Post #1694618
2026-04-05 18:14 UTC
But that hadn't stopped planners and idealists thinking that helicopters were the future, especially for rich people in a hurry (who are always a great market).
In the UK, British European Airways, a state-owned short-haul airline, tried commissioning a helicopter version of the ubiquitous 50-seater coach for routes like London-Birmingham. This led to the endearingly bonkers Fairey Rotodyne https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairey_Rotodyne with its ear-splittingly-loud rotor-tip jets.
Replies (1)
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@drmikepj@mastodon.social 2026-04-05 18:15
So you can totally imagine people saying "oh, we won't need railways. they're very much last century's technology. All we have to do is wait for helicopters to become quieter and more fuel-efficient!"