New Museum Takes Copters for a Whirl

What’s billed as America’s first museum dedicated to helicopters opened this month outside Philadelphia.

Among the 15 helicopters currently on display at the American Helicopter Museum & Education Center are three on loan from the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. They are the Piasecki PV-2, the second helicopter to fly in the U.S.; the only prototype of the Sikorsky XR-4, the world’s first production helicopter; and the earliest surviving Bell helicopter--the inspiration for modern police helicopters.

The museum, at Brandywine Airport, 1220 American Blvd., West Chester PA 19380, is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday. Admission is $5 adults, $3.50 children under 12, $3.50 seniors, free under 3. Information: (610) 436-9600.