Man-Portable Powered Parafoil for Personal Air Mobility

Many military missions are based on the movement of individuals to the right location at the right time, while also ensuring that these individuals are able to exfiltrate to safe areas. Part of the military tactical advantage is often based on the ability to make these movements covertly, across a variety of weather conditions and operational environments. Special Operations Forces are largely built on the assumption that covert movement of small numbers of people can be performed. This capability is also advantageous for urban combat operation and Combat Search and Rescue. Hence, the capability for reliable solo air transportation confers military advantage, and this advantage is dependent on the portability of the mechanism, range of flight provided, robustness of the transportation mechanism, and ability to ascend and descend in a small area.       Cornerstone Research Group Inc. (CRG) proposes to design and assess a man-portable powered parafoil configuration, demonstrating the feasibility of this approach through a detailed system trade study and culminating in the design of a viable air vehicle that meets the challenges associated with personal air mobility – including the sizing and layout of the power and propulsion system, the structural concept, the sizing of primary lift surfaces, and a notional flight control system. This effort will expand on possible mechanisms for solo air mobility, characterizing the trade space of alternatives for viable military application. Once the air vehicle concept has been developed, the effort will culminate in a detailed technology development roadmap for validating the technical feasibility of the concept and successfully transitioning to the end-user.