Work on the GIL-4 began at the "Główny Instytut Lotnictwa" - Main Aviation Institute (GIL), in Warsaw in 1953, under the leadership of Dipl. Ing. Bronisław Żurakowski, who had earlier designed the experimental BŻ-1 GIL helicopter, the first successful rotating-wing aircraft built in Poland. Due to the delicate political situation in postwar Poland (Soviet influences and centrally planned economy), progress was slow. The main object was to produce a simple and inexpensive general use light helicopter and to further development of the novel rotor and transmission system, which eliminates vibration and improves control. .