CAFE Foundation

The CAFE Foundation is a U.S. non-profit aviation development and flight test organization based in Windsor, California. "CAFE" stands for "Comparative Aircraft Flight Efficiency. The organization promotes experimental aviation activities which promote the development of highly efficient aircraft.

The CAFE Foundation is sponsored by Boeing Phantom Works, NASA, EAA, AOPA, Glasair Aviation and other aviation organizations. Funding is also obtained through an FAA grant. [http://www.cafefoundation.org/v2/main_sponsors.php Sponsors listing from cafefoundation.org] ] ]

Foundation activities

CAFE 400

The CAFE Foundation is an outgrowth from activities sponsored by the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) Chapter 124. In the late 1970s, races were held at the annual EAA AirVenture Airshow in Oshkosh, Wisconsin in which the goal was to fly the most fuel-efficient general aviation aircraft. From the early races, the CAFE Formula evolved to evaluate the aircraft. The Formula is V x MPG x W, where V=average velocity over the course of the race, MPG=miles per gallon of fuel and W=cabin payload in pounds. The first regular race to use this formula was the CAFE 400, which was held each summer from 1981 to 1990 and carried a purse of $2,000. [http://www.cafefoundation.org/v2/main_story.php "The CAFE Story" from cafefoundation.org] ]

CAFE Triaviathon

In 1986, the Foundation utilized a newly-developed, ultra-sensitive airspeed sensor, called the CAFE Barograph and inaugurated the CAFE Triaviathon race. This race evaluated an aircraft based top speed, stall speed and rate of climb. Because of the baragraph's sensitivity, the FAA later designated it as the standard for use during aircraft certification flight tests. The CAFE 400 and Triaviathon races were discontinued after the 1990 season

Flight Test Program

After the 1990 season, the focus of the Foundation shifted to performing detailed flight test analyses of experimental aircraft, again focusing on the aircraft's efficiency. Each aircraft evaluated resulted in an Aircraft Performance Report that was then published by the EAA. These activities took place at a new facility, the CAFE Flight Test Center, at the Sonoma County Airport, funded by the EAA and completed in 1993.

CAFE Challenge

In that same year, a new face, the CAFE Challenge, was inaugurated, and the Triaviathon was reinstated. Using highly accurate GPS technology, the Challenge uses the CAFE Formual over a 500-mile closed course to evaluate an aircraft's performance. The first winner of the Challenge was the Scaled Composites Catbird, a high-performance single-engine all-composite aircraft designed by Burt Rutan and flown by his brother, Dick Rutan. [http://64.233.167.104/search?q=cache:mXYVTieCQisJ:members.eaa.org/home/flight_reports/trophies.html+rutan+catbird&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=9&gl=us Seeley, Brien, "A Tale of Two Trophies"] cached at Google] [ [http://www.cafefoundation.org/v2/pav_orderfromchaos.php "Order from Chaos", The CAFE Foundation] ] Rather than a monetary purse, the two races now are commemorated by a perpetual trophy.

NASA-funded Challenges

Beginning in 2008, the Challenge race was recast. NASA has funded a purse of $300,000, to be distributed over several prizes, including the Community Noise Prize, the "Green Prize", which measures fuel efficiency, the Aviation Safety Prize, for aircraft handling qualities, a reinstatement of the CAFE 400 race, and the "Quietest LSA" Prize.

In addition, NASA had put up $2 million in prize funding to encourage the development of the Personal Air Vehicle.

Other activities

The CAFE Foundation also hosts an annual symposium which focuses on research subjects that affect the development of more efficient aircraft.

References

External links

* [http://www.cafefoundation.org The Foundation's official website]
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_tfezRwwhU Foundation President Dr. Brien Seeley interviewed on Comcast Local Edition, archived at YouTube]
* [http://www.youtube.com/cafefoundation CAFE Foundation channel at YouTube]
* [http://www.evworld.com/article.cfm?storyid=1448 Moore, Bill "Toward the 100 MPG Airplane", "EV World"]