A sepia tone photograph of a man standing in front of an Autogiro, an aircraft with a rotating blade on the top.

This month is the 100th anniversary of the first successful flight of the Autogiro, designed and built by Juan De La Cierva, an engineer from Spain.

The Autogiro is important in aviation history because de la Cierva solved engineering problems that paved the way for the design of other aircraft with rotating wings, like the helicopter.

Explore the activities below to learn more about the Autogiro and other rotorcraft!

On Demand Activities

Timeline: Autogiros to Helicopters      Activity: Make a Whirligig Wind Flyer      Story Time Suggestions      Spotlight Story: Women in Helicopter Aviation      Craft Activity: Make a Model Helicopter      Design Challenge

 

Timeline: Autogiros to Helicopters

Activity: Make a Whirligig Wind Flyer

Easy flyer! Join museum educator Ann Caspari as she demonstrates how to fold paper into a spinning whirligig.

Craft Time is made possible through the generous support of the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation.

A paper whirligig made by folding a piece of

Experiment with the science of force and motion, air flow and rotating wings by making your own Whirligig Flyer! 

  1. Print out the templates provided and cut along the dotted line. 
  2. Fold flyer in half along the "cut here" line. 
  3. Fold flyer in half along the "cut here" line. 
  4. Fold in the "doors" to make a handle on the bottom of the flyer. You can use tape to add weight and to keep the "doors" shut.
  5. Cut along the dotted line to create "rabbit ears." Fold one "ear" away from you (out) and one "ear" towards you (in) along the line at the top of the triangle. It should look like the one in the sample picture.
  6. Hold the flyer on the bottom and drop. Watch it spin!

What makes my Whirligig fly?

When you let go of the Wind Flyer, the force of gravity pulls it down. It doesn't drop straight down because air pushes up against the "rabbit ears" or blades. Since there are two blades, the air is pressing on the blades in opposite directions, causing it to spin!

Add a paper clip or pieces of tape to the end of your flyer. What happens when you add more weight?

How is this connected to rotorcraft?

Whirligig Template

At-Home Story Time Suggestions

Check these books out at your school or library to explore the topic of rotorcraft and the different uses of these aircraft!
 

A book cover with a yellow helicopter on it.

Yellow Copter

by Kersten Hamilton, illustrated by Valeria Petrone

A book cover with the words "High-Flying Helicopters" with an illustrated helicopter with animals in it on the cover.

High-Flying Helicopters

by Tony Mitton, illustrated by Ant Parker

Book Cover: Violet the Pilot

Violet the Pilot

by Steve Breen

Spotlight Story: Women in Helicopter Aviation

Meet two women helicopter pilots who have made an impact with their work in helping people in need.
 

  • Doctor Valerie Andre in front of her helicopter with jungle in background
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    Valérie André was a French doctor for the Air Force who learned how to fly a helicopter in the 1950s so she could help wounded soldiers in war zones.

    Because of her skills, expertise and commitment to her patients, she became the first women to fly a helicopter into a combat zone, and the first neurosurgeon-pilot.

  • Portrait of French General Valerie Andre holding flight helmet in front of a helicopter
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    In 1976 at the age of 54, she was became a General Office in the French forces, the first woman to receive this ranking.
    General André  turned 100 years old in April 2022.

  • A Black woman in a vest stands in the foreground and smiles at the camera. A red helicopter is in the background.
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    Lieutenant Commander La'Shanda Holmes is a helicopter pilot for the Coast Guard. 

    She has flown over 2,000 hours conducting search and rescue, law enforcement, and Presidential air-intercept missions (protecting the president while they are in an airplane).

  • Five black women in flight suits stand in front of an airplane.
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    Lieutenant Commander Holmes became the first woman African American helicopter pilot for the Coast Guard in 2010. 

    Pictured is this photo are Lt. Cmdr. La'Shanda Holmes (second from the left) with fellow pilots Cmdr. Jeanine Menze , Lt. Angel Hughes, Lt. Chanel Lee and Lt. Ronaqua Russell, in 2019. These pilots are role models and an inspiration for girls of color who want to fly.

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  • Doctor Valerie Andre in front of her helicopter with jungle in background
  • Portrait of French General Valerie Andre holding flight helmet in front of a helicopter
  • A Black woman in a vest stands in the foreground and smiles at the camera. A red helicopter is in the background.
  • Five black women in flight suits stand in front of an airplane.

Craft Activity: Make a Model Helicopter

Modified from a craft from The Craft Train 

The book Yellow Copter features a bright yellow rescue helicopter. Pilot La'Shaundra Holmes' Coast Guard helicopter is a bright red-orange! Now it's your turn to make your own model rescue helicopter.

Materials Needed: 

  • Egg carton
  • Brads
  • Heavy weight paper, card stock, or old greeting card
  • Push pin or thumbtack
  • Scissors
  • Glue
  • Tape
     
A piece of an egg carton cut away from the carton.

Step 1: Using sharp scissors, cut out one egg cup and one attached long piece from the larger egg carton.   

Step 2: Bend the long section around and secure it to the top of the cup to create the tail and cab of the helicopter. 

Use white glue to secure the two sections together. 

You can use a piece of masking tape to hold it in place while the glue dries.  

A piece of an egg carton cut away and bent in half.
A small nub of an egg carton cut away from it.

Step 3: Cut two small nubs from the edges of the egg carton to hold the rotors. 

Step 4:  Paint all of the egg carton piece using poster paint. You can paint a large white windshield on the front of the helicopter cab. Set this aside to dry.    

Step 5: Create the rotors. Cut 2 small strips of card (about ¼ inch wide and 2 inches long). These will be the top rotors. 

Use a push pin to poke a hole in the egg carton nub and in the middle of the two strips. Place the strips on top of the nub and insert the brad through all three holes. Turn the nub over and secure the brad inside. 

You’ve just made your top rotor assembly. 

A composite of two images. The left image shows a propeller made out of two strips of paper and a brad, with a piece of cardstock, scissors, and a ruler. The right hand picture shows two small propellers made of card stock, next to an egg-carton helicopter.
A composite of two images. The left image shows a model helicopter made out of an egg carton painted red, in the background is an egg carton and paint. On the right is a model helicopter made out of an egg carton.

Step 6: Glue the rotor assembly onto the top of the helicopter cab.  

Step 7:  Repeat these instructions for the tail rotor using 1 inch strips. Glue the tail rotor to one side of the tail. 

A model helicopter made out of an egg carton, painted red and black.

Design Challenge

What's missing from your helicopter?

To land safely, helicopters need landing gear. They can be wheels, skids (rails) or even floats. 

Take a look at the images below for inspiration and create landing gear for your helicopter using materials you have in your home, like toothpicks, chopsticks or pipe cleaners.

Once your toy helicopter has its landing gear, it is complete and ready to go on a rescue mission or other adventure!  

Silver painted helicopter. View is from the front of the helicopter.

Helicopter with wheels (Sikorsky YH-19)

A red and blue helicopter flies above the ground.

Helicopter with skids (AS350B Helicopter)

A black and white photograph of a helicopter with floats.

Helicopter with floats (Sikorsky HNS-1 "Hoverfly")

Soar Together at Air and Space is made possible by the generous support of Northrop Grumman.