Ric Webb
Chief Executive Officer
Richard Webb, AKA "Ric", is a 25-year US Veteran and commercial helicopter pilot licensed in the USA and Canada, helicopter mechanic, eVTOL test pilot, space operations badge recipient, the founder/owner of OC Helicopters and Eco Helicopters™. He is also the creator of US product development patents #7,213,749 (issued April 2007), #7,540,412 (issued June 2009) and #8,177,129 (issued May 2012). In September 2016, the world's first electric-powered full-size helicopter took flight at Los Alamitos Army Airfield. Piloted by Ric Webb, this historic flight was conceived and mathematically demonstrated by Dr. Martine Rothblatt (see bio below). The helicopter, a modified Robinson R44, weighed 2,500 pounds with its test pilot, flew for five minutes, attained 400 feet and exceeded 80 knots airspeed, all completely powered by rechargeable batteries.
The project which was sponsored by Lung Biotechnology PBC is the first phase in the development and production of an Electrically Powered Semi-Autonomous Rotorcraft for Organ Delivery (EPSAROD). The "First Out of Ground Electric Flight" was achieved by Dr. Martine Rothblatt and Tier 1 Engineering and set a world speed record for electric helicopters of 100 knots at Los Alamitos Army Airfield under an FAA Experiment permit for tail number N3115T. On December 7, 2018, Captain Webb flew the electric helicopter establishing new world records of a 30-minute duration flight and an 800-foot altitude at Los Alamitos Army Airfield. At the end of the flight, the 2,500-pound helicopter still had 8% state of charge remaining in its batteries. (LinkedIn)