvre is made in a slow, smooth action, then this feeling of your stomach turning won't happen.
It can only be achieved at speed with sharp manoeuvring on the pilot's part.
When you get this feeling its normal to emit noise in joy or caution, but an exciting noise that would result in the pilot repeating the moves.
BUZZ flight UK only
When hearing the phrase helicopter buzz flight its a term that you will probably hear only in the UK or Ireland.
Its not a universally used term though it can be used in the commonwealth, such as New Zealand or Australia.
If hearing it in the UK then you might of seen it listed on a discount site or probably from a experience day operator; such as Activity Superstore, IntoTheBlue or Virgin Experience Days - to name a few.
What these services describe as a buzz flight could mean what I've previously mentioned, or something completely different.
If its not a thrilling, yet scary helicopter ride, it just could only be a calm pleasure flight.
So if you are in the UK its vital you do ask what the buzz flight involves; which is important to know just in case you have young children or the elderly with you.
Its not for everyone if is a thrilling ride involving manoeuvring that can be scary, so let's take a look who it is intended for?
Who's the intended recipient
If you're paying for the helicopter flight for yourself with the intent of a thrill ride to remember, then for sure this is for you.
But only if it has that buzz otherwise you will be taking a basic pleasure flight that will last between 8 to 10 minutes only.
When surprising someone else make sure its a person who loves amusement park rides.
If it doesn't have the feeling of a rollercoaster, at least then you'll know they won't be afraid to take a flight in a helicopter.
Youngest person who can take this flight would be a child who is the minimum age to fly in a helicopter - then its up to you to know if they can handle it.
Don't worry about surprising a pre-teen or teenager with this flight as it would make a nice gift for young kids.
Finally, it might not be for the elderly as the manoeuvring can be slightly demanding on the body, to which some elderly people cannot hold there own in terms of balancing.
Summary
What a helicopter buzz flight is are rides in a chopper that, in theory, should feel as if you're taking a rollercoaster ride.
Its not for everyone but it is made for the who family in mind, who don't mind that gut wrenching feeling in the stomach when riding over a bump in the road while driving.
While helicopter operators advertise the buzz flight as just that, it could be nothing at all.
Meaning it might just be a normal helicopter ride that is intended for a short sightseeing trip over a city or the UK countryside.
To achieve a buzz flight if it is the case, that is done by the pilot manoeuvring the helicopter in a way that turns left/right or up/down in quick moves...
Thus creating that exciting feeling in the stomach with adrenaline, so could result in you shaking a little too.
Its only a term used in the UK to sell helicopter ride packages with a difference.
People its intended for are those you enjoy rollercoasters or similar rides. It might be for kids or senior's, but everyone must be able to balance on there own without a struggle.
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