Sat, May 14, 2011
University of Maryland's "Gamera" Claims World Record with
Female Pilot Aboard, Confirmation Is Pending
A team of more than 50 students at the University of Maryland's
A. James Clark School of Engineering has succeeded in flying their
human-powered helicopter, Gamera. At approximately 1730 EDT on
Thursday, pilot Judy Wexler, a 24-year-old biology graduate student
at UM, pedaled furiously, taking the craft 3-5 inches into the air
for about 4 seconds, setting a world record for human-powered
helicopter flight with a female pilot.
YouTube Frame Capture Of Gamera Flight
Gamera was designed and built by graduate and undergraduate
students of the A. James Clark School of Engineering. Kristan
Maynard, a judge from the National Aeronautics Association (NAA),
announced that the flight looked successful, but the video must be
reviewed before they will announce the official results.
UMD Clark School Team
According to Mr. Maynard, no previous human-powered helicopter
flight has been certified. So if the Gamera flight is
certified, the vehicle will be the first in history to do so. Even
if not certified, the Gamera flight will be the first to be piloted
by a woman ... considered a major accomplishment for the Clark
School of Engineering and its fantastic faculty, staff and
students.
"I am incredibly proud of this amazing feat of engineering and
physical prowess, and grateful to faculty mentors Drs. Inderjit
Chopra, V.T. Nagaraj, and J. Gordon Leishman. Today’s flight
of Gamera is a fitting symbol of our excellence in rotorcraft
research and education, and our first step toward winning the
Sikorsky Prize."
To claim the Sikorsky Prize, a human-powered
rotary-wing aircraft must complete a flight of 60 seconds
duration reaching an altitude of 3 meters (9.8 ft) while remaining
in a 10 meter (32.8 ft) square.
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