Celebrating National Aviation Day

“It is possible to fly without motors, but not without knowledge and skill” said Wilbur Wright. It’s National Aviation Day and we were proud to have these three aviation innovators share our stage. These idealists have come up with some unusual ways to take flight and have changed the way we all view aviation. Watch these three talks below and learn how through both knowledge, skill and determination these innovators have taken flight.

Cameron Robertson & Todd Reichert
Co-Founders of AreoVelo Inc. Cameron Robertson and Todd Reichert have been pushing the boundaries of aviation. Their goal, which they started in 2006 and accomplished in 2010 was to create a human powered aircraft that flies by imitating a bird. This success awarded them one of Canada’s top aviation honors: the Trans-Canada McKee Trophy. In their 2014 talk, these partners discuss winning the AHS Sikorsky Prize and their trials and tribulations to get there. Watch their talk here

Carl Dietrich
In 2013 we were joined by Terrafugia’s CEO/CTO, Co-Founder Carl Dietrich, a different kind of aviator, he decided to take on the task of making cars fly. In his talk Dietrich reflects upon his childhood watching and reading sci-fi and shares his experiences through making an affordable flying car. Watch his talk here

Alexandra Hall
Co-Founder of Airships Ventures Inc., Hall’s company offers the only passenger airship in operation in North America: a Zeppelin christened ‘Eureka’. In her 2009 talk she discusses her ventures into zeppelin travel and why this might just be the best way to get from point A to point B. Watch her talk here

These three speakers are just some examples of aviation entrepreneurship that exists, although we commonly think of aviation as planes, as you can see there is much more to this field than meets the eye.