Scientists to Try to Wing It, Just Like Daedalus
Scientists, attempting to accomplish in reality what Daedalus did in myth, said Wednesday that they are trying to build an aircraft powered solely by human energy and fly it 69 miles from Crete to the Greek mainland.
Representatives of the Smithsonian Institution’s National Air and Space Museum and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology said they have completed an investigation into the project, which envisions the plane’s flying across the shortest open-water strait between the island of Crete to Greece.
The aircraft, customized to minimize sensitivity to winds and turbulence, will weigh about 70 pounds and stretch 102 feet across its two wing tips. It will be powered by a pedaling device and flown by a single pilot with strong athletic abilities and endurance.
The plane will be made of high technology graphite, similar to that used for expensive tennis rackets. It is a strong but light material.
The project is dubbed Daedalus for the mythical Greek inventor who flew to freedom with his son, Icarus, from the island of Crete.
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