First envisioned by Leonardo da Vinci, and first deployed in World War II, the helicopter is now a universal icon of modern warfare, a key component of combat planning around the world, and one of the military's most versatile and effective tools. In the recent Iraq war, the world saw coalition helicopters provide firepower and supplies, maneuver in both the desert and in cities, facilitate rescues, and transfer wounded soldiers to hospitals in minutes. It is hard to believe that at one time, many military planners dismissed helicopters as too expensive, too vulnerable, and too impractical. Helicopters: An Illustrated History of Their Impact covers the development of helicopters from a concept in the mind of daVinci to the first successful machines in the early 1900s to the latest tilt-rotor designs. It is a story of constant innovation, as time and again designers answered the concerns of military planners with more maneuverable, more capable rotorcraft. With expert analysis and specific details of every significant model ever used, Helicopters shows how these once denigrated machines became essential to a variety of missions (reconnaissance, transport, attack, support, evacuation, urban combat, quick strikes behind enemy lines, and more). In addition, the book looks at the impact of rotorcraft beyond the military, including their ever-widening role in emergency medical care, police work, traffic control, agriculture, news reporting, and more.