What name is given to Leonardo da Vinci’s rotating aerial-flight device?

Leonardo da Vinci’s rotating aerial-flight device is called the aerial screw.

Leonardo sketched the aerial screw in the 1480s, probably in the Codex Atlanticus. The design shows a large helical surface wrapped around a vertical central mast. Leonardo reasoned that rotating the spiral could force air downward and lift the structure upward.

The aerial screw is often described as an ancestor of the modern helicopter, but it was never built or flown by Leonardo. Its proposed propulsion system also lacked a practical engine capable of supplying enough power. The sketch therefore represents an important conceptual step rather than a working aircraft.

The term “helicopter” belongs to later technology. Leonardo’s drawing is sometimes called a “helicopter” informally, but “aerial screw” is the historically specific name for his Renaissance design.