Frank Piasecki

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Frank Piasecki (left) with Ronald Reagan (1986)

Frank N. Piasecki (born October 24, 1919 in Philadelphia , Pennsylvania , † February 11, 2008 in Haverford , Pennsylvania) was an American engineer , company founder and developer of helicopters and aircraft. He became known as the developer of the first mass-produced helicopter with a double main rotor in a tandem configuration , the Piasecki H-21 .

Professional background

Together with a schoolmate, Piasecki founded PV Engineering in 1943 and developed his first helicopter, a single-seat micro-helicopter. In 1946 the company was renamed Piasecki Helicopter Corporation . There he developed several other helicopters in addition to the H-21. Piasecki left his company in 1955 and founded the Piasecki Aircraft Corporation , his second company, with which he also produced helicopters.

Award

Piasecki received three major awards for his innovative work:

  • 1979 Philip H. Ward, Jr. Medal of the Franklin Institute
  • 1986 the National Medal of Technology , the USA's highest national award for technology
  • 2005 Lifetime Achievement Award of the Smithsonian Institution

literature

  • Giorgio Apostolo: World Cyclopedia of Airplanes, Volume 3 , Südwest-Verlag, Munich 1984, ISBN 3-517-00851-6 .

Web links

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personal data
SURNAME Piasecki, Frank
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Piasecki, Frank N.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American engineer (helicopter development)
DATE OF BIRTH October 24, 1919
PLACE OF BIRTH Philadelphia , Pennsylvania
DATE OF DEATH February 11, 2008
Place of death Haverford , Pennsylvania