AirVenture 2013 Innovations Gallery

[Hal Bryan]

We need your help! We're trying to decide who in the world of aerospace / technology to invite as presenters in our Innovations Gallery at AirVenture 2013.

Here's a list of names we're considering - let us know who you'd like to see:

Elon Musk - http://elonmusk.com/

Shane Tedjarati - http://honeywell.com/About/HoneywellLeadership/Pages/shane-tedjarati.aspx

Peter Diamandis - http://www.diamandis.com/

Tony Hsieh - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tony_Hsieh

Bill Ayer - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Ayer

Dr. Mark Maybury – http://www.af.mil/information/bios/bio.asp?bioID=14038

Bertrand Piccard – http://www.bertrandpiccard.com/eng/index.php

Mitchell Joachim – http://www.archinode.com

Vijay Kumar - https://www.grasp.upenn.edu/

[Zack Baughman]

I'd add the forum's own John McGinnis of Synergy Aircraft to that list.

Zack

[Hal Bryan]

I'd add the forum's own John McGinnis of Synergy Aircraft to that list.

Zack

Agreed - though it was my understanding that John was a "given" this year. I'll see what I can find out.

[Bill Greenwood]

Hal, I looked at your list and I don't know any of these names. I guess I am not up on the new developments, too busy trying to enjoy the old ones.
Zach mentions "Synergy". I haven't heard anything about it since the convention. There was an enormous amount of discussion and frankly just plain hype about it last year. Are there any recent developments?

Frankly, I have never been grabbed by funny looking airplanes, from Rutan on. And I would have some doubts about putting money in a project that has lot's of pr, like "modern magic carpet" from their website, yet doesn't have an airplane that has even flown.
I'll fess up to being old fashioned, but I really liked the way that Orville and Wilbur did it where they developed a FLYING AIRPLANE, and then asked for the money. "Synergy" is trying to sell the sizzle first, and maybe the steak comes along later.
It could well work out to be a going enterprise, with real and successful planes, but there are a lot more new ideas and large promises that don't work out.
Some do, I recall that Cirrus started out as a funny looking and low performance kit pusher and became a flying high end plane.

[Zack Baughman]

John has put A LOT of work into this effort before ever going public with the concept. Frankly, I think it was brilliant to use Kickstarter and crowdfunding to get beyond the drawing board. I'm not sure if you can see this without a Facebook account, but construction on the prototype is well underway: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2269305930339.2115716.1179309664&type=3&l=9655b74356

Zack

[Bill Greenwood]

Thanks Zack, you may find this hard to believe, but there is at least one person out there who is old fashioned enough not to be on Facebook, though Becky is.

You do have to be careful about what new schemes one puts his money in.When I came into aviation a new design from a guy named Jim Bede was all the rage, but a few years later the rage was directed more at Bede.

A pilot friend told me the story of years ago, in the 60s , driving through Colorado, and they stop for a restroom and see billboards for land sales at the bottom of a mountain for a new ski area to be built. They hear the sales pitch, but my gosh they want $1200 for a lot in what the promoter says will be the base of the ski lift, which is then just a vacant field. That seemed a lot of money back then and after all who is going to drive 3 hours over the mountain passes to go way out in the middle of nowhere to go skiing?
So that is how Dave came not to own a prime lot at Vail.

I myself was asked right after college to invest $10,000 in making a new movie. I didn't like the film guy personally and knew it was risky, so I didn't even try to raise the money. They made Badlands,1973 and Sissy Spacek went on the fame and success, and the film made money.Martin Sheen and Warren Oats had good careers also.

I also met a guy, a deputy sheriff in Aspen, who was going down the Florida to join a hunt for sunken Spanish gold, with some dreamer named Mel Fisher. I was a diver myself, and wasn't specifically asked to join, but i didn't try to pursue it any further It took almost 2 years, but they found the Atocha,in 1985 and huge monetary and historic value.

These were the prudent decisions, at least at the time to say no.

But you never know.

One day I went to the airshow at Chino and saw some special planes fly, and then I looked in Trade A Plane. But that is another story.

[cluttonfred]

Honestly, with the possible exception of Elon Musk for his long-standing private space travel efforts, I don't see any of these folks are really relevant to EAA. They are mostly exceptional, inspirational businesspeople but not folks who are bringing innovation to aviation. Who is pushing the envelope of light aviation, from ultralights to business jets, helicopters, lighter than air--or technologies in powerplants, avionics, instruments, navigation, etc. that may change the way we fly in the future? Why not invite university aeronautical engineering departments to design the homebuilt aircraft of 2050 and choose the best to come show their stuff? Or hold and open call for inventors and innovators to compete for spots at the innovations gallery? I'd rather see folks like that, from around the world, given the chance to showcase their achievements.

[Bill Berson]

Nothing on that list would interest me.
I checked Airventure.org and did not find any updates at all.
Makes me wonder if the trip is worth it for 2013. (2000 miles each way)

You could invite Mark Calder from this forum. His ultralight motor glider is almost ready to fly with a new Briggs and Stratton engine .
Michael Colomban from France ( CriCri ) is another choice. He has a new Briggs powered home built also ( called Luciole).
That is EAA type practical innovation !

[Roger Janssens]

I'm voting for Bertrand Piccard, and hope not only him but also Solar Impulse will be at AirVenture this year!
(I saw them arrive at Brussels on their first int'l flight, and it's an amazing plane: http://www.solarimpulse.com/)

[Zack Baughman]

I checked Airventure.org and did not find any updates at all.


Typically the speaker/forum/presentation list for AirVenture is not available online until June.

Zack

[Hal Bryan]

Honestly, with the possible exception of Elon Musk for his long-standing private space travel efforts, I don't see any of these folks are really relevant to EAA.

Peter Diamandis has had more than a little to do with private space travel as well.


Or hold and open call for inventors and innovators to compete for spots at the innovations gallery?

We're doing exactly this for a number of the exhibit spaces in that forum that we're making available free of charge. This poll is just to ask which of these people, if any, you might be interested in hearing from as a presenter.

[cluttonfred]

Here is someone and a project I'd like to see in the innovators hall...Joe Justice and Wikispeed.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x8jdx-lf2Dw

http://www.wikispeed.com/