When: Thursday 8 May – 5:30pm for 6:00pm start
Where: The Wellington Club, Level 4 / 88 The Terrace, Wellington Central
Presentation: “The challenges & progress in Human Powered Flight” by Roger Warren; BSc, Diploma Industrial Design. MRAeS.
Discover what does it take to fly an HPA:
The history of the sport and where you can do it; the engineering challenge and the human factors to overcome; what it is like and how much energy it takes to fly; previous research and the best approaches and common materials to build an HPA; what can go wrong in flights, and how much control you have and the aircrafts’ present limits; the events in Human Powered Flying, and the 4 outstanding prizes in the sport yet to be won (total Prizes in the UK add up to $270,000); what does success result in and the real world application of this technology in High Altitude Autonomous aircraft (e.g. Airbus Zephyr); an introduction to the gossamer solar electric aircraft that fly at 80 thousand feet for months at a time; previous NZ HPA attempts and why you need to sponsor another NZ attempt led by Roger. “
Roger Warren is a research engineer in the Surgical Engineering Lab at the Auckland Bioengineering House and in 2020 returned to NZ after working in UK as an engineer for 10 years. The work in UK as a contract designer included both commercial medical product R&D as well as aviation; with projects on variable focus fluid filled lens spectacles (Adlens), Photodynamic treatment of bladder cancer and an internal cavity IR device (Photocure), surgical tools for knee replacement surgery (Corin Medical); and finally with the Airbus high altitude solar UAV Zephyr program for 2.5 years.
Roger’s introduction into light aviation was first learning to hang glide at Karioitahi in NZ and then entering the UK birdman competitions at Bognor & Worthing in 2010. There he met other pioneering aviators and was invited to work at P&M Aviation in Wiltshire on a composite Microlight called the Pulsr. It was at P&M Aviation that he transitioned to fly microlights but also his Human Powered aircraft association began; and Roger now has 15 years experience in gossamer fixed wing aircraft having been involved with several Human Powered Aircraft builds and operations.
Roger is the previous British Human Powered Flying club president from 2015 to 2017, and has been a competition director at the Icarus cup on 3 occasions; he was the founder of Team Airglow with Robin Kraike in 2012 for the first Icarus Cup event which Team Airglow won, and has flown 3 human powered aircraft; Airglow, Aerocycle 301, & Betterfly.