Kellet YG-1 Autogyro

[coastdef]

Date not given, location is likely to be Fort Sill, OK based on other pictures in the collection.



Regards,

Andy

[tom d. friedman]

earhart was 1 of the 1st to fly them successfully, but i think also 1 of the first to prang 1 as well.

[Baldeagle]

There's a similar one at MAAM in Reading,
http://www.maam.org/images/KELLETT1.jpg
waiting to be restored

AE was the first woman 'giro pilot, but there were lots of autogiro pilots before her, first autogiro flight was in 1923 I think, and she started flying them in 1930.




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[Elwyn]

Earhart flew an autogyro through Oklahoma but it had "Beechnut" in big letters on the side.
http://www.gtrnews.com/greater-tulsa-reporter/2542/the-depression-years-tulsa-aviation-flew-through-the-1930s

Last edited by Elwyn on Mon Apr 13, 2009 6:11 am, edited 1 time in total.

[wacoykc]

Amelia flew a Pitcairn not a Kellet if I recall correctly

[Jiggersfromsphilly]

Amelia flew a Pitcairn not a Kellet if I recall correctly

Here is a link that describes her altitude record setting flight in a Pitcairn.


http://www.gyroplanepassion.com/Amelia_Earhart.html

.

[Glyn]

See what the author of the piece wrote in typically breathless fashion.!

On April 8, 1931 a Pitcairn PCA-2 autogyro sits on the field as a thin woman, Amelia, looks the craft over. It has four large fully articulated rotors

Oh no it does not! It has a single four-bladed rotor. I have been called 'nit-picky' on this site for trying to be accurate. I shall have to get used to that as I have no intention of giving up attacking sloppy journalism.

[tom d. friedman]

the pitcairn / beechnut sponsored auto gyro fact is correct. you win a stick of gum!!

[Zachary]

The funny thing about Earhart and the Pitcairn Autogiro was that it was just another way to gain publicity for herself (at least in husband George Putnam's eyes). At least the altitude record was good publicity for both Pitcairn and herself. Then she tried to become the first to fly an Autogiro across the country, but was beaten by about a week by John M. Miller. Miller flew his PCA-2 "The Missing Link" across the country and back, and continued to barnstorm in it in the following years. He later became a test pilot for Kellett and was one of the two pilots that flew the mail off the Philadelphia Post Office roof in a Kellett. He also did all the water testing of each and every Grumman Duck for the Columbia Aircraft Corporation.

Here's an interview I did with him back in 2002 (the description in the sidebar of the video player has the wrong year). He was 97 at the time and lived to be 102 - he was still flying at age 100! Neat guy.

http://link.brightcove.com/services/pla ... 1519675124

Zack