On Wednesday December 6th, VFS Philly virtually heard from Paul Fardink, Lieutenant Colonel, U.S. Army (retired)! If you are a VFS Member, the presentation is uploaded to our Member’s Only Content page!
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Boeing Vertical Lift: Past, Present, and Future
VFS Philly had a great dinner meeting a Widener University, sponsored by Boeing! Attendees heard from many great Boeing Vertical Lift employees, including Bob Beggs, Keith Conaron, and Mark Osborne. They discussed Past, Present, and Future of Boeing Vertical Lift!
A Night at the Piasecki Heliplex
We had a great dinner meeting on Tuesday October 24th, hosted by Piasecki Aircraft Corporation, at their new facility, the Piasecki Heliplex! It was a packed house for John Piasecki’s presentation and tours of the new facility!
“Seeing the Unseen: A Smart Image-Based Framework for In-Flight Long-Range Atmospheric Visibility Estimation” and “The FAA Perspective on eVTOL”
VFS Philly hosted another great dinner meeting near Rowan University in Glassboro New Jersey on September 19th, 2023 with two impressive presentations! We were very excited to host the dinner meeting at a new location, as well as had the opportunity to interact with one of our newest student chapters of Rowan University.
Both presenters gave impressive discussions, with Dr. Giuseppina Carannante’s topic of “Seeing the Unseen: A Smart Image-Based Framework for In-Flight Long-Range Atmospheric Visibility Estimation”, and Cliff Johnson presenting on “The FAA Perspective on eVTOL”.
VFS Philly at Wings N’ Wheels!
Wings ‘N Wheels is a long-running outdoor, family focused community event which attracts adults and children for a lively display of vintage and antique cars and aircraft. The Wings N’ Wheels community event benefits Angel Flight East, whose mission is to provide free flights for children and adults in need of medical treatment far from their home. To read more about their mission please check out their website (https://angelflighteast.org/who-we-are/).
The event was held on Saturday, September 9th, 2023 in Blue Bell, PA!
On Saturday, September 9th, 2023, Philly VFS set up a booth to engage the community, taught them about Vertical Flight, and promoted VFS.
“Unpacking the Promise of eVTOL Flight” with Brain Garrett-Glaser, Joby Aviation
VFS Philly had our last virtual Lunch N’ Learn presentation Wednesday August 2, featuring a talk by Joby Aviation Senior Writer, Brian Garrett-Glaser on eVTOL Flight!
“A New Taxonomy for Vertical Lift Aircraft: Reinventing the VSTOL Wheel” with Dan Newman, Boeing
VFS Philly hosted a virtual Lunch N’ Learn presentation featuring a talk by Boeing Senior Technical Fellow and VFS Philadelphia Board Member Dan Newman!
Description:
Since the successful fielding of Vertical Takeoff and Landing (VTOL) aircraft, there has been a strong desire for such runway independent aircraft that are also capable of very high speed cruising flight. There has been a lot of time and treasure invested in developing and demonstrating these VSTOL aircraft, and several attempts to characterize them culminating in the VSTOL Wheel, but each exhibits specific drawbacks in practice. The current approach is inadvertently limiting the capability for regulatory agencies to review and approve new concepts. A new, simple taxonomy has been developed by the presenter and is proposed that is suitably broad to characterize every VSTOL concept suggested, and sufficiently robust to include any in the future. And the approach offers a means to leverage each new aircraft certification, to reduce the subsequent workload and uncertainty.
American Helicopter Museum hosted their annual FamilyFest!
The American Helicopter Museum and Education Center (AHMEC) offered a day of fun during its FamilyFest on Saturday, June 24, from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. The annual event loaded with activities galore aims to delight visitors of all ages.
Highlighting FamilyFest was a presentation and demonstration by Torque, a Belgian Malinois who holds the world’s record as “The Dog with the Most Flights in a Huey Helicopter.” The hour-long talk by Torque’s personal assistant will begin at noon and include the history of dogs in helicopters, information about K-9 Torque, Torque’s world-record achievement, the training and equipment involved, and a book reading and signing of her new children’s book. Paul Kahan, AHMEC’s Executive Director, presented Torque with a plaque honoring her accomplishments.
“We’re thrilled to welcome this extraordinary animal to our museum. She flies with the Huey Vets in the San Francisco Bay Area and works with various charitable organizations, including the Tug McGraw Foundation,” explained Kahan. “Additionally, she is a highly regarded crime fighter, so come and meet Torque and hear her incredible story.”
AHMEC wishes to thank its FamilyFest sponsors: A Storage Depot, Brandywine Aviation and Maintenance, Brandywine Regional Airport, Brandywine Valley Heating and Air Conditioning, First Bank, First Resource Bank, Fastener Systems, Inc., Greg A. Vietri, Inc., MBA Advisors, Metro Aviation, Pillar Real Estate Advisors, Team Toyota, and the Vertical Flight Society.
The American Helicopter Museum and Education Center, located at 1220 American Boulevard, West Chester, is the nation’s premier aviation museum devoted exclusively to helicopters. Established in 1996, the nonprofit organization collects, restores, and displays rotary-wing aircraft, including over 35 civilian and military helicopters, autogyros, and convertiplanes.
AIAA hosted the Aerospace Robotics Competition (ARC) on Saturday, May 13th
Our friends at AIAA in the greater Philadelphia area are hosting a new competition! Checkout www.aeroroboticscomp.com to learn more about it!
“The Current State of Powered-Lift Training and the Implications for Advanced Air Mobility” at Leonardo Helicopters
VFS Philadelphia Chapter had a very special dinner meeting at Leonardo Helicopters in Northeast Philadelphia on April 19, 2023 that included a presentation by Kevin Semler, Leonardo Instructor Pilot, and included tours of the Leonardo Helicopters facility. The presentation discussed the implications of the new Powered-Lift category and how it effects operator training, especially in relation to Advanced Air Mobility (AAM). The tours included Leonardo’s production and flight lines, including AW119s, TH-73As, AW139s, and static displays of the AW609 and MH139. No photos were allowed inside the facility, so be sure not to miss out next time!