George de Bothezat's 1923 quadrotor flew for a little over two minutes, providing a real technical starting point rather than an invented machine. The counterfactual moves that demonstration from the Army Air Service at McCook Field to naval aviation at Chambers Field. That change places the aircraft before William Moffett, head of the Bureau of Aeronautics and an unusually effective organizer of naval aviation. Redirecting Moffett's historical enthusiasm for rigid airships toward helicopters gives the technology a patron with access to money, missions, and senior leadership.
Chapter · 18:53-23:48
Moving de Bothezat's helicopter demonstration to the Navy
The key divergence moves George de Bothezat's 1923 quadrotor demonstration from the Army to naval aviation and places it before William Moffett.