The Cierva C.6 was the sixth autogyro designed by engineer Juan de la Cierva, and the first one to travel a “major” distance. Cierva, the engineer responsible for the invention of the autogyro, had spent all his funds on the research and creation of his first five prototypes.

Therefore, in 1923, he turned to the Cuatro Vientos Aerodynamics Laboratory chief, Commander Emilio Herrera, who succeeded in persuading General Francisco Echagüe, the director of the Military Aviation Aeronautics Department, to take over the second stage in the research and development of Cierva’s autogyros.

After several wind tunnel tests, Military Aviation built a Cierva C.6 autogyro in an Avro 504 frame. This machine, piloted by Captain Joaquín Loriga Taboada, made three flights, all of them in March 1924. One of those flights, the eight-minute trip from Cuatro Vientos airfield to Getafe airfield (10.5 km or 6.5 miles), was considered a giant step for Cierva’s autogyros.

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