Airborne 06.20.17: MAKO Near 1st Flt, Proteus 1000th, Pegasus Flying Car
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Also: SR-72 Details, Aero-Calendar, Spitfire Flips, Tecnam Twins, Space Tourism, Iridium NEXT, Falcon Aviation The first new product since the relocation of experimental aircraft pioneer Lancair International to Texas is the 4-place MAKO. The new aircraft is scheduled to make its first appearance at this summer's EAA AirVenture event July 24-30. Focused on setting a new price/performance benchmark, the new design features dual gullwing cabin doors, a first for a Lancair model. Newly designed low-drag "scimitar" wingtips incorporate lightweight LED lighting and, along with other aerodynamic refinements including an optional retractable nosewheel, are expected to add some 8 to 10 knots to the aircraft's cruise speed. The Scaled Model 281 "Proteus" recently completed its 1,000th flight. Piloted by test pilot Clint Nichols, with project engineer Sam Henney in the right seat, the aircraft took off at sunrise for this milestone flight. Proteus was designed and built by Scaled in the late 90's and completed its first flight on July 26, 1998. Proteus’ original mission was to test using an aircraft as a high altitude communications satellite – the first attempt at delivering a broadband internet connection to the masses (20 years ago). The airplane proved to be very versatile as a high altitude, long endurance research platform which allowed Proteus to accumulate over 4,000 flight hours. A Pegasus flying car made a crossing of the English Channel last week, making the trip in under an hour. Test pilot Bruno Vezzoli drove his Pegasus out of Paris, flew it across the Channel, then drove it to London. The actual flight began at 0803 local time, and touched down at 0853. Vezzoli departed from an abandoned military runway in Ambleteuse, côte d'opale (France), and landed in Douvres, England. All this -- and MORE in today's episode of Airborne!!!
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