The Southwest Region of the Vertical Flight Society will hold its annual Robert L. Lichten Award regional competition on Thursday, December 5th, 2019 in Bell’s Fort Worth Headquarters Tech Auditorium from 4:00-6:30 pm.
The purpose of the Lichten competition is to promote the exchange of technical information by encouraging VFS members to write and present papers dealing with all areas of rotorcraft technologies. This competition is especially tailored to provide new presenters an opportunity to be recognized for their contributions to the field. All VFS members who have not previously presented a paper at a national or regional meeting of the VFS or other technical societies are eligible. Please refer to the Procedures and Eligibility Statement for the official rules.
Candidates for the regional competition will make a 20-minute presentation in front of judges and other VFS members. The winner of the regional competition will receive a $250 honorarium from the VFS Southwest Region and will be nominated to the international competition. A $100 and $50 honorarium will be presented to 2nd and 3rd place respectively from the VFS Southwest Region.
The winner of the regional competition will write a paper due no later than February 29, 2020 to be judged at the international level. The winner of the international Lichten Award will be invited to present his/her paper at the Vertical Flight Society’s 76th Annual Forum & Technology Display, May 19-21, 2020 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada and receive a travel reimbursement stipend of up to $1500 to attend the Forum, complimentary registration and lodging, and a $500 honorarium. The international Lichten Award first runner-up will also be invited to present his/her paper, and will receive complimentary registration.
If you are interested in competing for the VFS Southwest Region Lichten Award, submit an approved* abstract/outline of your presentation and the Lichten Eligibility Checklist by C.O.B. Thursday, November 14, 2019, to Southwest Region Lichten Award Coordinator Nathan Wu at email nwu@bellflight.com . The Lichten Eligibility Statement and guideline is available for download at: Lichten Eligibility Checklist.
*All abstracts and presentations must go through company/institution management approvals for public release. Authors are solely responsible for obtaining these approvals.
The award was established in 1975 to honor the memory of Robert L. Lichten, an outstanding rotary–wing engineer and the Society’s 22nd president. Robert Lichten was a skilled and dedicated worker who spent much of his career championing early tilt–wing and tiltrotor concepts until his unfortunate death in an automobile accident. Many who knew him called him the “Pioneer of Tilt Rotor Technology.”