Pilots will recognize N2992R as the tail number of an airplane registered in the United States.  Instrument rated pilots will recognize too that 29.92 is the standard reference altimeter setting for flights over the oceans and at 'flight level'.  This means that the altimeters on all airplanes flying under these conditions are set to 29.92.   Given the current situation, issues, challenges and our proposed solutions we thought N2992R was an appropriate platform for this particular program and would help us all build the bridge that needs to be built.

You can click the tail number to see photos of the aircraft on the ramp at Stuart, Florida's Whitham Field in 2007.  As it happens Charles C. McGowen, P.A. owns and operates this aircraft.  The company is dedicating the aircraft to this program.  This is a non-trivial dedication the significance of which is not missed on H2Orbit.

Non-aviation readers should know and appreciate that aircraft are highly regulated vehicles.  ANY change must be thouroughly documented, communicated and registered with the appropriate agency to make sure integrity, safety and assurances are met.  We intend to do all of these things.  We intend to follow the process steps necessary so that anyone else, with a general aviation aircraft wishing to follow in our footsteps can do exactly the same thing.   This process too is a non-trivial matter.

Because H2Orbit and Charles C. McGowen, P.A. (the aircraft owner) wants to make sure that the public at large has the maximum benefit from this program we are engaging manufacturers who have components in this specific aircraft so that they may participate in the program to create the necessary components in the global market for their areas of expertise.   We are providing the platform and the venue for these activities.  Manufacturers who have a vested interest in our success and sign up for participation in the program will be considered stakeholders in the program.   The aircraft will be made available to each stakeholder for engineering, testing, and advertising purposes at the appropriate and respective stage of the program.   Charles C. McGowen, P.A. will authorize stakeholders who have an appropriately type-rated pilot, and who have met the insurance criteria to fly the aircraft in their support of this mission.

Major stakeholders in this program may at their discretion have their logos posted on this web page and linked back to their web sites to demonstrate their global leadership on these issues.   A password protected web page is being established for major stakeholder communications, plans, diagrams, engineering, etc.   H2Orbit will furnish each major stakeholder, who wishes, an email ID within the H2Orbit domain for use with this program.   And in that way stakeholders may quickly recognize each other and manage focal point communications.

Missions:

• Pursue any aspect of engineering, component testing, flight testing, as appropriate to complete this mission.
• Modify the operational aspects of this aircraft so that it can accomodate standard aviation fuel (avgas), liquid hydrogen and gaseous hydrogen.   And do so with seamless integration so as not to fundamentally alter the standard operating characteristics of the aircraft under FAA regulations.
• Engage participants in the General Aviation Industry promoting liquid hydrogen technology in the context of the H2Orbit mission.
• Support any stakeholder in engaging for educational purposes the general public and especially students about the technology and its role given our current situation, the issues, challenges and the H2Orbit proposed solutions.   N2992R is but one brick on the Bridge we need to the future.   Charles C. McGowen, P.A. believes we must all do what we can.  Therefore we are dedicating this resource to that cause.
• H2Orbit cannot finance all the aspects of this program and so we are preparing to accept donations to support these efforts.  Charles C. McGowen, P.A. is providing the aircraft and is the first contributor to the program.  Additional details will be forthcoming.   One aspect we are going to implement is that donations above a certain level may request the aircraft to visit an airport so that the stakeholder demonstration team can bring the message to your town.   Entities wishing to participate financially will be recognized in the materials provided by stakeholder demonstration teams in their various events.  Major stakeholders and financial contributors will be allowed to place their logos on the aircraft so that their efforts may be appropriately recognized.  100% of all contributions will go to support this program and assure its success.  We want the aircraft to participate in major aviation oriented events in order to maximize exposure to the general public and the general aviation community at large.

The aircraft will remain in this program until H2Orbit.com and the stakeholders determine that the mission has generally been considered a success.  However long that takes.  At the generally accepted conclusion of the program the aircraft will be returned to Charles C. McGowen, P.A. in the same or better condition than when it was placed into the program.