Skip to main content

Civil Aviation

Society: AIAAMain Category: Aerospace & AviationSub Category: AviationEra: 1910-1919DateCreated: 1911 Air BaseGetafeZip: 28906Country: SpainWebsite: https://www.aiaa.org/uploadedFiles/About_AIAA/News_Room/GetafeHistoricSitePR.pdfCreator: de la Cierva, Juan

Getafe Airfield was the site of the world’s first successful rotorcraft flight, on January 17, 1923. Lieutenant Alejandro Gómez Spencer piloted a C.4 Autogiro designed and built by Juan de la Cierva, who tested a series of autogiros between 1920 and 1924 at the Getafe site. Cierva’s autogiros introduced important technologies and flight techniques that led to the development of helicopters and other rotary wing aircraft. Getafe Air Base, established in 1911, now houses several training and transport units of the Spanish Air Force, as well as two aerospace manufacturing plants.

YearAdded:
2011
Image Credit: Courtesy Flickr/Jumbero (CC BY-SA 2.0)Image Caption: Getafe AirfieldEra_date_from: 1911
Subscribe to Civil Aviation

Innovations

Getafe Airfield was the site of the world’s first successful rotorcraft flight, on January 17, 1923. Lieutenant Alejandro Gómez Spencer piloted a C.4 Autogiro designed and built by Juan de la Cierva, who tested a series of autogiros between 1920 and 1924 at the Getafe site. Cierva’s autogiros…

Read More

We hope you enjoyed this essay.

Please support America's only magazine of the history of engineering and innovation, and the volunteers that sustain it with a donation to Invention & Technology.

Donate

Stay informed - subscribe to our newsletter.
The subscriber's email address.