Helicopter innovator dies at 81
Aviator Stanley Hiller Jr. founded aircraft museum in San Carlos
By Todd R. Brown, STAFF WRITER
Stanley Hiller Jr., a pioneer in vertical flight and founder of the Hiller Aviation Museum, died Thursday of complications of Alzheimer's disease at his home in Atherton at age 81.
The Hiller Aviation Museum opened in 1998 at San Carlos Airport and features a variety of revolutionary aircraft.
"He was always just looking for something better and more interesting in the future," said Alan Waufle, CEO of Hiller Aviation Museum, Friday night. "Probably 'what if' was probably a good term for him — 'What if we did this? What if we tried that?'"
Hiller was born November 15, 1924, in San Francisco. As a boy, Hiller ran his own toy race car business. By age 18, the precocious son of an aviation pioneer from San Francisco was designing his own flying machines.
"He invented the helicopter as it is known today," said Stephen Hiller, Stanley Hiller's son, in a 2004 interview.
In 1944, Stanley Hiller Jr. designed and flew the XH-44 helicopter, the first to be built and piloted on the West Coast. With that success, Hiller founded United Helicopters in Palo Alto, which later became Hiller Aviation Company and moved to Menlo Park. In 1945, the Hiller 360 was the first helicopter to be certified by the FAA.
Hiller's fledgling company developed more than 20 helicopter models and produced more than 3,000 aircraft.
"The range of aircraft developed by the Hiller Company is absolutely astounding," Bob Erdman of the Society for Aviation History wrote in an 2004 story on Hiller.
The company's proposals included such concepts as a flying submarine, flying bridge and flying jeep for the armed forces.
Hiller's more down-to-earth ideas included the UH-4 helicopter with counter-rotating blades, which was intended as a commuter craft. Another innovation was the NC-5, a chopper that used "Rotormatic Control System" blades for unheard-of stability.
Hiller is survived by his wife of 49 years, Carolyn Hiller; sons, Jeffrey and Stephen Hiller; seven grandchildren.
Memorial services for Hiller will be held at 1:00 p.m., Friday, May 5, 2006, at the Hiller Aviation Museum, 601 Skyway Road in San Carlos.
In lieu of flowers, memorial funds have been established in his name for the Hiller Aviation Institute and Museum Educational Fund.
The next big event at the Hiller Aviation Museum is the annual "Vertical Challenge" air show from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. June 17. It will feature more than 50 helicopters on display and in action. The museum is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., seven days a week at 601 Skyward Road, San Carlos, just off Highway 101 at San Carlos Airport. For more information, call (650) 654-0200 or visit
http://www.hiller.org.