Stanley Hiller, Jr., was born in San Francisco, California, on
November 15, 1924. As a youth, Hiller had a keen interest in
aviation and, in 1942 at the age of 17, founded the Hiller
Aircraft Company. Two years later he built and flew a twin
coaxial counter-rotating blades helicopter designated the
XH-44, the world's first helicopter to successfully employ metal
rotor blades and demonstrate the rigid rotor concept. Hiller
continued to produce and test rotorcraft, including the first to
employ a jet of air to counteract rotor torque. By 1948, his Model
360 was the only helicopter at the time certified by the Civil
Aeronautics Administration as longitudinally stable, and the only
3-passenger, all-metal utility rotorcraft. During the next twenty-five
years, the Hiller Company produced over 3,000 helicopters and
advanced the technology of veritcal takeoff and landing (VTOL)
aircraft.
Hiller's entrepreneurial acumen and corporate leadership were keys
to his company's success. Hiller now devotes his time and knowledge
to the preservation of aviation heritage through the Hiller Aviation
Institute's museum and educational research center.
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