In 1959, industrialist Henry Kremer stirred up interest in human-powered aircraft when he established a prize for the first craft to cover a course of 1 mile (1.6 kilometres). Enthusiasts around the world responded by constructing delicate flying machines of all shapes and sizes. Fifty years later, the Royal Aeronautical Society, UK, organised a competition, the Icarus Cup, as a way to inspire a new generation – and maybe even turn it into a novel form of extreme sport. Ben Crystall
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SUMPAC
Built at Southampton University, UK, SUMPAC (Southampton University Man Powered Aircraft) became the first human-powered aircraft to make an authenticated flight on 9 November 1961, with glider pilot Derek Piggott at the pedals. Built from spruce, balsa and aluminium covered with nylon, the plane flew a distance of just 15 metres. On its best flight, three months later, SUMPAC covered 622 metres.
(Image: Associated Newspapers/Rex Features)
The Gossamers
Built by Paul MacCready and Peter Lissaman of California-based engineering company AeroVironment, the won the £50,000 Kremer prize in 1977 as the first human-powered craft to complete a 1.6-kilometre course. Their next craft, (pictured), won the second Kremer prize for distance when it crossed the English Channel on 12 June 1979.
(Image: James Gray/Associated Newspapers /Rex Features)
Daedalus 88
The distance record for human-powered aircraft is now held by Daedalus 88. Built by a team at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and piloted by Olympic cyclist Kanellos Kanellopoulos, it on 23 April 1988. The flight took 3 hours, 54 minutes, and ended when Kanellopoulos ditched in the sea just off Perissa beach on Santorini.
(Image: Chuck O’Rear/Woodfin Camp/Time & Life/Getty)
Gamera II
Tempted by the American Helicopter Society’s $250,000 Sikorsky prize for human-powered helicopters, several teams are attempting to build machines that can remain airborne for at least 1 minute and reach an altitude of 3 metres. In early September, Gamera II, a human-powered craft built at the University of Maryland in College Park, hovered at 2.8 metres, an unofficial world altitude record.
(Image: Matt McClain for The Washington Post via Getty Images)
The annual Worthing International Birdman Festival in the UK offers £10,000 to the flier who travels the furthest beyond 100 metres. The best performance so far is only 89.2 metres, though. This year’s entrants included a flying car and a pantomime horse.
(Image: Jon Santa Cruz/Rex Features)
