Name: "Powered Parafoils for Contested Logistics and Long Range Strike” - SD
Start: 2024-11-19T16:30:00-08:00
End: 2024-11-19T18:30:00-08:00
Location: Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP

$"Powered Parafoils for Contested Logistics and Long Range Strike\u201d - SD$

Freedom Flight Works, Inc. is an aerospace defense-tech company with a focus on powered parafoil aircraft.
About this Event

Powered Parafoils for Contested Logistics and Long Range Strike

Presenter:

Austin Blue, President & CEO, Freedom Flight Works, Inc.

Freedom Flight Works, Inc. (FFW) is an aerospace defense-tech company with a focus on powered parafoil aircraft. Its products include the Long Range Precision Aerial Delivery (LRPADS) family of platforms ranging from 500 to 10,000 lbs gross weight air drop cargo vehicles, that can also be ground and ship launched. LRPADS is exceptionally low-cost and adaptable to weapons launch and ISR missions. Freedom Flight also develops personal mobility platforms with reduced signature and an Air & Ground Utility Vehicle that both drives and flies.

FFW has has secured nineteen DoD contracts since 2019 from the Army, Air Force, USSOCOM, and DARPA. Progress in maturing constituent technologies has been rapid and is accelerating along with support and interest from the customer community.

This presentation will explore how and why FFW’s powered parafoils have potential to make an important contribution to the defense posture of the United States in the fields of Contested Logistics and Long Range Strike in an environment of near peer threats, tyrannies of distance, and the growing need for tactical agility. The limitations of powered parafoils and the future prospects for emerging field of military aeronautical technology will also be explored.

Presenter:

Austin Blue has over 25 years of experience in aviation technology development and currently leads Freedom Flight Works, Inc. as its CEO, where he leads a team innovating in the military and utility application of powered parafoil aircraft.

Blue has served as the President of Spectrum Aeronautical, LLC an advanced-composite business jet, where he contributed in the design, fabrication, and flight tests of the Spectrum 33 and 40 jet aircraft while also developing a $750 million order book for the aircraft. Blue has also served as Co-Founder and CEO of SciFly, working on UAS sensor and datalink testing, flight operations, and program management.

Blue has served on the board of the Southern California Aviation Association for more than ten years, holds MA (History) and Global MBA degrees, and is an instrument rated pilot. In 2018, Blue was named an Aviation Explorer of the Year by the Boy Scouts of America.