Burt Rutan: Icon of Homebuilding…And Space Travel By David ... · Burt Rutan shows his pride in a...
Transcript of Burt Rutan: Icon of Homebuilding…And Space Travel By David ... · Burt Rutan shows his pride in a...
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Burt Rutan: Icon of Homebuilding…And Space Travel
By David Gustafson
BurtRutan’slistofairplanesdesignedandflown(45),ofhonorary
DoctoralDegrees(6!),ofnationalandinternationalawards(112…
notcountingthemilkdrinkingcontesthewonattheageof12),
ofpatentsheld(7),andofdesignprojectsrelatedtoaviationin
someway(severalhundred)takesup11pages!Thisalloccurred
intheyearsbetween1965,whenhegraduatedfromCaliforniaPolytechnicUniversity,andhisretirement
fromScaledCompositesinApril,2011.Itincludesaworkschedulethatwouldhavecrippledmostpeople:
escalatingovertheforty-sixyearshespentinthehighdeserttosixorsevendaysaweek,8to16hoursa
day.Vacationtimewasrare.“Ithinkthemainreasonistherewasn’tmuchtodoinMojave.Ikeptmyhead
downandmyelbowsupandIworkedlikehell.”Whenheretired,hefound“withaclearcalendar,Icould
sleepinandthendecideonagivendaywhatIwoulddoafterIwokeup.Thatconceptwassoforeignto
methatitwasabsolutelyamazing.Istillhaven’tgottenusedtoit.”He’sstilllookingforthe“off”switch.
Inhislifetimehewentfrommodelairplanestorocketscience,
fromhomebuiltstotransports,frominternationallyrecognizedprojects
liketheVoyagerandSpaceshipOnetoclassifiedstuffwewillprobably
neverknowabout.Hechangedthecultureofaviation.
Burtevolvedintoanunusualblendofscientistandartist.Hewas
abletovisualizeairflowinwaystherestofuscan’t,andheknewhowto
directthatflowthroughthelawsofphysics.Hisairframes,especiallythe
fuselages,werethemostradicalandgracefulexhibitsofsculptureever
seenintheairbefore.Burtisasortofindustrialsculptorthatguyslike
Rodinwouldhaveadmired.SpaceshipOneandTheWhiteKnightbelongin
anartmuseumasmuchastheNationalAirandSpaceMuseum.
ThelateJackCox,editorofSportAviationfrom1970to1999,wrote
hislastarticleforthatmagazineinApril,2011,focusingonBurt’searly
years.HecharacterizedBurt’ssupersonicmindandÜber werkethikthis
way:“Ifthinkingoutsidetheboxandturningthatthinkingintosuccessful
Voyager Aircraft ProgramBurt Rutan shows his pride in a hangar at Edwards AFB after the successful landing of the Voyager on December 23, 1986. The Voyager was a unique aircraft designed by engineer Burt Rutan to fly around the world non-stop and non-refueled. The craft piloted by Dick Rutan and Jeanna Yeager achieved its milestone goal in Decem-ber 1986 after flying around the world in slightly over 9 days.
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venturesandproductsisamarkofgenius,thenBurtRutan,EAALifetime
26033,hasclaimmanytimesovertothatdistinction.Nootherindividual
inthehistoryofaviationhasdesignedasmanyaircraft…radicallydifferent
aircraft…andhadthembuiltandflown.”
Burt’sfascinationwithaviationbeganasayoungman.Inhigh
schoolheignoredkitsandbegandesigningone-offmodelsexperimenting
withdifferentconfigurations.Alocalhobbyshopowner,whosedayjob
waslayingbricks,begantakingBurtandsomeofhisbuddiesinDinuba,
California,tocompetitionsinSan
Franciscoeveryotherweekend.
Atage17,hismothertrucked
Burtand11oftheuniqueaircraft
modelshehaddesignedandbuilt
toanAMAnationalconventionin
Dallas.Burtcamehomewithafew
trophies.In1961,hewentofftoCalifornia
PolytechnicUniversitytopursueadegreeinAeronauticalEngineering.While
there,anideagerminatedinhisfertileimagination,followingaresearch
projecthedidonthevirtuesofcanards.Intriguedwiththeanti-stall,anti-
spincharacteristicsofthecanardconfiguration,andenamoredwiththeSaab
Viggen,hebegansketchingouthisfirsthomebuilt:thetwo-seat,tandem
VariViggen.Itwastobebuiltoutofwoodand
metal.Heconductedwindtunneltestsonthe
conceptatCalPolyin1964,butdidn’tbegin
buildingituntil1968.Finishedin1972,Burt
flewittoOshkoshwherehewontheStanDzikDesignContributionTrophy.
ItwasprobablythefirstcanardpushertoshowupatOshkoshanditcreated
quiteastirwhenitgotthere.Delightfullynicknamedthe“ThunderChicken”,
itwasBurt’sanswertothefighterpilotwannabecomplexthathedeveloped
duringtheyears1965–1972,whilehewasworkingatEdwardsAirForce
Baseandtakingtripsinfighteraircraft…inthebackseat…asatestengineer.
A very young Burt Rutan with one of his scratchbuild model air-planes...it was his passion through high school.
Burt with a model he created for endurance.
Burt’s first job out of University was at Edwards Air Force Base.
Burt’s first experiment with a canard
Variviggen Car Tunnel Model, show-ing the instruments to measure the effect of wind.
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“Thefascinationofhavingmyownfighter,whichwouldallowmetositinthe
frontandhavemyhandonthethrottle,providedthemajorreasonfordoing
theVariViggen.”BurthadjoinedEAAin1965andwhilehewasworkingfor
theAirForce,hejoinedEAAChapter49,buthehadtoputoffthestartof
constructionbecausehewasworkingsevendaysaweekandhadnospare
time.Whatlittletimehedidhavewentintotheconstructionofanother
windtunnelmodeloftheVariViggen,butthiswasafterCalPolyandhehad
nowindtunnel.Soheusedhiscar,mountingthemodelabovetheroofof
hisDodgeDart.Itwasanarticulatingmountwithinstruments.Drivingdown
roads,hewasabletosimulateawindtunnelofhisownmaking.HethenbuiltanRCmodeloftheVariViggen
andflewthatshortlybeforeflyinghiscompletedhomebuilt.Thathappenedlatein1971whilehewasinSt.
LouissupportingtheF-15program.
Inthesummerof‘71hehadmadehisfirsttripto
Oshkosh.It’sfunnytothinkaboutBurtRutanwandering
aroundtheOshkoshflightline,unrecognized.Thatwould
changethefollowingyearwhenheintroducedhisVariViggen.
Thatsame
year,afterreturning
toLancasterandhis
workatEdwards,he
encountered one of
thoselife-changingexperiencesthatwouldtakehiminaverydifferent
direction.Adesigner/kitmakernamedJimBedecamethroughnearby
FoxFieldandmembersofthelocalEAAchapterencouragedBurtto
meetJim.Hedid.HeshowedJimpicturesofhisVariViggen,which
wasnearingcompletion.SomeonehadalreadytoldJimaboutBurt,
and,knowingthatBurtwasinvolvedinflighttestingatEdwards
AirForceBase,JimofferedBurtajobashisChiefFlightTestPilot.BurttoldJimthatheneededaChiefof
ExperimentalTests,adding“Iknowhowtodothat.I’maprofessionalflighttestguyandIcouldorganizeand
runyourflighttestprogram.JimwasplanningonintroducingotheraircraftandItoldhimhecouldgetpilots
anywhere,butwhathereallyneededwassomeonetoputtogetheratestingorganization.Iwaslookingfor
The car Top Variviggen model ready for the automotive wind tunnel.
Burt with the VariViggen
Burt in the early phase of building the first VariViggen.
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ajob,knowingitwouldprobablyonlylastaboutayear.Iplannedtoreturn
toEdwardswithinayeartoholdontothebenefitsassociatedwiththatjob.
Ididn’tliketheBD-5,butIwenttoworkforhimwiththeideathatIwould
havefunandlearn.”
Burtwasalsoformulatingaplanthatmightleadhimintothe
homebuiltkitbusiness.Theideaoccurredtohimafterhehadread
aboutBede’splanstoselltheBD-5kit.Hesketchedouttheconceptfora
MiniViggen(single-seater)forwhichBurtwouldcreateakitthatcouldbe
addedontoaBD-5kit.AslongasJimcouldsellhisBD-5kits,Burtexpected
hewouldhavenoobjectionstotheconcept.“Ifigureditwouldbeawin/winsituationforbothhimand
me.”TheMiniViggenwouldbethesizeofaBD-5(considerablysmallerthantheVariViggen),butitwould
betransformedintoacanardairplane.SobeforeBurtwenttoworkforJim,heorderedhisownBD-5kit,
thinkinghewouldlayouthisdesignandchangetheBD-5intoaMiniViggen.“Andifitflewwell,Iwould
gointothekitbusiness.”Asitturnedout,BedeneverdiddelivertheBD-5kitasthetotalpackagehehad
advertised;nottoBurtoranyoneelse.Itbecameoneofthebiggestscandalsinthehomebuiltmovement.
Burtmanagedtoavoidthescandal.HefunctionedastheprincipaldesignerontheBD-5Jet
andthetrainerthatwasmountedinfrontof,andattachedto,atruckforassistingpilotswithtransition
training.HewoundupstayingwithBedelongerthantheoneyearhehadplannedon.Duringthetwo
summershewasthere,BurtbroughthisVariViggentoOshkosh,whereheattractedlargecrowds.Inearly
1974afterleavingBede,“IdecidedIwouldbitethebulletandtrytomakeabusiness…thesamekindof
businessthatBedewasrunning,butIwoulddoitwithouttakingdepositsbeforeIhadsomethingtosell.I
hadlearnedsomeofthebusinessmistakesBedemade,andifitwasn’tforthoseexperiences,Iwouldhave
madesomeofthosesamemistakes.Itwasclearthathewasdiggingaholethathecouldn’tgetoutof.He
wasactuallysellingkitsforlessthanitcosthimtobuythematerials.Thenhegotdistractedandkindof
abandonedthehomebuilders.IdecideditwasgoingtofailinjustahandfulofmonthsandIdidn’twantto
beapartofthepeoplewhogottheblackeye.SoIdecided‘I’moutofhere.’”
KnowinghehadamarketableproductintheVariViggen,BurtmovedbacktoCalifornia.“Ididn’t
especiallywanttomakeplansfortheVariViggenbecauseitwasreallyhardtobuild.”However,hebegan
shippingoutplansandstartedmachiningsomeofthemorechallengingpartsofthedesign.Toassurea
minimallevelofsecurity,Burtborrowed$15,000fromhisdad.Butfirsthehadtofindaplacetoestablish
Burt Rutan in a BD5
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hisbusiness.Ithadtobecheap.HeneededahangarforhisVariViggen,ashopformakingplansandparts,
andahomeforafamilyoffour.
LosAngeleswasoutbecausethehighcostofhangarsandshopspace.Heborrowedhisuncle’s
ErcoupeandwentdowntoBrownFieldontheMexicanborder,thenlookedatMontgomery,Ramona,Flabob
andahostofothers.Hewasshockedbythepricespeoplewereasking.“OnceIgottoMojave,Ifoundthis
old,nearlyabandonedairportwithafewrundownwoodenbuildingsonitandthehangarrentwasalmost
nothingandtheshoprentwasalmostnothing,becausetheyhadallthisemptyspace.Ifoundahouse
nearbythathadalowenoughpriceandsoitturnedoutthatMojavewasthefirstplaceI’dfoundwhereI
thoughtIcouldsurviveoncost.TheotherthingwasthatitwasclosetoEdwards,andifmybusinessfailedI
couldalwaystrytogetmyoldjobbackwiththeAirForce.”
AfterparkinghisVariViggeninthecornerofanold
woodenhangarfor$15/month,BurtmovedintoBuilding13,
whichwasaboutahundredyardsbackfromtheflightline.He
putupasign:RutanAircraftFactory.Itwasalargebuilding,far
biggerthanwhatheneededtodevelophisnextaircraft,the
VariEze.Sohepartitionedoffaboutathirdofit,hungsome
insulationonthepartitionsandsublettheothertwo-thirdsof
thebuildingfortwicetheamounthewaspayingfortheentire
building.Thismeanthehadafreeofficeandshopfacility.
“That’scalledsurvival.”
Ofcourse,survivalrequiresmorethanaworkspace.Therehastobeaviableproduct.At$27aset,
forVariViggenplans,Burthadincome,butknewitwouldbealosingbattle.“Ididn’tseeaviablebusiness
sellingplansorkitsfortheVariViggen.Peoplewerefascinatedbyhowcoolitlookedandhowitcouldmake
tightturnsatfullaftstick.Itwasafunairplanetofly,forsure,andIenjoyedgivingairshowsatOshkoshin
’73and’74,butitwashorriblydifficulttobuild.Itwasmixtureofmetalandspruceandbirchplywood,ithad
complicatedcontrolsandanelectricretractablelandinggear.Icouldseethattherewasasmallaudience,
whohadtheskillsandpatiencetobuildone,butclearlyifIwasgoingmakeabusinessoutofsellingplans
andkits,Ihadtohavesomethingthatwaseasiertobuildandwiderinappeal.”
BurtlikedtheconfigurationoftheVariViggen,founditfuntofly,wasimpressedwiththestall-proof
natureofthecanard,butwasdisappointedinitsperformanceandefficiency.Hefocusedonproducinganew
Burt Rutan at his drawing table in the Pre-CAD days.
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versionofitthatwouldbeconsiderablyeasierandquickertobuild.TheVariEzewasborn.
DuringBurt’sUniversitydays,RCmodelersbeganexperimentingwithfoamcorewings.Theyhad
masteredthetechniqueofcarvingorhot-wirecuttingoffoamwingcoresandcoveringthemwithbalsa
woodskins.Burthadheardofthetechnology.WhenhewasworkingforJimBedeandlivinginValley
Center,Kansas,hebeganexperimentingwithfoamandfiberglass,producingelevatorsforhisMiniViggen.
“Ibecameenthralledwiththeprocess.Ittookmeaveryshorttimetobuild.Iwalkedawayfromitandthe
nextmorningithadcuredandwasreadyforuse.Itwassmootherandnicerthanaluminum.Ididn’thave
topoundoutribs,didn’thavetouseclecos…Iwasreallyjazzedbythis.”
AfewhundredyardsfromBurt’snewlocation,Building13,wasanoperationcalledFredJiran’s
GliderRepair.FredwasEuropeanandhadfamiliaritywiththesailplanesthatwerebeingproducedin
GermanyandSwitzerland.Itwasatechnology
thatwasstillinitsinfancyinAmerica.These
sailplaneswereproducedintoolingthatutilized
vacuumbaggingoffiberglassimpregnatedwith
resin.Carvedfoamwasthensetinsidetheupper
andlowersurfacesofthewings.Whentheywere
dingedinanaccident,Fredwouldshapefoamto
filltheholeandthenlaynewfiberglassoverit.He
didn’tneedtoolingtofixwings.These“moldless”
repairsinspiredBurt.Hebegantoconceiveofhis
VariEzeasanall-compositeaircraft.
OneofFred’semployees,GaryMorris,
anartistandacraftsman,begangoingoverto
Burt’sshopafterworktoseewhatwasgoingon.
Hepitchedin,offeringmuchneededhelptoBurt
andwasofferingsuggestionsonhowworkwithfiberglass.Burt
askedGarytokeeptheprojectasecret,incasesomethingwentwrongwithit.Garyworkedforfoodas
Burtcouldn’taffordanywages,butdecidedtobuydinneriftheyworkedlateenough.Initially,Burtwas
thinkingofhand-carvingthefoamcoresforthewings,butthenhestruckontheideaofcuttinglargeblocks
offoamwithahotwire,justlikewhatwasbeingdonewithsmallRCmodels,usingtemplatesateachend.
The first VariEze in the early stage of construction.
One of the prototype wings for the VariEze.
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Bingo!Thiseliminatedtheneedfortoolinganddramaticallyreducedthetimerequiredtocompleteawing.
Forthefuselage,helaidsheetsoffoam(1’or2”thick)onatable,carvedvariousdepressionsofthem
andskinnedthemwithfiberglass.Thosesheetsbecamethesidesandbottomofthefuselagewiththeir
skinsbeingthefuselageinsidesurfaces.Thethreesideswerebondedtogetheraroundafewbulkheads,
creatingasquareboxwithanopentop.Theplexiglasscanopyandframewouldlaterbethefuselagetop.
Theoutsidesurfaceswerethencarveddowntothecorners,resultinginaroundedexternalshape.The
bigstructuraladvantagewouldbetheoutsideskin,whichcouldbe
onecontinuousfiberglasslayupallaround,withoutfastenersor
secondarybonds.Thus,theRutanaircraftFactorycreatedanentirely
newwayoffabricatingairplanes.Itwasnowpossibletobuildupan
airframewithoutexpensivetoolingandinverylittletime.Handtools
amountedtolittlemorethanapairofscissors,asharpknife,apaint
brushandsomesandpaper.
BurtstartedhisVariEze,N7EZ,inFebruaryof1975,intenton
makingtheOshkoshFly-Inthatsummer.Hegotthere.Hehadfinished
thefirstVariEzein3.5months.Itwassmaller,leanerandcouldgofasterandfartherthantheVariviggen.
JackCoxhadvisitedtheRutanAircraftFactoryinearlyMay,1975,tookpicturesoftheprojectandthenran
anarticleinSportAviationhecalled“VariViggenVignette,”inwhichheintroducedtheVariEzeconceptand
thenewprocessofbuildingaircraftoutofcomposites.Jackfollowedthatupwithabunchofphotosofthe
completedVariEze,primingtheEAAFly-Inforarevolution.
Itwasn’tuncommoninthosedaystoseefourtoeightnew
designsatOshkosheveryyear.Innovationwasawayoflifeatthe
Convention.Butnothinghadevercomparedwiththeintroductionof
theVariEze.Thebuzzamonghomebuilderswhentheaircraftfirstflew
overtheOshkoshairportwaspunctuatedwithgaspsandmorethana
fewsaltyphrases.Thiswasthebeginningofarevolutionandeveryone
knewit.
Asidefromtheunusualshape,presagedtwoyearsearlierbytheVariViggen,theVariEzehadno
movingpartsonthewing.Theruddersweremountedonthetrailingedgeofthenewwinglets,aconcept
Burt seen conducting an early workshop on hotwire/foam cutting techniques.
Burt in the prototype VariEze
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developedbyRichardWhitcomb.Burtwasthefirstdesignertousewinglets.Theelevators,whichBurtcalled
elevons,wereattachedtothetrailingedgeofthecanard,withcontrolleversabouttwofeetfromthestick.
Theelevonsmovedupanddowntocontrolpitch,butalsooperateddifferentially,asailerons.Toaccommodate
entryandegress,Burthaddesignedacranksystemthatraisedandloweredthenosewheel.Noneofthese
featureshadeverbeenseenbefore.ThefactthatBurthadputitalltogetherinlessthanfourmonthsjustblew
peoples’minds.
Accordingtohisplan,Burtwouldn’ttakeanyordersthatfirstyear.Hisbrother,Dick,hadflownthe
aircraftfromMojavetoOshkosh,buthadtomakeaforcedlandingenrouteduetoanenginefailure.John
MonnettgraciouslyofferedtoreplacetheVolkswagenengineintheprototypewithoneofhisownandworked
allnighttogettheplanereadyforaclosed-courseendurancerecord.
Aftertheconvention,BurtflewN7EZbacktoMojaveandexperienceda
secondenginefailure.ThatsouredhimonusingVolkswagenpowerplants.
Hegothomeandbegantothinkseriouslyaboutwhathewasdoing.He
madethedecisiontonotsellplansfortheVolkswagen-poweredN7EZ(it
isondisplayintheEAAMuseum).Hebuiltandtestedanotherprototype
VariEze,abiggeronethat
woulduseacertified
aircraftengine.Thenew
aircraft,N4EZ,formedthebasisforthehomebuilder’splans-built
airplanes.ItusedaContinental0-200,100hpengine.N4EZisnow
ondisplayintheAirandSpaceMuseum’sDullesfacility.
Peoplebegansendingmoneyin,eventhoughhedidn’t
yethaveanythingtosell.AfterhisexperiencewithJimBede,
Burthadresolvednevertoacceptmoneyuntilhehadaproduct
thatwasfullyflighttestedandcomplete.Hesentthepeoples’
moneyback,refusingtotakeanydepositsuntilamonthbeforeOshkosh’76.Atthattime,heputthewordout
tothethousandsofpeoplewhohadsubscribedtohisquarterlynewsletter(thiswasbeforetheinternetand
websites).Acoupledaysaftersendingouthisnewsletter,announcingtheavailabilityofplans,someguyflew
infromSanDiegoinaCessna182andpaidforahundredsetsofplans.HetookafullthirdofBurt’sinventory
ofplansandgrossedouthisSkylanewiththem.Thenhetookoffandflewbacktoaneagerbunchofbuilders,
Burt has held forums every year he’s been at Oshkosh. You can guess which tent he was in for this forum.
The Defiant (closest), the VariEze and Mike Melville’s VariViggen.
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whocouldn’twaittogetstartedontheirownVariEze.
“Onthatoneday,Imadeenoughmoneytosurviveforafullyear.”
Burtstartedsellingplansat$125aset.Inthefirstyearofthe
VariEze’sexistencehewenttothebankwith$750,000thatcameinfrom
planssalesandroyaltiesfromkitsales.Burttookhomelessthan$8,000,
preferringtoputtherestbackintoRAFandfuturedevelopments.Hebegan
payingGaryMorrisasalaryandhiredoneotheremployee.
JimIrwin,presidentofAircraftSpruce,remembersBurtvisitinghis
officeinthespringof1975totalkaboutmaterialskits.Jimlistenedpolitely
buthadnowayofknowingwhatwascoming.Forthatmatter,neitherdid
Burt.ThefoambeganarrivingattheoldAircraftSprucefacilitybytruck,then
bytrainload.Itflewoutas
fastasitwastrainedin.“It
wasaphenomenon,”saidJim.“Forawhilewesoldmorefoam,
fiberglassandresinthaneverythingelsecombined.”
In1977,BurtrolledouttheQuickie,asingle-seatdesign
hecreatedincollaborationwithTomJewettandGeneSheehan.
ItwontheOutstandingNewDesignAwardatOshkosh’78.Then
hebeganacenter-linethrusttwin,calledtheDefiant(Burt’s
personalairplane,notintendedforakitprogram),whichwasdebutedatOshkosh’79alongwiththeLongEZ.
TheVariEzehadprettymuchdecimatedtheexistenceof0-200engines.Builderswantedtousetheheavier
Lycomingenginesandinsistedonhavingastarterandfullelectricalsystem,whichmadetheVariEzetail-heavy.In
1979Burtdevelopedalarger,Lycoming-poweredEZwithsomesignificantimprovementsinflyingqualities.The
Long-EZwasintroducedin1980anditbecamethe
mostpopularandlongest-rangehomebuiltinthe
world.Itsdistancerecordsstillstandtoday.Therest,
astheysay,ishistoryandit’sbeenwelldocumented.
After1985,RAFdevelopedtwohighperformance
prototypes,the5-placeCatbirdwhichwontheCAFÉ
VariEzes and Long-EZs gathered at Mojave for a celebration of composite aircraft.
LongEZ flown through one of those YeeeeeHAh!!! maneuvers.
A grouping of Quickies
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efficiencycompetitionandtheBoomerangTwin.BothwerehangaredafterBurtlosthisAirman’sMedicalin
1998.LastyearasBurtretired,twoScaledengineersrestoredtheCatbirdandtheBoomerangandflewthemto
AirVenture2011.Intotal,RAFdesigned,builtandflew15differentaircraft.
BurtcontinuedtoattendtheannualOshkoshConvention.From1976to1986RAFrenteda10’by
10’boothduringtheOshkoshConventionandduringtheweek
hewouldmake20percentoftheirannualsales.Itwasn’tjust
planssales.TherewereT-shirts,patchesandothermemorabilia
thatcrossedthecounterbythecase.“Itwastremendously
importanttous.”Hisforumsbecameoneofthehighlightsofthe
conventions,drawingthelargestcrowdsfornearlytwodecades.
“Tous,itwasallabouthomebuilts.”
NoteverythingatRAFhadturnedtogold.Burtfinally
startedsellingplanstotheDefiantsixyearsafterheflewthe
prototypeandheonlysoldplansforayearwithaboutahundredsetsgoingoutthedoor.TheSolitairewas
evenlesspopular.Theself-launchingsailplanecostmoretodevelopthantheVariEzeandLong-EZcombined,
butBurtonlysoldafewdozen
setsofplans.Overtheyears,
Burtsoldkitsforsixmodels:
theVariViggen,VariViggen
SP,VariEze,Defiant,LongEZ
andtheSolitaire.Theother9
modelsthatBurtdeveloped
weredonewithoutan
audience…withnointentionofdevelopingplansorkits.
By1996,Burt’ssecondcompany,ScaledComposites,was14yearsold
andwasdemandingsomuchofBurt’stimethathejustdidn’thavetimefor
homebuilders.Hehadsoldhislastsetofplanstoahomebuilderin1985but
continuedtosupporthisbuildersforover20yearswithnewsletters,even
thoughtherewasnorevenuetocoverthecostsofthenewsletters.“Inever
chargedforbuildersupport,becauseIdidn’twantpeopleshunningitand
The Solotaire, a self-launching sailplane.
The Defiant leads the VariViggen and VariEze.
The VariEze (closest), Defiant and the VariViggen.
The Solotaire’s retractable engine.
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buildingbadairplanesasaresult.InitiallyIdidnotrealizewhatanenormoustailyoucreatewhenyousell
plans.”
Duringthe1980stheflightlinesatOshkoshandSun‘nFunweredominatedbyaircraftBurthad
designed.ThousandsofVariEzesandLong-EZswereaddedtotheFAAregistry.Theybeganshowingupon
airportsallovertheworld.Theyspawnedavarietyofcopiesandstimulatedavarietyofotherhomebuilt
andcertificateddesignsthatusedcomposites:liketheGlasair,
Lancair,Cozy,Pulsar,Glastar,Europa,Velocity,VK-30,SR-20/22,
Columbia,BoeingDreamliner….
Lookingback,Burtwasaskedtoidentifythethreegreatest
accomplishmentsinhisillustriouscareer.Heelectedtoincludethe
manufacturingmethodsdevelopedforproducingtheVariEzeand
Long-EZ.HeviewstheLong-EZasarefinedmodeloftheVariEze,a
naturalpartoftheevolutionaryprocess,amodelB.Therewerea
lotofunique,innovativefeaturesonthetwoaircraftthathavesince
beenimitated.Therobuststructure,performanceandappealofthetwo
models,coupledwiththefactthatforaverylowcost,peoplecouldbuy
andbuildoneoftheairplanes,was,inBurt’sopiniononeofthemajorachievementsinhislifetime.
Whenaskedwhathisfavoriteairplanewas,he’dalwayssay:“thenextone.”Thatwaswhatusually
heldhisattentionandstimulatedhispassion.ButafterSpaceshipOne,hestoppedsaying“thenextone.”
SpaceshipOneishisfavorite
andranksrightupthere
withthelistofhisthree
greatestaccomplishments.
“Mostoftheprogramwas
completely covert and
peoplewereguessingwhatthisWhiteKnightwasfor.Theideathataprivatecompanycoulddeveloptheir
ownspaceprogramwithoutgovernmentfundingwasunheardofandun-thoughtof.”
Thethirdpartofthetriangle“wouldbethefactthatmytinycompaniescouldattractcontracts
Burt Rutan logging time on his computer. Note the model just to the right of the keyboard.
Catbird & BoomerangCatbird & Boomerang
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frombigaerospacefirmsandfromtheGovernment,gainingtheirconfidencetodoimportantresearch
work.WhenRAFhadonlyfouremployeesinthe1970s,itdesignedtheskew-wingAD-1research
aircraftforNASA.ItisnowondisplayattheHiller
MuseuminSanCarlos.OneoftheScaledComposites’
firstcontractswaswithBeechcraft…todesignthe
Starshipwhichtheyplannedtouseasthereplacement
fortheirKingAirline.Thatprogramstartedasa
preliminarydesignstudyatRAF.Scaledwentonfrom
therewithcivilian,governmentandmilitary,domestic
and foreign contracts for an unbelievable array of
mannedandunmannedmachines.
Atitspeak,RAFemployedfivepeople.Scaledcomposites
startedwithsixemployeesandgrewtoaboutthirty-fivewhenthe
Starshipmadeitsfirstflightin1983.Afterthatitwascommonat
Scaledtoseethreeorfourdesignsbeingbuiltintheshopwhile
twoorthreemorewereinflighttesting,whenemploymentwas
welllessthan100.WhenScaled
undertookthePaulAllenmannedspaceprogramin2001,itwasnot
theirlargesteffort,inspiteofthefactthattheyemployedlessthan
140.WhenBurtretiredinMarch2011,thecompanyhadnearly400
peopleonthepayrollandwasdevelopingSpaceShipTwo,theworld’s
largestmannedcommercialspacesystem.LastDecember,Scaled
revealedthatitwasdevelopingStratolaunch,theworld’slargest
aircraft;adesignstemmingfromBurt’spreliminaryworkthatwasstartedbackin1991.
GiventheimpactBurtRutanhadonthehomebuiltmovement,itseemsinconceivablethatwe’ll
everseethatkindofinnovation,popularityandcommitmentagain.Itseemsstrangenottobeableto
Good Company: Paul Allen, Burt Rutan and Sir Richard Branson
Spaceship One and the Rocket Scientist.
The Beech Starship and friends.
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askthequestionanymore:“WhatwillBurtturnupwithnext?”
RUTAN AIRCRAFT FACTORY: MANNED FIRST FLIGHTS
1 VariViggen Model #27 May 18, 1972 (marketed 1974)
2 VariEze POC Model #31 May 21, 1975
3 VariViggen SP Model #32SP July 1975 (marketed 1975)
4 VariEze Homebuilt Model #33 March 14, 1976 (marketed 1976)
5 Quickie Model #54 November 17, 1977 (Sold to QAC to market)
6 Defiant Model#40June30,1978(marketed1984)
7 Long-EZModel#61June13,1979(marketed1980)
8 AD-1 Model #35 NASA December 1979
9 Amsoil biplane racer Model #68 Mortensen Aug 1981
10 NextGenerationTrainerModel#73FairchildSeptember10,1981
11 GrizzlySTOL Model#72January22,1982
12 Solitaire Model #77 May 28, 1982 (marketed 1983)
Burt’s highly unusual design by anyone’s stan-dard.... the Grizzley.
Burt and Tom Poberezny at Oshkosh 2005. Tom was quick to recognize and admire the genius and success of Burt Rutan.
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13 VoyagerModel#76June22,1984(RTWonDec14th-23rd,1986)
14 Catbird Model #81 January 14, 1988
15 BoomerangModel#202June19,1996
Long EZs and VariEzes on the ramp at Mojave.
The Voyager at Oshkosh
Burt with models of some of his designs.
The Boomerang