American Military Helicopters and Vertical/Short Landing and Takeoff Aircraft Since 1941

Over the past eight decades, developments in vertical lift aircraftboth helicopters and vertical/short takeoff and landing (V/STOL) planeshave given the American military unparalleled capabilities on the modern battlefield. The U.S. has led the world in vertical lift technologies with the help of some of the brightest minds in this fieldIgor I. Sikorsky, Arthur M. Young, Frank N. Piasecki, Charles H. Kaman and Stanley Hiller, Jr., to name a fewand by having the industrial prowess to make their concepts reality. This book gives a concise historical survey, including technical specifications, drawings, and photographs of every type of helicopter and V/STOL aircraft developed for the U.S. military, from the earliest examples tested in 1941 and 1942, up to the newest prototypes.