The guys at Think Geek are bringing R/C junkies one of the cheapest 3-channel mini choppers on the market with the new "Black Stealth." Unlike dinky 2-channel versions, the Black Stealth can handle forward flight with ease—or so they claim. In fact, Think Geek goes so far as to say that it is the easiest to fly small copter they have ever used. I would be kind of skeptical with a price tag of only US$30, but the video below does a good job of showing off its capabilities.

Read More »

The Draganfly series of heli cams have been impressive, but the just announced X6 is freaking amazing. The triple-tipped carbon fibre body has two carbon rotors on each end. The design allows it to move in all directions rapidly, provide enough control to zip around indoors yet resist up to 29 kilometres per hour of wind.

Read More »

Though Pico Z toy helicopters and their ilk are fun, they're bloody difficult to control (even the Tandem Z version) since they lack the control sophistication of bigger models. But Kyosho is trying to sort that out with its upcoming "Minium AD Calibre 120 Readyset" micro-helicopter model, which has a proper cyclic control—the world's first in a micro-copter, Kyosho says. It's similar to that used to steer the blades of a real helicopter, and means you should be able to accurately hover, reverse and do banking turns. And crash. The 30-gram, 12cm model is a US$240 kit though, so you won't really want to do that often. Out in September, in Japan. [CrunchGear]

Read More »

This picture, showing a soldier "riding" an Apache helicopter--one of the coolest, deadliest flying toys ever--outside its cockpit, is going to make the usual "FAKE!" web shouters jump off their chairs. But before you do that, military expert Christian Lowe at Defense Tech thinks it may be real. And indeed, here's video of a similar ride under enemy fire to prove it.

Read More »

Yes. Fishing marlins from helicopters. It may sound boring, but seriously, you won't believe your eyes. If your jaw doesn't drop after watching this, I'll post pictures of myself naked. Update: do you think this is real or not? I think is is, but you can tell us you opinion in the comments.

Read More »

Forget the improbable promises of the Falx tiltrotor: Bell aircraft has rolled out its 609 civilian tiltrotor for real. Looking and flying like a smaller cousin of the military V22 Osprey, also a Bell vehicle, the 609 will undoubtedly please millionaire business people since it can perform all the rooftop-landing duties of a normal helicopter, but flies twice as fast and can fly 9 passengers up to 25,000 feet altitude. Plus, it'd be undeniably cooler to turn up at your meetings in something that looks like it belongs in a sci-fi flick versus something that reminds people of Magnum, PI.

Read More »

This helicopter mini-drone has been developed by the Navy to help it counter water-borne threats, despite its provocatively lurid name. Made by Lite Machines, the battery-powered Voyeur weighs just 1.8kg, stands 70cm high and is actually designed to be suicidal. It's meant to hop out of sonobuoy tubes, patrol for threats for a while and then sink itself. Much more economical than helicopters or jets wasting fuel by attempting to ID surface targets (has the Navy's gas bill gone up at the moment too?) Plus it looks waaay more creepily sci-fi. [Danger Room]

Read More »

A DIYer from the Guangdong Province in eastern China has finally perfected his sub-US$3000 home-built helicopter, taking it for a demonstration flight in what appears to his back yard. A tinkerer since he dropped school in his teens, Chen Zhaorong has been working on this project for nearly 10 years, but only began flight attempts a few months ago. The first attempts were neither successful nor fatal, (a remarkable combo) but this time around he not only got liftoff, but seemed to be in complete control.

Read More »

I don't know what's more terrifying about the new Rave 450-class electric helicopter—which the experts say is the fastest electric RC helicopter in the world: the fact that it buzzes like an angry giganormous killer wasp who just got three speeding tickets driving a Ferrari on a coke overdose, or the fact that it looks like it can chop your head faster that you can say "325mm or 350mm blades." (Video updated—was missing the sound.) [Curtis Young Blood via RC Heli Resource]

Read More »

A Japanese company called Gen Corporation has created what people are calling the world's smallest one-man helicopter, capable of flying 50km/h and weighs (by itself) 75kg. As you can see from the photo, it's probably the world's most dangerous helicopter too, as the man has barely any piping to stand on and barely any seat to sit on. Then again, if GTA4 has taught us anything, using a helicopter is the easiest and fastest way to travel, and is useful for locating pigeons and flying under bridges for achievements. [Telegraph]