What is an autogyro, and why would I ever want to fly one?
What is an autogyro?


Autogyros have been around for decades. They are also known as gyrocopters, gyroplanes, and autogiros. Gyroplane is the official FAA designation. It is basically a rotary wing aircraft just like a helicopter because the rotor  provides lift instead of wings like conventional airplanes.Since the rotor is not powered, an Autogyro uses a separate source for propulsion, just like an airplane. In other words, an Autogyro uses a propeller for forward motion and a freely rotating, un motorized rotor for lift.

http://www.jefflewis.net/autogyros.html


  How do you fly one?


There are only three flight controls: a control stick, rudder pedals and a throttle.

Autogyros do not stall, so it is a lot safer to fly an Autogyro than say a helicopter.You can expect control responses to be faster in a Autogyro than an airplane because you are moving the whole wing  instead of just a  tiny control element attached to a wing. Generally speaking, the control response will not be as quick as a helicopter because of the lower operating rpm of the Autogyro’s rotor system.The critical task in flying a Autogyro is managing the energy of the rotor. If you fail to maintain air flowing through it, the speed drops drastically, and so does the rotor's ability to provide lift.