The object
Mark Drela designed the Daedalus Project's Light Eagle, the human-powered aircraft that completed the record 115-kilometre flight from Crete to Santorini. MIT describes the design-and-test work and identifies Drela as the aircraft's designer, demonstrating an exceptionally consequential physical aircraft rather than only an aerodynamic theory.
01
What Mark did
Designed the Daedalus Project's Light Eagle human-powered aircraft and its high-performance aerodynamic components.
02
Why it matters
Light Eagle completed the 115-kilometre Daedalus human-powered flight, a landmark endurance achievement for a human-powered aircraft.
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Living-status check
MIT's current people directory lists Drela as Terry J. Kohler Professor and Wright Brothers Wind Tunnel director, roles held through 2026.