Autogyro beats Helicopter for small VTOL Missions dynmicpara

[lmogden1]

great video great autogyro are there any in the uk i want to have a flight in one i got the bug last year after seeing little nellie being flown as in the james bond film by a guy in norfolk called ken wallace i didnt realise how simple a concept it was someone told me years ago it was like a helicopter but with a rear prop when ken explained i saw the light if you can respond to me please do

[Theriomalstrom]

Are they pre-spinning the rotor for short takeoffs? They don't show any take off roll at all.

[MillyVanillification]

@Theriomalstrom The rotor can be started by pressurized air from nozzles at the wing tips I think.

[madichelp0]

I was just wondering, if the rotor blades was half the length, but there was 4 instead, would it work? Or do they have to be as long as they all are right now?

[THENAGANTMAN]

THE PILOT IN THIS VIDEO WAS JOHN POTTER, THIS WAS THE 18-A BUILT IN PADUCAH KENTUCKY BY FARRINGTON AIRCRAFT. OWNED BY DON FARRINGTON, THE COMPANY WENT OUT OF BUSINESS IN 2001 AFTER DON DIED FOLLOWING AN ACCIDENT AT THE LAKELAND FLORIDA AIRSHOW. I WAS DONS CHIEF PILOT, IT WAS AN INTERESTING AND CHALLENGING POSITION. I WAS SORRY TO SEE IT END...

[dynmicpara]

@THENAGANTMAN Heliplane LLC will make 18As once their finances are secured by other projects. Nothing is over until its over!

[Kishgofu]

@THENAGANTMAN CAPS LOCK IT'S CRUISE CONTROL FOR COOL.

[Dcrail01]

@THENAGANTMAN What happened? seems like a good product. just because of one crash it ended? I do think it would be a nice RC if not full size model. Thanks for sharing. PS is this a mix with a gyro copter?

[AceTheSalmon]

Reminds me of a quote, "If the wings travel faster than the fuselage I don't trust it" xD Naw I trust most helos. Got to ride in a black hawk, thing is huge and I never felt afraid of it crashing. I dunno what do you guys think?

[rebecca81964]

cool!!

[superesonator]

Something's missing. "Here's the 18A in action" then there is video missing.

It goes from stationary rotor blades and jumps to fully spinning blades and take-off. An auto-gyro is supposed to spin up by forward momentum and wind resistance. If you edit this out we have no idea of the actual takeoff properties or the amount of runway needed for takeoff.

[dynmicpara]

@superesonator I agree with you, you make a valid point; hence I approved your post. I didn't edit the video; it's of the audience-has-no-attention-span­-sell-them mindset. I'm like you wanting to know the details. It's what I was given to share.

[superesonator]

@dynmicpara

understood!

cheers.

[aviationfreakv3]

@superesonator This bothered me a lot too, and I did some digging around and found that there was a "hydraulic clutch that allowed for the main propeller to connect by gears to the large rotor temporarily, bringing the main rotor up to speed, but then was immediately released for the remainder of flight." ;) hope this helps.

[notthistimenet]

this company hasn't produced anything for years and is dead in the water. too bad, this looks like a good commuter

[dynmicpara]

@notthistimenet By posting this video we keep the CONCEPT alive so someone can offer it commercially.

[bangmeister]

I wish I was a millionare I would totally buy one

[Ralroost]

Have they ever built dual rotor gyrocopters, like with the F-223 layout?

[1007bernie]

Looking at some of the texts here, there seems to be a lot of negative comments ,IE:did nobody see how superbly it was flown? this is an auto gyro not a Helli but could nearly be flown like a Helli,I thought it was superb and flown so professionally.

[Helikid2244]

I want a auto gyro more than a helicopter. I like there flight characteristics.

[cpnstav]

I would be interested in one of these would take off from the Fly on a boat

[YaoiMastah]

Love that 80s background music :D

Too bad most of it is outdated.. For inspecting powerlines, traffic jams and the likes we use (thanks to them Chinese) much cheaper UAV's.

[dynmicpara]

@YaoiMastah UAVs are not cheaper when they CRASH OFTEN.

[e190snafu]

Can it hover on target and use a winch to lift and rescue? I get the whole short field thing but can it rescue people at sea where there is nowhere to land? I don't think you can compare it to a helocopter because they are two totally different things. Looks like fun though.

[richietacata]

feels like im watching an infomercial.

[trumpeteerxx]

@richietacata it is one

[liOVERLOADil]

Because that's what this is.

[spitfireJEJ]

Looks a lot like the Fairchild Umbaugh from years ago.

[frankensteinmoneymac]

@spitfireJEJ I had to look up a picture of the Umbaugh on the net......and ya know what? ....it looks like this "heli-plane" is just an exact carbon copy of the Umbaugh!!! I dont think I could tell the difference between em side by side. I guess this isnt exactly a novel, new aircraft then....but still pretty cool though...and probably quite effective! A new design would maybe be more impressive, but I guess they figured why go to the trouble when they could just remake a tried and true design.

[nowoolovermine]

How much?

[canisfamilliaris]

The problem is the fixation with push props, which are dangerous for aircraft.

If they'd stop trying to make it look like a helicopter, and use a propeller at the front, then they'd be safer and more practical.

[GRAHAMAUS]

I agree, one safety problem with gyros is power push-over, PPO, which a front pulling engine wouldn't cause. Most accidents in gyros are due to PPO.

[yyyzzzz]

As a builder, and pilot of a gyro, (20 years ago), I fail to see what advantage a tractor drive would give, and the CG etc, would be far more complicated to cope with. not to mention the problems with clear forward view, I used mine for photography, it was ideal.

[paraglide01]

What is the payload weight a gyroplane can carry?

[NightShadow13642]

dose it hover ?

[2009Aviation]

These machines are quite superb. If you're still producing them, good luck ...

[2koreahawaii]

after over 22,890 hrs of flight on fixed wing and rotor wing, one of these models nearly killed me due to heavy porpise. i dont recommend it to no company what so ever, if you want to go cheap, get yourself a robinson heli.

[dynmicpara]

@2koreahawaii Robinson helos still need their parts to be constantly rebuilt. Not cheap. The point of this video is to develop a MILITARY autogyro that is FAST and AFFORDABLE.

[neuralwarp]

@2koreahawaii It always seems to be ex-aeroplane pilots and ex-airforce pilots who kill themselves with porpoising. If you learn gyros ab initio you would be fine.

[gyropilot1]

well it seems the heliplane will be soon back in to production. stay tune. there even discusion of a kit version. just check the web often

[Jet3800]

$ HIGH COST  $

[dynmicpara]

Compared to what? Bicycles?

[Jet3800]

i was referring to the text at 1:04.

[dynmicpara]

Autogyros are far cheaper than helicopters.

[J0Boa]

what's the cost of one of these?

[theevilelfminion]

@dynmicpara

How much do Autogyros cost?

[idrobinhood]

Could this gyro be attached with floats for water take off and landing?

[idrobinhood]

Could this be used as a sea gyro plane as well, with floats attached?

[idrobinhood]

The cop running, carrying the kid to the mom must have pulled a groin muscle.lol

[mgcsignup]

What's even cooler than autogyros? The sweet music in this movie!

[coatduck]

agreed :P

[inventsc]

Thisi is amazing. i am thinking about getting trained in a second generation gyrocopter at my local airfield. You can land in a field with a standing crop , when a microlight would flip over, plus shorter landings. This one takes off really quickly too.

[PistolPete2]

These gyrocopters are fun machines. One major problem they have is that they are sometimes prone to "Porpise", that is

oscillate uncontrolably up and down. Many times the main rotor will hit the tail which destroys it and it's all over.

[meggark]

It really depends on the model. The modern generation of machines are really quite safe. The large horizontal stabiliser goes a long way to solving the pitch stability issues experienced on older models and the CG issues that were a problem on older designs are now far better understood.

[FEETLE]

maan this is way beter than the moller skycar ...i though tthe groen bros made the heli plane .. anyway if i can mak one for under 3000.... then then would seal my life on this earth .. no better objective than flying for me ..that is

[airborne373]

Feetle - I think the moller skycar is a pipe dream at best and a scam at worst. It is simply impractical.

This is by all appearances a proven safe aircraft. Would love to own one.

[kaje01]

The moller skycar is a brand new and possibly revolutionary concept. It is the first true "flying car" ever developed. Yes it is still years away, but it is beyond camparision from this.

This thing is nothing more then a high dollar gyro copter. The video was extremely misleading in it's capabilities. It CAN'T hover.

As far as saftey goes, gyrocopters are one of the more dangerous ways of flying, resulting in one fatal accident for every 2,000 flights.

[C101Aviojet]

As far as safety goes, those are probably the SAFEST aircraft available. Should the engine quit, they won't stall, and can land on a dime safely as you'd normally do.

There have been many accidents, that's right, but why?

1) Until recently, there have been too many poorly designed crafts in the market, which suffered from too many stability issues.

2) Lack of proper pilot training (in fact, when the first Bensen models came out, many people used to teach themselves to fly).

[waynebvs]

single seat gyros prevail. There is no safe way to train a new pilot by radio from an instructor on the ground. Also, many of these ships are homebuilt and the first flight they crash from material failure or pilot inexperience.

[AirbikeRon]

The fatality statistics are somewhat misleading. Lack of proper training in the early days of Benson Gyros resulted in a poor safety record. With proper training, the second generation gyrocopters are providing to be very safe machines. Yes, they can't hover, but neither can an airplane. They never made the claim that they could. What's your point? The Moller doesn't have a safety record because it can't fly. If and when it does, then we will see if it's safe or not. I'm betting NOT.

[Traqr]

Ultralight gyroplanes built from plans by amatuers who then flight-test their own machines are dangerous. Production gyroplanes flown by trained pilots are about as safe as small-aircraft flying gets.

[pocketmonkey101]

are there any kits circulating for this?

[pizamoto]

Me and my best friend built a Benson gyro in 1973, then we turned it into a powered machine with an old Air Force MAC 101C motor. We had the most fun for two years with that, until we crashed it and our wives made us get rid of it. LOL

I still see Benson kits for sale pretty cheap. Hmmmm.

[Prasopchai]

That autogyro looks good & very convienient! But your description about helicopters is unfair.

My father was a helicopter engineer in the Fleet Air Arm and now he's a commercial helicopter pilot.I've visited the helicopter hanger from where he works & I'm currently studying Aerospace Tech at Uni and as far as I know helicopters are not 'rebuilt' after x amount of hours. They undergo maintance after x hours. Helicopters don't just 'fall apart' as that's dependant on the engineer & the parts.

[DaRevoolver]

I didn't know about this. Really cool

[mturgeon2]

One of these days I want to either purchase or build an autogyro. Building one would be fun, probably nothing beats the excitement of flying one around though.

[eagledriver2001]

that is one cool aircraft

[texNoz]

Very high center thrust line.. I'm surprised they didn't suffer pitch over problems.

[waynebvs]

I own and fly an 18A. The high mounted engine does not create a "pushover" condition due to the massive horizontal stabilizer, directly in the prop wash. Very stable.

[Traqr]

This is a common feature in gyroplanes - when the engine fails, the nose pitches up to increase airflow through the rotors. The prop wash through that enormous tail prevents power-on buntover.

A standard airplane requires the nose to drop in power-off to avoid a stall.

[kemlokemlo]

This company stopped trading in 2000 following the death of the owner Farrington suffered a heart attack while flying an Air and Space 18A at an airshow in April 2000. Farrington Aircraft Corporation ceased operations shortly after, and the gyroplane assets were sold at auction.

[maxxxem1]

wow i love it i will buy one soon

[JonnyTommyGuns]

auto gyros (gyrocopters) are sweet.. a good one can be made for like $2000 at home and they are legall to fly! they would be good for any small transport i dont think you can make them much bigger. If you buy an already made one it costs $40,000... still cheaper than a heli.

[zipacna1980]

A toy one for 2 grands, sure

[nunodmonteiro]

Hi, could you tell me where can I have more informations about this autogyro.

Thanks

[dynmicpara]

jarnotaerospace dott comm

[heatherandpaul2]

If the main rotor is not powered, then how did it take off???

[dynmicpara]

Relative wind of thrust making it move forward spins unpowered rotor. For VTOL rotor can be temporarily powered then de-clutched.

[heatherandpaul2]

Ok, Thanks. The same mechanism that gets the blades moving can be used to take off then disengaged.

[CrossoverManiac]

I wouldn't want the autogyro in emergency situations where hovering and vertical takes offs are the only options. However, for everything else, the autogyro would be much better.

[billgetsmail1]

exellent aircraft.

[billgetsmail1]

good stuff exelent aircraft.check out high powerd job on my favorites,its a job only for a helicopter.

[hybirdisdf]

Nice and Easy ride out to the sky.

[hybirdisdf]

Nice and easy to ride out to the sky.

[nzlook11]

To HOCKEY721,

if u watch, most times helicopters cicle the same as an autogyro anyway, presumably to save fuel and avoid flying in 'dirty' air. An autogro can do that!

[JTAY800]

Helicopters dont really like to hover if they can help it, it is much safer to be moving slowly hence usually circleing than for them to be hovering

[stol41]

Well, this machine is an autogyro or gyrocopter capable of jump start. How do you achieve this? Can the pitch of the rotor blades be altered? Further question: why do you use a 3-blade rotor? Its head is quite more sphisticated than the head of 2-blade rotor.

[hockeyi721]

but you can't hover in one spot with out stalling due to the rotors not spinning cause your not in forward flight. right?

[dynmicpara]

Correct. We call this "hop 'n hover"--the mentality that we should bend all STOL, ESTOL and VTOL aviation to it when simpler and faster aircraft than helicopters can and should be used. Have helos do what they can do best for those situations when hop 'n hover is required; all others use faster/simpler aircraft doing what they do best.

[JTAY800]

saying you cant hover in one spot isnt exactly true, that would depend on the wind speed, a gyroplane could actually hover in one spot if the wind speed was enough to keep the rotors providing lift and this would actually be safer than a helicopter hovering in the same conditions

[Thrashaero]

how do you get the rotors spinning without some kind of starter motor or some bit of runway to gain enough breeze to get them moving?

they show it taxiing, but the rotors are still, so it cant be just the wind generated by the motorized prop.

[dynmicpara]

Power from main engine spools up rotors for "jump" take-off

[Thrashaero]

which power? wind generated by the small prop or a direct drive?

[dynmicpara]

Direct drive from the engine

[Thrashaero]

how much do these badboys run? more than a plane?

[dynmicpara]

Same cost as a Cessna 152

[mcctruck333]

llthe 18a has been around since the early 60s that I know about.. I got my rating in a 18a in north west KY.

[JordiAMX]

Ricardo de la Cierva was right. ;-D

[acharad]

That thing can take off vertically and instantly.

The normal autogyros need some taxiing track to accelerate and take off like an aeroplane.

[Thrashaero]

one must ask, how does it get the rotors spinning fast enough for lift while it is stationary in the first place?

it must be motorized, or having landed soon before it took off again.

[malanga13]

no, it is connected at will to the engine and the engine spools them up. once in flight or taxing, the forward motion provides the power to the blades on top, free spinning.

[lolodotyoyo]

diff name - same thing. rotor not driven.

[ei2232]

What is the difference between an Autogyro and a Gyroplane?