Without a crash in what period of time? I don't know anyone that's been in the hobby that hasn't had a mishap. They happen.

It's possible, but I think it takes years of preperation and commitment to learning the hows and whys of aircraft. I did it, and it did take me years to do it. I grew up playing with hand launch gliders, making hundreds of paper airplanes, moving on to little Guillows kits, learning engines with control line, RC basics with cars, and devouring every book I could about aviation and models from age 10 or so on. By the time I was 18 or 19 RC was a natural progression for me, and I successfully taught myself how to fly. I didn't have a crash until 40 or so flights had gone by.

All that said, I think it was foolish and incredibly stupid of me to try it. I didn't know any better, and had no one around to tell me any better. Now with the internet and forums like RCU, there's a bevy of resources for finding help and instruction. Take the advice that's given by people who have been there and done that. Like many things in life, it's much less painful to learn from someone else's experience.

I do think it's quite possible to learn helicopters without an instructor. Not too many buddy box helis, and provided you've got the RC experience and mechanical sense to get the set up right you can do it. Granted, it's a whole lot slower and more expensive than using a sim and getting first hand help.