Historic Helicopters  -  Rotorcraft  -  Helicopter Museum

Frank Piasecki, the aviation pioneer who invented the big twin-rotor helicopter that has carried soldiers into battle and rescued thousands from disaster, died February 11th 2008 at the age of 88.  Frank Piasecki was one of the original pioneers of the U.S. helicopter industry with over 60 years experience as an aeronautical / mechanical engineer, test pilot, entrepreneur and industrialist.

Mr. Piasecki married his wife, Vivian, in December 1958.  They have two daughters, Lynn and Nicole, and five sons Frederick, Frank, John, Michael, and Gregory, and a total of nine grandchildren.  Daughter Nicole is president of Boeing Commercial Sales in Japan.  Frederick and John are vice presidents of his company and carry on his work.

Frank Piasecki was born in Lansdowne, Pennsylvania October 24th1919 and became the second American to build and fly a helicopter, after Igor Sikorsky.   Mr. Piasecki studied mechanical engineering at the University of Pennsylvania and received a B.S. Degree in Aeronautical Engineering from the Guggenheim School of Aeronautics of New York University in 1940.

In 1940 Mr. Piasecki founded the PV-Engineering Forum and in 1943 flew the second successful helicopter in America, the PV-2.  The Navy awarded Mr. Piasecki a contract for development of the first U.S. Naval helicopter, the XHRP-1 "Dog Ship” in 1944.  This was the first successful tandem helicopter.  Designed, built and flown within thirteen months, the XHRP-1 had a useful load 3 times greater than any helicopter at the time.  Mr. Piasecki's tandem helicopter design led to the first practical application of the helicopter to critical Navy missions such as: search & rescue, anti-submarine warfare, vertical replenishment and pioneered the use of the helicopter for aerial minesweeping and vertical assault.

The Company name changed to Piasecki Helicopter Corporation in 1946.  In addition to over 300 HRP and HUP models built for the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps, Piasecki Helicopter produced 750 H-25 and H-21 (“Flying Banana”) tandem rotor helicopters for the U.S. Army and Air Force, as well as the Canadian, German, and French armed forces.

Mr. Piasecki also designed the world's first twin turbine helicopter, the 40 passenger YH-16, which flew in 1953 and was the world's largest transport helicopter at the time and contributed to the development of today's modern tandem helicopters; the CH-46 Sea Knight and the CH-47 Chinook.   Beginning with the French Algerian campaign in 1956 and subsequently in Vietnam, helicopters using Mr. Piasecki's tandem rotor technology have played critical roles in all major military conflicts since that time.  New models of the Army Chinook have modern, state of the art transport & special operations capability for Air Force search & rescue missions.  Boeing says Mr. Piasecki's creations, which flew soldiers to remote parts of Vietnam in the 1960s, will keep flying well beyond 2030.

In 1955, Mr. Piasecki left Piasecki Helicopter to form Piasecki Aircraft Corporation to continue research and development of advanced Vertical Take-Off and Landing (VTOL) technologies and went on to achieve a long list of firsts in expanding the capabilities of vertical-takeoff aircraft:   These efforts resulted in the successful development and flight testing of many innovative experimental aircraft, such as the "Sea-Bat" VTOL Drone, the "Aerial Jeep" flying car, the "Ring-Tail" high speed compound helicopter, and hybrid heavy lift aircraft.  Mr. Piasecki has been awarded over 25 patents in the aerospace field.   He was chief executive of Piasecki Aircraft when he died.

In recognition of Mr. Piasecki's contributions to the development of the U.S. helicopter industry, President Reagan in 1986 awarded Mr. Piasecki the country's highest technical honor, the National Medal of Technology.  Mr. Piasecki was a long standing Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics & Astronautics, an honorary Fellow and past President of AHS and member of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics.   Mr. Piasecki lectured before leading U.S. and international technical societies, and gave expert testimony before U.S. House and Senate Committees.

Most recently, Mr. Piasecki focused his efforts on development and flight demonstration of the Vectored Thrust Ducted Propeller (VTDP) “Speed Hawk” compound helicopter technology as an affordable means of upgrading existing helicopter performance, improving survivability, and reducing operational costs.

Boeing Rotorcraft said “Mr. Piasecki is the father of Boeing Rotorcraft, a visionary and an amazing designer; he will always be remembered as a pillar of American aerospace history. His daring and courageous approach to vertical flight inspired years of advancements."

Classic Rotors honors the memory of Frank Piasecki and proudly fly or display many of his rotorcraft at our museum.