Welcome to Vertipedia!
Vertipedia is a product of the Vertical Flight Society. With data on 861 aircraft, 613 historical milestones, 474 people, and 393 organizations, Vertipedia is your "one-stop shop" for all things vertical lift.
On September 19 in the history of vertical flight:
1935 - First practical use of cyclic pitch (Hafner A.R.III)
1969 - First flight of the prototype of the Mil Mi-24 Type series
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.
Milestone title format
The title of a milestone is meant to succinctly summarize the milestone. As such, the title generally follows the following format,
Description of event (related aircraft designation)
e.g. First helicopter shipboard take-off and landing (Flettner Fl 265 V4)
The inclusion of the aircraft designation is important to help in relating an aircraft to a milestone through the Contributor functions. The details of the event can then be included in the description of the milestone.
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.
