de Lackner YHO-2/HZ-1 AerocycleOf the dozen examples of this type ordered by the U.S. Army, only a single example of the HZ-1 has survived, and this "helicopter" is currently on display in the U.S. Army Transportation Museum at Fort Eustis, Newport News, Virginia, where I photographed it on 10 September 2006.
Intended to be operated by inexperienced pilots with a minimum of instruction, the HZ-1 was expected to become a standard reconnaissance machine with the United States Army. Although early testing showed that the craft had promise for providing mobility on the atomic battlefield, more extensive evaluation proved that the aircraft was in fact too difficult to control for operation by untrained infantrymen, and after a pair of crashes the project was abandoned.
Picture added on 25 January 2012 at 08:17
