The Fairey Rotodyne is a classic example of the "why-the-fuck-not-ness" of 1950s aviation. 
They put tiny "tip jets" (heh) on the ends of the rotors that each pushed 1,000 lbf of thrust. Test Pilot John Farley recalled:
"From two miles away it would stop a conversation. I mean, the noise of those little jets on the tips of the rotor was just indescribable."
"From two miles away it would stop a conversation. I mean, the noise of those little jets on the tips of the rotor was just indescribable."
I usually keep my aesthetic opinions to myself but this thing looked plain fucking dumb.
Architects and designers of the 50s imagined we'd be shuttling around city centers via Fairey Rotodyne. It was designed to carry 40-50 passengers on medium hauls up to 400 miles.
