

For the first flight on April 19, 2021, Ingenuity took off, climbed to about 10 feet (3 meters) above the ground, hovered in the air briefly, completed a turn, and then landed.

The helicopter completed its technology demonstration after three successful flights. Once the rover reached a suitable "airfield" location, it released Ingenuity to the surface so it could perform a series of test flights over a 30-Martian-day experimental window. It hitched a ride to Mars on the Perseverance rover. The Mars Helicopter, Ingenuity, is a technology demonstration to test powered, controlled flight on another world for the first time.
