Why are Helicopters with the Flettner-System so slow?

[Dave_Jackson]

A picture is worth a thousand words

Re Speed:

Here's a picture of an enclosed Flettner FL-282. This picture was taken 1941, a year before Sikorsky came out with the 'boxy' R-4.

Sometimes misconceptions are born out of misrepresentations (politely called marketing).

From 'IGOR I. SIKORSKY-THE MAN - His Aviation Firsts'

• 1943 ~ R-4 First helicopter to land on a ship - Bunker Hill

. . . . . . September 1942 ~ The FL-282 landed on the M.S. Greif.

• 1943 ~ R-4 First mass produced helicopter
• 1945 ~ R-4 is the only helicopter to serve in World War II

' ' ' ' ' ' ' "The Kolibri "Humming Bird" was the first helicopter put into mass production" [10 BEFORE 1943; plus 14 during 1943 and 1944] "and the only helicopter to make any significant contributions in World War II." In addition, the Focke Achgelis FL-223 was also mass produced [3 BEFORE 1943; plus 20 during 1943 and 1944] and it saw limited use in World War II.


Who're you going to believe?
I'll go with the very researched and detailed book 'Helicopters of the Third Reich' by Steve Coates.


Dave