This page is to help you identify helicopters and larger electric Vertical Take-Off & Landing (eVTOL) aircraft by checking the specific characteristics of the helicopter or eVTOL you are looking for. You can select multiple items for each characteristic, such as 'Single main and open tail rotor' and 'Left' for all helicopters having an open tail rotor on the left side of the tail boom. The results will be filtered automatically. In many cases you can click on the filtered helicopter types to go to the page for that type.
If you want to now more about the different features you can select from, please visit the page 'How to recognise aircraft'.
The Écureuil is one of the most common helicopters. It comes in single and twin engine versions. Characteristic are the narrow tail boom with the tail rotor drive shaft on top, curved underside of the fuselage and the cabin window pattern, especially the windows at the feet of the crew.
France’s large helicopter has two separate sponsons attached to the side of the fuselage. They have a boat shape at the bottom, like the fuselage. Also typical are the rectangular cabin windows with rounded corners and streamline body above the tail boom. The Chinese version is the Harbin Z-8.
The main features of the Dauphin 2 are the tall vertical stabiliser and horizontal stabilisers with end plates that are swept above and below the horizontal stabilisers. The engines are placed at the side of the gear box hub. Most versions have a retractable wheeled landing gear, but the first SA365 model had skids.
Typical for this small helicopter is that is has a relatively large rounded engine/gear box housing on top of the fuselage, with the engines in front of the rotor assembly. The AC-12 has a three blade main and tail rotor. Normally it has windows, but they are missing on the photo.
This attack helicopter has two separate, stepped canopies with flat panels, with the rear seat being much higher than the front seat. The engines with D-shaped air intakes are placed against the upper side of the fuselage. Below are short wings with pylons for weapons. Also typical for the A129 are the thick vertical stabiliser and ventral fin, the latter holding the single tail wheel. Just above are the horizontal stabilisers.
This Eurocopter EC145 with a shrouded tail rotor and no large outer vertical stabiliser looks much similar to the smaller EC135/H135. The H145 has three cabin windows on each side (after the cockpit door) and no small hub on top of the main engine/gear box housing.
The Dauphin successor has a typical silhouette, with an almost straight line from the nose to the rotor head. The H160 also has a tilted shrouded tail rotor and biplane horizontal stabilisers, that are connected at the tips.
This helicopter has a relatively large engine/gear box housing (creating a 'waterhead' appearance), a five-blade main rotor and a three-blade tail rotor. The main gear does noet really retract, but moves to the side of the fuselage.
You could describe the AVIC AC332 as a Bell 429 with the tail of the Eurocopter EC135, including the fenestron. That description is quite fitting. The fuselage of the AC332 has a slightly pointed nose and is not as 'curvy' as that of the Bell. The skids are quite long. (photo: Z3144228/WikiMedia)
The famous Bell UH-1 Huey family consists of many members, but all with a similar fuselage and tail, and all with skids. Most have a two blade main rotor on a long axis, and a two blade tail rotor at the top of the vertical stabiliser. The Bell 412 variants have a four blade main rotor though. At about a third from the end of the tail boom there are horizontal stabilisers on both sides.
