Helicopter

Igor Sikorsky, USA, patents and the 1939 VS-300. The single-rotor layout that flies everywhere.

Overview

Sikorsky, already famous for giant flying boats, patented and flew the VS-300 in 1939 with one main rotor and one tail rotor, the configuration nearly all helicopters use today. Earlier patents from 1931 covered his designs after Focke's and others' experiments. The R-4 became the first production helicopter in 1942, rescuing downed crews in Burma by 1944. Sikorsky Aircraft still builds Marine One. The tail rotor tamed torque; the rest is his tail number.