Introduction to Gyrocopters

Gyrocopters - What Are They And Can You Have One?

This is our introductory article that will explain in simple words what makes gyrocopters different than other rotorcraft, how much do they cost, and how realistic is to buy one yourself and fly it. Make sure to check the comments under the article as well.

Learning to Fly

Even if you build your gyrocopter yourself you need to get proper training if you want to fly safely. A quick search on the web will give you the closest flying schools in your area so I'm not listing any here. But here are other useful links:

Here are PDF downloads of the autogyro instructors in the UK, and more importantly, the minimum requirements to obtain gyrocopter flying permit (UK). Make sure to check also our page that explains everything about pilot licensing.

This FAQ page will be useful for everyone including those not in UK.

Resource collection

The Best Gyrocopter Resources Page, Period!

This is a big collection of our favorite resources about autogyros. If you need more than we have listed on this page here, check out the article. Everything is categorized and easy to find.

Where to buy

Manufacturers of Gyrocopters.

Here's a good list of several gyrocopter manufacturers.

And here is even bigger one.

Don't forget that gyrocopters still aren't very popular so manufacturers aren't too many.

History and Theory

Autogyro History and Theory

This is a really great long article sharing how do gyros work, their history and the current problem with their acceptance. Here is a Spanish version of the article.

On Building Yourself

Building your own ultralight aircraft is a long process of several steps. You can read our series about it first. Then, here are a couple of places giving links to gyroplane plans:

This page at Gyrotech contains direct links to gyrocopter plans. I don't know how reliable is to start building your gyroplane with such free plan but they are at least something to learn from.

Here are some good homebuilt models although most links offer kits or videos and not plans. Still useful I think.