Jewish Invention Myths: The Helicopter
Our next jewish invention myth is the Helicopter.
The claim is demonstrated well by quoting ‘MNews’’ assertion that:
‘Emile Berliner – Microphone, gramophone, helicopter
Emile Berliner is the man who gave the world several inventions at once: a microphone, a gramophone, and a helicopter.’ (1)
I’ve already debunked the claims that Emile Berliner invented the microphone (2) and the gramophone (3) in separate articles which leaves the claim that Berliner ‘invented’ the helicopter.
As you might expect by this point: this claim is utter nonsense.
In the first instance the term ‘helicopter’ was invented in 1861 by the Frenchman Gustave de Ponton d'Amécourt (4) and the first unmanned steam-powered helicopter was successfully flown by Italian inventor Enrico Forlanini in 1878. (5)
In the second instance the first manned helicopter flight was that of Hermann Ganswindt's helicopter prototype in July 1901 (6) and Jan Bahyl – a Slovak inventor – adapted an internal combustion engine and added it to his helicopter design which also flew in 1901 and was granted a patent for his helicopter design by the Austro-Hungarian Empire. (7)
In the third instance the first true untethered helicopter flight was performed by either Frenchmen Jacques and Louis Breguet between 14th August and 29th September 1907 in their ‘Gyroplane No. 1’ (8) or fellow Frenchman Paul Cornu who designed and built his ‘Cornu Helicopter’ that flew several times during the course of 1907. (9)
But what of Emile Berliner?
Well Berliner only flew a prototype helicopter in June 1909 (10) and even the only source used for the claim that Berliner ‘invented’ the helicopter explicitly states that the Paul Cornu’s ‘Cornu Helicopter’ flew before Berliner’s prototype! (11)
So no Emile Berliner didn’t invent the helicopter: Enrico Forlanini did.
References
(1) https://mnews.world/en/news/the-great-jews-and-their-inventions
(2) See my article: https://karlradl14.substack.com/p/jewish-invention-myths-the-microphone
(3) See my article: https://karlradl14.substack.com/p/jewish-invention-myths-the-gramophonephonograph
(4) https://web.archive.org/web/20140220023307/http://www.centennialofflight.net/essay/Rotary/early_helicopters/HE1.htm
(5) Ibid.
(6) https://web.archive.org/web/20160810221946/http://helikopterhysteriezwo.blogspot.jp/2012/06/moments-in-helicopter-history-9.html
(7) https://web.archive.org/web/20070504045019/http://www.helis.com/pioneers/1900.php
(8) Kenneth Munson, 1968, ‘Helicopters and other Rotorcraft since 1907’, 1st Edition, Blandford Publishing: London, pp. 104-105
(9) Ibid., pp. 105-106 also https://web.archive.org/web/20081001201210/http://helicopter-history.org/Cornu/Cornu_LJpaper.pdf
(10) The Youngstown Daily Vindicator, ‘Helicoptre Lifts Itself and Man’, 1st July 1909, p. 14
(11) Ibid.