[VIDEO] Who Has This Much Time On Their Hands? Oh, Canadians.

World's First Human Powered Helicopter

The American Helicoptor Society's Igor I. Sikorsky had offered a $250,000 prize for anyone who could create a human-powered Helicopter. 

Aviation history was made on June 13th by the Canadian Aero Velo team. From humble Kickstarter-funded beginnings, this team is largely comprised of students from the University of Toronto. 

The Sikorsky Prize represents a monumental challenge that requires a level of aerodynamic efficiency that is unheard of in commercial helicopters. A successful Sikorsky Prize helicopter will be able to hover on less than one horsepower.

"No one knows better than we do the enormously difficult engineering and human performance challenges that must be overcome in order to meet these flight requirements." the team said in a statement. "We salute this historic accomplishment of the AeroVelo team and the intense dedication, innovation, research and hard work we know it required."

Dr. Todd Reichert

The team’s quad-copter design was created from a frame made of carbon-fiber/Vectran while the blades of the Atlas were made from polystyrene, balsa wood and polyester film. These elements were then tied together by a bicycle at the center of the machine. Dr. Todd Reichert, one of the leaders of the team, pedaled to lift the AeroVelo Atlas for 64.11 seconds. The craft reached an altitude of 10.8 feet and drifted only 32 feet during the flight, which took place on June 13 inside a field house in Vaughan, Ontario.

See the Video Here!