The Marquardt Company was established in 1944 by Roy E. Marquardt, a Cal Tech trained aeronautical engineer, for the purpose of studying subsonic ram-jet engines. However, development work was also done on pulsejets, a very simple type of jet engine in which combustion occurs in pulses. This type of propulsion was used in the famous World War II German V-1 buzz bombs. Pulsejet engines can be made with few or no moving parts, and are capable of running at static conditions.

Marquardt applied pulsejets in a helicopter test-bed. The M-14 or "Whirlajet" (N4107K), was a one person, open cockpit, experimental, first of its kind, helicopter with 884 cm (29 ft) diameter blades, and a simplified steel tubing structure. Directional control was ensured by means of a rudder. At each tip of the two-bladed rotor were located pulsejet engines similar to this artifact. It flew its test flights in 1948 but was never commercially built.

 Display Status

This object is not on display at the National Air and Space Museum. It is either on loan or in storage.
Object Details
Date Circa 1940s -1950s Country of Origin United States of America Type PROPULSION-Turbines (Jet) Manufacturer Marquardt Aircraft Company, Los Angeles, California
 Physical Description Type: Pulsejet Configuration: 6 combustion chambers and exhaust tube Dimensions 3-D: 116.8 × 29.2cm (3 ft. 10 in. × 11 1/2 in.)
 Materials HAZ MAT: Cadmium
Non-Magnetic White Metal
Ferrous Alloy
 Inventory Number A19710988000 Credit Line Transferred from the U.S. Navy Data Source National Air and Space Museum Restrictions & Rights Usage conditions apply
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