See this web page
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helecopter
German Woman test pilot Hanna Riech, flew one in a large hall before WW2, she is also the only person to survive flying a V1 doodle bug with a ****-pit. I think she only died a few years ago in the 90's.
Also both Britain and Germany used Autogyros. The germany used small ones folded up in submarines for reconasance work, after the war Wing Commander Wallis took over the design and improved it over the years, remember James Bond's 'little Nellie'.
The British used modified byplanes as look -outs as well as radar testing and calibration