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 20 in the history of vertical flight:
1947 - First flight of Seibel S-3
1948 - First Mil helicopter flies (prototype of the Mil Mi-1 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.
Map locations for milestones
The aim is to provide an exact location for each milestone in the database. In many cases this is not possible and all we can provide is the nearest possible, general location (usually a town instead of a specific location). The map view provided is normally chosen to provide detail of the location as well the general area to provide overall geographical context. We always welcome feedback on the accuracy of the map locations provided.
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.
