Leonardo da Vinci called his rotating vertical-flight concept the aerial screw.
Leonardo drew the device around 1489. The design showed a large helical structure made from reeds, linen, and wire, intended to rise by driving air downward as it rotated. Its appearance resembles a giant screw or modern helicopter rotor, which is why it is often discussed in histories of vertical flight.
The aerial screw was a concept, not a functioning aircraft. Leonardo did not have a lightweight engine capable of supplying the necessary power, and the design would also have faced major stability and control problems. Modern replicas have explored the idea, but they do not establish that Leonardo achieved powered flight.
The design is sometimes casually called a helicopter, but that label can be misleading. Helicopters use powered rotors and controlled flight systems developed much later. Leonardo’s aerial screw is better understood as an early mechanical proposal for vertical lift.