age RC_Helicopters - Schlüter Photo Helicopter

Schlüter Photo Helicopter Mk1 (1980)

Whilst producing helicopters for the 'hobby' market Dieter also looked to see if a 'commercial' aspect could be found and Ariel Photography came to mind as one possible avenue.  Previously aeroplanes had been used for large area photography but they had proved to difficult to get close up shots due to the need to keep 'flying'.  Full size helicopters on the other hand could hover  over one spot and so close up photography was possible however, hiring a helicopter was very expensive.  If a camera could be fixed to the bottom of a RC helicopter then as long as reasonable 'line of sight' was maintained it would be a much cheaper alternative.

To pursue this aspect he developed a helicopter with extended landing legs and a facility to securely fasten a camera under the CG position and pointing downwards.  Fixed pitch control was utilise as the helicopter would basically spend the majority of the time hovering and so the complication of a collective pitch head was not considered necessary.  The exhaust was also directed away from the body and thus did not intrude on the photo being taken.