The
Focke-Wulf Fw 61 was the first fully controllable helicopter. It first flew in
1936. It is more properly known as the Fa 61 as it was a research aircraft of
the Focke Achgelis company. Prof. Heinrich Focke and engineer
Gerd Achgelis started the design for this helicopter in 1932. The airframe was
based on that of a well-tried training aircraft, the Focke-Wulf Stieglitz. A single
engine drove twin rotors, set on outriggers to the left and right of the fuselage
- the counter-rotation of the two rotors solved the problem of torque-reaction
as also shown by Louis Bréguet Only a prototype was produced. In February
1938 it was demonstrated by Hanna Reitsch indoors at the Deutschlandhalle sports
stadium in Berlin, Germany. It subsequently set several records
for altitude, speed and flight duration culminating, in June 1938, with an altitude
record of 3,427m and a straight line flight record of 230km. | 
