answer from Yahoo! Answers
The reason pilots (at least the Captain or PIC) sit on the left
side has to do with original 2-seat single-engine prop-driven
planes, and Newton's third law which states that for every action
there is an opposite and equal reaction.
In most original aircraft engine designs, the aircraft propellor
rotated to counterclockwise when viewed from the pilot's seat. Mr.
Newton says that when you apply power, the aircraft will rotate
along its longitudinal axis clockwise, or to the right. Therefore,
if the pilot occupies the left seat when s/he is flying by
him/herself, then that slight change in the lateral Center of
Gravity will help compensate for the prop torque. Manufacturers
incorporated this tendency into the early designs to help
compensate for this torque effect. So the left seat PIC position
has been standard practice since the 1930's, even though more
modern props turn clockwise.
It has nothing to do with left-handed vs right-handed pilots.
Actually, the majority of people are right-handed (and therefore
most pilots are right handed) and this means flying the aircraft
with your left hand (on a conventional yoke system) and using your
dominant hand for the throttle and other controls and instruments.
Being L handed or R handed makes no difference on the capability of
the pilot to control an aircraft.
On multi-engine planes and all large jets, there is no measurable
torque effect, and both pilot positions have equal controls,
instrumentation and visibility. It is just a custom that the PIC
sits on the left. There is certainly no advantage in flying one
side or the other.
As for single-pilot helicopters, some types can only be flown from
the L (eg, civilian Hughes 500), other types only from the R (eg,
Bell 206, most Astars, A109), and other types can be flown from
either side (EC120, Bell 212). This has to do with the lateral
center of gravity and dissymmetry of lift from the rotating wing. I
personally prefer to fly a helicopter from the R seat for normal
operations (even though I flew 767's from the L seat for 22 years)
because the cyclic is normally operated by your R hand, and that
makes it easier to work radios and navigation systems with your
left hand - as opposed to moving your collective hand (L) to the
cyclic (R) and then adjusting the radios. When it comes to long
lining, I have no preference L vs R, as long as the pilot's seat is
close enough to the edge of the aircraft so you can see the
load.
