Autogyro Flying, Short Field Take Off & Landing

MTO Sport Gyroplane, takes off and lands on a short field. Filming from the cockpit and from the ground.
Gyros can land in a very short distance even in still air. 20 feet is quite doable with a little practice. Take off distance of 200 feet in still air.

Take off:
The Rotax engine driving the pusher prop is started. Pre-flight checks are performed. Release the rotor brake.
The pre-rotator is engaged to spin up the rotor (driven by PTO from Rotax). The stick is held all the way forward to keep the rotor disk flat until sufficient rpm (above 140 rpm on this model) is reached to cause the blades to cone up. Moving the stick rearwards prior to this could allow the blades to strike the tail or prop. On a rough field the rpm must be higher (200 rpm on this model) before the gyro is allowed to move, or else the bouncing could cause the blades to flex down and strike the tail or prop.
So the rotor is slowly brought up to 200 rpm, to avoid undue stress on the pre-rotator system.
Then handbrake is released to ensure there are no hangups before, in unison and smoothly, the stick is brought all the way back (pre-rotator is also disengaged) and the throttle is opened wide.
The gyro will accelerate quickly and around 30 kts the nose wheel will lift. Push the stick smoothly forward to keep the nose wheel just above the ground (this is known as balancing). On a normal hard surface runway, this condition would be maintained for a few seconds until the gyro lifts off around 50 kts. In this case because of the rough surface and additional surface drag we pop the gyro off at 40 kts. Because the gyro hasn't yet reached climbout speed, we stay level in ground effect. At 55 kts we pull back and climb out, like going up in a fast elevator.

Landing:
Throttle back sufficient to steepen the glide-path to intersect the landing point while maintaining 55 kts. Near the ground ease the stick back to round out, to bring the gyro parallel and within a few feet of the surface. Then wait until you feel the gyro sink, then flare. As soon as the gyro touches down close any remaining throttle and keep pulling back on the stick. Don't let the nose wheel touch until almost stopped (balance). Ease the stick forward to stop the gyro moving backwards, apply the rotor brake and wait until rotor rpm is under 200 rpm. Then move the stick all the way forward.

Flying:
The open cockpit flying makes flying real, you can feel the air and get a fabulous view of the outside world. It is the purest experience of flight. The low sided cockpit makes it feel like you have no visible means of support. The aircraft is not a protective shell, but an extension of your body, moving as you move. It's a brilliant experience, I always feel elated for hours after flying.
This gyro is wonderful to fly, sensitive to control inputs but quite stable.

Comments and video are not intended as instruction on flying a gyro. Never attempt to fly a gyro without adequate tuition by a qualified CFI. Please do not attempt to copy any flying maneuvers shown in this video as they could result in serious injury and death!!!
Filmed , Apr 11, 2014