World's First Remotely Controlled Helicopter Video
According
to the opening screen, this is possibly the world's first remotely controlled (RC) helicopter. When you read the comments
left by viewers, some ignorantly criticize the "RC" part of the title by pointing out that "RC" stands for "radio
controlled," but in fact it also means "remotely controlled," which is what this model is; there are wires attached.
The inventor was Arthur M. Young. His rotor head is very similar to the first commercially available radio controlled
(R/C) helicopters with a fixed pitch and flybar controlled by a swash plate. The clips shown are clips from the BBC's
"Century of Flight."
After Mr. Young's model comes one of the first human-sized helicopter prototypes. The
test pilot is in an open cockpit, apparently without a seat belt, and the craft is tethered to limit its motion. A
violent PIO (pilot-induced oscillation) sets in and eventually ejects the pilot, who gets struck by a rotor blade.
I decided at that point not to post the video since I hate seeing people get hurt, but a few seconds later the guy
gets up and walks away with the help of others, so I assume he was OK. A few more steps in helicopter evolution complete
the 2:29-minute film.
