Welcome to Vertipedia!
Vertipedia is a product of the Vertical Flight Society. With data on 867 aircraft, 620 historical milestones, 599 people, and 395 organizations, Vertipedia is your "one-stop shop" for all things vertical lift.
On September 30 in the history of vertical flight:
1925 - First flight of the Von Baumhauer Helicopter
1944 - First tethered flight of the Bratukhin Omega II/G-2 helicopter
1955 - The first report is issued that explains the rotor wake geometry in hover
1956 - First flight of the Kaman HH-43B
1975 - First flight of the Hughes YAH-64 (AAH competitor)
1981 - A 'benchmark' of test data for hover airloads is extablished
1982 - First around the world helicopter flight completed (Bell 206L-1 LongRanger II)
1990 - First flight of Kamov Ka-32A
Featured aircraft
Our latest featured aircraft for September is the Cierva W.11 Air Horse .
The aircraft was designed to provide viable heavy load lifting capability for commercial operations. It employed 3 main rotors all rotating in the same direction. Torque offset was provided by thrust components from the 3 rotors through built-in shaft tilt. The aircraft had a semi-monoquoque structure, a single engine, and a long-stroke undercarriage (5ft) to cope with high rates of descent. A description of the aircraft and its characteristics can be found in the following references,
Source: "The Cierva W-11 Air Horse", J. Gordon Leishman, VERTIFLITE Spring 2003, Page 52
Source: "Discussing the Helicopter", FLIGHT Staff, FLIGHT, December 2nd 1948, Pages 665-668
Vertipedia Notes
Vertipedia notes are brief descriptions of how and why Vertipedia works the way it does. Check back often for the latest note, or view the complete list.
Why can't I find a specific aircraft in Vertipedia?
Vertipedia is being developed by a very small team of VFS members who volunteer their time to help make Vertipedia a valuable industry resource. The amount of data in Vertipedia has grown rapidly, but we always need new contributors. If you see something that you feel should be in Vertipedia, but isn't there, why not get involved and join our team?
Explore Vertipedia
Vertipedia makes it easy for you to find a range of information on vertical flight, including:
- Targeted searches of documents provided by the Vertical Flight Society, as well as public sources from across the internet
- Important milestones that have helped shape the history of vertical flight
- People who have played a role in vertical flight
- Vertical flight aircraft, such as helicopters, tilt rotors and tilt wings, jet-lift VTOL, and more.
