Three-year, global competition rewards teams for designing, developing, and building aviation solutions that serve the public good. In February 7, 2024, Santa Clara, California, Today, Vertical Flight Society at their 2024 Transformative Vertical Flight conference GoAERO announced the launch of its three-year global competition – the GoAERO Prize – to inspire the development of portable, versatile, and autonomous emergency aircraft. Throughout the competition, teams will compete for prizes totaling more than $2 million.
The competition is a global call for entrepreneurs, engineers, students, and companies to develop solutions to rescue people in danger from the air and respond to the challenges posed by medical emergencies, humanitarian crises, climate change, and natural disasters. Teams will be required to design, develop, and build aerial emergency response technologies used to rescue people, provide care to first responders, deliver relief supplies, and support humanitarian efforts.
“Rescue workers put their lives at risk to help people in need,” says Gwen Lighter, CEO from GoAERO. “You deserve the best and most powerful technologies that can perform a wide range of rescue operations. The GoAERO Prize is designed to stimulate and promote the development of affordable, portable, versatile, and autonomous emergency aircraft that will help fill a critical gap in emergency technology.”
The GoAERO Prize is supported by an extensive network of internationally recognized aerospace leaders, including Boeing, NASA, RTX, Iridium, and Xwing, and other aerospace organizations. As part of the competition, teams will have access to mentors and technical experts in many of these organizations, as well as training, lectures, and software.
According to Bob Pearce, Associate Administrator, Aeronautics Research Mission, NASA ARMD, at the conference: “NASA has a long history of developing groundbreaking new technologies that improve daily life and support disaster relief. GoAERO shares our vision that aviation can be used to explore, discover, and build a better future for humanity.”
The competition consists of three phases. In the first phase – the “paper phase” – the technical contributions must be submitted digitally. Phase 2 is the construction phase, which requires concept validation using a partial or full-scale aircraft. Phase 3 is the final phase and includes the final fly-off, in which The teams have to complete five real emergency missions with their aircraft.
During the Final Fly-Off, the aircraft will be evaluated for precision, productivity, durability, adaptability, and maneuverability. The team that collects the most points in each category wins the grand prize of 750.000 Dollar. The teams also have the opportunity to have one 100.000 Dollar endowed Disruptor Award from RTX and one with 100.000 Dollar to win the endowed Autonomy Award. Additional cash prizes will be awarded throughout the competition.
GoAERO was founded to develop transformative flight technologies that save lives. Our mission is to develop innovative solutions to the challenges of natural disasters, medical emergencies, climate change, and humanitarian crises from the air and to build a collaborative network between industry, government, aviation, and first responder organizations to ensure the safe and effective use of these life-saving aircraft. In 2024, GoAERO launched the GoAERO Prize, a global competition designed to stimulate the development of emergency aircraft that rescue people in danger and respond to disasters wherever they occur. The competition, worth more than $2 million, will develop safe, portable, robust, and autonomous aircraft. Teams participating in the GoAERO Prize complete over a 3-year period and benefit from expert mentorship, global exposure, access to software, products, and services, and cash prizes. To register a team or find out more about the GoAERO Prize, please visit our website: GoAEROprize.com
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