Definition
In a helicopter, the two foot controls used by the pilot to vary the pitch of the tail rotor blades, controlling the helicopter's heading in a hover and counteracting the torque produced by the main rotor.
Plain English
The two foot controls in a helicopter that the pilot pushes to swing the nose left or right and to keep the aircraft from spinning under the main rotor.
Context Anchor
Used in helicopter trim, hovering, climbs, descents, and instrument flight whenever the pilot needs to keep the helicopter pointed and balanced.
Derivation
Pedal comes from words meaning “foot.” That helps here because helicopter pedals are controls operated by the pilot’s feet, not by the hands.
Why Pilots Care
Correct pedal use keeps the helicopter from spinning uncontrollably due to torque and allows precise heading control in hover and forward flight.
Intuition Check
Do not read pedals here as simple footrests. In this helicopter context, pedals are active flight controls that affect where the nose points.
Example Sentence 1
As the pilot raised the collective for takeoff, she added left pedal to counter the increased torque from the main rotor.
Example Sentence 2
During a slow turn in forward flight, coordinated pedal input kept the helicopter in trim without sideslip.