I got one when I was 8 but it was brand new my dad had found it at a small mom and pop hardware store that sold toys and hardware and other things like a old days style hardware store and they had a bunch of old vintage toys still brand new in the box and this was back in 1999 and yes it was hard and the fishing line would get tangled but we figured out if you use steel leader wire that you would use to make leaders for offshore fishing it was stronger anf sturdier anf dad modified it to work anf man it was a bladt i coulf make it go over obstacles like in the commercial
I was a huge lego fan as a kid in the 70's, don't know about toys in the 70's, but if you had shown me the current lego trains when I was 7, I would have shot my bolt, with excitement.
no electronics, just mechanical parts and ropes. That's a pretty clever toy. Nowadays everything is based on cheap electronic chipsets... sure we have little robots that talk / repeat what we say, walk around... even remote controlled ones, but there's very little in terms of innovative ideas anymore.
What I really wanted as a kid was the Mattel Vertibird like my friend had. My folks never got it for me, though. What they did give me was a set of four lawn darts that I was supposed to use like horseshoes and try to make them land in a hoop in the yard. I never took the hoop out of my toy closet. Instead, I just went in the backyard and heaved those things up in the air as high as I could and stood under them, watching as the steel-tipped darts came back to Earth with me standing underneath them. Can’t figure out why they don’t make those things anymore.
Toys back in the 70's were so much cooler. I had the Vertibird Helicopter back in the day, great toy. I found a new one at Toys R Us at the Kitchener Ont store a few yrs back.
It even came with a small pilot’s log in which you were supposed to record details of memorable “flights.” (I dutifully made notes for a couple until I realized every landing was pretty much the same.)
We had a boxer that loved Christmas with a passion. While we were enjoying flying this thing, he grabbed the airplane while my Dad was on 'final approach'. He shook his goofy head and tore the plane away from the wire, then ran through the house as he chomped it to bits!
OK, that took me a moment to process. I thought you meant you had a friend who enjoyed boxing. I thought, “What a jerk that a grown man is tearing up the kid’s toy.” I wasn’t thinking you had a dog.
That dog really loved Christmas! We couldn't even put the wrapped presents under the tree until Christmas eve because the goofy dog would take his huge paws and try and open each present-----he loved shredding wrapping paper. Going back to the U-Fly-It story, I successfully flew and landed the plane, my Dad was 'on final' when the plane was stolen, but my volatile little brother was waiting for his turn at the controls when 'Spike' stole the plane. Here was this big goofy dog marauding through the house while my screaming brother wildly ran after him in a hopeless attempt to try and save the airplane. As 'Spike' had the time of his life, bits and pieces of the plane dripped from his slobbering mouth and my brother would stop and pick each piece up and start screaming and crying all over again. We laughed our asses off!
@annoyingfeatures: I made my own as a kid. Fishing line works better than thread. I used bread bag twist ties to make hooks on my plastic model planes. 1 in front, 1 on top of the tail. I didn't get fancy with the control like the real toy had. But I did have it set up in my back yard where the string was tied to a tall fence and the plane came down about 50 or 60' and landed on a carrier that I marked out on a patio table. Even had arresting cables on deck with hooks on the bottom of the plane.
I had one of these around 1970. I joined the Navy in 1979 and wound up on a couple of aircraft carriers, the Enterprise and Independence. On the Independence, some guy had built a plastic model of an F-14 from my squadron....I had an idea. I attached a couple of paper clips to it and we ran some fishing line across our shop. On a desk we taped out a flight deck of a carrier and ran 4 rubber bands across "the deck" as arresting gear. We put another bent paper clip on the bottom back of the plane to serve as a tail hook and we made arrested landings on that desk! I still speak wiht some of those guys on Facebook and they often bring up "the plane on the wire" I made!
I did not know this toy existed but I literally made the same thing out of lego. Lego plane, lego joystick on a pivoting base, fishing line tied from the tip of the joystick to the outside bedroom door handle at the end of the hallway, and flat cardboard board-game bases in a row as the runway. Pull back on the stick for maximum tension with the plane at the far end, you need a mate to release it (I later developed a pully system for single pilot ops), then push the stick forward & the plane descends and then you pull back for a bit of a flare on landing. Lots of fun!
We had a lot of fun with this to the point that later we made our own using Tinkertoys and a toy model airplane, drawing the runway on a large sheet of corrugated cardboard. My custom version had a joystick instead of a wheel.
My favorite toy as a kid. I loved anything to do with planes. The kit included a string greaser that would make the plane go MUCH faster, had to easy on that stuff. My other favorite toys were metal airliners ordered directly from American Airlines.
I had so much fun with this. Also had the one that came out a little later with the launcher. I even modified some model planes to work on it. Learn a lot about weight and balance doing that too. Went on to CL and RC flying as I got older.
My version of this had a catapult that would launch the plane up the line, then it would turn around at the end and come back. Unfortunately the wheel on the plane shown in the video was broken, so I could never land it properly. I also had a biplane that came with a little barn and a mail sack for on top. The idea being to hook the mail sack on the way down. I never really had all that much room to set it, so the best I could do was put it in the hallway, which was probably about 15'. It was still fun though. I had another toy that was kind of a similar idea. It was a helicopter suspended on fishing line. I'm sketchy on the details, but there was a control console with a stick and the helicopter could not only travel back and forth on a level line, it could be lowered and raised as well. The helicopter was modeled after a Sikorsky Sky Crane and came with a passenger pod as well as a cargo hook for picking things up. I don't remember for sure, but it seems likely that it ran on batteries. Anyone remember that one?
That second toy you're looking for had several names but , it wasn't on flight string/twine line but a thin metal wire. Look for " Vertibird Helicopter" or "VERTIBIRD" on here for many videos the sets had many variations and themes as the control box was two levers that moved piano wire out to the big base (batteries were in the center underneath) that would turn a wire (like a how s drain snake works) down the shaft to helicopter that was routed through a spring to spin the helicopter blades. That have you the lift from the spinning blades. The second wire pulled on the helicopter to tilt it forward or backwards giving it some pitch and the blades spinning then would move it forward or backwards based on which way it was titled. When level the helicopter hovered. The speed the wired turned the plastic helicopter blades is what gave it up and down motion as the blades real did move enough air to life the light weight plastic body. When you picked up the items you had to give the helicopter more power throttle to get extra lift for increased weight. The toy was amazingly simple but taught you major flight control theory at the same time. They themed these spinning wire flight sets out for many TV shows & Films. . Battlestar Galactica Had one where you flew a viper that oddly had helicopter blades, but it could pick up items or knock down the cylon fighter cuts outs on their little stands.
I had the first one you mentioned. It would launch the plane up the line and turn around automatically at the far end of the line and return so you could land it. I absolutely LOVED that toy and had a lot of run with it as a kid in the early 70s. I wish I could remember what it was called any who made it... Anyone know?
@@SogoTX That was a later version of the U-Fly-It toy. Here's a video of the barnstorming set, using the rubber band powered catapult; czcams.com/video/fETLckSjaDo/video.html They have the end of the line up way too high though, the catapult doesn't have enough power to shoot it that far. Here's a short video of the other set; www.youtube.com/watch?v-3AEF5XVrzYc There was also a jet version with an aircraft carrier.
Toys in the 70s were the best. Hot Wheels Sizzlers had speed never seen in a toy, elaborate multi-level race car sets and Lionel Trains when they were actually affordable. Then we got a 4x8 pool table... my favourite of all.
I was born in '73, and I don't remember this. Believe me!!!!!!!! I would have tossed and turned all night looking at my clock wondering how long before daylight to play with this. Reminds me of a Piper PA-34 Seneca.
I had the version with a joystick instead of the yoke, and a catapult for launching. The plane would lauch from the catapult, then do a 180 turn at the far end of the line and return for landing.
Hot Wheels had something similar with a couple of die-cast planes, a cardstock runway, and a monofilament zip-line arrangement. The controls were less elaborate than the U-Fly-It, and I can't remember what it was called.
I guess I would have wanted one and my parents would have been smart enough to see that this toy is entertaining for about one day. The only thing that would have remained beyond that first day (and played with a lot) would have been the airplane itself.
Why the FUCK do they not make toys like this anymore! This looks amazing! Even the toys I had in the 80's and early 90's were great. These days they are just rubbish, probably because kids watch tablets and tv rather than use their imaginations. Thanks for the vid, wish I had one!
I'm not going to lie about this one.. I have never seen this ad before in my life... I grew up in the 60s and 70s...but I never saw this.. Must be a mandela effect... 😮
First... build a time machine... But seriously, you would have to prowl the Toy Collector's Auction sites, and it would be super expensive. Best be would be to just make one yourself. It wouldn't be too difficult to figure out... ;)
They sold this in the UK, but I think it was a harrier jump jet, it was as shite as it looks, they kind of 1 trick pony toy that is fun for about 30 seconds.
I had one similar to this one except it had a stick and it would launch the plane up the string, then turn around for landing. Anyone remember the name of that toy?
Does it work the way I think it works? The string is tensioned or loosened and pulled to one or the other side and...that's all? I ask because I'll be definitely building one for myself :)
"You cleared it, but oh you goofed the landing! Now 4 people are dead because of you, Timmy, and there's probably going to be civil action as well as licensing reviews!" -First draft of the commercial
All works out for Timmy though in the end, he can sue the airplane manufacturer for product liability for millions of bucks…. now that’s an educational toy…! :)
I'm 54. I had this. It was much more difficult than it looked. Inevitably the fishing line would tangle and I ended up flying the plane with my hand!
We’re the same age and I had it too! I remember it came with a logbook and a lot of other cool stuff!
I had one too. And a few years later I found another use for my hand!
I got one when I was 8 but it was brand new my dad had found it at a small mom and pop hardware store that sold toys and hardware and other things like a old days style hardware store and they had a bunch of old vintage toys still brand new in the box and this was back in 1999 and yes it was hard and the fishing line would get tangled but we figured out if you use steel leader wire that you would use to make leaders for offshore fishing it was stronger anf sturdier anf dad modified it to work anf man it was a bladt i coulf make it go over obstacles like in the commercial
Same.
Kudos to your parents for such wonderful toys and memories
One of the best toys from the 70's, no batteries required, heaps of fun to play with
Did you actually play with it?
🤣🤣🤣
I was a huge lego fan as a kid in the 70's, don't know about toys in the 70's, but if you had shown me the current lego trains when I was 7, I would have shot my bolt, with excitement.
Wow the toys we had growing up back in the 70s were so cool. I truly believe that we were blessed to have experienced those days 🤔
no electronics, just mechanical parts and ropes. That's a pretty clever toy. Nowadays everything is based on cheap electronic chipsets... sure we have little robots that talk / repeat what we say, walk around... even remote controlled ones, but there's very little in terms of innovative ideas anymore.
Incredibly blessed. The best time ever. Very special club.
Right I know, I mean games consoles and VR headsets are just jank compared to a cheap plastic model plane and a piece of fishing line.
What I really wanted as a kid was the Mattel Vertibird like my friend had. My folks never got it for me, though. What they did give me was a set of four lawn darts that I was supposed to use like horseshoes and try to make them land in a hoop in the yard. I never took the hoop out of my toy closet. Instead, I just went in the backyard and heaved those things up in the air as high as I could and stood under them, watching as the steel-tipped darts came back to Earth with me standing underneath them. Can’t figure out why they don’t make those things anymore.
Toys back in the 70's were so much cooler. I had the Vertibird Helicopter back in the day, great toy. I found a new one at Toys R Us at the Kitchener Ont store a few yrs back.
I'm 56 -had this when I was a kid....
Great toy's to get the imagination flowing back then.
It even came with a small pilot’s log in which you were supposed to record details of memorable “flights.” (I dutifully made notes for a couple until I realized every landing was pretty much the same.)
😂
62 and had this too! I finally got into RC planes about 15 years ago.
Also 62 and had this…I did end up getting my pilots license too. Fun
We had a boxer that loved Christmas with a passion. While we were enjoying flying this thing, he grabbed the airplane while my Dad was on 'final approach'. He shook his goofy head and tore the plane away from the wire, then ran through the house as he chomped it to bits!
OK, that took me a moment to process. I thought you meant you had a friend who enjoyed boxing. I thought, “What a jerk that a grown man is tearing up the kid’s toy.” I wasn’t thinking you had a dog.
That dog really loved Christmas! We couldn't even put the wrapped presents under the tree until Christmas eve because the goofy dog would take his huge paws and try and open each present-----he loved shredding wrapping paper. Going back to the U-Fly-It story, I successfully flew and landed the plane, my Dad was 'on final' when the plane was stolen, but my volatile little brother was waiting for his turn at the controls when 'Spike' stole the plane. Here was this big goofy dog marauding through the house while my screaming brother wildly ran after him in a hopeless attempt to try and save the airplane. As 'Spike' had the time of his life, bits and pieces of the plane dripped from his slobbering mouth and my brother would stop and pick each piece up and start screaming and crying all over again. We laughed our asses off!
@annoyingfeatures: I made my own as a kid. Fishing line works better than thread. I used bread bag twist ties to make hooks on my plastic model planes. 1 in front, 1 on top of the tail. I didn't get fancy with the control like the real toy had. But I did have it set up in my back yard where the string was tied to a tall fence and the plane came down about 50 or 60' and landed on a carrier that I marked out on a patio table. Even had arresting cables on deck with hooks on the bottom of the plane.
This needs to bought back. Its really a skill product.
I actually remember this toy. I was 5 years old in 1970. A friend of mine had this in like 1972. Toys were so cool back in those days.
I had one of these around 1970. I joined the Navy in 1979 and wound up on a couple of aircraft carriers, the Enterprise and Independence. On the Independence, some guy had built a plastic model of an F-14 from my squadron....I had an idea. I attached a couple of paper clips to it and we ran some fishing line across our shop. On a desk we taped out a flight deck of a carrier and ran 4 rubber bands across "the deck" as arresting gear. We put another bent paper clip on the bottom back of the plane to serve as a tail hook and we made arrested landings on that desk! I still speak wiht some of those guys on Facebook and they often bring up "the plane on the wire" I made!
And on your last landing, Lte. Commander Killjoy came in!!!!! You finished your KP in 2019 just in time to retire with 40...😵💫🥔🥔🥔
@@stevethecountrycook1227 Hahaha, no. They were actually pretty cool. I think some of the chiefs joined in on the fun.
THIS, needs to make a comeback! Too cool!
I loved mine!! 63 now still remember
I did not know this toy existed but I literally made the same thing out of lego. Lego plane, lego joystick on a pivoting base, fishing line tied from the tip of the joystick to the outside bedroom door handle at the end of the hallway, and flat cardboard board-game bases in a row as the runway. Pull back on the stick for maximum tension with the plane at the far end, you need a mate to release it (I later developed a pully system for single pilot ops), then push the stick forward & the plane descends and then you pull back for a bit of a flare on landing. Lots of fun!
Had the single engine version with a "stick" (for some unauthentic reason). And yes we did have the coolest toys and imagination to match.
Still a good Christmas memory - probably not so much for my dad, who had to put the thing together.
We had a lot of fun with this to the point that later we made our own using Tinkertoys and a toy model airplane, drawing the runway on a large sheet of corrugated cardboard. My custom version had a joystick instead of a wheel.
I had this!! It was my favorite toy. I couldn’t remember it exactly but remembered the plane. This refreshes my memory completely!! Thank you!
What an awesome toy. I had not ever seen it.
That would have kept me entertained for months if not years as a kid in the early 80's!
My older brother got me one of these for Christmas when I was a kid. Great fun.
One of my favorite toys back in the 70s. Great Christmas memories. Thanks for posting!
This was my favorite toy ever!
This and my Vertibird helicopter were some of my favorite toys back in the early 70’s.
My favorite toy as a kid. I loved anything to do with planes. The kit included a string greaser that would make the plane go MUCH faster, had to easy on that stuff. My other favorite toys were metal airliners ordered directly from American Airlines.
I loved this when I was a kid.
How did I miss this as a 70s kid? So cool!
Nostalgia
Me too...see my comment..
Aww man. I remember this. My mate had a helicopter one that spun around and landed. Sigh...great times.
I had so much fun with this. Also had the one that came out a little later with the launcher. I even modified some model planes to work on it. Learn a lot about weight and balance doing that too. Went on to CL and RC flying as I got older.
I even built a 1/72 shuttle orbiter and made my own u Fly it.
@@mikestanley9176 That's cool!
I had the version that would launch the plane too.
That looks like fun!
I had this one was a blast ! Also had the Navy's phantom an air craft carrier catapult to takoff landing with trap wires!!
Seriously creative
Had a lot of fun with this as a kid!
"Aww you goofed the landing" lmao
My version of this had a catapult that would launch the plane up the line, then it would turn around at the end and come back. Unfortunately the wheel on the plane shown in the video was broken, so I could never land it properly. I also had a biplane that came with a little barn and a mail sack for on top. The idea being to hook the mail sack on the way down. I never really had all that much room to set it, so the best I could do was put it in the hallway, which was probably about 15'. It was still fun though.
I had another toy that was kind of a similar idea. It was a helicopter suspended on fishing line. I'm sketchy on the details, but there was a control console with a stick and the helicopter could not only travel back and forth on a level line, it could be lowered and raised as well. The helicopter was modeled after a Sikorsky Sky Crane and came with a passenger pod as well as a cargo hook for picking things up. I don't remember for sure, but it seems likely that it ran on batteries.
Anyone remember that one?
That second toy you're looking for had several names but , it wasn't on flight string/twine line but a thin metal wire.
Look for " Vertibird Helicopter" or "VERTIBIRD" on here for many videos the sets had many variations and themes as the control box was two levers that moved piano wire out to the big base (batteries were in the center underneath) that would turn a wire (like a how s drain snake works) down the shaft to helicopter that was routed through a spring to spin the helicopter blades. That have you the lift from the spinning blades. The second wire pulled on the helicopter to tilt it forward or backwards giving it some pitch and the blades spinning then would move it forward or backwards based on which way it was titled. When level the helicopter hovered. The speed the wired turned the plastic helicopter blades is what gave it up and down motion as the blades real did move enough air to life the light weight plastic body. When you picked up the items you had to give the helicopter more power throttle to get extra lift for increased weight. The toy was amazingly simple but taught you major flight control theory at the same time.
They themed these spinning wire flight sets out for many TV shows & Films. . Battlestar Galactica Had one where you flew a viper that oddly had helicopter blades, but it could pick up items or knock down the cylon fighter cuts outs on their little stands.
I had the first one you mentioned. It would launch the plane up the line and turn around automatically at the far end of the line and return so you could land it. I absolutely LOVED that toy and had a lot of run with it as a kid in the early 70s. I wish I could remember what it was called any who made it...
Anyone know?
@@SogoTX That was a later version of the U-Fly-It toy. Here's a video of the barnstorming set, using the rubber band powered catapult;
czcams.com/video/fETLckSjaDo/video.html
They have the end of the line up way too high though, the catapult doesn't have enough power to shoot it that far.
Here's a short video of the other set;
www.youtube.com/watch?v-3AEF5XVrzYc
There was also a jet version with an aircraft carrier.
Always wanted one
I didn’t think there was a ‘60s toy I hadn’t seen. Until now. Don’t remember being around that at all.
Toys in the 70s were the best. Hot Wheels Sizzlers had speed never seen in a toy, elaborate multi-level race car sets and Lionel Trains when they were actually affordable. Then we got a 4x8 pool table... my favourite of all.
DUDE! I want one! Where was this when I was a kid?? I'm 55, and I don't remember this.
I was born in '73, and I don't remember this. Believe me!!!!!!!! I would have tossed and turned all night looking at my clock wondering how long before daylight to play with this. Reminds me of a Piper PA-34 Seneca.
Wonderful time. I want to go back and raise my grandkids in that era.
The good days before multiculturalism where white was right.
I used to have the battle ship u-fly-it. It would launch the plane and turn back for a landing. Good times.
I had the version with a joystick instead of the yoke, and a catapult for launching. The plane would lauch from the catapult, then do a 180 turn at the far end of the line and return for landing.
Why can't i find something like this today
I didn't have this one, but I had a similar one from Mattel that had a smaller, metal plane.
I loved this one when I was a kid. If I only had flight sim back then....
That looks so much better than Super Flight Deck form Matchbox. Definitely nothing super about that.
Hot Wheels had something similar with a couple of die-cast planes, a cardstock runway, and a monofilament zip-line arrangement. The controls were less elaborate than the U-Fly-It, and I can't remember what it was called.
Mattel had something similar in it's HotBirds toy line. And to prevent the line from tangling, the plane's "launcher" had a built-in reel.
These guys would later make the Stomper 4x4s
WHY DOES THIS STILL LOOK FUN!!!
They did an F4 Phantom jet version too!!
I guess I would have wanted one and my parents would have been smart enough to see that this toy is entertaining for about one day. The only thing that would have remained beyond that first day (and played with a lot) would have been the airplane itself.
I loved mine, and my Vert Bird!
"YOU CLEARED IT but oh, you goofed the landing." 🙈 😖 😠 What a judgemental friend. 😆
I would have liked one of these. I had to improvise with an action man and a clothes line.
I had the f 4 phantom version of this was fun
I had this and loved it.
Dear Santa...
Why the FUCK do they not make toys like this anymore! This looks amazing! Even the toys I had in the 80's and early 90's were great. These days they are just rubbish, probably because kids watch tablets and tv rather than use their imaginations. Thanks for the vid, wish I had one!
amazing this is pure analog
I wonder how many kids opened this up on Christmas day and eventually became pilots.
Just for fun I searched for this you and found this video! What a great toy as a kid and I'm sure I wore out the guide line!
Three days later, with firecrackers taped to the wings, toy is taken away, standard 1 week grounded. Ahh the good ol days
That’s what we kids would ultimately have done…. many a toy met it’s end in flames, or shot up with BB’s…. :)
I liked: Voice controlled Kennedy Airport !!
I had that too
Thats cool.
yes i to had this toy got it for xmas (1973) thanks
Por qué ahora no hacen juguetes como estos, didácticos, que creen una mentalidad aspiracional
This looks fun! Why can't we bring something like this back? No batteries needed!
when I was a kid I had one similar to that and the aircraft was a Royal navy F4 phantom landing on an aircraft carrier
I wanted one of these, I got an orange, and socks. We were poor.
Not sure if anyone noticed, but that is Art Bell doing the voice over!
OMG that does sound like Art Bell
I am 41. I need two of these. One for my kid and one for me!
Why dont they make a gen 2 or 3
When you stopped playing a toy you could listen "stairway to heaven".
That looks like a Twin Cherokee.
I had one of these 😄
I'm not going to lie about this one..
I have never seen this ad before in my life...
I grew up in the 60s and 70s...but I never saw this..
Must be a mandela effect...
😮
Maravillas hechas realidad !🤗
mine had a stick instead of the yoke and a single engine plane.
If I saw this commercial I would have lost my mind.
This. Looks. AMAZING!! Seriously, where can I get one for my sons?
First... build a time machine...
But seriously, you would have to prowl the Toy Collector's Auction sites, and it would be super expensive. Best be would be to just make one yourself. It wouldn't be too difficult to figure out... ;)
that looks pretty fun =D
It seems the the CZcams algorithm is in dredging mode today.
Anyone else getting old videos brought to their feed?
That looks fun
They sold this in the UK, but I think it was a harrier jump jet, it was as shite as it looks, they kind of 1 trick pony toy that is fun for about 30 seconds.
I had one of these but it was after 1970.
este simulador esta genial!
I had one similar to this one except it had a stick and it would launch the plane up the string, then turn around for landing. Anyone remember the name of that toy?
I had one too, but also cannot remember the name of the toy...
Couldn’t afford on had to make my own !
As a 16 year old, this toy looks nifty
An antique store has one of these in box near me, should I get it?
Does it work the way I think it works? The string is tensioned or loosened and pulled to one or the other side and...that's all?
I ask because I'll be definitely building one for myself :)
Had one. 😉
Same here.
kids these days dont know what they have missed
What a clever idea .. worth a reboot ?
"You cleared it, but oh you goofed the landing! Now 4 people are dead because of you, Timmy, and there's probably going to be civil action as well as licensing reviews!"
-First draft of the commercial
All works out for Timmy though in the end, he can sue the airplane manufacturer for product liability for millions of bucks…. now that’s an educational toy…! :)
it's like if Kurt russell would become Snake plissken piloting a plane later..