Definition
A helicopter control input made by pushing the cyclic stick forward, which tilts the rotor disk forward and causes the helicopter to pitch nose-down and accelerate or move forward.
Plain English
Pushing the main control stick forward to make the helicopter's nose drop and the aircraft move forward.
Context Anchor
Seen in helicopter instrument takeoff procedures, especially when the pilot transitions from liftoff into forward acceleration while using the flight instruments.
Derivation
Cyclic' comes from the Greek 'kyklos' meaning circle or wheel. The cyclic stick is named for how it changes the rotor blade pitch cyclically — once per rotation — so the rotor disk tilts in the direction the stick is moved. 'Forward cyclic' simply means moving that stick toward the front of the aircraft.
Why Pilots Care
Controls the helicopter's initial acceleration and pitch attitude on an instrument takeoff, directly affecting climb path and airspeed buildup in low visibility.
Intuition Check
Forward cyclic does not mean the helicopter moves forward by engine power alone. It means the pilot tilts the rotor’s lifting force forward by moving the cyclic control forward.
Example Sentence 1
After lifting to a stable hover, the pilot applied gentle forward cyclic to begin the instrument takeoff.
Example Sentence 2
With the attitude indicator showing a slight nose-low indication, the pilot maintains forward cyclic to establish a stable climb speed.