The Chopper Flew But The Concept Didn't Fly

This was my first real shoot-for-money job back in 1961. A couple of guys who liked to fly came up with what they thought was a brilliant idea. They designed a helicopter that could carry a detachable cargo pod behind the cockpit. They thought it would be ideal for resupplying the crews of offshore drilling platforms and similar uses.

They got this prototype built but had yet to make any of the cargo pods. I think that they were supposed to be made of fiberglass. I drove out to New Bedford Airport and shot a couple of rolls of take-offs and landings. A month or two later they lost their financial backers and the pods never got built. I never shot any more photos for them. I did get paid for these.

These were shot with a Miranda D and a 58mm f/2 Carl Zeiss Jena Biotar lens on Plus-X film.