Leonardo da Vinci’s rotating aerial-screw design was intended to rise into the air.
Leonardo drew the aerial screw around 1489, probably in a notebook now associated with the Codex Atlanticus. The design had a large helical rotor made from reeds, linen, and wire. Leonardo reasoned that turning the screw quickly would force air downward and push the structure upward.
The concept resembles the central lifting rotor of a helicopter, but Leonardo’s machine had no practical engine. Human operators turning cranks would not have produced enough power to lift the heavy frame. The design therefore remained a theoretical study rather than a working aircraft.
The aerial screw is sometimes called a “helicopter” in popular accounts, but that label can mislead. Modern helicopters use powered rotors, aerodynamic blades, controls, and lightweight structures developed much later. Leonardo’s drawing is important because it clearly explores vertical flight through a rotating lifting surface.