{"id":11801,"date":"2018-06-19T21:03:52","date_gmt":"2018-06-20T04:03:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cafe.foundation\/blog\/?p=11801"},"modified":"2018-06-19T21:03:52","modified_gmt":"2018-06-20T04:03:52","slug":"gofly-announces-first-round-prize-winners","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/cafe.foundation\/blog\/gofly-announces-first-round-prize-winners\/","title":{"rendered":"GoFly Announces First Round Prize Winners"},"content":{"rendered":"

Boeing just announced the ten winners of Phase I in its GoFly competition<\/a>, in which entrants design, build and fly a \u201cpersonal flying device.\u201d\u00a0 As Boeing explains, contest rules are designed to enable entrants \u201cTo foster the development of safe, quiet, ultra-compact, near-VTOL personal flying devices capable of flying twenty miles while carrying a single person.\u201d\u00a0 The list of partners and co-sponsors is impressive and includes virtually all major American aviation advocacy groups.<\/p>\n

As the Green Flight Challenge demonstrated seven years ago, prize money encourages a grand series of investments by individuals in hopes of winning a prize.\u00a0 In this case, 3,000 entries by 725 teams from 95 countries presented drawings and documents describing their proposed PFD, with a select 10 advancing to Phase II, which will require a demonstration of the proposed machine\u2019s ability to perform as promised.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo be able to engage so many individuals from leading universities, major corporations and startups, and connect them through our community of innovators enables us to impact the industry in an unprecedented way,\u201d said GoFly CEO Gwen Lighter<\/a>. \u201cWe know that the road to personal flight is long and difficult, but we are incredibly encouraged and inspired by the volume of strong submissions that we have received in Phase I. This is only the beginning.\u201d<\/p>\n

More pessimistically, \u201c\u2019The GoFly prize is impossible,\u2019 said Michael Hirschberg, executive director of the Vertical Flight Society<\/a>, a technical society for people working on vertical takeoff and landing flight. \u2018There is no way \u2014 based on conventional thinking \u2014 that someone can make a device that can meet the low noise, small size and long endurance requirements that it requires.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHirschberg is hoping to be proved wrong. He hadn\u2019t yet seen the winning GoFly designs, and at this stage, it remains difficult to tell whether anyone can achieve the minimum contest requirements.\u201d<\/p>\n

One of the promising features of this phase is contestants\u2019 access to an international group of experts in aircraft design, structure, power, safety and other fields.\u00a0 Boeing explains, \u201cExperts engage with innovators and share their insights in two different ways, as Mentors or Masters. Mentors work directly with innovators in their respective areas of expertise, providing tailored advice on projects and progress. Masters host monthly online lectures<\/a>, offering teams around the world opportunities for learning and discussion.<\/p>\n

The following Master Lecture provides a detailed overview of the rules, showing that contest officials have considered all or most of the aspects of the design phase.<\/p>\n