Carl Runco, a graduate student in the Department of Aerospace Engineering at Texas A&M University, was named the international winner of the American Helicopter Society’s (AHS) 2016 Robert L. Lichten award competition for his paper, “Development and Flight Testing of a Meso-Scale Cyclocopter.” Runco will be honored at the annual Grand Awards Banquet at the 72nd AHS Forum in Palm Beach, Florida.
Runco works with Dr. Moble Benedict in the Advanced Vertical Flight Laboratory (AVFL) and his project involves design, development and systematic flight testing of a 29 gram meso-scale cyclocopter, which is the smallest cycloidal-rotor based aircraft ever built.
The Robert L. Lichten Award was established in 1976 to recognize new and innovative research in the area of vertical flight. Each of the 10 AHS regions around the world is eligible to select a regional winner, from which an overall international winner and runner-up are selected.