The Chinese begin to fly kites. These are the world's first aerial vehicles.

Archimedes perfects the principle of the rotating screw

century Leonardo da Vinci sketches the "aerial screw" showing a helical rotor

Mikhail Lomonosov suggests a coaxial rotor machine to raise meteorological instruments and develops a small coaxial rotor

Launoy and Bienvenu solve problem of torque by designing a model made of turkey feathers with counter-rotating rotors

George Cayley builds a twin-rotor helicopter model

Horatio Phillips constructs a steam-driven vertical flight machine, the first time that a model helicopter flew powered by an engine

George Cayley describes a vertical flight aircraft called an Aerial Carriage

Alphonse Penaud constructs several model helicoptere powered by the force of twisted rubber bands

Gaetano Crocco patents an early cyclic pitch design

Louis and Jacques Breguet build their first helicopter, the Breguet-Richet Gyroplane No. 1, one of the first mechanical devices to actually hover

Paul Cornu becomes the first person to rise vertically in powered free flight

Emile Berliner and John Newton Williams develop the first vertical flight machine in the United States

Igor Sikorsky builds his first helicopter, the S-1, in Russia

Boris Yuriev builds a helicopter with a modern-looking tail rotor. He also proposes the concept of cyclic pitch for rotor control.

Stephan Petroczy and Theodore von Karman build and fly a helicopter that can carry a passenger. It achieved numerous short vertical flights restrained by cables

Henry Berliner builds a coaxial rotor machine that makes brief uncontrolled hops. His machines are considered the first rudimentary piloted helicopters developed in the United States

The Marquis Raul Pateras Pescara achieves one of the first successful applications of cyclic pitch. He also was the first to demonstrate the concept of autorotation.

George de Bothezat designs and builds a four-rotor machine that he demonstrates for the U.S. Army

Juan de la Cierva successfully flies his C.4 autogyro, which incorporated articulated rotor blades

Pescara attains a new world record by flying his rotary craft almost one-half mile in 4 minutes and 11 seconds at a height of six feet.

"Etienne Oehmichen establishes the first helicopter distance record officially recognized by the Federation Aeronautique Internationale when he flies his craft 1,181 feet."

Oehmichen is the first to fly a helicopter at least one kilometer in a closed circuit.

Juan de la Cierva flies his autogyro 25 miles across the English Channel.

Harold Pitcairn makes the first autogiro flight in the United States. It flies at Bryn Athyn (Pitcairn Field), Willow Grove, Pennsylvania.

The KaSkr-1, the first Soviet rotary-wing aircraft, flies

Soviet aircraft designer Nikolai Ilyich Kamov helps build the first Soviet autogyro.

First public demonstration of a Cierva autogyro in the United States

Pitcairn-Cierva builds the first autogyros manufactured in the United States

Amelia Earhart sets a world's altitude record for autogyros of 18,400 feet

Pitcairn pilot Jim Ray lands on the White House lawn in a ceremony where President Herbert Hoover awarded the Collier Trophy to Harold Pitcairn

Direct control rotor appears on a modified Cierva autogyro

Jacques Breguet debuts the Gyroplane-Laboratoire

Raoul Hafner creates an autogyro that features both cyclic and collective control

U.S. Army acquires its first rotary-winged aircraft, the Kellett YG-1

Jacques Breguet's Gyroplane-Laboratoire is demonstrated successfully. Breguet receives a contract from the French Air Ministry for development.

Heinrich Focke and Gerd Achgelis develop the Focke-Achgelis Fa-61, the first totally successfully helicopter

The Fa-61 makes its first free flight

Anton Flettner develops the synchropter

A Focke test pilot takes the Fa-61 to an altitude of 1,130 feet and uses autorotation to return safely to the ground

Focke test pilot Ewald Rohlfs breaks every previous helicopter record in an Fa-61

Female pilot Hanna Reitsch flies the Fa-61 and breaks several of Rohlfs' previous records

Hanna Reitsch flies the Fa-61 inside the enclosed Deutschlandhalle sports stadium in Berlin for 14 consecutive nights

Igor Sikorsky pilots the VS-300 in a tethered test flight

Helicopters are first introduced into combat in a limited capacity

"Anton Flettner develops the Fl-282 Kolibri, an improved version of an earlier synchropter. It was the first helicopter designed with a clear military mission and also the first helicopter placed in production."

The Fa-223 Drache makes its first flight. It was the largest helicopter in limited production during World War II

The Sikorsky VS-300 makes its first free flight. It is the first working helicopter that used a tail rotor to cancel out torque.

U.S. Army awards a contract to Sikorsky to build the XR-4

VS-300 breaks the world helicopter endurance record held by the Fa-61, remaining airborne for 1 hour, 32 minutes, and 26.1 seconds

Soviet aircraft designer Ivan Bratukhin designs the 2 MG Omega, based on the Fa-61

Sikorsky rolls out the R-4 helicopter. By the end of the World War II, Sikorsky had produced more than 400 helicopters for the army.

Frank Piasecki test flies his PV-2

Bell 47 makes first untethered flight at Bell facility

First rescue mission carried out by helicopter in Burma.

Nikolai Kamov designs an ultralight helicopter, the Ka-8 "flying motorcycle," which uses a motorcycle engine

The PV-3 Dogship makes its first flight, the first tandem rotor-design helicopter

"U.S. helicopters evacuate at least 70 wounded soldiers to rear-area hospitals in Luzon, marking the first time that U.S. helicopters come under concentrated enemy fire."

Bell 47 becomes first helicopter certified for commercial use

The Civil Aeronautics Authority authorizes mass production of the Bell 47.

U.S. Navy orders the XHRP-1 from Piasecki, the Flying Banana, the forerunner of the CH46 and CH-47

Bristol Aeroplane's Type 171 "Sycamore" first flies in Great Britain

Mikhail Mil designs and flies the Mi-1. It is the first Soviet helicopter to enter large-scale production

Westland flies first WS-51 Dragonfly, based on the Sikorsky S-51 helicopter. It is the first British-built helicopter to gain a certificate of airworthiness.

New York City's first helicopter station begins operating from a pier on the East River.

The WS-51 is delivered to the Royal Navy. It equips the Royal Navy's first helicopter squadron.

Westland begins licensed manufacture of the Sikorsky S-55, designated the WS-55 Whirlwind

The Soviet Yak-24 Horse, designed by Aleksandr Takovlev, first flies. It was the largest helicopter in the world at the time.

Bristol's Sycamore enters service in Britain as the HR. Mk. 14 and soon with Australia and Germany

New York Airways becomes the first scheduled passenger helicopter air carrier to operate in the United States.

French Alouette II, developed by Sud-Est, first flies and breaks the world helicopter altitude record

Bell UH-1 Iroquois makes first flight. More than 15,000 Hueys in all its variants have been built. It is the most numerous helicopter ever built

Bensen Gyrocopter B-8M begins production

Sud-Ouest and Sud-Est merge into French aviation company Sud-Aviation

The Mi-6 Hook is unveiled. It is the largest helicopter in the world.

Bristol Helicopters is taken over by Westland, Britain's primary helicopter manufacturer

First flight of the Mil Mi-8 Hip

The Bristol Belvedere is delivered to the Royal Air Force and sees service in the Middle East and Far East

Sikorsky S-64 Skycrane has first flight as CH-54 Tarhe

U.S. H-21 helicopters are used to ferry Army of the Republic of Viet Nam troops into battle, beginning "air mobility"

First armed helicopters, 15 Bell Hueys, see combat in Vietnam

"U.S. Air Force takes delivery of the first Sikorsky CH-3C Jolly Green Giant, which would become the primary search and rescue helicopter for the air force during the Vietnam War."

Mi-8 Hip enters production. More than 10,000 of all variants are produced

Bell Jet Ranger first flies.

U.S. Army issues contract to Lockheed to produce prototypes of the AH-56 Cheyenne

The 206A Bell Jet Ranger, a five-place, rotary-wing, turbine-powered general-purpose helicopter, is FAA type-certificated

U.S. Army signs contract with Lockheed for 375 Cheyenne AH-56 helicopters

First prototype Soviet Mil Mi-24 Hind "Krokodil" is produced

First Mi-24s are delivered to the Soviet Air Force.

Westland Lynx tactical utility helicopter begins flying and proves highly successful

Aerospatiale is formed by merger of Sud Aviation and several other firms

NATO first learns of existence of Mi-24 helicopter and gives it the name "Hind"

Frank Robinson forms own company and begins building "personal helicopters"

Robinson R22 first flies

Sikorsky S-70 declared winner in a competition for a Utility Tactical Transport System helicopter

First production Black Hawk delivered to the U.S. Army. It is the most popular U.S. military helicopter next to the Huey

European Helicopter Industries is created

British Lynx helicopter sinks an Argentinean submarine moored at dock during the Falklands War

U.S. awards a contract to Hughes for developing the AH-64 Apache, the next generation attack helicopter

Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk first sees combat in Grenada

First Apache helicopters delivered to the U.S. Army

EH.101 Merlin makes first flight but doesn't enter production until the mid-1990s

A U.S. Apache helicopter is the first allied aircraft to open fire during the Persian Gulf War

Aerospatiale joins with the German helicopter firm MBB to create Eurocopter Holdings.

Ultrasport 254 first flies

Two Hind helicopters shoot down a hot air balloon participating in an international air rally, killing two U.S. balloonists.

Kamov design company builds the Ka-50 Werewolf attack helicopter

U.S. Coast Guard rescues cruise ship SeaBreaze I crew by helicopter from the Atlantic Ocean