Gregory Polek has spent his entire career in aviation journalism with AIN, starting as a proofreader and assistant to then-managing editor Mary Mahoney in 1995 after serving an internship with&nbsp;New Jersey Monthly&nbsp;magazine and completing his B.A. degree in English/Writing at New Jersey’s William Paterson College. By 1997 Polek accepted a position as an associate editor, covering the regional airline beat for&nbsp;Aviation International News&nbsp;in place of retiring industry veteran Don Anderson. The assignment took Polek across North America and Europe to profile regional airlines varying in size and mission from the likes of floatplane operators Kenmore Air and Chalk’s Ocean Airways to regional jet operators such as SkyWest and American Eagle. Today, in his dual role as Air Transport Editor and International Airshow Editor, Polek writes, edits, and manages AIN’s commercial aviation content while overseeing each of the company’s daily international air show publications in Paris, Farnborough, Singapore, and Dubai. Most recently Polek has assumed oversight of daily coverage of the Helicopter Association International’s annual Heli-Expo convention.

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Gregory Polek

Electra has won a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contract from the U.S. Army valued at $1.9 million for wind tunnel testing of the company’s hybrid-electric short takeoff and landing (eSTOL) aircraft. The award allows the U.S. Army to explore Electra’s blown-wing aircraft technology potential to broaden U.S. military capabilities, especially for fuel-efficient, resilient logistics in contested environments.
Electra says its eSTOL vehicle combines helicopter-like applications with fixed-wing-like performance and operating costs. The combination of blown lift and eight distributed electric motors significantly increases wing lift, allowing for ultra-short takeoffs and landings from spaces as small as a soccer field while “dramatically” reducing noise and fuel use compared with conventional aircraft. Hybrid-electric power ensures ranges beyond 1,000 miles for national security applications without the need for battery charging stations.
“There is a substantial benefit to employing the right-sized aircraft for a given payload-range mission,” said Ben Marchionna, Electra’s director of technology and innovation. “It’s a very effective method to substantially reduce fuel use—or operational energy—in theater, which really matters for enabling distributed operations in contested locations.”
Marchionna added that many of the most commonly deployed military logistics “solutions” in use today fly well below their intended payload capacity. The eSTOL aircraft can fulfill such missions while using “dramatically” less fuel, providing more range at significantly reduced noise levels and using the same constrained operational footprints on the ground.
The powered wind tunnel testing will advance Electra’s aerodynamics database for use in performance analysis, simulator, and control law development. Electra will use the wind tunnel tests, combined with ground tests and the ongoing flight test program of <a href="https://www.ainonline.com/news-article/2023-11-20/electra-starts-flight-tests-hybrid-electric-stol-technology-demonstrator">Electra’s eSTOL technology demonstrator aircraft</a>, to help guide the design and development of its production aircraft.

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U.S. Army Awards Electra $1.9 Million for eSTOL Wind Tunnel Tests

Small Business Innovation Research contract explores blown-wing tech

Electra wins $1.9 million contract from the U.S. Army for wind tunnel testing of its hybrid-electric short takeoff and landing (eSTOL) aircraft.

Electra Wins $1.9 Million Army Contract for Wind Tunnel Tests

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