by Dave Weiman
Burt Rutan being interviewed by Steve Buss of EAA in Theater in the Woods.
OSHKOSH, WIS. – Without a doubt, brothers Burt and Dick Rutan stole the hearts and minds of every EAA member that sat in the 500-seat capacity Theater In The Woods, July 28, 2011 during EAA AirVenture. Their daring and accomplishments, the genuine friendship and love of fellow aviators, and their contributions to aviation, aerospace, and mankind enamor EAA members – me included.
Burt and his crew on stage included the chief engineer and president of Rutan’s company, Scaled Composites, Doug Shane; the first commercial astronaut, Mike Mellville; and career Air Force officer and test pilot – Rutan’s brother, Dick Rutan.
Emcee Steve Buss of EAA took us through Rutan’s career since he debuted the “Vari-Eze” in 1975. Then there was the Long-Eze, StarShipOne and Two, White Knight and White Knight II, and now the Virgin Atlantic Global Flyer. Rutan and his team did all of this, including reaching outer space, on limited funds, often – as brother Dick stated – to the point of not having enough food in the refrigerator. In 1984, Dick and then girlfriend, Jeanna Yeager, raised money $20.00 at a time, selling prints of the Rutan Model 76 Voyager, for their 28,000-mile journey around the world.
The tales told that night were more than excerpts out of Rutan’s new book, “Race To Space.” They were riveting and truthful accounts of really what went on at Scaled Composites in the early days.
Commercial astronaut Mike Mellville took us through his adventures with both of the Rutan brothers, and commended Burt Rutan for hiring someone like him who lacked any formal training in math and physics, and no college degree. But Mellville has the intellect and enthusiasm Rutan admired. He also accepted assignments and risks “that no good government paid test pilot would have accepted.”
During a question and answer period, someone asked Burt Rutan about the long sideburns he is known for: “I wear my burns as long as I do out of respect for the King!” said Rutan.
Founded in 1982 by Burt Rutan, Scaled Composites, LLC is an aerospace and specialty composites development company located in Mojave, California, about 80 miles north of Los Angeles.
