De Lackner HZ-1 Aerocycle

For the World War One bomber, see Airco DH.4.
HZ-1 Aerocycle
An infantryman in khaki uniform and steel helmet, a rifle slung on his back, stands atop a platform mounted above two counter-rotating rotors and four landing-gear legs of a strange helicopter-like craft, holding the steering handlebars of the vehicle.
Role Experimental rotorcraft
National origin United States
Manufacturer de Lackner Helicopters
Designer Lewis C. McCarty Jr.
First flight 22 November 1954
Primary user United States Army
Number built 12

The HZ-1 Aerocycle, also known as the YHO-2 and by the manufacturer's designation DH-5 Aerocycle, was an American one-man "personal helicopter" developed by de Lackner Helicopters in the mid-1950s. Intended to be operated by inexperienced pilots with a minimum of 20 minutes of instruction,[1] the HZ-1 was expected to become a standard reconnaissance machine with the United States Army. Although early testing showed that the craft had promise for providing mobility on the atomic battlefield, more extensive evaluation proved that the aircraft was in fact too difficult to control for operation by untrained infantrymen, and after a pair of crashes the project was abandoned. A single model of the craft was put on display.

  1. ^ Hearst Magazines (April 1956). "Aerocycle Lifts Soldier". Popular Mechanics. Hearst Magazines. p. 88.