Canadian Team Claims $250,000 Prize

Human Powered Helicopter - How AeroVelo Won The Prize

The American Helicoptor Society's Igor I. Sikorsky had offered a $250,000 prize for anyone who could create a human-powered Helicopter. Aviation history was made on June 13th by the Canadian Aero Velo team. From humble Kickstarter-funded beginnings, this team is largely comprised of students from the University of Toronto. 

The Sikorsky Prize represents a monumental challenge that requires a level of aerodynamic efficiency that is unheard of in commercial helicopters. A successful Sikorsky Prize helicopter will be able to hover on less than one horsepower.

"No one knows better than we do the enormously difficult engineering and human performance challenges that must be overcome in order to meet these flight requirements." the team said in a statement. "We salute this historic accomplishment of the AeroVelo team and the intense dedication, innovation, research and hard work we know it required."