Jake Dumas

At first glance, a gyroplane looks like a small helicopter, achieving lift by means of rotor blades. However, in contrast to a helicopter, which has a powered rotor, the rotor of a gyroplane continues to spin during flight thanks solely to the air moving across the rotor blades as the aircraft moves forward.

The world’s first gyroplane, known as the Cierva C4, was developed in the 1920s by Juan de la Cierva, an engineer from the Spanish coastal city of Murcia. The Cierva C4 took flight for the first time 100 years ago today, on January 9th, 1923, traveling a distance of 180m.

De la Cierva continued to test and modify the gyroplane, and in 1925, demonstrated its latest incarnation, the C6, to the UK’s Air Ministry at Farnborough Airport. Following the success of the demonstration, he was invited to work in the UK, where together with Scottish aviator James George Weir, he founded the Cierva Autogiro Company. In conjunction with aircraft manufacturing companies such as Avro, they began to produce gyroplanes on a larger scale.

De la Cierva’s ongoing legacy

In a tragic twist of fate, De la Cierva later perished in an air crash. On December 9th, 1936, he was a passenger on an ill-fated Douglas DC-2 belonging to Dutch flag carrier KLM, which crashed shortly after take-off from Croydon Air Port, bound for Amsterdam Schiphol Airport (AMS). The accident killed 15 of the 17 people onboard.

However, despite his untimely death, in subsequent years, his work continued to pave the way for future innovators to develop gyroplane and helicopter technology.

The UK, Germany, and Japan all made use of gyroplanes at various points throughout World War Two. Since then, more than 1,000 gyroplanes have been flown by both military and civil operators around the world, with common uses including police operations, border control, and for agricultural purposes.

Today, a number of organizations continue to offer gyroplane maintenance and training, including Highland Aviation, based at Inverness Airport (INV) in Scotland.

What does the future hold for the gyroplane?

While some may have previously condemned the gyroplane to the aviation history books, it could be about to make a comeback. There is huge potential for gyroplanes to be used for short-range commercial flights. Like drones, they are being considered as part of urban air mobility projects worldwide, which look at safe, quick, and sustainable ways to transport people and goods short distances.

The use of air taxis in this way would contribute towards reduced road congestion in major urban areas, and would help to better connect previously underserved destinations.

One such gyroplane that has been developed is the PAL-V Liberty, a combination of a gyroplane and a three-wheeled car, which features a fold-out rotor for flying. After having been approved for road use last year, the Dutch-built vehicle is currently in the final stage of compliance demonstration before it can be certified for air use by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA).

What future do you envisage for the gyroplane? Do you see vehicles like the PAL-V Liberty becoming commonplace in the future? Share your thoughts by commenting below.