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Ruskin mailman's political stunt has world asking: what's a gyrocopter?

 
Published April 17, 2015

TAMPA — Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson told a reporter that Doug Hughes' now infamous gyrocopter literally "flew under the radar" when it landed, unscathed, on the Capitol lawn Wednesday in Washington.

But first he had to ask: "What's a gyrocopter?"

You're not alone, Mr. Secretary.

The contraption, which quickly became a trending hashtag on Twitter, is essentially a flying bicycle with a rotating blade and forward propeller that keeps it in the sky.

The Tampa Bay Times asked aviation experts to explain how it works.

A gyrocopter has all the flying capabilities of a helicopter, except that it can't hover, said Brent Drake, vice president of the Popular Rotorcraft Association. Like Hughes' craft, most are open-air, he said.

Amelia Earhart used to fly one, and they have been used to deliver the mail. The propeller on the back of the machine runs on gasoline, working with the rotor blade on top to create enough forward and upward motion to lift it into the sky.

"Once it reaches a certain point, it creates lift," Drake said.

The average gyrocopter can reach speeds of 60 to 90 miles per hour and soar as high as 10,000 feet. Drake said a pilot could fly 80 to 90 miles, or an hour and a half, before needing to refuel.

What's the appeal?

The gyrocopter, or gyroplane, is cheaper and easier to maintain than a plane or helicopter, said Ken Fietz of the National Aviation Academy in Clearwater.

The aircraft is used almost exclusively for recreation, and the gyrocopter community is very small, probably only a couple of thousand people in the United States, Drake said.

Pilots take them for cruises along the beach, over the desert or above farm fields to check for maintenance issues.

"They are used as an operation platform," Fietz said.

Do you have to have a license?

Forty hours of flight training is required of pilots who want to fly at night or into a large airport, Drake said. If not, a pilot can earn a sport pilot rating, which only requires 20 hours of training. If the gyrocopter weighs more than 254 pounds, Drake said, the pilot must get a license. Most machines exceed that mark.

How much does it cost?

A gyrocopter can cost as much as $15,000. Most are assembled from a kit and fairly easy to piece together, Fietz said.

Where can't you fly them?

Restricted airspace, like the area around the Capitol, where Hughes landed his gyrocopter. Military bases and large airports also are banned.