Kremer Prize

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The Kremer Prize or Kremer Prize is a series of prizes for the realization and promotion of muscle power flying, the first of which was awarded in 1959 by the British industrialist and millionaire Henry Kremer . The competitions and the awarding of the prize money are supervised by the Human Powered Aircraft Group of the Royal Aeronautical Society .

Original Kremer Prize

The original Kremer Prize was awarded by Henry Kremer in November 1959. The prize money of £ 5,000 (equivalent to around € 117,058 today) was donated to the Royal Aeronautical Society; their recently founded Man Powered Aircraft Group set the rules for winning the prize money and published them in the RAS journal.

The prize money was to be paid to the designer of the first continuously flying muscle power aircraft that could take off without help. In addition, evidence of pivoting to the left and right as well as that of the change in height should be provided. Flying a prone figure eight at least 10 ft (3 m) above the ground requires all of these qualities.

On February 19, 1967, the prize money was doubled and the competition was advertised internationally. In 1973 the prize money was increased to £ 50,000 (€ 608,423).

After the designer Paul MacCready won the first Kremer Prize in 1977 with the Gossamer Condor piloted by Bryan Allen, Kremer announced two new competitions. For one, the flying crossing of the English Channel , specific rules were drawn up; this award was won in 1979 by the same team. The other was awarded for the flight of the lying eight by participants from every country other than that of the first winner; this award was won in 1984 by the German designer Günter Rochelt and his son Holger.

Original Kremer prices Prize money Donated Won time plane pilot
A flight with a muscle power aircraft in the shape of a lying figure eight by two 806 meters apart stakes within 8 minutes (last) £ 50,000 1959/1967/1973 23rd August 1977 7: 27.5 min Gossamer Condor Bryan Allen
A flight with a muscle power aircraft over the English Channel £ 100,000 1977 (?) June 12, 1979 2:49 h Gossamer Albatross Bryan Allen
A lying figure eight flight by a non-American £ 10,000 1977 (?) June 19, 1984 4:25 min Musculair 1 Holger Rochelt

Kremer World Speed ​​Competition

The World Speed ​​Competition was launched on May 4, 1983. Since the fastest muscle-powered airplane at the time, the Jupiter , could travel at a maximum of 20  mph (32  km / h ), a muscle- powered airplane had to fly the distance of one mile in under three minutes to win the prize. Henry Kremer was asked about the financial support of the competition and granted it. Since it was assumed that storing energy in any form would enable a more practical aircraft, energy could be generated and stored for 10 minutes before the start of this competition. Exceeding the time was added to the flight time. In 1986 the competition was declared over on the assumption that no more significant increases in speed were to be expected and that Kremer's money could therefore be used more sensibly in other ways.

World Speed ​​Competition Prize money Donated Won time plane pilot
A flight around an equilateral triangle with a total distance of 1500 m in less than 180 seconds. £ 20,000 1983 May 11, 1984 174.7 s monarch Frank Scarabino
Improvement of the aforementioned record by at least 5% £ 5,000 July 18, 1984 163.3 s Bionic Bat Parker MacCready
August 21, 1984 151.4 s Musculair 1 Holger Rochelt
2nd December 1984 143.1 s Bionic Bat Bryan Allen
2nd October 1985 122.0 s Musculair 2 Holger Rochelt

Kremer prizes currently being awarded

Kremer prizes currently being awarded Prize money Donated Won time plane pilot
The Kremer International Marathon Competition

Two circles around two posts 4051 m away, then a horizontal figure eight around the same, then another two circles to meet the marathon distance. It is permissible to reduce the distance between the piles while increasing the number of circlings. Time: a maximum of 1 hour.

£ 50,000 1988
The Kremer International Sporting Aircraft Competition

The construction of a muscular sport aircraft that can fly at a height of 10 m under normal UK wind conditions of 5 m / s . The course in the shape of an equilateral triangle must be flown through in both directions within 7 minutes.

£ 50,000 1988
The Kremer International Seaplane Competition

A flight of a recumbent figure eight in a muscle-powered water plane within 6 minutes. The turning points must be 805 meters apart and the aircraft must take off from the water and land in the water.

£ 10,000 1988

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ 1950's Revival ( memento September 24, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) on propdesigner.co.uk
  2. ↑ The Gossamers ( April 19, 2015 memento in the Internet Archive ) on propdesigner.co.uk
  3. ↑ Kremer Competitions on aerosociety.com (see under 'Previous Man-Powered Prizes and Awards')
  4. ↑ The Kremer Worlds Speed ​​Competition ( Memento from March 31, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) on propdesigner.co.uk
  5. ^ Website ( memento of February 2, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) by Geoffrey Landis
  6. ↑ Award for the Marathon Competition of the Royal Aeronautical Society
  7. ^ A b Human Power The Technical Journal of the IHPVA, Summer 1991.
  8. ^ Award for the Sporting Aircraft Competition of the Royal Aeronautical Society

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