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I chanced upon a blog from a retired helicopter pilot who was also the chief instructor for the McCulloch J2 Gyroplane Factory from about 1970 to 1975

During that era McCulloch was setting up numerous dealerships around America and Europe , and each dealership was required to have at least 2 trained pilots on staff which kept him busy as an instructor and test pilot ... he test flew every new aircraft coming off the assembly line .

Pleasant reading , mostly about his personal life , not a lot about the gyro itself , I am going to contact him and see if he can write more about his gyro days , will also invite him to join the forum.... that would be cool !!!!!

There are about 7 chapters .... here is the first one , I will link the rest shortly

(Preamble .... he has been flying a Hughes 269 since the early 1960's and the chapter begins where he is talking to his friend Jerry Getz about taking the gyro job)

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Mc Culloch Aircraft Part 1

http://helicopterflyer.blogspot.ca/2010 ... art-1.html


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Mc Culloch Aircraft Part 2

http://helicopterflyer.blogspot.ca/2010 ... art-2.html

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--preparing the J2 flight manual
--November 1970 FAA certification
--some flying comments
-- moving to Lake Havasu City, AZ

trivia: Lake Havasu was a city mostly built and owned by Robert P. McCulloch
He purchased the original London Bridge from England and reassembled it in Lake Havasu

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--training the first couple of pilots
--training 2 FAA pilot/examiners
--ground handling issues and a rollover
--second rollover when landing
--third rollover while testing for steering-rudder issues @ 7mph ground speed
--correct the landing gear issues + back to flying
--a picture of a J2 at the Pima Air Museum located in Tucson, AZ.

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Mc Culloch Aircraft Part 3

http://helicopterflyer.blogspot.ca/2010 ... art-3.html


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Mc Culloch Aircraft Part 4

http://helicopterflyer.blogspot.ca/2010 ... -4_20.html

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--training pilots from around the country
--training foreign pilots
--training aviation magazine writers
--heat and noise and neighbors
--takeoffs from storage compound

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Mc Culloch Aircraft Part 5

http://helicopterflyer.blogspot.ca/2010 ... art-5.html
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--Living in Lake Havasu
--McCulloch company downsizing & moving production to Los Angeles
--job offer flying a Hughes 500 in Kansas City
-- gyro pilot buys a Corvette instead

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A trip to France and later to England 1973

http://helicopterflyer.blogspot.ca/2010 ... -1973.html
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--International market
--Paris Air Show 1973
--transport 2 aircraft to France
--sold 2 aircraft
--train 4 pilots
--fly a J2 from France to England
--Michelin road map for navigating

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Back in California and now working for Aero Resources....... 1973

http://helicopterflyer.blogspot.ca/2010 ... -aero.html

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--moving to LA
--attempting to improve the J2
--noise , neighbors , and threats
--test flying at 6750 feet
--skimming a lake - burn fuel to gain altitude
--engine quit 45 minutes later
--playing with pitch to land intact
--thank you for not crashing ... said the local Sheriff
--fuel selectors had been plumbed incorrectly
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The Good and now the Bad 1974

http://helicopterflyer.blogspot.ca/2010 ... -1974.html

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--Final days at the J2 factory - last guy to leave
--Off to Bell Helicopter for a turbine rating
--back to flying helicopters for the next 27 years

I will be reading it during my 2 weeks off starting Saturday.

Thanks for posting this .
I love this shit !

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I just received a very pleasant email from Bill and in the future he will try to add to his McCulloch J2 memoirs

Thanks Bill !!!!


He has some great helicopter stories too and I will index some of them as time goes by

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