Watch this guy get a helicopter-boat hybrid to fly

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Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2018/08/01/watch-this-guy-get-a-helicopte.html

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“ex-aircraft designer”?

‘cause that’s who I want designing the flying-boat-ski-thing I’m sitting in.

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Guys, just a quick FYI: A gyrocopter is NOT a helicopter.

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The correct technical term for this contraption is “whirlybird”.

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I hope Colin Furze sees this post.

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First, this is an autogyro glider. It is NOT a helicopter.

Second, the FAA would certify it if it met all Federal Airworthiness Regulations for autogyros. There are thousands of certified production and home built autogyros.

The sensationalism and falsehoods represented in this article are atrocious and the author should at least attempt to maintain some semblance of truth.

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Is it really any more dangerous than all those paragliding setups you see?

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There were also military versions of this, used on WWII German U-boats:

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I think it’s actually “gyrocopter”. As I understand it, “whirlybird” was slang for helicopter.

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gyrocopters are the bomb - the top rotor is a freewheel, the prop pusher from behind gives it the go

i’d second the comment the author is being overly sensationalistic - AutoGyros have been around for decades

http://www.aeroexpo.online/aeronautic-manufacturer/two-seater-gyrocopter-445.html

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Did not know that! I assume you still need a pilot’s license for a gyrocopter, right? I hope the general public can’t rent one of these on vacation. There’s no way the FAA would let the general public just jump in one and take off behind a boat, I assume. Does the boat or other vehicle towing it need any special licenses?

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first of all: do want.
second of all: the reason this did not become a thing was because decapitations, right?

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I’m pretty sure you don’t need anything but a sense of your own invulnerability if the thing is tied to a boat…same as a hang glider.

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It might be considered a variation of parasailing (paragliding while tethered to a boat) which the FAA doesn’t usually get involved in. On the other hand, both the Coast Guard and NTSB do, so I have a feeling one of the above Gov agencies would take a marked interest if one of these started buzzing the local beach.

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You could put a motor and a propeller on it, and it would be an ultralight. You still wouldn’t need a license for it.

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Bah. Bring back the Rotodyne, I say.

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