"One Man Amphibious Copter" #shorts U.S. Army HZ-1 Aerocycle
2,193One of the most prominent concepts in the military aviation in 50s and 60s was the "flying platform." Among the first flying platforms was the de lackner HZ-1 aerocycle, built by the De Lackner helicopter company. It was designed to carry one combat ready soldier to perform reconnaissance mission, and its maximum speed was 75 mph, with a range of 15 miles. In the mid 1950s, Charles H. Zimmerman, an engineer at national advisory committee for aeronautics, proposed that if we place the rotors on the bottom of the aircraft, the pilot would be able to steer it just by shifting his weight. This concept became known as "kinesthetic control," and prototypes were developed. The HZ-1's first test flight took place on November 22 1954, at the Brooklyn army terminal. The test flights were successful, and the U.S. army ordered 12 aerocycles for further evaluation. Total 160 flights with duration of some 15 hours were carried out, but the aerocycle was not that luck! After a pair of accidents the project was abandoned! But if you wanna see it, one of the copies can still be seen at the U.S. Army transportation museum at fort Eustis, located in Newport News, Virginia.
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