In Germany, “flugtag” means “flying day”.
In the U.S. “flugtag” has come to mean some of the wildest “flying” competitions around.
This year, the closest event to Connecticut is happening in Washington D.C., where teams of 5 will be taking to the air — or at least trying to.
Among them is a team from our own state. In East Berlin, a group of engineers from Pratt and Whitney has been selected by the sponsor, Red Bull, to fly in the event.
The Engineers, who go by the name “The Channel 4 News Team”, an ode to the movie Anchorman, are one of just thirty teams who will try and see “what flies”.
“The point is to build a glider which is in the process,” said Eric Rosendahl, who has been picked to be the pilot.
Rosendahl, who, in the real world, is an Assembly Process Engineer at Pratt and Whitney, added “then they will all push me off the pier, 30 feet up and then I will hopefully glide safety in the water.”
The gliders aren’t allowed to have an engine, and must be under 450 pounds.
The longest flight to date? 207 feet.
The Red Bull Flugtag event, which occurs in several sites this year — Washington, Dallas, Miami, and Chicago — is on September 21st.
To find out more about the East Berlin Team, follow them on Twitter @ch4flugtag