Mark DiCiero, Helicopter Museum JRP0022

We take the podcast on the road and visit with Mark DiCiero at Classic Rotors.  Classic Rotors is a rare and vintage rotorcraft museum located at the Ramona Airport.  It is one of only two helicopter museums in America and one of four in the world.  During our conversation Mark shares the story of how we built his own helicopter in his early 20s, learned to fly it in his backyard and shocked licensing officials with his amateur skills.  Then we got into some of the incredible 35 “birds” in his museum including his prized collection of 4 of the 5 generations of tandem helicopters and his flagship H-21 “Flying Banana”.  We also learn about innovative personal aircraft, early military drones from the 1960s, blimps with rotors and an amazing new drone technology that can fight fires autonomously 24/7.  I enjoyed the story of his adventure flying a helicopter from South Carolina to Ramona and how he paid for fuel. Classic Rotors is a non-profit museum that hosts tours for aviation enthusiasts, students and the general public.  The museum is always grateful for the financial support of benefactors that share the love of helicopters and aviation history. We share thoughts on so many other people and issues including Igor Sikorsky, Frank Piasecki, Arthur Young, Harold Pitcairn and Stanley Hiller, Oshkosh, Wisconsin, MASH, President of the United States, Vietnam War, Korean War, Papua, New Guinea, Jessica Johnson, Hidden San Diego, gyrocopter, Doris Day, Jetsons, Space Race, Huey, Robinson Helicopter, R66, F-86, Helipod, chainsaw motors, Balboa Park, Triphibian, turbine engine, Alpine and much more. #JohnRileyProject #ClassicRotors #Helicopters #PursuitofHappiness JRP0022 Classic Rotors Info: Classic Rotors:  https://rotors.org/ John Riley Project Info: Bookings? Inquiries? Contact me at https://johnrileyproject.com/ Donations: https://www.patreon.com/johnrileyproject Sponsorship Inquiries: https://johnrileyproject.com/sponsorship/ YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJJSzeIW2A-AeT7gwonglMA Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/johnrileyproject/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/JohnRileyPoway Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/johnrileypoway/ iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/john-riley-project-podcast/id1435944995?mt=2 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3llrMItpbx9JRa08UTrswA Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/john-riley-project Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9qb2hucmlsZXlwcm9qZWN0LmNvbS9mZWVkLw Tune In: https://tunein.com/podcasts/Arts--Culture-Podcasts/John-Riley-Project-Podcast-p1154415/ Listen Notes: https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/john-riley-project-john-riley-2l4rEIo1RJM/ Music: https://www.purple-planet.com