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Elbert Leander "Burt" Rutan is an American retired aerospace engineer and entrepreneur noted for his originality in designing light, strong, unusual-looking, and energy-efficient air and space craft. He designed the record-breaking Voyager, which in 1986 was the first plane to fly around the world without stopping or refueling. He also designed the Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer, which in 2006 set th…
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business · American aerospace engineer (born 1943) · military flight engineer · inventor · aircraft pilot · entrepreneur · engineer · also Burt Rutan, Elbert Leander "Burt" Rutan, Rutan
Born 17 June 1943 · Q453046
49 published statements · 0 followers
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The Mojave Air and Space Port was given the name "Rutan Field" in honor of the Rutan brothers' contributions to the airport, its board stating that the Rutans' aviation achievements "have played a key role in the evoluti
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Received his second eponymous Bob Hoover award with the AOPA's R
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Flying: Burt Rutan Takes SkiGull to the Water
Flying: Burt Rutan Makes Progress on SkiGull
Won Wright Brothers Memorial Trophy (2015).
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Began water and flight testing a prototype of a new amphibious aircraft, the Rutan SkiGull, intended to be capable of flying between Hawaii and California, cruising at 200 mph (320 km/h), taking off or landing in abou
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(VSS Enterprise tail number: N339SS) resulted in the death of copilot Michael Alsbury and injuries to the pilot
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Rutan spoke on "Innovation and the Space Race" to the World Affairs Council, as recorded on C-Span
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CompositesWorld: Burt Rutan, Scaled Composites unveil roadable airplane prototype
Won Daniel Guggenheim Medal (2011).
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Rutan retired from Scaled Composites to his home in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho
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Rutan and Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen announced the Stratolaunch, a space launch carrier aircraft built by Scaled Composites for Allen's Stratolaunch Systems to carry air launch to orbit rockets
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Which is the world's largest airplane by wingspan, and in 2019 announced that he was working on a new eVTOL
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Scaled Composites announced the retirement of Rutan:
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Richard Branson unveiled Scaled Composites White Knight Two Eve, at the Mojave Spaceport
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Branson predicted that the maiden space voyage would take place within 18 months: "It represents
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Using craft based on the designs of SpaceShipOne
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Which killed three engineers and seriously injured three others, may have contributed to the delay
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Awarded honorary doctorate of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (2007).
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Awarded NSS Wernher Von Braun Memorial Award (2007).
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Northrop Grumman became the sole owner of Rutan's Scaled Composites
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Set the world record for the fastest (342 mph/551 km/h in 67 hours) and longest (25,766 miles/41,466 km) nonstop non-refueled circumnavigation flight in history
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Awarded J. C. Hunsaker Award in Aeronautical Engineering (2005).
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SpaceNews: Burt Rutan and Private Space Pioneers to Testify on the Future Markets of Commercial Space
The Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer, an aircraft similar to the Voyager design but built by Scaled using stiffer materials and a single jet engine, completed the first solo non-stop, non-refueled flight around the world with
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Received the NAS Award in Aeronautical Engineering from the National Academy of Sciences
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Aviation Week: Burt Rutan's Scaled Composites received the world's first license
Rutan's sub-orbital spaceplane design SpaceShipOne became the first privately funded spacecraft to enter the realm of space, winning the Ansari X-Prize that year for achieving the feat twice within a two-week period
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After SpaceShipOne flew, he was listed as one of Time magazine's "100 Most Influential People in the World" and as Inc
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Was a VLJ designed and built as a test bed and demonstrator aircraft for Williams International's new FJX-1 turbofan engine
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Rutan designed the first prototype, a proof-of-concept aircraft intended to confirm the design's handling, which resulted in several problems and a redesign of the aircraft in 1998
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Awarded National Aviation Hall of Fame (1995).
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Was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame
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For leading the engineering, design, construction, and testing of a series of aircraft, including Voyager
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Was inducted into the International Air & Space Hall of Fame at the San Diego Air & Space Museum and in 1995, the National Aviation Hall of Fame at the National Museum of the United States Air Force in Dayton, Ohio
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Rutan received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement
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And SpaceShipOne in 2004), received six honorary doctoral degrees, and has won over 100 different awards for aerospace design and development
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Was the first plane to fly around the world without stopping or refueling
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For his design and development of the Voyager 15
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Had announced his plans to retire in April 2011
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And is now on exhibit in the Hiller Aviation Museum in San Carlos, California
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Brought this project to an end, after the aircraft had flown
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And 1979 respectively, Rutan is responsible for helping popularize both the canard configuration and the use of moldless composite construction in the homebuilt aircraft industry, the latter a technique that was adopted
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Founded the Rutan Aircraft Factory to develop experimental aircraft for homebuilders
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Began building his first design, the VariViggen, which first flew in April 1972
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Graduated third in his class from the California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo) with a BS degree in aeronautical engineering
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Born 1943-06-17.
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In Estacada, Oregon, near Portland, and raised in Dinuba, California
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Klapmeier brothers, founders of Cirrus Aircraft, inaugurated major change in production airframe manufacturing, with the all-composite SR20 in 1999
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