Cabri G2 loses lift/power if stop moving forward, even tho Collective at maximum

Bug Reporting Hub Aircraft & Systems
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ISSUE DESCRIPTION

Description of the issue:
Career mode: While doing the first helo Certification (“Commercial Pilot License - Rotorcraft”) the Cabri G2 would lose lift/power if I stopped moving forward. I could lift off okay, and reach elevation, but while moving towards the destination, if at any point (after mid-way to the destination) I stopped moving forward (i.e. moved Cyclic back towards a neutral position), the helo would gradually drop to the ground, even tho Collective was at maximum. This happened four (4) times trying to get that Certificate: twice about halfway to destination; and twice at the destination, preparing to descend (leading to a crash). I finally got the Certification to pass, but I had to be continually moving horizontally. This is MS FS v1.2.8. Later Career Mode missions (and World Photo missions) with the Cabri G2 worked okay … it was only the initial certification.

If applicable, which aircraft is experiencing this issue: Cabri G2.

[PC Only] Did you remove all your community mods/add-ons? If yes, are you still experiencing the issue? I’m on XBox.

FREQUENCY OF ISSUE

How often does this occur for you (Example: Just once, every time on sim load, intermittently)? Every time during the first helo Certification mission. But not in later missions involving the G2.

REPRODUCTION STEPS

Please list clear steps you took in order to help our test team reproduce the same issue:

1.Career mode: While doing the first helo Certification (“Commercial Pilot License - Rotorcraft”)
2. Lift Off and proceed half way (or more) to destination
3. Stop moving forward (use Cyclic to stop horizontal motion)
4. Observe that helo starts dropping towards ground even tho Collective is at Max.
5. Dropping cannot be stopped, and craft will crash or land on ground. This happens on the way to destination, or when over the final destination point.

YOUR SETTINGS

If the issue still occurs with no mods and add-ons, please continue to report your issue. If not, please move this post to the User Support Hub.

What peripherals are you using, if relevant: Hotas, but not relevant.

[PC Only] Are you using Developer Mode or have you made any changes to it? I’m on XBox

[PC, MSFS 2020 Only] Are you using DX11 or DX12?

[PC Only] What GPU (Graphics Card) do you use?

[PC Only] What other relevant PC specs can you share?

MEDIA

Please add a screenshot or video of the issue occurring.

[END OF FIRST USER REPORT]

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Do you have the same issue if you follow the OP’s steps to reproduce it?
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Maybe that is the problem… if the collective is at maximum you might be over torquing the engine and causing the rotor RPM to drop to a point where the rotor is no longer generating sufficient lift.

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Hmmm, I’m not sure. I was flying flat-and-level towards the destination, so I suppose the Collective was about 75% or so, not max. After I stopped my forward motion, then the helo started to drop, and I pulled up on the Collective (to maximum) but nothing would stop the downward fall.

Also, it only happened in that helo Certification mission/exam. Later Career missions with the G2 did not have the problem.

It is not impacting my play: I got the Certificate on my fifth try, and I moved past it. My primary goal in reporting the bug is to notify the developers and other users.

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I have not tried the career path, but your description of “stopped forward motion, then helo started to drop, pulled up on collective” sounds a lot like you might have entered VRS vortex ring state. If so, pulling up on the collective will not save you, tipping forward slightly or banking sideways will get you out of the downward flowing VRS air.

Did the training include VRS recovery?

AI Overview

Learn more

There are multiple ways to recover from a vortex ring state (VRS) in a helicopter, including the traditional method and the Vuichard Recovery Technique:

  • Traditional method

Lower the collective to regain cyclic authority and use the cyclic to apply lateral motion. This moves the helicopter out of the downwash and into translational lift. The pilot can then increase power to climb away.

  • Vuichard Recovery Technique

This technique uses a combination of all three controls to recover more quickly and reduce altitude loss:

  1. Increase the collective to climb power

  2. Apply the appropriate pedal to maintain heading

  3. Apply the appropriate cyclic to generate lateral movement

  4. Recovery is complete when the rotor disc reaches the upwind part of the vortex

The Vuichard Recovery Technique is recommended for specific operational conditions, such as a rear wind in final approach or a helicopter in front of an obstacle. The average height loss during the recovery procedure is 20 to 50 feet, depending on the duration of the maneuver.

Pilots should initiate recovery action at the first indication that they may be approaching a VRS.

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Thanks for the information about VRS. I will try to replicate the issue and try out that recovery process. The description above seems consistent with what I experienced (… although it is peculiar that I never experienced it in later missions).

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6

A similar thing happened to me during the heli training activities. I realized there was a default binding that was setting the throttle to zero.

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A similar thing happened to me during the heli training activities. I realized there was a default binding that was setting the throttle to zero.

Hmm, that sounds plausible. On the other hand, it happened four times to me, in similar situations, so it is unlikely I’m hitting a particular key. But still, maybe I did. I’ll review the bindings and see if some key is assigned to “set Throttle to zero”. Reviewing/managing key bindings on XBox is rather cumbersome (I’m envious of players on PC :slight_smile: )

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I had something similar ish. During the training, the “assistance” from the game was being interfered with by my throttle settings and such. I had to do a VRS recovery and extra fly the helicopter to fight the fail of the assistance from the instructor.

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I had something similar ish. During the training, the “assistance” from the game was being interfered with by my throttle settings and such. I had to do a VRS recovery and extra fly the helicopter to fight the fail of the assistance from the instructor.

Alright, that sounds like a very plausible explanation, because I have a few Assistance features enabled. I can see how the FS software could get confused by conflicting instructions between: (a) the Assistance, (b) my manual inputs, and (c) the current flight dynamics.

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the Cabri flight model is really c××p. the people who programmed this chopper have never been in a real Cabri that’s for sure. no power, the torque needle that oscillates constantly, the governor that doesn’t really work. not to mention the dashboard that is unreadable in VR…

The Vskylab Cabri g2 in x-plane 11 is 100 X better , no comparison. Incredible that MS/Asobo make an helo like this in 2025…

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Indeed. I learned to fly helicopters with that vSkyLabs Cabri G2 in xp11 and 12. I flew the xp11 vSkyLabs LongEZ for hundreds of hours - loved it.

The MSFS 2020 and 2024 LongEZ stall and lift angle is wrong causing me to need 10 kts higher landing speed and unable to keep the nose wheel up as long as should.

Really miss vSkyLabs detail, support and availability.