helicopter

Also known as helo, chopper, whirlybird, egg beater, helicopters, H

thumb|VH-SUF, a McDermott Aviation Bell 214 taking off after refuelling. thumb|Cabin view looking out from a helicopter in flight thumb|Bell 412|Bell 412CF looking forward from the tail, showing its twin turbine engine exhausts thumb|1956 Hiller YROE-1 one-man "Rotorcycle" being tested at NASA Ames Research Center A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by horizontally spinning rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forward, backward and laterally. These attributes allow helicopters to be used in congested or

AI overview

A helicopter is a type of aircraft with horizontally spinning rotors that generate the lift and thrust needed for flight, allowing it to take off and land vertically, hover in place, and fly in any direction. Because of these unique capabilities, helicopters can operate in congested areas and situations where traditional aircraft cannot, making them valuable for various specialized purposes.

AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.

Wikidata facts

Image: LAPD Bell 206 Jetranger.jpg

Show 6 more facts

Unicode character: 🚁
Commons category: Helicopters
Commons gallery: Helicopter
military designation: H
name: Helikopter
nickname: whirlybird

Sources (4)

via Wikidata · CC0

~32 min read

Article

40 sections

Contents

Etymology
Design
Rotor system
Anti-torque
Engines
Transmission
Flight controls
Compound helicopter
Flight
Hover
Transition from hover to forward flight
Forward flight
Autorotation
Uses
Market
History
Early design
First flights
Early development
First practical rotorcraft
Single lift-rotor success
American single-rotor beginnings
Birth of an industry
Turbine age
Safety
Maximum speed limit
Noise
Vibration
Loss of tail-rotor effectiveness
Critical wind azimuth
Transmission
Hazards
List of fatal crashes
World records
See also
References
Notes
Footnotes
Bibliography
External links

The Focke-Wulf Fw 61 was the first successful, practical, and fully controllable helicopter in 1936, while in 1942, the Sikorsky R-4 became the first helicopter to reach full-scale production. Starting in 1939 and through 1943, Igor Sikorsky worked on the development of the VS-300, which over four iterations, became the basis for modern helicopters with a single main rotor and a single tail rotor.