The GoAero Prize is a $2,000,000 chance to save the world – literally. A three-year search for solutions to the environmental disasters devastating our planet, the GoAero (Aerial Emergency Response Operations) Prize will go to the team creating an automated flight vehicle that can overcome formidable challenges. Gwen Lighter is a veteran of such challenges, having created the earlier GoFly Prize that concentrated on merely getting a single pilot off the ground safely. Successful finalists spent three years reaching the “playoffs.” This Next Three-Years’ Challenge On the surface, the challenge sounds straightforward enough: “Design and build a safe, portable, robust, autonomy-enabled Emergency Response Flyer.” Beneath that simple mission statement, things are significantly more difficult, requiring a vehicle to reach a disaster scene and perform a necessary mission. The craft should be able to demonstrate three main characteristics, being: Productive: Deploy on site and keep working day-in and day-out, reliably and efficiently. Versatile: All-theater, multi-environment, and robust so the important jobs …
