experimental, light sport aircraft, or certified. Hybrid electric aircraft will be eligible as long as the aircraft’s primary propulsion is electric. The Chevrolet Volt, for example, uses an internal combustion engine as a range extender, but is powered by a pure electric power train.
—Best Electric Aircraft Sub-System, which is defined as a set of components designed to work together to accomplish a specific task. The system must advance the field of electric aircraft in both performance and practicality—for example, electric powertrains, energy storage systems, and charging systems.
—Best Electric Aircraft Component Technology, which is defined as a component that advances the performance and practicality of electric aircraft. For example, electric motor, batteries, and power electronics.
—Public Choice Award, which enables the public to vote on any electric aircraft that are currently flying, regardless of cost or practicality. Lindbergh says the award offers an opportunity to gauge the public’s interest and excitement among various electric aircraft projects.
Lindbergh’s grandparents, Charles and Anne Morrow Lindbergh, had historic ties to San Diego. Charles Lindbergh made his historic solo flight from New York to Paris in 1927, flying the Spirit of St. Louis, a single-engine plane made in San Diego by Ryan Airlines. Erik Lindbergh says made today’s announcement at the Torrey Pines Gliderport, a city-owned park on the bluffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean, because both Charles and Anne Morrow Lindbergh set aviation records by flying fixed-wing gliders along the coast here in 1930.
Charles Lindbergh was 28 and had been famous for nearly three years when he flew a bungie-launched Bowlus sailplane from Mount Soledad to Del Mar on Feb 24, 1930. The 30-minute flight set a regional distance record for glider flight, which was about 10 miles, according to amateur historian Gary Fogel. Anne Morrow Lindbergh made a roughly 10-minute flight in a Bowlus sailplane that was launched from Mt. Soledad on Jan 29, 1930. She received the first first-class glider license awarded to a woman, Fogel says.
