Eco Factor: Zero-emission aircraft designed to run on muscle power.
At the age of 16, when many would just sit back and admire aircraft as they fly over their rooftops, Jesse Van Kuijk thought to take to the skies in an aircraft that he will design himself. The dream took three years to realize and at the age of 19 the inventor finally designed an aircraft that runs on pedal power.
Living in a small provincial Dutch town called Budel, Jesse learned everything that he needed to know about aviation from a variety of sources, which led to the designing of a plane made from lightweight Balsa wood, polyurethane and light rip-resistant foil that would eventually line the craft’s 26-meter-wide wings.
Weighing just 56kgs, the plane finally lifted a few meters off the ground before the bicycle chain, which powers the propeller gave way, sending the aircraft to the ground. But the aircraft did fly, even if just a few meters. The teen designer has no hard feelings about the chain, as he did accomplish what he strived for the last three years.
Via: Spiegel
