Piasecki Aircraft

The Piasecki Aircraft Corporation (PiAC) was founded by American vertical flight pioneer Frank Piasecki to develop compound helicopters and other advanced rotorcraft after he was ousted from the leadership of his first company, Piasecki Helicopter.[1]

Not to be confused with Piasecki Helicopter.
Piasecki Aircraft Company
IndustryAerospace
Founded1955 (1955)
FoundersFrank Piasecki
Websitewww.piasecki.com

History
X-49A Speedhawk VTDP Technology Demonstrator in flight

The company's origins dated back to 1936 with the formation of the P-V Engineering Forum in 1940 and it was renamed the Piasecki Helicopter Corporation in 1946. After a falling out with other owners, Frank Piasecki and some of his design team left to form Piasecki Aircraft Corporation in 1955.[2]

The Piasecki Aircraft Corporation is based in Essington, Pennsylvania and is run by Frank Piasecki's sons; Frederick Weyerhaeuser Piasecki is chairman and John Weyerhaeuser Piasecki is president and CEO.[3]

In 2005, the company was selected by the United States Army as the prime contractor for two Future Combat Systems (FCS) unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) systems The FCS Class III UAV system contract was awarded to the company in late 2006 following a competitive downselect of four competing technologies. As part of that effort, the company flew the world's first autonomous autogyro.

The company was the successful bidder when the US Navy’s Naval Air Systems Command awarded a demonstration contract to serve as a testbed to validate the "Vectored Thrust Ducted Propeller" system.[4] Piasecki developed and flight-tested the X-49 experimental compound helicopter, with its first flight in 2007, later completing all Phase 1 requirements.

Piasecki bid on the Future Vertical Lift program,[5] but was not chosen when that project moved into its Joint Multi-Role Technology Demonstrator (JMR-TD) phase in 2013.[6]

Products
Model name First flight Number built Type
Piasecki PA-59 Airgeep 1959 2 Prototype "flying jeep"
Piasecki 16H Pathfinder 1962 Experimental compound helicopter
Piasecki PA-39 N/A 0 Unbuilt heavy-lift quad rotor helicopter[7]
Piasecki PA-97 1986 1 Experimental heavy-lift helistat
Piasecki X-49 2007 1 Experimental compound helicopter

See also

References
  1. Trimble 1982, pp. 257–258.
  2. HEVESI, Dennis (15 February 2008). "Frank Piasecki, a Pioneer in Helicopters, Is Dead at 88". New York Times. Retrieved 24 January 2016.
  3. "Company Overview of Piasecki Aircraft Corporation". Bloomburg. Retrieved 24 January 2016.
  4. "Piasecki X-49 SpeedHawk (United States)", Jane's Helicopter Markets and Systems. Jane's Information Group, 9 May 2008.
  5. The Other JMR/FVL Contenders Archived 2013-05-02 at the Wayback Machine - Aviationweek.com, April 12, 2013
  6. AVX joins Bell, Sikorsky/Boeing for Army's JMR-TD development - Flightglobal.com, 6 June 2013
  7. "American airplanes: Pa - Pi". Aerofiles. Retrieved 31 December 2019.
  • Trimble, William F. High Frontier: A History of Aeronautics in Pennsylvania. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: University of Pittsburgh Press, 1982. ISBN 978-0-82295-340-1.
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